Rendang was voted most delicious food in the world by more than 35,000 readers of CNN Travel in a poll in 2011.
The delicious fried rice, also from Indonesia appears in second place, pad thai in fifth place and the soto ayam salad in sixth position to name a few.
What is rendang?
Rendang is originally a dish from the Minangkabau ethnic group but it is also made by the Malays in Malaysia, Singapore, in the south of the Philippines and in Brunei.
Rendang is a kind of beef curry, simmered for a long time, which allows the meat to soak up all the flavors that make up this unique dish. Depending on the desired end result, cooking the dish in coconut milk and all the spices can be shorter or longer. The classic version must be dry enough and should cook for at least 2 to 3 hours.
When the rendang curry is cooked for less time, it is a little wet and brown in color, and it is called Kalio. When simmered for less time, it is soupy, closer to a Thai curry and is called curry. It is then typically yellow. Traditional rendang that simmers for hours turns dark brown when it is finished cooking.
How to make rendang
The spices and ingredients mixture that is the basis for the Indonesian recipe is called cooker in Minangkabau. Some of the ingredients that are used have antimicrobial properties. If it is cooked properly, dry rendang can often be kept for 3 to 4 weeks at room temperature and up to six months in a refrigerator.
Rendang can be served with white rice, but also ketupat (a kind of pressed rice cake), lemang (sticky rice cooked in hollowed bamboo stick), and vegetables such as cassava leaves or young jackfruit.
Each of the main ingredients used in the making of rendang has cultural and spiritual significance.
- the meat or meat symbolizes the clan leaders, nobles, elders.
- the coconut milk or carambia represents the intellectuals, teachers, poets and writers.
- the chile or lado symbolizes religious leaders, the hotness representing the sharia.
- the spice mixture or cooker represents the rest of the Minangkabau society.
Rendang is a festive dish served at various ceremonies and rituals such as the Muslim holidays of Eid al-Kabīr and Eid al-Fitr. The first mentions of rendang date from the sixteenth century in the famous Malay book Hikayat Amir Hamzah.
In Malaysia, rendang is cooked for less time and is thickened with toasted grated coconut called rustle. This technique also adds more flavor complexity in addition to a thicker texture.
Beef rendang is the most popular version of this dish but the same technique is used with beef liver, chicken, duck, goat, water buffalo, eel, egg and even fruits and vegetables such as jackfruit or cassava. The generic term for the classic meat rendang is beef rendangwhich is the specialty of Padang, the largest city in the province of West Sumatra.
Rendang is made with galangal. Galangal is a close cousin to ginger root but with lemony aromas. It is also prepared with turmeric root.
Kaffir lime leaves are also an ingredient of this thick stew. Kaffir lime is a citrus that is very common in Southeast Asian cuisine.
Finally, a less unusual ingredient but quite typical of this cuisine: lemongrass, is one of the predominant flavors of this dish that is often used in Asian cuisines.
Like many dishes that have spread across regions and were transmitted through generations, there is not just one authentic rendang recipe, even if some ingredients must be present.
In the version presented here, you will find galangal, turmeric root, kaffir lime leaves, lemongrass, star anise, but also star anise, cardamom, cinnamon, cloves, fennel seeds, cumin seeds, coriander seeds, shallots, garlic, chili pepper, tamarind and palm sugar. And all these flavors are concentrated in this dry but tender meat.
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Rendang
Rendang is a kind of Indonesian beef curry, simmered for a long time, which allows the meat to soak up all the flavors that make up this unique dish.
Servings: 6 people
Ingredients
- 3 lb beef cut into chunks
- 5 tablespoons oil
- 2 cups coconut milk
- 5 tablespoons rustle (grated coconut), toasted and crushed (optional)
- 2 tablespoons pure tamarind extract
Whole spices
- 1 cinnamon sticks
- 5 cloves garlic
- 3 star anise
- 4 green cardamom pods
Whole spices (dry roasted and then ground into powder)
- 1 tablespoon fennel seeds
- 1 tablespoon cumin seeds
- 1½ tablespoon Coriander seeds
Wet Paste
- 3 stalks lemongrass (white part only), thinly sliced
- 1 (2-inch) piece galangal
- 1 (1-inch) piece ginger
- 10 shallots
- 1 (2-inch) piece turmeric root
- 6 leaves kaffir lime finely chopped
- 6 cloves garlic
- 10 red hot chili peppers soaked and seeded
- Salt
- Palm sugar (to taste)
Instructions
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Mix all the wet paste ingredients in a blender or food processor.
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In a skillet, toast coriander, cumin and fennel seeds for 2 to 3 minutes, then grind in a spice grinder or using a mortar and pestle.
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Add oil to the skillet, bring the heat to medium-low, add the whole spices and sweat for a few minutes.
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Add the wet paste into the skillet and cook over medium-low heat for 20 to 30 minutes or until the oil begins to separate from the ingredients.
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Add the dry ground spices to the pan and mix with the wet paste.
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Fry for about 5 minutes, being careful not to burn the mixture.
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Add the meat, coat with paste and fry for about 1 minute.
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Add the coconut milk. Bring to a boil then reduce heat to low.
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Simmer very gently uncovered for about 3 hours or until the meat is cooked and the sauce is reduced considerably.
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Add kerisik (optional) and tamarind and simmer for another 20 minutes.
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Add salt and palm sugar to taste
Mike is “the devil” of the 196 flavors’ duo. Nicknamed as such by his friends, he is constantly in search of unusual recipes and techniques with impossible to find ingredients. The devil is always pushing the envelope, whether it is with humor or culinary surprises.
