beef rendang food safari

Ingredients

Beef rendang (ultimate guide).

Rendang is a caramelized meat curry dish from West Sumatra, Indonesia. It needs hours of slow cooking until the coconut milk is caramelized and turns into its signature luscious texture. Together with homemade coconut butter and a load of spices, the dish is a delicious affair.

Preparation 15 mins Cooking 150 mins

Rendang Daging

Malay, Malaysian, Singaporean, Indonesian

Nutrition per Serving

Michael Turkic

Liberty Grace Lee

Phill Morris

Bashir Bashardoost

Paul Marshall

Rendang is a very special curry dish. Made with a selection of 10 different types of spices such as chillies, turmeric, lemongrass and galangal, it easily stands out for its awesome flavour which develops over the long and slow cooking process. It's so tasty that it was voted as the most delicious food in the world based on 35,000 votes in a survey carried out by CNN. The complexity of the dish and the details that come along with it made rendang an exclusive dish. It's usually served for weddings, religious celebrations and coronation ceremonies. Now that we know rendang is the king of curries and tastes extremely delicious, it is important to understand the dish and the tips to achieve the best result.

Rendang originates from the Minangkabau ethnic from West Sumatra. With the migration of Minangkabau immigrants to its neighbouring countries such as Singapore and Malaysia , it was then introduced to other neighbouring countries such as Malaysia and Singapore. The name ‘rendang’ came from the Sumatran word ‘randang’ which means slowly. This clearly refers to the cooking process which takes a long time. Traditionally, it takes between 8 hours to 3 days to cook rendang! Some suggested that the correct name for the dish should be the latter instead of what it is known today.

How does rendang taste like?

Rendang does not tastes like the red curries from Thailand or India. Instead, it is thick and has a texture almost like soft butter. The mixture of spices blend in harmoniously giving it a touch of heat that comes through subtly when eaten. The sensation of smell and taste of rendang is simply divine. Besides that, the aroma from the spices and the nutty flavour of ‘ kerisik ’ which is also known as coconut butter make the dish stands out from the other types of curries.

Kerisik is made of grated coconut which has been toasted until golden brown before being pounded until its oil is released. It is usually added to dishes and stewed for hours for all the ingredients to release their optimum flavours.

Why does it take so long to cook rendang?

The initial intention when making rendang was to prepare a dish that would keep for a long period without the help of refrigerators. Cooking for a long time ensures that any excess liquid will be evaporated. Hence, allowing the dish to last longer. It also takes at least 2 hours 30 minutes (portion for 4-6 persons) for the coconut milk to begin caramelizing. So, be patient for the perfect colour and texture of the curry to emerge.

Tips to making delicious rendang

When sautéing the pounded or blended spices, you'll need to follow the steps recommended in the recipe as different spices or herbs need different amount of time to be cooked until it's fragrant. The sequence to sauteing the ingredients is lemon grass first followed by garlic-onion-ginger mixture then, galangal and lastly, shallots.

During the long cooking process, the sugar in the coconut milk caramelizes as the liquid is reduced. Subsequently, another crucial step which cannot be skipped is to sauté the meat until excess water is evaporated before adding the coconut milk. This will help to intensify the flavour besides reducing the excess liquid.

Can I use chicken to make rendang?

The original choice of meat for rendang is beef. Compared to chicken, beef is able to sustain the slow cooking process. Theoretically, chicken can be used but the meat would break down during the long cooking process. There will be lots of small chunks of chicken with strands of the protein in the pot at the end of cooking. That's why chicken rendang takes a shorter time to cook. Hence, the gravy wouldn't be as caramalized when compared to beef rendang.

However, unlike chicken, beef is able to handle the heat while retaining its shape. Therefore, the meat coated with the thick gravy is a delight to savour in every mouthful.

Which part of beef is suitable?

The cheapest cut of meat! Ask for beef meant for stew. Softer cuts of beef may risk turning out tough after the long cooking process. Beef used for stew is usually from the shoulder and upper arm muscles of a cow and sometimes labeled as chunk.

Type of chillies used

I used a combination of dried and fresh chillies. The dried chillies are used for its smoky flavour while fresh chillies gives a nice shade of redness to the curry. You may opt for either type if you're unable to get both. As for dried chillies, I used the Sri Lankan dried chillies as they are the only type available at the Asian grocer I used to frequent. Dried chillies of the types Byadgi or Kashmiri would work equally good too. To learn more about reducing the spiciness of dried chillies, tips on substitutes or where to buy them, check out this page about dried chillies .

As for fresh chillies, cayenne peppers is the best choice for its size and also level of spiciness. If you are not at all used to spice and heat, use long red paprika. They are also known as Boldog paprika. This might be offensive to rendang lovers but it's a great substitute to introduce rendang to non-spicy eaters. If Boldog paprika is used, do sauté them until it is fragrant and ensure that most liquid from the paprika is evaporated.

Pound, blend or chop the herbs?

While blending is the easiest out of the other 2 processes, pounding gives the best flavour as oil from the spices and herbs are released. If you choose to chop the herbs, do ensure that they are chopped finely as the long stewing process may not be able to soften ingredients like galangal and lemongrass. Biting into any of these herbs might be unpleasant. If you don't choose to mince the lemongrass, leave it as it is as it can be removed after cooking.

How long can I keep rendang?

If cooked properly and excess water is removed according to the recommended steps, rendang can be kept at room temperature for up to 3 weeks. However, this recipe does not cater for such long storage. It's best to cool the dish to room temperature before refrigerating it for up to 5 days. You may freeze the dish in an airtight container for up to 3 months.

How to reheat rendang?

You maybe use the microwave to reheat the dish. Frozen rendang should be thawed before reheating. If you do not have a microwave, steam the dish for at least 40 minutes to ensure that it is fully heated.

Cooking rendang in a slow cooker

You may cook beef rendang using a slow cooker. Simply put all the blended ingredients, meat, coconut milk and water into the slow cooker and cook for 12 hours. The beef rendang will be very tender.

Steps to Prepare

Step 1 of 4

• 3 cm ginger
• 3 garlic clove(s)
• 1 yellow onion(s)
• 5 shallot(s)
• 1 1⁄2 cup chilli peppers (dried)
• 2 fresh chilli (red)
• 2 lemongrass stalk(s)
• 3 cm galangal

Pound the following ingredients separately. Bowl 1 - ginger, garlic and onion. Bowl 2 -shallots, bowl 3 - fresh and dried chillies and the last bowl - galangal. Set aside. Bruise the most bottom part of the lemongrass by lightly crushing it with a pestle or the back of a knife.

Step 2 of 4

In a pot heated over low to medium heat, saute lemongrass until fragrant before adding the ginger, garlic and onion mixture. Continue sautéing until the mixture turns almost translucent. Add galangal and sauté until fragrant before adding shallots.

Step 3 of 4

• 1 tsp coriander powder
• 1 tsp fennel seeds
• 1 tsp cumin powder

Coat beef evenly with pounded chillies, coriander powder, fennel seeds and cumin powder. Add beef to the pot. Sauté until excess water from beef is released. This will take a few minutes. It is important not to skip this step.

Step 4 of 4

• 1 tbsp tamarind pulp
• 500 ml coconut milk
• 2 tsp palm sugar (gula melaka)
• 1⁄2 tbsp salt
• 2 tbsp kerisik
• 1⁄2 cup water

Soak tamarind in hot water. Add coconut milk, tamarind water, palm sugar and kerisik into the pot. Increase heat to the maximum and bring to boil. Then, reduce heat to the lowest. Cover the pot and allow dish to simmer for 2 hours or until gravy thickens. Stir every 15-20 minutes to prevent ingredients from sticking to the pot. Once the dish is ready, stir in a few slices of kaffir lime leaves.

Published: June 29, 2019

10 Discussions

I tried your recipe today and it turned out great. The one thing I'd like to see in recipes is for example seeing the amount of shallots in grams. I'm from Germany and live in the US and feel that shallots over here are huge in comparison to for example Germany. I may be wrong on that one but having the amount in grams would be awesome.

Finally made beef rendang and kerisik. I used packaged dessicated coconu and it turned out. I think frozen would be better. The dessicated seemed a bit sweet. No galangal so i added extra ginger. No kaffir lime leaves so i added lime juice at the end. Should i add zest too?? I threw the pot in the oven for a couple of hours ,then, finished on the stove top. What is the difference between this beef rendang side dish and the other recipe on your site for a main meal? Terima kaseh 🙏 This site is so fun and informative😊🥥😊

I tried the chicken rendang first and loved it. So here I am trying the beef rendang. I used chuck steak and doubled the recipe quantity. I followed the recipe prep exactly as is and pounded everything, no shortcuts. Endurance is required for this and I don't know how to pick galangal, it was like pounding a tree root. I admit I felt like my arms were going to fall off and really wasn't sure this was going to be worth it. I think the brand of coconut milk i used was more watery than expected. It didn't dry up like the video but it was still very enjoyable. I gave a serve to my parents. They couldn't find the chuck pieces I had put in. I must have stirred it till it disappeared. I thought really screwed it up but they loved the flavour so much, they threw in more meat and kept it going for days to savour the flavour. The flavour is awesome, even if some steps don't work out as expected. Will try again using a blender. Thanks for the yummy recipe. 5 out of 5!

Made this today and it turned out awesome.. Thanks for this recipe... finally succeeded in making good rendang. I transferred the rendang to the pressure cooker after step 4 to tenderize the beef. After that I transferred to the stove to continue cooking till it "thickens"....

Julian Titheridge

Best rendang recipe ever! Grace, I love you X

The recipe and guidelines are so thorough, appreciate the time and effort i tried it and the results were great wish i could share a picture here, once again thanks a lot for sharing your experience and passion with us.

Mira - Community Happiness Manager

Happy to hear how the recipe helped you! I have linked your photo to this recipe. It's in the food snap gallery above ;)

I made this and it's delicious. I added another 100g of beef as the ingredients are more than enough for the extra meat. I grinded all the aromatics (lemongrass, shallots, onions, garlic, galangal and ginger) together. And grinded the chillies separately. The grinded lemongrass gave the dish some texture which I prefer. Happy cooking everyone.

How wonderful, Mary!

Claudine Moloney

Hi Grace. Hope you are keeping well. I am new to your site and already enjoying it. Would you know please how much approx. tamarind paste does the recipe need if using 1.5 kg of beef?

Hi Claudine, since the recipe uses 500g of beef, you can triple the amount of the recipe. Feel free to adjust the automated counter above to 18 portions and the recipe will be updated accordingly.

Thank you for coming back to me Mira. I did make the rendang and it was fabulous!

Hey, thanks a lot of the recipe. Quite different Rendang then the recipe I had, the one I usually makes includes Star Anise, Cardamon, Turmeric root, kerisik, candlenuts and cloves. Any idea which area that would be from?

Traditional Minang or Indonesian Rendang don't contain candlenuts. Cardamon on the other hand is more common in Rendang Tok from Perak, Malaysia. So that's tough to identify. You might want to refer to your source. ;)

This Ultimate Guide is very helpful to many. However readers may be interested in using one of the multi-use pressure cookers which have gained popularity. Do you have any tips in adapting this recipe to these pressure cookers. I have been using one when for cooking beef stews, chilis, and braising of lamb shanks with a lot of success. Sometimes i just pressure cook the beef or lamb to beef or lamb for just 15 -20 minutes then finish in a more traditional way.

With a pressure cooker, start off with the traditional steps to sauté the ingredients. Once you reach step 4, cook it over high pressure for 20-30 minutes. Have fun cooking!

Have you tried to see what difference would be doing pressure cooking at step 3 instead of step 4?

Haven't tried it because it's very critical for the paste to be sautéed in oil until the oil separates from the paste. Otherwise, the paste will have a raw aftertaste.

Beef Rendang Recipe (How to make authentic Indonesian Rendang)

Posted on Last updated: October 18, 2023

Categories Indonesian , Main , Main Course

Do you know what the world’s best foods are? Sushi, beef rendang, or lasagne? You probably thought you knew, but most likely you don’t.

If you chose rendang, congratulations!  Based on 35,000 votes, the world’s most delicious food is rendang from West Sumatra, Indonesia.

CNN  scoured the planet to create the list of 50 most delicious foods in 2011, and rendang took the top position on the list.

Note: This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my privacy policy for more info. I may receive commissions for purchases made through links in this post. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

Introducing the best rendang- rendang minang from Sumatra

Beef rendang is one of the original cuisines of Minangkabau descent and Sumatra’s culture. It is served on special occasions to honor guests and during festive seasons. It is a delicious Indonesian dish prepared with many herbs and spices. Slow cooking for a few hours until all the liquids have been completely absorbed by the meat. Beef rendang is best eaten with steamed rice and condiments such as fried onions and chili.

Here is the good news.  You do not need to travel to Sumatra, Indonesia. Following this beef rendang recipe, you can recreate the world’s best food at home.

This recipe is the authentic beef rendang recipe from the native land of Rendang in Minangkabau, tested in my kitchen based on several original recipes written in Bahasa Indonesia (the Indonesian language). It has also become a common Malaysian dish and is popular during major festivals such as Eid al-Fitr.

Making beef rendang (Update 2023)

After publishing this recipe in early 2017, I received many comments and inquiries. There are two problems readers encountered which I would like to provide further explanation.

Use the right type of chili.

We use the  red chili,  as shown in the image. There was an incident where a reader mentioned that the amount of chili was way too much. I guess he might have used other types of chili, such as bird’s eye chili!

If you use the red chili as shown, which is the local  Serrano chili , the amount should be OK (300g for 1kg of beef). I prefer removing the seed and pith to reduce the hotness and retain the flavor. If you prefer to be less spicy, reduce the amount to 200g.

Cut the galangal into small pieces.

Why is it necessary to do this since we will blend the galangal with the food processor anyway? That is where the problem arises. Before sauteing, you must blend the galangal, garlic, onions, and chili. You want these aromatics and other spices to cook down to become a paste that will stick to the beef.

All these ingredients can cook down easily, but NOT galangal! The larger pieces of galangal will not disintegrate even after a slow cook for four hours. The result will be a mouthful of unpalatable chunks of galangal, which you want to spit out, which is quite disturbing!

Besides that, this delightful Indonesian dish has won the hearts of so many gastronomes. Try it out at home; I don’t think anyone will regret it.

Step-by-step instructions (with photos)

Step 1: Cut the beef. Cut the beef into 4 cm squares, half cm thick. Do not cut the beef too small as the meat can break into smaller pieces during cooking.

Step 2: Blend the spice. Blend all the ingredients B in the recipe, and set the blend aside. You can get most of these spices at Asian markets. You can use ground spices if whole spices are unavailable. Please check the expiry date to get the freshest possible ground spices to make rendang.

Step 3: Bash the lemongrass. Remove the green section and the outer sheath of the lemongrass. Use only the white part. Bash them so that the lemongrass to ensure the release of the flavor.

Step 4: Saute the spice. Heat the vegetable oil in a wok. Saute the spice paste (B) over low heat until aromatic.

Step 5: Add coconut milk. Add the coconut milk and lemongrass to curry paste in the wok.

Step 6: Add the beef. Add the beef and cook over medium heat. Bring the coconut milk to a boil.

Step 7: Simmer the beef. Once it is boiled, continue to simmer over low heat. Add water from time to time when the stew is about to dry.

Step 8: Cook until tender and turns into dark brown. Cook until the beef absorbs the flavor of the spices thoroughly and the color turns dark brown. It will take about three hours. You can use an Instant Pot or any other brand of multicooker to shorten the cooking time. Most of the modern multicooker has programmed mode indicated for cooking beef. Please remember using less water if you pressure cook the beef.

Beef Rendang Minang recipe

Beef rendang recipe.

Authentic Indonesian dry rendang.

Ingredients

Ingredients (a).

• 600 ml coconut cream
• 100 ml vegetable oil

Ingredients (B)- to blend

• 4 candlenuts
• 12 cloves chopped garlic
• 300 g red chili, , (Serrano chili/pepper)
• 250 g onions
• 50 g ginger
• 50 g galangal
• 25 g ground turmeric, or 50g of fresh turmeric
• 1½ tsp ground coriander
• 1 tbsp salt
• 1 tsp sugar
• 4 green cardamom pods
• 11/2 tsp cumin seeds

Ingredients (C)- Seasonings and Spices

• 4 stalks lemongrass, , bashed
• 3 pieces kaffir lime leaves
• 1 piece asam keping
• 2 turmeric leaves, ,tied up

Instructions

• Cut the beef into 4 cm squares, half cm thick. Do not cut the beef too small as the meat can break into smaller pieces during cooking.
• Blend all the ingredients in (B), set the blend aside.
• Remove the green section and the outer sheath of the lemongrass. Use only the white portion. Bash them so that the lemongrass to ensure the release of the flavor.
• Heat up the vegetable oil in a wok. Saute the spice paste (B) over low heat until aromatic.
• Add the coconut cream, turmeric leaves, kaffir lime leaves, asam keping and lemongrass into the wok.
• Add the beef and cook over medium heat. Bring the coconut milk to a boil.
• Once it is boiled, continue simmer over low heat. Add water from time to time when the stew is about to dry.
• Cook until the beef absorbs the flavor of the spices thoroughly and the color turns to dark brown. It will take about three hours.
• Served with rice or bread.

Note: Since not everyone tolerates the same level of hotness of chili, please reduce the amount and remove the seeds of the chilies if you are not used to spicy food.

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Nutrition Information:

Serving size:.

This data was provided and calculated by Nutritionix on 1/29/2019

2 types of superior rendang recipe with terrific flavor

There are two types of beef rendang, depending on how much water content is in the dish.

Dried beef rendang

According to the Minangkabau (hence the name Minang rendang) tradition, their authentic beef rendang is a slow-cooked dry curry. Beef rendang is carefully stirred, simmered, and cooked for three to four hours until the coconut milk has evaporated and reduced to become a thick sauce. By then, the meat had absorbed the flavor of the herbs and spices. Dried rendang can be stored at room temperature for three to four weeks.  It can even last up to six months if frozen.

Moist beef rendang (kalio)

Moist beef rendang is cooked much shorter than dry beef rendang.  The cooking process ends when the coconut milk becomes a thick rendang gravy.  Moist rendang is more popular in neighboring countries- Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei, and southern Thailand. One of the exceptions is rendang Tok , found in the state of Perak, Malaysia, which is dry.  Most rendang served in Western countries is moist rendang, compared to its original Minang counterpart.

Malaysian rendang is normally cooked for shorter periods and added with kerisik (toasted grated coconut) to thicken the gravy.  I have written another recipe for the Malaysian rendang, which is included in the  recipe compilation  in my eBook.

How to prepare the best beef rendang (12 helpful tips)

It is quite easy to cook rendang Minang, but pay attention to some finer points below to cook the most delicious food in the world successfully.

• Sirloin is the choice for more tender rendang, but the topside or beef chuck (any tougher cuts of meat) is as good since the beef is stewed for about four hours.  You can stew the meat longer by adding water until the beef is tender enough. I used the topside in this recipe, and it turned out perfectly.
• Blend the spice mix with an electric blender.  You do not need to add water, as the chilies and onions have sufficient water content for blending.  Furthermore, it will take longer to saute the spice paste if the water is added.
• Saute the spice paste with vegetable oil on low heat until it turns fragrant.   Add coconut milk and stir frequently.  The spice paste can scorch easily if left unattended.
• Most Asians use a wok to cook rendang.  This is because the beef is cooked by the coconut milk at the bottom of the wok, which is spherical.  Alternatively, try to find a pan with a curved bottom to cook rendang if you do not have a wok.
• Cut the beef across the grain  by using the sharpest knife you have.  If it is too soft, place it back in the freezer until it gets firmer.  Since the beef will be cooked for about four hours, the size should not be smaller than 2 cm cubes.  Otherwise, the meat will easily break into smaller pieces.
• There is an easy way to peel the ginger and turmeric, which I explained in another post.
• I normally prefer to remove the seeds of the red chili to reduce the hotness.  Rendang is not very hot and spicy, but you can always change the chili amount to taste.
• It is best to use freshly pressed coconut milk.  You can use canned or carton-packed coconut milk if it is unavailable.  Once opened, coconut milk should always be kept in the chiller.  You can also divide the coconut milk into smaller portions and freeze them.  Fresh coconut milk can be kept for much longer if frozen.  I have used frozen coconut milk for making rendang, which is as good as the freshly pressed one after a month.
• Substitute the fresh coriander seeds, turmeric, and cumin with ground powder. It will not make a huge difference to the final taste.
• Use only the pale yellow bulbous bottom part of the lemongrass. The greenish upper part of the stalk has less flavor and should be discarded. Bashing the lemongrass before adding it to the coconut milk will help release the aromatic flavor of the lemongrass into the rendang.
• Assam keping (also called Assam Kandis / gelugur in Indonesia) is available in dry pieces and is extremely sour.  Since it is quite similar, you can use tamarind pulp (assam jawa) as a replacement. However, the authenticity of rendang is lost if you substitute it with other souring agents, such as lemon or vinegar. You can omit it if Assam is unavailable. Also, use tamarind paste if the fresh tamarind is unavailable. Some original rendang recipes from Indonesia do not include Assam.  Be careful not to add too much Assam, as rendang is not supposed to be too sour. If it is unavailable, add a squeeze of lime juice before serving to give it a slight tangy flavor.
• You need to add some sugar to balance the sourness. Coconut sugar or plan sugar is the best. If not, just use brown sugar.
• Turmeric leaves are another ingredient unavailable in certain parts of the world.  If you cannot get turmeric leaves, use two more kaffir lime leaves.

8 bonus tips to get the best result for the beef rendang

The process of cooking rendang is simple.  The following tips will be useful to guide you through the process if you are to cook rendang for the first time.

• Start with sauteing the spice paste with oil on low heat.  This step aims to fry the spices until they become aromatic lightly.  Constantly stir the spice paste, as it can get scorched easily.  You may want to add oil for easy sauteing and remove the excess oil during stewing.  Stop sauteing when it turns aromatic or if the oil separates from the spice.
• Once the coconut milk reaches boiling point, reduce heat to a minimum.
• Be patient when preparing rendang.  The long cooking time will enable the flavor of the coconut milk and spices to be fully absorbed into the beef.
• The liquid will become thick gravy after one to two hours of continuous cooking.  If you are preparing moist rendang, stop at this stage.
• Since this is the dry beef rendang recipe, the cooking process should be continued until the liquid has evaporated.  This will take about four hours. Add water if it becomes too dry before the end of four hours.  The authentic Minang rendang is dry, unlike the moist beef rendang, which is more popular in Malaysia, Singapore, and Western countries.
• The liquid will eventually fully evaporate and completely caramelize.  The beef will cook continuously in the remaining oil and absorb all the flavor of the spices.
• The color of the meat will gradually turn darker and eventually become dark brown at the end of four hours. The flavor of the spices and coconut is fully fused with the beef now.  You can finally enjoy the flavor of the authentic beef rendang Minang.
• You can garnish rendang with turmeric leaves cut into thin strips, red chilies, and kaffir lime leaves.

More recipes for you

If you like this recipe, I want to suggest other popular Asian dishes for you to try. So here are my picks of some of the most popular recipes from where I live, Malaysia:

• Chicken varuval . Ready to take a bite of the Indian cuisine with the intense flavor? This recipe is popular in Malaysia and loved by everyone!
• Mee Goreng is another great street food of Indian Muslim origin in Malaysia. It is authentically Malaysian and is the typical Indian Malaysian food.
• Wonton soup and noodles. We have our version of wonton noodles, which is different from the wonton soup noodles from Hong Kong. You can get both recipes from this article.
• Chicken Rendang . I have the Chicken rendang recipe for you if you do not eat beef.

Wednesday 16th of August 2023

Thank you for this great recipe. I cooked it three times, once dry and twice moist, which I liked better with a plain basmati rice. It was a great success with friends. Living in Switzerland you cannot get all ingredients, but so what, I substituted as follows: Candlenuts: I used pine nuts instead but I‘m sure Macedamia or Cashews would also do the trick. Chilis: The chilis we get here are very hot. In order to get the volume of the paste right, I used 280 grams of a mild capsicum and added 1-2 small Thai chilies without seeds. I used half the garlic, a quarter of the cloves and no asam keping. I had fresh galgant, ginger and turmeric. The first time I substituted the kaffir lime leaves with lime rind. I believe you get a great dish by adapting recipes to your taste. Be adventurous in substituting if some ingredients are not available. Thanks again for a great recipe.

Sunday 20th of August 2023

Thank you for trying this recipe and the substitution with the local ingredients is way to go.

Saturday 2nd of October 2021

According to authentic Rendang Padang from Minang, the aay to cook rendang is, on step no 4, they don't put oil to cook the paste.

What they do, they boil the paste together with the coconut milk.

Sunday 3rd of October 2021

Thank you for the information.

Friday 23rd of April 2021

Hi many thanks for the recipe. I wanna add this in my restaurant menu. But I need info about preserving. As a restaurant owner you know better that we can’t waste food end of day and try not to compromise with quality. If I cook RENDANG in morning time, how long I can serve the dish that it will keep the original taste? After end of the day if rendang is left over can I preserve in refrigerator for next day? Does that keep original flavour and quality?

Saturday 24th of April 2021

Hi Ash, Base on my experience, You can serve it the whole day if you cook in the morning. I would keep it in the freezer (portion it first) for the remaining. It should be good for one week. After that, the flavor starts to deteriorate even it is frozen. Please remove it from the freezer first thing in the morning and let it return to room temperature, then heat it and serve.

Wednesday 20th of January 2021

Hi, thanks for sharing your recipe. I am having a hard time looking for Serrano pepper you used. What other kind of chillies I can use? Cayenne or paprika will do? Also if you can share a rendang ayam recipe. Thank you!

Thursday 21st of January 2021

Hi Rosselle, Cayenne is a better substitute than paprika. I have a Rendang Ayam recipe: https://tasteasianfood.com/chicken-rendang/ It is different from the Beef Rendang because there is much wetter and gravy. You may want to try it and hope you will like it. KP Kwan

Monday 24th of August 2020

This recipe looks great! I have one question, in step 7 how will I know The difference between when the rendang is dry because it needs water, or is dry because it’s done? And how much water to add?

Hi Cameron, After you add water to the rendang and stew it slowly, the water will gradually be reduced. Over time, you will notice the water is almost entirely evaporated, and there is no longer any liquid (sauce) left in the pan. What is still looks like wet is due to the oil in the rendang. That is when I mean by the rendang is dry. I hope my explanation is clear. Thanks, KP Kwan

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Beef Rendang

By craig claiborne.

Featured in: GETTING WARMED UP FOR THE OUTDOOR EATING SEASON; SATAYS, FOR WELL-DONE GRILLS

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Ingredients

• 6 dried, hot whole red peppers, each about 3 inches long
• 1 pound very lean chuck beef
• ½ cup coarsely chopped shallots
• 1 3-inch length fresh lemon grass, trimmed and cut crosswise into ¼-inch pieces, about 2 tablespoons, or use 1 teaspoon lemon grass powder
• 2 tablespoons finely minced garlic
• 1 cup water
• 1 teaspoon chopped fresh ginger
• ⅓ cup corn, peanut or vegetable oil
• ⅔ cup coconut cream or milk
• 7 dried lime leaves, optional, see note
• ¼ cup tamarind liquid or lemon juice
• ½ teaspoon sugar
• ⅓ cup dried shredded desicated coconut

Nutritional analysis per serving (6 servings)

362 calories; 27 grams fat; 12 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 11 grams monounsaturated fat; 3 grams polyunsaturated fat; 15 grams carbohydrates; 4 grams dietary fiber; 7 grams sugars; 20 grams protein; 72 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

Preparation

Put peppers in a bowl and add cold water to cover. Let soak an hour or longer or until softened. Drain well. Set aside.

Cut beef into ¾-inch cubes.

Chop peppers and put them into container of electric blender. Add shallots, fresh lemon grass or lemon grass powder, garlic, ginger and ⅓ cup of water and blend thoroughly.

Heat oil in a wok or skillet and when it is quite hot add chili pepper mixture. Cook, stirring, about 10 seconds and add beef. Add coconut cream or milk and remaining ⅔ cup water. Bring to a boil and cover closely. Let simmer about 20 minutes.

Add lime leaves, tamarind liquid or lemon juice, and sugar.

Put shredded coconut in a skillet and cook, shaking skillet and stirring, until coconut is lightly browned. Add this to beef. Stir and continue cooking about 5 minutes. Cover and continue cooking about 25 minutes.

Uncover and continue cooking, stirring occasionally, about 10 minutes. Serve hot with rice.

• Lime leaves are available at many markets in Chinatown and at shops specializing in Asian foods. Mint leaves may be substituted for lime leaves.

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made this yesterday and was excellent, the beef was so tender... but i used a tamarind that i got a local asian market which was way way way stronger - really only needed a tablespoon... and maybe a little less desiccated coconut... i look forward to trying it again

Use a lot of oil and salt grated coconut, fry the beef until it is dry as jerky, pack it tight, and it will keep for many days while you hike and camp.

I think this needs more coconut cream and more sugar, preferably palm sugar. Also use some Galangal if you can find it and a teaspoon or more of fish sauce. You can use less tamarind then add it in to taste at the end.

Delicious recipe. Definitely a bit spicy. I blended the sauce in a Magic Bullet which was the perfect size tool. I would recommend using less water than the recipe calls for, maybe 1/3 to 1/2 since the sauce was too watery in the pan and I had to boil it down. Also, no way would you get more than three servings out of this recipe. Enjoy!

Recipe Tags

Coconut milk.

• Main Course

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Beef Rendang

• Level: Easy
• Total: 1 hr 50 min
• Active: 40 min
• Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients

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4 teaspoons coconut flakes

1/2 cup chopped onion

1 1/2 tablespoons chopped lemongrass, plus 1 stalk lemongrass left whole

2 teaspoons chopped galangal

2 teaspoons chopped fresh turmeric

1/2 teaspoon chopped lime leaf

1 teaspoon chili powder

1 teaspoon cumin seed

1/2 teaspoon star anise

1/2 teaspoon coriander

1/2 teaspoon fennel seed

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

1/4 teaspoon cardamom

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon clove

2 pounds 3 ounces beef knuckle

1/2 cup coconut milk

2 teaspoons sugar

1 teaspoon salt

• Toast the coconut flakes, then blend into a paste.
• Saute the onion, chopped lemongrass, galangal, turmeric and lime leaf, then blend into a paste.
• Grind the chili powder, cumin, star anise, coriander, fennel, black pepper, cardamom, cinnamon, and clove into a powder.
• Pressure cook the beef with the stalk of lemongrass and 1 1/2 cups water until tender, about 35 minutes, then dice into large chunks. Put into a pot with the coconut paste, aromatic paste, ground spices, coconut milk, sugar and salt. Cook until the sauce is thick, then adjust the seasoning if needed.

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This recipe was provided by a chef, restaurant or culinary professional. It has not been tested for home use.

Recipe courtesy of Paul Liew at Sago in Cincinnati, OH

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www.sbs.com.au/food

Beef rendang

Indonesian in origin, rending is a dish of tender beef chunks, slow-cooked in an aromatic coconut sauce for hours until fragrant and the sauce thickens to a dry paste. serve with fluffy white rice and lime wedges to complete the dish..

Credit: Chris Chen

preparation

Ingredients

• 1 kg beef chuck steak, cut into 3cm pieces
• 80 ml (⅓ cup) vegetable oil
• 1 cinnamon quill
• 4 cardamom pods, bruised
• 1 lemongrass stalk, halved
• 250 ml (1 cup) coconut milk
• 1 tbsp tamarind concentrate
• 6 makrut lime leaves
• 1 tbsp brown sugar
• 45 g (½ cup) desiccated coconut, toasted
• steamed rice and lime wedges, to serve
• 12 dried red chillies, seeds removed, chopped
• 5 Asian red eschalots, peeled, chopped
• 3 cm piece galangal, peeled
• 3 lemongrass stalks, trimmed, chopped
• 5 garlic cloves, peeled
• 3 cm piece ginger, peeled

Instructions

Cook's notes.

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.

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2018 Primetime Emmy & James Beard Award Winner

A History of Moscow in 13 Dishes

Jun 06 2018.

War, hunger, and some of the world’s great doomed social experiments all changed the way that Moscow eats.

Moscow, the European metropolis on Asia’s western flank, has always been a canvas for competing cultures. Its cuisine is no different. The ancient baselines of winter grains, root vegetables, and cabbage acquired scaffolding from both directions: eastern horsemen brought meat on sticks, western craftsmen brought pastries, and courtly French chefs came and drowned it all in cream.

History has a place on the plate here, as well: war, hunger, and some of the world’s great doomed social experiments from Serfdom to Communism to Bandit Capitalism all changed the way that Moscow eats. So in the spirit of all of those grand failures, we—a Russian chef and an American writer—will attempt here to reduce the towering history of this unknowable city to 13 dishes, with some Imperial past but a special emphasis on the more recent decades of culinary paroxysms as Moscow emerged from its Soviet slumber.

Olivier Salad

To visualize the long marriage between French and Russian cuisines, picture Peter the Great, on a diplomatic sojourn to Paris in 1717, a “ stranger to etiquette ”, meeting the 7-year-old boy-king Louis XV and lifting him in the air out of sheer elán. These things were simply not done, and yet, there they were. Peter’s joyful (and often envious) fascination with all things French took hold, among other places, in the kitchen. He brought French chefs back to his palaces, and then the lesser nobility followed suit, and when the first restaurants emerged in Moscow, they also spoke French. The Hermitage Restaurant, which was open from 1864 until history intervened in 1917, had a Francophone Belgian named Lucien Olivier as a chef, and he made a salad that was a perfectly unrestrained combination of French flavors and Russian ingredients: grouse! Veal tongue! Proto-mayonnaise! The ingredients now tend toward the pedestrian—boiled beef, dill pickles, various vegetables all bound with mayonnaise—and it has become a staple of Russian cuisine, especially on New Year’s. And yes, if you’ve ever seen the lonely Ensalada Rusa wilting behind the sneezeguard of a Spanish tapas bar, that is supposed to be a successor to the Olivier. But in Moscow, you should eat Matryoshka ’s version, which is not the original recipe but has some of that imperial richness: crayfish, quail, sturgeon caviar, and remoulade, all under a translucent aspic skirt, for 990₽ ($16).

There’s a type of expression around bottling things—bottled lightning, summer in a jar, etc.—that feels very apt here. What exactly is bottled with vareniye (jam)? A lot more than just fruit. These jams, which tend to be thinner than western varieties—with whole berries or fruit chunks in syrup—are bottled with a lot of Russian identity. There’s the Russian love of countryside. Deep dacha culture of summer cottages and personal orchards. Traditional naturopathy (raspberry vareniye taken with tea will fight fever). And above all, friendship is bottled here— vareniye made from the overabundance of fruit at one’s dacha is the most typical Russian gift, real sharing from real nature, even in the often-cynical heart of Europe’s largest megacity. Visitors who are short on lifelong friendships in Moscow can pick some up fine vareniye at any Lavka Lavka shop (we recommend the delicate young pine cone jam) or, curiously enough, at many Armenian stores.

Borodinsky Bread

The clinical-sounding title of Lev Auerman’s 1935 classic Tekhnologiya Khlebopecheniya ( Bread Baking Technology) doesn’t promise scintillation. But Auerman’s recipe for rye bread changed Russian bread forever. An older legend had it that the bread was baked dark for mourning by a woman widowed in the battle of Borodino in 1812, but the real birth of the bread came from Auerman’s recipes. A modification on sweet, malted Baltic breads, Auerman’s Borodinsky bread was 100% rye and used caraway or anise. The recipe has evolved a bit—today it is 80% rye and 20% wheat high extraction flour and leans more on coriander than caraway. But its flavor profile (sweet, chewy) as well as its characteristic L7 mold —a deep brick of bread—has made it easily identifiable as the traditional, ubiquitous, every-occasion bread of Moscow. You can buy it everywhere, but the Azbuka Vkusa high-end markets have a reliably good sliced version.

Buckwheat Grechka

Look closely at those Russians who have followed their money to live in London, or are vacationing in Cyprus or Antalya. See the slight melancholy that not even cappuccinos or sunshine can erase. It’s not because Russians are gloomy by nature; it’s probably because there is no real grechka outside of Russia and Ukraine, and that is devastating. Buckwheat grain and groats— grechka (or grecha in Saint Petersburg)—are deep in the culture. It’s a wartime memory: May 9 Victory Day celebrations feature military kitchens serving buckwheat like they did at the front. It’s a little slice of Russian history that lies somewhere between oatmeal and couscous. In Moscow, eat it at Dr. Zhivago with milk (180₽/US$2.90) or mushrooms (590₽/US$9.50), and rejoice.

Mimoza Salad

This fantastically expressive egg-and-canned-fish salad is a testament to Soviet ingenuity—it’s the ultimate puzzle to make a drastically limited food chain sparkle—and the universal human thrill of layering foods. The geological creation starts with a base layer of fish, then layers of grated cooked potato, mayonnaise, shredded cheese, grated carrots, sweet onion, diced egg whites and then capped with a brilliant yellow crumble of boiled egg yolk. It sits there on the plate, dazzling like the flowering mimosa tree it is named after. The taste? Well, it’s comfort food. Pick some up to go at any Karavaev Brothers location —the excellent deli chain sells it for 650₽ (US$10.40) a kilo.

It seems odd, almost impossible, to imagine a time in Russia before shashlik. It’s meat on a stick, something that all humans should have had on the menu since at least the time of Prometheus. But shashlik as we know it know—cubes of marinated meat cooked with vegetables over a mangal grill—didn’t really take off in Russia until the early 1900s. And due to a lack of suitable meat in much of the Soviet era (there were no meat cattle herds, only dairy), we’re starting the clock on shashlik in the late Soviet period. Despite its relatively recent (re)appearance, it is now the ubiquitous grill phenomenon of Russia, a welcome ritual of summer.

Much of Russian cuisine has borrowed heavily from Central Asia and further east over the millennia ( pelmeni anyone?), but plov is a striking example of an entire eastern dish making its way directly into Russian households. With the collapse of the Soviet Union and upheaval in many Central Asian Soviet Republics, mass economic migration to Moscow took off in the late 80s and early 90s. Central Asians today are the lifeblood of the Moscow labor force (part of up to 10-12 million Central Asian migrants living in Russia), and plov—rice steamed in stock with meat and vegetables—has jumped from the migrant communities to the homes of Muscovites everywhere. It has developed an unfortunate reputation for being a food that even finicky kids will eat, so there is a lot of harried domestic plov being made. But you can get a fully expressed Uzbek version at Danilovsky Market, online at plov.com , or at Food City—the surf-and-turf Tsukiji of Moscow.

The Big Mac

So many of the difficulties in American-Russian relations come down to one foundational attitude problem: The Americans (that’s half of this writing duo) were incredibly, distressingly smug through the entire fall of the Soviet Union. We mistook Soviet failure for an American victory, and that made all the difference. What does that have to do with a Big Mac? Well, when Russia’s first McDonald’s opened on Pushkinskaya in 1990 and 5000 people turned out to wait in line for the first taste of America, we back home in the states mistook it for culinary and commercial superiority. But there was something more complicated happening: Russians had been denied Western goods for so long and with such force that any outside identity was much-needed oxygen. And the long-term victory, as McDonald’s has continued to thrive in post-Soviet Russia, really belongs to the local franchise, which used higher-quality ingredients than in the U.S. and created a chain that was successful not because of its American identity but because of its Russian modifications. We wouldn’t recommend eating at any McDonald’s, especially not when there is Teremok for your fast-food needs, but having a soda in the original location is one way to sit and ponder the sin of hubris. And to use the free toilet and Wi-Fi.

The crown jewel of Levantine meat preparations, perhaps the single greatest street meat in the world: Shawarma. It first came to Moscow with a shawarma joint across from the Passazh mall, opened in the early 90s by Syrian cooks who dazzled masses with their sizzling, spinning, spiced meat emporium. Lines that stretched into the hundreds of people weren’t uncommon in those heady early days. And even though the original spot closed many years ago, Moscow shawarma only grew from there, mutating into the beast it is today, where you’re likely to find chicken, cabbage, mayo and a thin tomato sauce all combining to make the Levant a distant memory.

Fish Tartare aka Sashimi

One result of the aforementioned American smugness is that the West seemed surprised at how rapidly 1990s Russia assimilated some of the most hardcore capitalist traits, including but not limited to conspicuous consumerism. Moscow’s new elite was very, very good at that. What could be more conspicuous that recreating a restrained, exclusive seafood cuisine from Japan in the chaotic, landlocked megacity of Moscow? The very improbability of high-end sushi and sashimi in Moscow fueled much of its allure, and even though the trends have moved on from sushi, you can still tell the emotional attachment that the oligarch class has to those formative wastes of money. Sumosan restaurant started in Moscow back in 1997 and has since expanded to Monte Carlo and Londongrad , where they serve a dish that they call Fish Tartare, among others, in their restaurants and through their private jet catering service.

Blue Cheese roll

If the early elite sushi restaurants in Moscow were the frivolous edge of a food phenomenon, then Yakitoriya , a chain which started in the late 1990s, democratized it with affordable sushi rolls geared to local tastes. The Blue Cheese Roll, available now on their menu, seems like the apex (or nadir) of the Russianized roll: salmon, smoked eel, cucumber, cream cheese, Blue Cheese sauce. It might not be Jiro’s dream, but a true Russian middle class, one that can work honestly, earn meaningful salaries, and have a freaky sushi roll at the end of the week just like the rest of us—that’s something worthing dreaming for. Blue Cheese Roll, Yakitoriya, 417₽ (US$6.70)

If you’re American, have you ever wondered why tacos took over middle America but sopes remain virtually unknown? It’s curious how a country can assimilate some foods from their neighbors and but remain blissfully ignorant of others. That may explain what took place two years ago in Moscow, when the city seemingly discovered, as if for the first time, the bagged awesomeness that is khinkali , a soup dumpling from Russia’s southern neighbor Georgia. It became very trendy very quickly, and khinkali joints sprouted across Moscow like griby after a rain. But it wasn’t just that dish: what they were serving was a bit of the imagined southern, sybaritic lifestyle of the Caucasus, as promised in restaurant names like Est’ Khinkali Pit Vino ( Eat Khinkali Drink Wine ). Your best bets are at the stately Sakhli , around 100₽ (US$1.60) per soft, fulsome dumpling, or the more modernized Kafe Khinkalnaya on Neglinnaya Street , 100₽ (US$0.80) a dumpling.

We have named burrata—yes, that Italian alchemy of cheese and cream—the Perfect Dish of Moscow 2018, if only because it is the Dish of the Moment, ready to be enjoyed at the height of its faddishness now, and equally ready to be replaced when the city decides to move on. Read Anna Maslovskaya’s masterful breakdown of why—and where—to eat burrata in Moscow.

Top image: Olivier salad with chicken. Photo by: Kvector /Shutterstock

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