 Rendang
daging
(dried beef curry)
Although this traditional
Malay dish is easily available all year round, it still assumes pride of
place among the many delicacies served during Hari Raya. Because it is dry
and rich in spices, rendang keeps for a fairly long time without refrigeration.
 Picture
bottom right: the perfect match, lenang and rendang
A Glaswegian friend told
me of a restaurant in Manhattan called Penang (!) which serves, among other
things, beef rendang. Efforts to extract the recipe from the proprietor
proved fruitless, so I hope this will make him happy.
Ingredients
1 cup oil
5 cm long cinnamon stick (kayu manis)
4 cloves (bunga cengkih)
6 star anise (jintan manis)
4 cardamom (pelaga)
1kg stewing beefcut into 1.5 to 2 inch cubes
2 cups thick coconut milk
4 teaspoons of assam water from tamarind pulp (assam glugor)
4 kaffir lime leaves (daun limau purut), julienned
2 turmeric leaf (daun kunyit), julienned
4 tablespoons of fried grated coconut (kerisik)
3 teaspoons sugar or to taste
Salt to taste.
4 shallots (daun bawang)
4 cm lengkuas
5 stalks of lemon grass (daun serai)
5 cloves garlic (bawang putih)
5 cm (3/4 inch) ginger (halia)
10 dried chillies (cili boh) soaked in hot water to soften
Method
1. Peel and coarsely chop
lengkuas/galingale
2. Crush the lemon grass
3. Lightly mash up red chilies, cinnamon and cloves with a little
4. Peel and coarsely chop shallots, ginger and garlic. Put the above into
an electric blender and blend into a smooth paste.
5. Fry the paste with a little cooking oil in a non-stick pan until fragrant
then throw in the cinnamon, cloves, star anise and cardamom. Cook for about
8 minutes or so, adding water IF necessary. Pay close attention and make
sure the paste is not scorched (hangus).
6, Add the beef cubes, coconut milk and assam water. When mixture boils,
reduce heat to medium and cook for about 30 minutes. Stir often to prevent
curdling.
7. When the meat is almost cooked, add the julienned kaffir lime turmeric
leaves and kerisik.
8. Add sugar and salt to taste.
9. Reduce fire and gently cook until the meat is really tender and the gravy
has disappeared.
How
to make your own kerisik
Fry 300g fresh grated coconut
in a dry wok or wide shallow saucepan until brown on slow fire to avoid
scorching. Leftover kerisik can be kept in an airtight container.
About
the cook
Elizabeth Agatha Cheah,
affectionately known as Kak Liza (or Lizzie) by family and friends, has been
cooking for as long as she can remember. Over the years, she picked up culinary
skills, tips and recipes from friends and family – Liza is equally at
home whether cooking Chinese, Eurasian or Malay dishes. Married to Salim
and mother to three children, Kak Liza cooks all year round but is especially
busy during holidays like Chinese New Year, Hari Raya and Christmas when
she has to cook enough for her own family plus seven brothers and sisters,
parents, 12 nieces and nephews, grandchildren, in-laws and numerous friends
– in short, enough victuals to feed a Greek army battalion. Ever the
perfectionist, Kak Liza revealed that she spent 15 years getting her ayam
masak merah done right!
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