Rendang

Name: Rendang
Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients: 2 hot dried red chiles; 3 garlic cloves, peeled; 3 shallots, peeled; One 1-inch piece fresh ginger or galangal, peeled and roughly chopped; 1 teaspoon ground turmeric; 1 teaspoon cumin seeds; 1 teaspoon coriander seeds; 2 tablespoons tamarind paste (page 585), or the juice and zest of 2 limes; 2 tablespoons corn, grapeseed, or other neutral oil; 1 pound boneless beef, preferably chuck, cut into 1-inch cubes; 1 cup coconut milk, homemade (page 584) or canned; Salt to taste

December 14, 2011

Unlike most braised meat dishes, this one ends up dry. The sauce is reduced slowly with the meat, and the result is something like fresh beef jerky. Be sure to vary the amount of chile according to your taste; I tend to be quite conservative when using chiles, but this dish is traditionally quite hot. Serve with white rice and a moist vegetable dish, like Spinach with Coconut Milk (page 487).

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