Beef Rendang
This beef rendang will knock your socks off. It has everything you want in a curry. A little bit of heat, sourness, sweetness and aromatic spice, it is so moreish and perfect to impress any guests. I love to serve it with some shaved cucumber which has been sprinkled with sea salt flakes and left to drain over a sieve. It brings a refreshing coolness to the dish which works so well with the intensely rich, coconutty curry. My recipe makes enough to serve 8 and the paste can be kept in the fridge or freezer for whenever you need it so it really is worth making a big batch.
Serves 8 - £1.87 per portion (without rice)
First, make the rendang paste. Add three roughly chopped shallots, 5 cloves of garlic, 10 dried red chillies which have been soaking in hot water overnight (add the soaking liquid too), 1 large piece of ginger, 1 lemongrass stalk, a handful of coriander stalks, 5 destemmed kaffir lime leaves, 1 tsp turmeric, 2 tsp ground coriander and 1 tsp salt to a food processor. Blitz until you have a paste-like consistency.
Fry off 1kg of beef shin which has been cut into 2.5cm cubes in a large casserole dish in a little oil. Fry over a high heat so the meat gets nice and browned. Do this in batches so as not to overcrowd the pan.
Once all the meat has been browned, put all the meat back into the pan, lower the heat and add 3 heaped tbsps of the curry paste (the rest can be kept under a layer of oil in the fridge or frozen in batches). Fry until the paste smells lovely and fragrant, being careful so it does not catch or burn.
Add a cinnamon stick, two star anise, 4 cardamom pods which have been crushed to release the seeds, 2 fresh kaffir lime leaves, a bruised lemongrass stalk and 5 cloves. Add 1 heaped tbsp of palm sugar and 2 tbsps of tamarind paste. Next add a can of full fat coconut milk and a block of coconut cream.
Stir to combine (you may need to add a splash of water to the curry at this stage - you want the meat just to be covered). Put the lid on the pan and slow cook at 130C fan/150C for at least four hours (I keep mine in the oven for as long as I can) until the meat is tender and falling apart.
After a few hours have a look at the consistency of your sauce, if you would like less liquid take the lid off and allow the liquid to reduce or add more coconut milk if you prefer more sauce.
Add the juice of one lime and taste adding more palm sugar, lime or salt to taste. (I usually add more lime and sugar and a bit more salt).
For the cucumber, simply shave 2 cucumbers into thin strips, sprinkle with 2 tsp of salt flakes and place over a sieve to drain for at least 30 mins before serving.
Serve with some fluffy basmati rice, toasted desiccated coconut, chopped coriander, finely chopped red chilli and some shaved cucumber on the side.