We've had a couple of beef roasts languishing in the freezer for... longer than I'd care to admit now. I'm just not a big roast person. I tried cooking up one of them as an actual roast and it was okay, but I couldn't help thinking that I would've enjoyed it so much more as a nice curry, stew, or chili. So, rather than trying to do another roast, I figured I'd thaw one of the remaining ones out and chop it up for curry. I know this may sound sacreligious; hacking up a beautiful roast and using it for stew/curry. But if I enjoy it more that way than I would as a roast, then why not?!

I initially ran across a simple recipe for beef rendang on a Dutch blog. It was enough to pique my interest, but the recipe looked a little plain. So I went search for other beef rendang recipes to compare and contrast and see if I could find any that looked a little more punchy. The chilies and kerisik (toasted coconut) sold me on this one.

Beef Rendang

Slightly adapted from Rasa Malaysia

Ingredients

• 5-12 dried arbol or cayenne chilies¹
• 5 shallots
• 2-3cm piece galangal²
• 4 stalks lemongrass, divided; 1 cut into 10cm lengths and pounded, 3 green parts removed and white parts coarsely chopped (or 3 Tbsp. frozen minced lemongrass, divided)
• 5 cloves garlic
• 3-4cm piece fresh ginger, peeled
• 4-5 Tbsp. oil³
• 1 (3") cinnamon stick
• 3 whole cloves
• 3 star anise
• 3 green cardamom pods
• 700g boneless beef short ribs (or other cut of your choice), cut into cubes
• 1 c. coconut milk
• 1 c. water
• 1-2 tsp. tamarind concentrate⁴
• 6 kaffir lime leaves, very finely sliced⁵
• 6 Tbsp. kerisik (toasted coconut)⁶
• 1 Tbsp. palm sugar
• salt, to taste

Directions

1. Pour hot water over chilies to cover and set aside for at least 10 minutes.
2. Remove chilies from water and remove stems and seeds.
3. Add deseeded chilies, shallots, galangal, white parts of three stalks of lemongrass (or 2 Tbsp. frozen minced lemongrass), garlic, and ginger to blender or food processor and process into a paste. If needed, add some of the oil from the next step to the blender jar to help it break down into a nice smooth paste.
4. Heat oil over medium heat. (Sauté medium on InstantPot.)
5. Add paste, cinnamon, cloves, star anise, and cardamom and stir-fry until aromatic (1-2 minutes).
6. Add beef and pounded lemongrass and cook for another minute or two.
7. Add coconut milk, water, and tamarind concentrate and cook, uncovered, over medium heat until meat is almost cooked (~10 minutes).
8. Add lime leaves, kerisik, and sugar and stir to combine.
9. Reduce heat to low (slow cook medium on InstantPot), partially cover, and cook until pot is almost dry⁷.
10. Season to taste with salt and sugar.
11. Serve with rice.

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¹ The original recipe calls for 10-12 and I think that would've been a nice number. I scaled it back to five because I was worried that the Kidlet would object otherwise. With only 5 chilies, there is no detectable spiciness whatsoever -- not even to the Kidlet's super-sensitive tongue! ^Back
2 I was all out of fresh galangal so I substituted 1 tsp. of galangal powder. Definitely use fresh if you have it though! ^Back
3 The original recipe calls for 5 Tbsp. oil. I used this amount but found the final dish somewhat fattier than I would've preferred. I'd try cutting it back to 3 or 4 Tbsp. next time. ^Back
4 The original recipe calls for 2 tsp. of tamarind pulp (presumably from fresh tamarind). I was going to use 2 tsp. of tamarind concentrate, but then got worried that this might be too much. I scaled it back to 1 tsp. I was happy with the final result, but I think 1 1/2 or 2 tsp. probably would've been fine. ^Back
5 I didn't have any fresh lime leaves, so I crumbled a few dried ones instead. ^Back
6 To make kerisik, slowly and gently toast fresh or dried shredded coconut in a dry pan. It's important to get it dark enough to impart good flavour without getting it so dark that it becomes burnt. Watch it carefully and stir often. Remove from heat promptly once browned. If your coconut was coarsely shredded, pound it thoroughly after toasting to break it down into very small pieces. ^Back
7 I initially fully covered the pot and set it to low for 8 hours. It was still looking very soupy after the first few hours though, so I bumped the temperature up a bit (from slow cook low to slow cook medium) and set the lid slightly askew. It still needed another 12-ish hours after that to cook down enough. The end result was delectably tender and flavourful though. The exact cooking time will vary depending on your pot and stove/slow cooker/etc. Check it periodically and use your best judgement. ^Back