My aunt, cousin and family came to visit. My aunt and I make her baked beef rendang. We went to buy gravy beef from the Asian butcher. He must have given us buffalo meat. It’s so hard to cut into cubes. Never will I go to the Asian butcher again, learned my lesson.

We forgot to buy curry leaves. I told my aunt let just use the kafir lime leaves. Then the Tean beef rendang that she bought is not spicy. Luckily, I have a bottle of onion, garlic and chili in my fridge to add to it to make it spicy.

Beef rendang is a spicy and fragrant beef dish that is slow-cooked “kind like stew type” over a long period of time. The resulting dish will be a deep brown colour with hardly any gravy left, hence the beef will still be succulent and tender.

I can only tell you it’s “a rich and tender coconut beef stew which is a thick spicy (extra if you can take hotter) and explosively flavoursome,” that’s I dare say for sure to win you over if you eat it and let it swirl around your mouth and taste bud. Yummmmmmmmmmmm!!!!

Today, the beef rendang is cooked in the oven, with kerisik: “Kerisik is pounded dry toasted shredded coconut. A very important ingredient in Malaysian, Indonesian and Singaporean cooking, added to beef rendang” said by my aunt to make it thick gravy as well as added flavour. Our beef rendang is succulent, flavourful, spicy and delicious to go with rice, roti canai, nasi kunyit, or just with bread. Thanks to my aunt for showing me a new method and how to make it. Let’s cook!!!!!

Ingredients

1.3 kg gravy beef, cut into cubes
1 packet Tean’s Gourmet Paste for Rendang 200g
6 kaffir lime leaves
4 Tbs olive oil, divided
1 medium onion, chopped finely
3-5 garlic, chopped finely
1 c hot water, plus extra
2 beef cubes stock
165 ml coconut milk
1-3 Tbs sugar or to taste
4-6 Tbs onion, garlic and chili paste (OPT)
30 g Kerisik (fine desiccated coconut)

Method

Preheat oven 185 degrees C. Heat 2 Tbs oil in a deep pan to sear beef cubes for 3-5 minutes on medium heat.  Turn the cubes around so it’s seared all over. Add in chopped onions and garlic, cook until translucent about 1 minute. Now add in 2 Tbs oil, Tean paste, and kafir lime leaves. Stir until aromatic.

Then add in 1 c hot water with beef stock and followed by coconut milk. Gives a couples of stir to mix well the coconut milk, water and Tean paste. Turn heat to low and simmer for about 5 minutes and cover with lid.

After 5 minutes, check beef is slightly tender and the gravy has reduced a bit. Add sugar, if not sweet enough add more sugar to taste. Switch off hob. Transfer the beef rendang to a deep oven proof dish and cover with a foiled lid. Bake it for about 1 hour 45 minutes.

Meantime, heat a pan on medium low heat and dry fry desiccated coconut for about 2-3 minutes, stirring or tossing constantly. If some bits are browning too quickly, turn the heat down to low.

After time up in oven, switch off oven. Bring out from oven, remove foiled lid and add fried kerisik and 150 ml hot water (OPT). Stir to mix well and let it sit for about 5 minutes to thicken up a bit. Before serving, discard kafir leaves. Enjoy!!!!!

Note: My aunt recommends to serve them once the beef rendang is done rested 5 minutes. AND I recommend to save some leftover as it only gets better overnight because it will absorb more of the flavour. I on the other hand prefer to have some gravy. So, I add a bit more water, you don’t have to. Hence overnight I can have rendang with roti canai.

https://helenscchin.com/2024/02/03/baked-beef-rendang/

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