Lamb Rendang

Lamb Rendang

Serves 6

If there is one Peranakan dish I could eat over and over again, it would have to be Rendang. My recipe for Lamb Rendang is a little different from its traditional version for it has a lot more sauce compared to its Indonesian counterpart. Originally, the dish was prepared in the tropical regions of Indonesia and Malaysia by marinating beef with plenty of herbs and spices, then simmering it in coconut milk until dry and very tender. Spices like garlic, shallots, ginger, and galangal were added to impart flavor and acted as natural organic preservatives, making the final dish last for weeks without refrigeration. 

Over the years, I have tried and tested many family recipes from both Malaysia and Indonesia, but this Peranakan version is by far my favorite. The recipe might be slightly labor intensive but the result is well worth it - tender meat covered in a luxuriously, thick sauce that goes perfectly well with steamed Jasmine rice, or lapped up with crusty baguette.

I have used lamb here as I love the gaminess that it imparts to this flavor-rich curry, but beef would work equally well too. You can either slow-cook your meat in a saucepan for up to 2 hours, until very tender, or simply pressure- cook it for 20-25 minutes. Pressure-cooking requires less water though, so do remember to add some water to your saucepan if your curry starts to dry out during the slow-cooking process.

The best part about this dish is that all ingredients required to make this beautiful stew are easily available in wet markets and supermarkets all over Singapore. I often make more and leave some for the next day as like any curry, this dish tastes even better the next day. Enjoy the recipe, and as always leave any questions you may have in comments.​

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Lamb Rendag Recipe Video

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Ingredients
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Spice Paste

12 dried chilies (deseed for milder flavor)

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1 cup boiling hot water

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1 small onion, finely chopped

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5 cloves garlic, minced

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3 lemongrass stalks, bottom half - finely sliced

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1 1/2 tablespoons fresh galangal, peeled and finely chopped

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1 1/2 tablespoon fresh ginger, peeled and finely chopped

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2 tablespoons coconut or vegetable oil
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Curry

1 kg Lamb leg and shoulder (OR Beef rib eye or chuck steak or brisket, or any other good marbled slow cooking cut of beef) - cut into 4cm chunks

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10g tamarind (available at Mustafa and Redmart)

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1/3 cup hot water

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1/3 cup fresh grated coconut (available refrigerated and/or frozen in most supermarkets)

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1 tablespoon coconut oil

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​1 cinnamon stick

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3 cloves

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3 star anise

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3 green cardamoms, pounded using a mortar and pestle

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1 lemongrass stalk, bottom half pounded with a pestle

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 400ml coconut milk

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4 large kaffir lime leaves, remove midrib and thinly slice the leaves

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1 tablespoon brown sugar or chopped Gula Melaka, ot to taste

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1 1/2 teaspoons salt, or to taste

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steamed rice, to serve

Recipe
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1To deseed dried red chillies, simply chop the crown off to make an opening and shake the seeds out. Discard seeds; place deseeded chilies in a cup of boiling hot water for 30 minutes. You may choose to use dried chiles with seeds like I do and soak them whole.

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2Discard chili water. Using scissors, chop rehydrated red chilies into smaller pieces. Place them with all other Spice Paste ingredients in a heavy blender; blend until very smooth. You may add up to 1/2 water (in slow increments) to get the blender running.

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3Soak tamarind in 1/3 cup hot water for 30 minutes, set aside. Massage soaked tamarind using your fingers and squeeze all the pulp out into the water. Discard fiber and seeds. Set aside.

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4To make Kerisik (or toasted coconut), place grated coconut in a non-stick frying pan over medium heat. Toast the coconut slowly, stirring around with a spatula to evenly disperse the heat. Reduce heat and continue to toast until golden brown and toasty-smelling. The entire process, set over low heat, should take about 5-10 minutes. Transfer the toasted coconut into a bowl and allow to cool.

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5Heat a tablespoon of oil in a large heavy base saucepan over medium heat. Add cardamoms, cinnamon, star anise and cloves followed by homemade spice paste; cook for 4-6 minutes until oil starts to separate.

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6Next, add meat and stir-fry for 8-10 minutes until meat is nicely seared and no longer pink.

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7Next, add roasted coconut, lemongrass stalk, sliced kaffir lime leaves, sugar, salt, tamarind pulp, and coconut milk. Stir to combine.

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8Bring to the boil, then immediately turn the heat down to low. Make sure the sauce is still bubbling on low heat. Check water level every 40-50 minutes and add some water if the curry starts to dry out. (If pressure cooking - close the cooker and wait until pressure is full, then reduce heat to low and pressure-cook for 20-25 minutes)

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9Cover and leave it to simmer for 2-2.5 hours until meat is very tender. (If pressure cooking, let it rest for 30 minutes before opening the cooker)

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10Once tender, if there is still lots of liquid left in the saucepan reduce it by turning up the heat until sauce is thick and luscious. Add more salt and sugar to taste. Serve hot with steamed Jasmine rice.

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