It’s hard to make close-to-authentic beef rendang here. For starters, we don’t always have easy access to some of its key ingredients: galangal, cardamom pods, cloves, and so on. This cheat beef rendang uses ingredient alternatives that you can easily find in your grocery (or in your pantry). We designed this recipe as a sandwich, but feel free to spoon it over rice instead.
Ingredients
Spice Paste
- 7 garlic cloves
- ½ cup whole bird’s eye chilies
- 7 small or 3–4 medium red onions
- ¼ cup ginger, sliced
- ½ tsp ground turmeric
- 3–4 tbsp coconut brown sugar
- ½ tsp allspice
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- ½ tsp ground cumin
- salt, to taste
Beef Rendang
- 2 stalks lemongrass
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil or canola oil
- 1 ½ cup coconut cream
- 750g beef chuck cubes
- salt, to taste
Sandwich
- 6 pcs mini soft baguettes
- 1 cucumber, sliced
- 1 carrot, sliced
- 1 radish, sliced
- cilantro or coriander, for garnish
- lime or lemon wedges, for garnish
Combine spice paste ingredients in the bowl of a food processor. Blitz until fully blended, then set aside in a bowl.
Bash lemongrass with the back of a knife to release flavor. Slice off the green part, leaving only the white part at the bottom. Set aside.
Add oil to a heavy-bottomed pan on low heat. Cook spice paste until fragrant. Add coconut cream and lemongrass. Increase heat to medium, then add beef. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low. Simmer beef for 3 hours, stirring often to prevent scorching the bottom. The rendang sauce will reduce and darken in color.
After three hours, check the tenderness of the beef by poking it with a fork. It should be very soft. Season with salt, then remove from heat.
Slice baguettes in half and toast both cut sides down on a pan over medium heat. Set aside.
To assemble, place beef rendang on half of a cut sandwich. Top with carrots, radish, cucumber, and cilantro. Slice diagonally or serve as a whole, with a squeeze of lime or lemon.
