Beef Rendang and a Beef Blog Hop

Ingredients for Beef Rendang ~ Malaysian Beef Curry

You know those recipes that immediately pop out at you, that you bookmark or pin on Pinterest and you just can’t forget? Beef Rendang – a Malaysian beef curry – was one such recipe for me. I pinned two different recipes for this tempting, coconut-infused beef curry on my Asian Inspiration board, each with a slightly different method and equally enticing result. It’s just that kind of dish. It had a similar effect on Manu of Manu’s Menu: “When I saw this recipe at Not Quite Nigella’s website,” she wrote in her post, “I knew I HAD to make it.” And so when I saw it over at Manu’s Menu and No Recipes, well, I also knew I HAD to make it.I must admit that mine is a bastardization. For one, I didn’t have galangal or kaffir lime leaves, two key ingredients. I took my favorite elements from each of the two recipes, like tamarind paste from Manu’s recipe and freeze dried coconut cream from No Recipes. I went with what I had, and I have to say that while slightly labor intensive, it was worth every second, every step, and every dirty dish that went into the process. It was one of the best things I’ve ever eaten. And be warned: the photos do not do it any justice. They’re pretty horrid in fact.

Beef Rendang ~ Malaysian Beef Curry

This Beef Rendang is a beef stew like none you’ve ever tasted. The tender, slow cooked meat is enrobed in a thick, rich sauce of coconut milk, tamarind, ginger, garlic, turmeric and more. It’s one of the most beautiful flavor combinations I can imagine, and leaves you with serious cravings, even once you’ve wiped up every last drop from the pot.

4.7 from 10 reviews
Beef Rendang and a Beef Blog Hop
 
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This beef curry recipe from Malaysia has a long ingredient list and cooking time, but don't be put off. It's worth every second.
Author:
Recipe Type: Entree
Cuisine: Malaysian
Yield: 6 servings
Ingredients
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 2 teaspoons sugar
  • 1½ teaspoons tamarind concentrate
  • ¾ cup (about 2 ounces or 55 g) desiccated coconut, toasted in a dry pan (reserve 2 tablespoons for the spice paste)
  • 2 pounds (1 kilo) beef chuck or stew beef, cubed in bite size pieces
For the Spice Paste:
  • 2 onions 
or 4 shallots
  • 1 large jalapeño, seeded
  • 1 inch ginger, roughly chopped
  • 4 cloves of garlic
  • 2 tablespoons toasted coconut (from above)
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
For the curry sauce
:
  • 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 1 tablespoon turmeric powder
  • 2½ tablespoons sugar
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 4 teaspoons soy sauce
  • 2 (2-oz) packages coconut cream powder, rehydrated in 2 cups warm water (or 1 400 ml/13.5 oz. can coconut milk)
Directions
  1. Mix together the salt, sugar, tamarind concentrate and water in a large bowl. Add the beef and toss to fully coat. Add the toasted coconut (reserve 2 tablespoons) and mix well. Set aside.
  2. Put all of the spice paste ingredients in a food processor and blend until you get a smooth paste.
  3. Heat the vegetable oil in a large, heavy-bottomed pan over medium heat. Cook the meat, working in batches, until seared on all sides. Transfer to a bowl.
  4. Add the spice paste and the rest of the curry sauce ingredients and cook for a few minutes.
  5. Add the coconut milk and bring to a simmer. Return the beef to the pan.
  6. Turn the heat to a low simmer, cover and allow to simmer for 2 hours or until the meat is fall-apart tender.
  7. Uncover, turn the heat to high, and boil for about 10 minutes, stirring often, until the sauce has reduced and thickened to desired consistency.
Notes
Gluten free, Kosher meat
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40 thoughts on “Beef Rendang and a Beef Blog Hop”

  1. Shannon | JustAsDelish

    do you know Beef Rendang is one of the 50 most delicious dishes by a CNN survey? That’s why it’s difficult to resist 😀 don’t worry about the variation in recipe, there’s differences in Malaysian, Singaporean and Indonesian version. even different parts of the country produces different rendang..

  6. Carina Sebastine

    Can you hear the chorus? ‘we will HAVE to make it’ – already on the
    ‘to-do-menu’ for next week – my husband will not let me forget it (lol).
    Your photography, as always, is an inspiration. Thank you.
    Ciao, Carina

  13. Jessica | Oh Cake

    This recipe sounds fantastic and is making me want to run out to the local Thai place for lunch! I do make some Asian inspired dishes at home but never seem to have all the right ingredients to make it taste like I want to. Great work here!

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  18. mjskit

    I was already very tempted to make this then I saw Shannon’s comment and now I know I’ll be making beef rendang. Talk about a depth of flavors! I’ve linked up a West African beef stew that I discovered last fall and have made a couple of times since. Another great stew. Thanks for hosting this great hop!

  19. Eri

    Hello Katherine, it doesn’t sound strange to me this long simmering of the beef, that;s the way we cook beef back in Greece. I’ve never heard of this dish before but I love all the ingredients and I like recipes that you have to actually prepare and cook something 🙂
    My contributions to your bloghop is a twisted beef pie that I think you should try and make it!
    Hugs and Kisses my friend, have a nice weekend!

  20. Manu

    Mmmmmmm my favourite curry! I LOVE it! I know, it is hard to resist it! Thank you so much for the mention! Yours look great! I find taking pictures of meat in general (and curries too) to be particularly hard and I think you did a great job! <3

  21. Eha

    Something I naturally have prepared for at least three decades: have to compare recipes!! Wonderful basic 🙂 !

  23. Stacy

    You are making me homesick! I lived in Kuala Lumpur for more than eight years and this was one of my favorite treats. I have to admit that I have never made it since it was so easily available but I will definitely give it a try now.

    As always, thanks for the beef blog hop! I have shared my individual beef Wellington.

    Stacy

  28. TastefullyJulie

    This looks so easy and delicious. I don’t eat beef but I do get free range bison to cook with once in a while. I’m always looking for interesting dishes to try. This fits the bill!

  29. Joanna @ Chic & Gorgeous Treats

    Holly Molly! This looks absolutely delicious. I could imagine myself serving your take on beef rendang with rice cooked in coconut milk or even dip a good bread. Like Shannon said, us Malaysians have a variety of rendang, and different states or family handed down recipes varies a whole lot from the level of heat to maybe the spices use, or some even prefer different cut of meat. I think if I were to move abroad one day, I will definitely be cooking a lot of rendang ;). Gosh your photo is making me hungry right now. Cheers, Jo

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  32. Dave

    Cooked this today and am very disappointed. Potentially it could be nice but my dish turned out far far too rich and also too salty. Maybe less soy and salt might help, not sure.

    • Katherine

      I’m so sorry to hear that Dave! It’s especially disappointing since it’s a bit of a time consuming dish to prepare. The richness is one of the things I enjoy about it, and beef rending usually, but that’s too bad that you found it too salty. There can be quite a lot of variation in the sodium levels of soy sauce, which could have attributed to yours being so salty and mine not. I also find that certain salts are saltier than others if that makes sense. Whatever the reason, I’m truly sorry you didn’t enjoy it!

  33. Christine

    Hello, I would really like to make this dish, but in the first set of directions it says to mix the water in. I don’t see water listed anywhere in the ingredient list and so am not sure how much to put in? If you could add this detail, that would be great! Thanks.

    • Katherine

      Eek! Good catch, thanks so much. I’d say about 2 tablespoons – just enough that everything forms a smooth consistency but not so much that it’s watery. Enjoy!!

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