Rendang

Country Of Origin: Indonesia 🇮🇩

Rendang is an Indonesian meat dish, most commonly beef, that has been slow cooked and braised in a coconut milk seasoned with a herb and spice mixture, until the liquids evaporate and the meat turns dark brown and tender, becoming caramelized and infused with rich flavours. Rendang originated among the Minangkabau people in West Sumatra. The dish is famous for its spiciness and a long cooking procedure. It is often compared to Indian curry because of its consistency & unique flavors. It has spread across Indonesian cuisine to the cuisines of neighboring Southeast Asian countries such as Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei and the Philippines.

History: The origin of rendang could be traced back to the Indian merchants links to West Sumatra before the 15th century. There are Dutch archives about Minangkabau that state regular contacts between India and West Sumatra in the early second millennium, thus suggests that north Indian curry was possibly the precursor of rendang. Indian curry was adopted by the Minangkabau people as gulai, a local version of curry. Minangkabau people then cooked this gulai further in order to prepare kalio also known as wet rendang. This cooking process was then continued until it thickened and became rendang or also known as dry rendang. Rendang began to spread across the region when Minangkabau merchants began to trade and migrate to Malacca in the 16th century. Because the journey through the river waterways in Sumatra took a lot of time, a durable preserved dry rendang is suitable for a long journey.The earliest written records of rendang is from the Malaccan Malay manuscript of Hikayat Amir Hamzah which date back to the 1550s. Rendang is said to have been invented during this time - when chili from America had arrived in Malay archipelago through Portuguese traders in Portuguese occupied Malacca.

Fun Fact: During the Indonesian National Revolution in 1946, Indonesian first lady Fatmawati the wife of Sukarno cooked and sent rendang to boost morale of Indonesian republic freedom fighters around the country.

Our Favorite Recipe: https://rasamalaysia.com/beef-rendang-recipe-rendang-daging/

Our favorite Indonesian cookbook by far is The Food of Indonesia Delicious Recipes from Bali Java and the Spice Islands.

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