No way was I going to do this classic dish with a traditional beef chuck. This deserves better, I wanted something richer, gelatinous and over the top savory. Nothing better then to use large pieces of Oxtail which in my option is the best cut of beef hands down. I toyed around with the idea to use my sous vide but that is just dumb idea. It will turn out more like a stew with too much liquid and it won’t replicate the texture of a slow cook reduction.
Chef Tip: The dish is best made the day before. Warm the next day for best results.
Washing
This recipe is going to focus on the oxtail made to perfection rather than the curry.
First rinse the Oxtail meat well under running water. Then in a bowl place the oxtail covering it with cold water and a good gush of vinegar. Cover and place in fridge before use. 4 hours is probably enough but I let mine sit for 12 hours. When finished give the meat a really good rinse under cold water. Doing this rids blood or other impurities.
Bruising
Though you can just chop the indigence or pulverize in a blender. You’ll be missing out on a little bit of magic if you don’t bruise your lemongrass, ginger and galangal first. Bruise first, chop or blitz after.
One of the best exercises you can go through is take a piece of horse radish root. Cut a piece and smell it, then take another piece and bruise it real good, beat it to death, then smell it. POW! The bruising causes a chemical reaction. The same principle works in the recipe.
Oxtail Rendang
Ingredients
Dried Curry
- 4 Shallots
- 6 Galic Cloves
- 1.5 Inch Ginger
- 1.5 Inch Galangal
- 2 Birds Eye Sliced Chilli
- 2 Serrano Chilli
- 1 tbsp Kosher Salt
- 1 tsp Ground Coriander
- .5 tsp Ground Tumeric
- .5 tsp Ground Cardamom
- 2 tsp Vegtable Oil
- 1 Lemon Grass Chopped As small as possible
- 1 tbsp Palm Sugar
- 2 tsp Tamarind Paste
Meat
- 4 Large Oxtail
- Vinegar
Curry Sauce
- 1 Can Coconut Cream Go full fat not lite.
- 1 Star Anise
- 6 Kaffir Lime Leaves
- Water
- 1 Cinnamon Stick Optional: I don't like it but some do.
- 1 Can Bamboo Shoots Not matchstick. The larger cut.
Instructions
Curry
- Bruise first the Lemongrass, Ginger and Galangal then dice and slice up.
- Add dried curry indigence to a blender and your bruised items. Blitz till you get a paste.
- Add oil to a medium high, NOT high, pan. Then add your curry. Stir frequently for about 5-10 min or until the liquid is all gone then set aside.
Sauce
- With your curry add your coconut milk, star anise, lime leaves and still in well.
- Add your oxtail. Then top with water till it reaches the top of the meat.
- Put your pan on a very slow simmer and cook for 4 hours. Flip the oxtail 3 or 4 times an hour. The last hour you will probably need to turn over more often depending how much liquid is remaining.
- Keep a close eye on the sauce during the last hour. Don't let it dry out on you. You must cook this for a full 4 hours. If the sauce is drying out too fast add more water.
- The goal is to achieve no liquid left at the end of the four hours. If you're 30 min away from the 4 hours and there is too much liquid. Turn up the heat. Just don't let it burn! hahahaha
Master Brad...ya, that flying dog held me captive forever, in the end the eggs never hatched. Grrrr
I had totally forgotten about this, my Portuguese dogs are still in therapy.
Try is with a couple of sprigs of tarragon while you're making the sauce, not too much just enough to…
Looks good
Good catch...I forgot to add the good stuff. Butter. :)