Semi Instant Indonesian Rendang Beef Curry

Happy early turkey day!!

I was already late for the past Halloween holiday, therefore it's better to spread out my greetings as soon as possible.

This was supposed to be some kind of turkey related post, but sadly it's pretty tough to find a whole turkey here in Taiwan. Most Taiwanese prefer dark meat. As a result, even chicken breast is too dry for us, don't even thingk about extra lean turkey.

The only popular turkey dish, as least that's the only kind I found so far, is the shredded turkey over rice. In fact, it's so loved by Taiwanese, the rice has become one of the must-haves when visiting southern Taiwan. I promise, if I ever see turkey meat at my local grocery stores, my next post will be Taiwanese style shredded turkey rice.

Guess no big birds for me.
Instead, this year's Thanksgiving, I'm having Rendang beef curry -

Ingredients (2 to 3 portion)?

1 packet of Indonesian rendang curry paste
1 lb of beef cubes
1 to 2 sticks of carrot
1 can of coconut milk
1 tablespoon of red curry paste
Some olive oil

How?

I wish one day I'll learn how to make curry from the scratch, meaning selecting the herbs and spices, grinding/pounding, and transforming them into curry paste just like the one from the instant packet, or even better.

But before I master that skill, let's just try to stick with the instruction in the back -

I actually pre-cooked the beef cubes and carrot before making the curry because those ingredients take longer time to get that fork tender texture. If chicken is used, skip this step.

Bring a small pot of water to a boil, toss in beef cubes,
Bring to a boil and cook for couple minutes till all the dirty bits come out,
Drain well and rinse the meat under running water.

Bring a pot of water to a boil again,
This time, we'll slowly cook the meat till almost tender and soft,
Add the beef cubes into the water,
Bring to a boil and just let it simmer for about 1 1/2 hours,
If carrot is used, you can also add peeled and diced carrot towards the end,
Once done, drain well and set aside.

Drizzle some olive oil to a big pan, turn to medium high heat,
Add in the curry paste and cook for about 30 seconds,
Be careful, the sauce might start flying everywhere,
I suggest using a deep pot or carrying a lid as your shield during this process.

Add in the beef cubes and carrot, cook for couple minutes,
Pour in coconut milk,
Bring to a boil and turn down the heat a bit,
Just let it simmer for another 30 minutes.

I also added additional 1 tablespoon of red curry paste for a heavier taste,
That's just for me, you can totally omit this step.

Curry is ready once the meat reaches your desired tenderness,
Recommend to serve with steam white rice.

While I'm enjoying my curry here, HAVE FUN eating all your turkey with gravy, stuffing, cranberry sauce, turkey soup, homemade bread, tons of cakes and cookies!!
( > ____.<)**

**jealousy kicks in**

Cindy's Rating: 6