[Narrator] Rendang. One of Indonesia's most celebrated dishes
is a slow-cooked spicy meat dish originating from West Sumatra.
Originally used as a means of preserving meat in Indonesia's tropical climate,
the Rendang technique slowly simmers cuts of meats and spiced coconut milk.
This slow cooking process is used to yield succulent fork tender meats,
with rich caramelized flavors.
Unlike braising, the Rendang technique reduces the cooking liquid until the sauce is completely dry.
At the Kamandalu Resort and Spa in Ubud, Bali,
William Wongso shows Steve Jilleba,
Corporate Executive chef of Unilever Food Solutions,
how to make a classic Beef Rendang.
[William Wongso] And this is the system.
Favored by the poor,
the wealthy, the kids, the old....
and whoever in Indonesia.
It's all over Archipelago.
[Chef Steve Jilleba] Can you do it with other stuff besides beef?
[William Wongso] Oh yes! They do — you do a....
[Chef Steve Jilleba] So, it's a basic cooking method. [William Wongso] Potato. Basic method.
[William Wongso] The different ingredients, the different cooking times.
But the finished product is principally caramelized beef curry — has to be blackened.
And also, this dish....
I can use the same thing, but there can make three dishes.
First: beef curry, the light one. I add some stock.
Second: brown curry.
Just before the Rendang.
And to keep going, blacken it, it becomes Rendang.
[Chef Steve Jilleba] So, in different cooking stages, it's different dishes. Okay. [William Wongso] Yes, different dishes.
[William Wongso] So, this is how unique it is.
And also in 2011, was voted by CNN Go as one of the world's most favorite dishes — called rendang padang.
Padang is the western — the capital of Western Sumatra.
But if you go to Western Sumatra,
I've tasted more than one hundred types of this dish.
The principle difference is only the combination of spices inside.
But the common sense of this dish is a caramelized beef curry.
Everything has to look blackened.
So, the meat that I'm using — tenderloin, the local meat....
The ratio of.... *My* ratio....
I have one kilo of beef, one and a half liters of coconut cream.
If I say there are a hundred types, but this is among the most popular....
The mix is with garlic, the basic shallot....
If you don't have this small shallot like this, you can use the type that Indians normally use.
[Chef Steve Jilleba] It's a little bit larger. [William Wongso] The one — yeah, it's larger than this.
[William Wongso] And some clove.
This is important — the red chilli.
And this is galangal.
This is candlenut, not yet roasted.
But always remember, this will be roasted anyway.
[Chef Steve Jilleba] So, you're cooking that along. Getting that caramelization. [William Wongso] Yeah, it cooks along.
[William Wongso] And don't worry about the chili, because one — the chili after four hours of cooking....
It will be peppery hot, it's not chili hot.
And then this is a basic. We ground....
We make into spice paste.
You cook. You cook slowly until rehydrate.
And make a paste.
This kind of paste, you can.... This is a ready-made paste.
The ratio is about 1 to 10.
100 gram to 1 kilo of meat.
But if you ground this as a paste,
you don't have to stir.
It will, at the end, will be stir-fried anyway.
Just put the whole thing with the coconut milk.
And then Tamarind.
This is aromatic lemongrass.
And this is not commonly.... It's not, you can have or don't have it. This is a leaf of tumeric.
And this is kaffir lime leaf.
The rest is salt, pepper. You need or you don't need.
Let's turn the fire.
This is the coconut cream.
This is the version when you use good quality meat.
In the village, when they use some Buffalo, some old cow,
then they do reverse.
The use of the coconut milk first to tenderize the meat.
[Chef Steve Jilleba] Cook the meat first. Okay. [William Wongso] To cook the meat with the spices, right?
[William Wongso] And then....
This is the Bombay paste.
Okay.
[Chef Steve Jilleba] Start mixing it in? [William Wongso] Just stir it.
[ambient noise]
[William Wongso] So, when you're good.... When you cook with the good meat....
....you have to caramelize slowly this coconut milk.
Coconut cream and the spice.
Then you put the meat.
[Chef Steve Jilleba] So, it depends on the cut of meat, really. So the more tender, less time in there. Sure. [William Wongso] Yeah.
[William Wongso] But in the modern way....
I'm not going to let you do it for nine hours, right?
So, I'm going to show you how to do it with the modern way.
Half-way, after you put the meat inside, you can....
....put in the Combi Oven. 85 degrees.
85 degrees.
Well, two hours. Two and a half hours.
It depends. And you have to test.
Then you finalize in the wok, bit by bit.
[Chef Steve Jilleba] Until you get the color you want. [William Wongso] Yes.
[Chef Steve Jilleba] So, really the mastering of the dish is really about the caramelization or color of the dish, so.... [William Wongso] Yes, exactly.
[Chef Steve Jilleba] So, you said that the cream was from the... Basically, the first press without any water. [William Wongso] The first press without any water.
[William Wongso] If you use the other type of non-Indonesian coconut cream....
....which is much lighter. You have to lose almost double.
You cook the coconut cream, you reduce it, then you cook....
You see, the the colors start changing because you start to caramelize.
[Chef Steve Jilleba] There, also the smell starting to change too.
[William Wongso] You don't have a choice, you do the wok pan.
Then you just do the first caramelization....
Then you put in the oven.
The best is the cast-iron pot.
[Chef Steve Jilleba] So a heavier pot? For stew. [William Wongso] Yes, heavier.
[Chef Steve Jilleba] And you're saying that you could do this with any.... So, there's other proteins you can use, vegetables....
[William Wongso] Oh, you can do...! You can do....!
But if you do chicken, do the great-grandmother chicken.
Don't do the spring chicken.
[Chef Steve Jilleba] Okay, do the old chicken. [William Wongso] The old chicken, yes. (laughs)
[Chef Steve Jilleba] Because you want the time to cook, I mean, to get the flavor. [William Wongso] Yeah, also the duck — also very good.
[William Wongso] They also do the fern, for vegetarian.
You can do this for the Manioc.
Anything you can do, you can do with this.
It's a matter of the timing, how far you.... It's the cooking time of the protein, of vegetables.
The most important — when you go vegetable, you have to caramelize until dark brown....
[William Wongso] And put the vegetables in and finish slowly. [Chef Steve Jilleba] And then finish it quick, right.
[William Wongso] For the family, oh, they said I love to put their red beans.
I love to put potato, the marble potato.
It's just to say, I have 10 children.
I can't afford to buy meat. So, I use red bean to replace it.
Okay, now....
[ambient noise]
Put the meat. Normally put chunky meat.
50 gram or....
Just strain this this blood, because it will give you additional sour taste.
[ambient noise]
Okay.
So, I'm going to leave you alone. I come back three hours later.
[Chef Steve Jilleba] Can I get some coffee, here? [William Wongso laughs]
[Chef Steve Jilleba] So, how am I doing?
[William Wongso] We have a good time. We watch TV. We had a coffee, we sleep. (laughs) Poor guy!
This is how.... Can you imagine nine hours?
[Chef Steve Jilleba] That's a long time. [William Wongso] Back in the village, what they do, is we use a [...] You see?
[William Wongso] This is starting to caramelize.
But you have to be very careful....
Because the sugar run. Like you see, when you caramelize, you see black....?
[William Wongso] It's too late. Yes. [Chef Steve Jilleba] Then it's going to get bitter.
So, before. Slowly like this, you will.... The color will gradually change....
But make sure, for the modern kitchen, the transition period to tenderize....
You put the whole thing....
[William Wongso] ....in the oven for 85 degrees. [Chef Steve Jilleba] ....in the oven or something. Sure.
[William Wongso] And then bring back to the wok or grilling pan and then you caramelize the whole thing.
Better to finish by Brown curry.
Because you cannot go back when you are already black.
So, you keep the brown curry. Anytime you want to black, caramelize, you take bit by bit, you do it.
[Chef Steve Jilleba] Okay. [William Wongso] Yeah, it's choice.
[William Wongso] You can do brown curry, you add some water stock, and you make....
....curry also. Brown light curry.
So, many ways to do with this dish.
See this? This is separation.
The oil.
So, the oil is roasting the paste
and the skim of the coconut cream.
[Chef Steve Jilleba] So, I like how you said you could do it in sections. [William Wongso] Yes.
[Chef Steve Jilleba] So, if you can really do a lighter curry, and then if you want to finish to this.... [William Wongso] Yes, yes. Exactly.
[William Wongso] Now get salt.
It's not salty enough.
[Chef Steve Jilleba] No, there's enough. I mean, to me, there's enough salt in. [William Wongso] Little? Okay.
[William Wongso] So, because normally.... [Chef Steve Jilleba] There's salt in the paste, yes.
[William Wongso] Yes, you need.... [Chef Steve Jilleba] A little bit on the end?
[William Wongso] And you can play also with this.... with the minced beef, so you do it faster.
And you can spread on the bread, you can do sandwich.
So, it's choice.
But again, the key is to caramelize the curry.
[Chef Steve Jilleba] And that's caramelized, there. [William Wongso] Yeah.
[William Wongso] So!
[Chef Steve Jilleba] Well, it's a big change from where it started — the color.
[Chef Steve Jilleba] I mean, we started out with the coconut cream. A little spice. And now, look at how dark it is now. [William Wongso] Yes. So I always say, "from white to black."
This is Rendang Padang.
Or Western Sumatra caramelized beef curry. You have to say "caramelized beef curry"
when you tell everyone how to do it.
Because the caramelized.... The point is very very important.
And Indonesians cannot eat this without rice.
[Chef Steve Jilleba] And you said, pretty much all the food is eaten with rice. I mean, that's the carrier for all the flavors. [William Wongso] Yes, yes.
[William Wongso] And and some people deliberately like to eat this with their hands.
And when you finish the meat....
[Chef Steve Jilleba] Mm-hmm? [William Wongso] Don't throw the paste. You can do some other cooking.
[William Wongso] You can stir fry, you can stir fry chicken.
[Chef Steve Jilleba] Or greens, you said. Or potatoes? Yeah, okay. [William Wongso] Yeah, you can cook with the potato...
[William Wongso] ....Or you can put in the rice, you cook with the rice — like like a biryani rice.
And this is very good.
[Chef Steve Jilleba] Very nice.
[William Wongso] Thanks, Steve!
[Chef Steve Jilleba] Thank you! Did I do okay?
[William Wongso] You make my life easier this afternoon. [Chef Steve Jilleba] Ah, that's good. Thank you very much.
[William Wongso] I am so much relaxed today by doing Rendang.