Rendang Tok is the famous beef rendang that originated in Perak, where I spent most of my childhood before leaving for college. It is dry rendang, believed to have been created by the royal cooks, who had the luxury to access different spices that were out of the reach of the ordinary people in the yesteryears. 

Making the perfect rendang takes time, but the process is worth it as the flavor is truly irresistible. Therefore, it is a favorite dish prepared for Hari Raya Aidilfitri, the Malay wedding, and other important festive,

Let’s dive into the details of how to prepare rendang tok.

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1. Ingredients required for making Rendang Tok

Rendang tok has some Indian influences, so the recipe includes cumin, coriander, and fennel. Combined with galangal, turmeric, and lemongrass, it creates a distinct taste for rendang tok. The texture is further accentuated by including kerisik, making it richer and creamier. Below is the list of primary ingredients for making Tendang Tok.

• Beef. I use beef brisket to make this mouthwatering rendang today. You can also use cuts such as chuck tender, rump, and topside. These cuts are juicy and tender after cooking for a long time.
• The spice paste. The spice paste consists of onion, garlic, lemongrass, ginger, turmeric, galangal, candlenuts, and dried chili. These spices deliver a combination of aromatic flavors and form the body of the gravy.
• The dry spices. The dry spices are cumin, coriander, fennel cinnamon bar, cardamom, star anise, and cloves. If you find it troublesome to get all these whole spices, you may substitute them with whichever ground spices are available.
• Kerisik. Another essential ingredient is the toasted coconut shavings (kerisik in Malay), available in most grocery stores. I made it from scratch as the color of the store-bought one is too dark, and I prefer to toast it to light golden only. Kerisik is widely used in preparing various types of Malaysian-style rendang,
• Asam keping (Asam gelugur). Asam keping is the sun-dried slices of the fruits of Garcinia atroviridis. It adds a unique sour note to the rendang. The closest substitute is tamarind paste, called asam Jawa in Malay. They are different plant species, but both provide a sour note to the local dish.
• Dried chilies. I used about 15 small dried red chilies in the recipe. You may want to adjust the heat level by adding more bird’s eye chilies or reducing the amount.
• Palm sugar. Palm sugar is made from the sap of flower buds from the coconut palm. It is also known as Gula Melaka (Malacca sugar) in English, as it originated from Malacca. It has its unique flavor but can be substituted with brown sugar if unavailable. Palm sugar balances the sourness of the asam keping and provides a slightly sweet taste to the savory rendang tok.
• Coconut cream. I always used fresh coconut cream directly extracted from the coconut. It is available in every market and most of the supermarkets. You can use the coconut cream in a can or box if the fresh one is unavailable.

2. How to prepare Rendang Tok

Below is a detailed breakdown of how to prepare Rendang Tok.

a. Prepare the beef

• Trim off any tough tendons and fat. I like to remove the excess fat for health reasons, but you may leave it if you wish to indulge in its heavenly taste.
• Cut the beef into large chunks, about one to two inches long. The beef will shrink slightly after prolonged stewing, so cutting slightly larger than you want is best.

b. Prepare the spice paste:

• Cut the onion, garlic, ginger, and turmeric into small chunks. 
• Remove both ends of the lemongrass. Peel off the outer sheath and use only the inner part. Rough cut the inner part of the lemongrass bulb into small sections. 
• Remove the seeds of the dried chili. Soak them in hot water for fifteen minutes or until soft.
• Place all the ingredients plus the candlenuts in the blender. Add sufficient water until it can carry the ingredients to move in a circular motion, forming a whirlpool. 
• Blend the ingredients for a minute or until it becomes a thick paste.
• Saute the spice paste until it becomes aromatic.

c. Prepare the dry spices

• Prepare the dry spices by toasting the fresh seeds: cumin, coriander, and fennel seeds. Then, blend them into powder. You can take a shortcut using the ground coriander seeds and other spice powder commonly available in grocery stores. 

d. Cook the spices

• Heat about half a cup of oil in the large wok. Use cooking oil generously when cooking rendang is essential to produce a rich and glossy gravy.
• Place the dry spices (cinnamon, cardamom, star anise, and cloves) into the oil over medium heat. Let it saute until you smell the aroma rising from the wok. 
• Add the blended chili paste and toasted spices, then saute over medium heat for ten minutes. The water in the spice paste will eventually evaporate, and the color will darken afterward. 

e. Stew the beef

• Add the beef cubes, followed by the coconut cream. Mix thoroughly and wait until it comes to a boil.
• Adjust the heat to a minimum to cook the rendang at a barely simmering temperature. Cover it with the lid and let it stew for at least three hours. Please stir occasionally during the stewing process to prevent the spices from sticking to the bottom of the wok. The color of the gravy will gradually turn from light brown to dark brown over time as the water evaporates, and the beef is slow-cooked in its fat and vegetable oil. At this stage, you can see the oil separating from the beef and gravy. This phenomenon is called pecah minyak (literally oil-breaking) in Malay, indicating that most water has evaporated.

f. Include the remaining ingredients

1. Add the asam keping, kerisik, and palm sugar, and season with salt and black pepper.
2. Sprinkle some thinly sliced turmeric leaves into the wok, and then cook for another half to one hour over the smallest flame of your stove. There is no need to add water. Rendang tok is a dry beef rendang dish.
3. The gravy will eventually turn dark brown after prolonged slow cooking over low heat, and a concentrated aroma of spices will waft up from the wok. The beef is tender, soft, and ready to serve now.
4. You can garnish the rendang with some thinly sliced red chilies and the remaining slices of turmeric leaves (daun kunyit) or kaffir lime leaves (daun limau purut).

3. Tips to make the best Rendang Tok

• I do not marinate the beef as indicated in some recipes. The flavor should effectively infuse the meat since I cook the beef for a few hours.
• The components of spice paste are different from other rendang, which contributes to the unique flavor of rendang tok. 
• Cinnamon bark, cardamom, star anise, and cloves are the spice combinations called Empat Sekawan (which means four buddies in Malay), and it is commonly used in various Malay cooking.
• You should always refrigerate the fresh coconut cream (called santan in Malay) because it can turn rancid quickly. However, it is stable once frozen, which is stable for up to a few weeks. 
• Since manufacturers sometimes label coconut cream as coconut milk, please read the labels carefully when purchasing it. Be sure to choose the type for cooking with around twenty percent fat content. Avoid selecting coconut milk intended for drinking, as it does not have the same thickness required for cooking.

How to store Rendang Tok

Perfectly cooked rendang tok tastes even better on the next day. It can last for a few days in the refrigerator. However, the flavor can slowly deteriorate over time. Therefore, it is best to freeze it if you intend to keep it longer.

Other rendang recipes

I recommend you try other rendang recipes that taste different from Rendang Tok. Both recipes are on this recipe blog:

• My chicken rendang recipe is the classic wet rendang with plenty of sauce. You can imagine it is a hybrid of dry rendang and saucy curry. It is less work to prepare and is ideal for including in your dinner rotation.
• Beef Minang is originated from Minangkabau in Indonesia. It is perhaps the most popular rendang worldwide.

Continue to Content

Rendang Tok - how to make the best beef rendang from Perak

Yield: 5 portions

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cook Time: 3 hours

Total Time: 3 hours 30 minutes

Rendang Tok is the famous beef rendang that originated from the state of Perak. Rendang tok has some Indian influences, including spices like cumin, coriander, and fennel. When combined with galangal, turmeric, and lemongrass, it creates a distinct taste for rendang tok. The texture is further accentuated by the inclusion of kerisik, making it richer and creamier.

Print

Ingredients

Ingredient A (beef)

• 1 kg beef (brisket, rump, topside, or chuck tender), cut into 1-2 inches length

Ingredient B (spice paste)

• 250g onion
• 6 cloves garlic
• 5 lemongrass
• 40g ginger
• 30g turmeric
• 40g galangal
• 3 candlenuts
• 15 small dried chilies, remove seeds and soaked until soften
• Half cup water, or more if necessary

Ingredients C (dry spices)

• 1/2 tbsp cumin seeds
• 1/2 tbsp fennel seeds
• 1 tbsp coriander seeds

Ingredients D (dry spices)

• 1 cinnamon bark
• 5 cardamom
• 2 star anise
• 6 cloves

Ingredients E (others)

• 100ml cooking oil
• 400ml coconut cream
• 4 tbsp kerisik (see note)
• 1 piece asam keping
• 60g palm sugar
• 2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp ground black pepper
• 2 turmeric leaves, thinly sliced
• Sliced red chili for garnishing

Instructions

Preparation:

1. Cut the beef into 1-2 inches cubes
2. Cut the onion into large chunks.
3. Cut the ginger, turmeric, and galangal into small pieces.
4. Remove both ends of the lemongrass and the outermost sheath. Cut the bulb area of the lemongrass crosswise into thin slices.
5. Remove the seeds of the dried chilis, and soak them in hot water until soft.
6. Place all the ingredients in B into a blender. Blender the ingredients until they form a smooth paste.
7. Toast ingredients C in a pan until fragrant. Transfer to a blender and grind to become powder.

Cooking

1. Saute Ingredients in D with oil in the large wok, over low heat until aromatic.
2. Add the spice paste and ground spices.  Saute over medium heat for the next ten minutes. 
3. Add the beef cubes, followed by the coconut cream. Mix thoroughly and wait until it comes to a boil.
4. Adjust the heat to a minimum. Let it stew for at least three hours. 
5. After three hours, add the asam keping, kerisik, and palm sugar, and season with salt and black pepper.
6. Add some thinly sliced turmeric leaves, and then continue to cook for another half an hour.
7. Transfer the rendang to a serving plate, garnish with more turmeric leaves and thinly sliced red chilies.

Notes

To make kerisik, place the coconut shavings in a dry pan. Toast over medium heat and constantly stir to prevent burning. Transfer it to a blender and process it to become fine granules when it turns golden.

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Nutrition Information:

Yield: 5 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 1144Total Fat: 70gSaturated Fat: 33gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 30gCholesterol: 194mgSodium: 1466mgCarbohydrates: 70gFiber: 9gSugar: 24gProtein: 69g

This data was provided and calculated by Nutritionix on 1/11/2022