Spiced Coconut Beef (Rendang)

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In Indonesia, this is the preferred method of cooking water buffalo, a fairly tough meat. Since they are scarce in Amsterdam, this recipe from Indrapura Restaurant features beef. It is served over rice. The chef at Indrapura notes: “Use mature coconuts. Taste before you add salt during the cooking.” To make coconut milk from scratch, grate the coconut and soak the flesh in hot water.

Ingredients

For the Spice Paste:

  • 20 shallots, peeled and chopped

  • 5 cloves garlic, peeled

  • 1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder

  • 1 small fresh piece of ginger, peeled

  • 1/2 teaspoon salt

  • 7 fresh red chiles, such as jalapeño, seeds and stems removed, chopped

  • Small amount of water, if needed

For the Rendang:

  • 3 pound chuck steak, cut into1-inch cubes

  • 8 cups coconut milk (unsweetened)

  • 2 lemon grass stalks, bruised

  • 1 whole tamarind pod

Instructions

In a blender or food processor, combine the ingredients for the spice paste and puree until smooth.

Place the beef and spice paste in a wok over high heat and saute for five minutes. Add the remaining ingredients. Stirring continuously, bring the mixture to a boil and cook until the coconut milk has thickened.

Turn the heat down to low and cook until the oil comes out of what is left of the gravy, and stir continuously. Let the meat and spices fry in the oil until the color is deep, dark brown still stirring. The length of cooking process should be around 4 hours. Remove the lemon grass stalks and the tamarind pod before serving.

Shrimp with Chile Paste

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Typically, this fired up but sweet shrimp dish is served over rice with sliced cucumbers on the side. The recipe was provided by Indrapura Restaurant, but there were some language difficulties and I was forced to improvise.

Ingredients

For the Spice Paste:

  • 1 cup water

  • 4 cloves garlic, peeled

  • 4 red chiles, such as jalapeños, seeds and stems removed, chopped

  • 1 small piece ginger, peeled

  • 2 ripe tomatoes, quartered

  • 3 tablespoons sugar

  • Salt to taste

For the  Shrimp:

  • ½ cup vegetable oil

  • 3 pounds medium shrimp, peeled and deveined, tails left on

Instructions

In a blender or food processor, combine all the Spice Paste ingredients and puree until smooth.

In a wok, heat the oil until hot and fry the shrimp for about 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove them to a bowl lined with paper towels.

Add the Spice Paste to the wok and fry on high heat for about five minutes, or until it smells very fragrant, stirring constantly. Add the shrimp and stir together for 1 minute. Remove and serve the shrimp in the sauce.

Fish Steaks with Secret Scilly Cay Grilling Sauce

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Gorgeous insists that his sauce is secret, but if he wanted to keep it that way, he should never have told me the ingredients. We experimented in Dave’s and Mary Jane’s kitchen until we got the sauce right. It can also be used on chicken. It is a grill sauce, designed to be brushed on during the grilling process, but it has a lot of sugar in it, so take care that it does not burn. The sauce yield is about 1 cup.

Ingredients

2 teaspoons olive oil
1 clove garlic, chopped
½ cup orange marmalade
1 cup orange juice
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon dried tarragon
1/4 teaspoon curry powder
1 tablespoon ground dry roasted peanuts
2 tablespoons Scotch bonnet or habanero hot sauce
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 thick fish steaks, such as shark or tuna

Instructions

In a sauce pan, heat the olive oil and saute the garlic. Add the remaining sauce ingredients and cook over medium heat until the sauce thickens, about 10 minutes. Transfer to a blender and puree until smooth. Transfer to a bowl and refrigerate if not using it immediately.

Add wood chips (such as pecan or mesquite) to the grill fire. Brush the sauce over the steaks and place them on the grill. Keep brushing the steaks with the sauce until they are done. The time will vary according to the heat of the fire, the thickness of the steaks, and their proximity to the fire. Try not to turn the steaks more than twice.

Smoked Leg of Lamb

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Leg of lamb is a classic holiday meal but with the availability of lamb year-round it is becoming more and more common on the dinner table. A whole lamb leg is too large for mast families so the leg is usually cut into two sections:  the lean shank half and the tenderer (but bonier) sirloin half. Lamb shoulder which is less tender and less expensive could be substituted. This recipe requires advance preparation to allow the lamb to marinate overnight.

Ingredients

1 (5- to 6-pound) boned sirloin half leg of lamb
5 fresh rosemary springs (for smoking)
Fresh mint leaves, finely shredded

For the rub:

6 tablespoons olive oil
1 small yellow onion peeled and quartered
10 cloves garlic, peeled
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 teaspoons grated lemon peel
2 tablespoons smoked paprika
2 teaspoons coarse kosher salt
2 teaspoons ground pepper
1 teaspoon rosemary

Instructions

Prepare the paste by combining all the paste ingredients except the oil in a food processor or blender and process to combine. With the processor running, pour in the oil and continue processing until a paste forms. Spread the paste generously on the lamb. Place the lamb in a resealable plastic bag and refrigerate overnight. Remove the lamb from the refrigerator and let stand at room temperature for 30 minutes.

Prepare your smoker or indirect grill with hickory and cherry and bring it to 220 to 250 degrees F. Add the rosemary springs to the coals and place the lamb, skin side up, in the smoker or between the two piles of coals on the indirect grill. Cook for 30 minutes and then turn the lamb skin-side down; continue smoke-cooking until the lamb is medium-rare, about another 20 minutes per pound. The internal temperature should be 140 degrees F.

Remove the lamb when done, tent with foil, and let it rest 10 minutes before slicing. Garnish with a drizzle of olive oil and fresh mint. Serve with roasted new potatoes and onions and steamed asparagus.


Grilled Chicken Parts with Tasty’s Barbecue Sauce

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The ingredients for this sauce were given to me by Dale Carty and I must say that I admired him for making his sauce from scratch rather than buying a commercial one. That’s probably why his restaurant is named as it is. This sauce is added to the chicken during the last half of cooking, and the chicken is best when it’s smoke-grilled (used wood chips soaked in water), so keep it quite a distance from the fire, close the lid on the barbecue unit, and grill it slowly. The sauce yield is about 3 cups or a little more.

Ingredients

  • 1 tablespoon olive oil

  • 1 clove garlic, chopped

  • 1 medium onion, chopped

  • 1 green or red bell pepper, chopped

  • 3 medium tomatoes, peeled and chopped

  • 1 cup water

  • 2 tablespoons mango chutney

  • 1/4 cup pine nuts, dry roasted and ground

  • 1 teaspoon thyme

  • 1/4 cup Scotch bonnet or habanero hot sauce

  • 1 medium chicken, cut into 8 pieces (2 wings, 2 thighs, 2 legs, 2 breasts)

Instructions

In a large skillet over medium heat, saute the garlic in the olive oil for about 2 minutes. Add the onion and saute an additional 5 minutes. Add the pepper and saute another 5 minutes. Add the tomatoes and saute, covered for 20 minutes. Uncover, add the remaining sauce ingredients and simmer for 5 minutes. Transfer to a blender and puree.

Smoke grill the chicken until half done, brush the parts with the sauce, and continue smoke-grilling until done.