Indonesian Beef Rendang

4 fresh banana peppers, seeded and chopped
4 shallots, chopped
5 cloves garlic, chopped
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon ground red pepper
2 pounds beef tenderloin, cut into 1 1/2 x 2-inch cubes
1 (1/2 inch) piece galangal, thinly sliced
3 stalks lemon grass, chopped
6 lime leaves
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
3 (15 ounce) cans coconut milk

Place the banana peppers, shallots, garlic, salt, and ground red pepper in a blender, and pulse until the mixture is a paste.

Place the beef tenderloin cubes in a skillet over medium heat with the pepper mixture, galangal, lemon grass, lime leaves, and turmeric. Cook the beef with the seasonings, stirring occasionally, until the meat is no longer pink inside and the meat juices have mostly evaporated, about 15 minutes.

Pour the coconut milk into the skillet, bring to a boil, reduce the heat, and simmer for about 15 minutes. Remove the pieces of beef to a bowl, and let the coconut milk continue to simmer until thickened, about 30 minutes. Return the beef to the coconut sauce, reduce the heat to low, and barely simmer the beef and sauce until the sauce turns brown and the oil has separated from the coconut milk, about 2 1/2 hours. Stir frequently as the sauce thickens.

Comments:
- I am from Northern Sumatra, Indonesia which is where this recipe comes from. I have done this recipe several times in the past, using Indonesian recipe book. I think what is missing here are some ingredients: 1. coriander powder 2. turmeric leaves (hard to get outside indonesia) 3. black peppercorn. Also, the authentic preparation is much longer. More like 6-8 hours. The Minangkabau rendang (Minangkabau is the region in Sumatra where this dish come from) tends to be dry, with all the liquid evaporated in the slow cooking. The meat is very dark, almost black. To achieve this dark color, put the rendang in oven at 220F for 1/2 hour.

- I didn't find banana peppers, so I used 3 red pepper and I used only 2 1/2 cans coconut milk, I think, it was enough, because the sauce wasn't very thick. I put the half of the paste into a pan and added the coconut milk, lemon grass and lime leaves, boiled for about 20 min., then added the meat mixture with the other half of the paste.

From: AllRecipes