*** AN EID SPECIAL PRESENTATION ***
First, a disclaimer.
I don't know what the real Rendang Tok is really like. I don't know if this recipe that Cikgu Munah, my mom-in-law, gave me is really the recipe for Rendang Tok, or does she just call it that coz it's the Rendang that Taufik's grandmother (whom he calls 'Tok') always makes.
aaanyways. My mom-in-law makes this rendang for eid every year. She also makes Ketupat Daun Palas, which is basically glutinous rice cakes wrapped in palm leaves (daun palas) into a tri-coned packet.
Eversince Taufik and I got married, on the last day of Ramadhan my mom-in-law and I would sit in that small bit of space between her dining table and her living room with a bunch of daun palas and a pot of glutinous rice cooked in coconut milk in between us. I always have to ask for a review of how to tie the leaves into the tri-cone shape, making sure I get it right and don't end up with a 'female' ketupat instead of a 'male' ketupat (Don't ask me how and why... you've got to see it to understand).
So this ritual has become some sort of a tradition between us, and I only realized that when I couldn't make ketupat daun palas with her last year. That was why this year I was determined to have some semblance to the eid that I have gotten used to for the past 14 years or so.
The process of getting there might not have been the same, but the end result was close enough to the real thing that it made me feel all chocked up on eid morning.
Easy Peasy Rendang Tok
Pound or blend fine:
15 shallots
5 garlic pips
5 - 10 dried chillies (adjust to your desired spicyness)
1 inch fresh ginger root
1kg chicken, cut into bite sized pieces
1 liter coconut milk
2 stalks lemongrass, lightly pound to break surface and release oils
2 pieces asam gelugor (what is this in english??)
salt and sugar to taste
Method:
Dump everything except the asam gelugor and salt and sugar in a huge pot. Let simmer, stirring occasionally, under medium heat for two hours or until coconut milk turns oily. Add in the asam gelugor, let simmer for another 30 minutes to thicken the sauce. Season with salt and sugar.
Serve with ketupat or nasi impit (rice cakes)
Easy Peasy Ketupat Perantau
300grams Thai glutinous rice
200ml coconut milk
1 tablespoon sugar
enough water to mix with coconut milk to make the same volume as the uncooked rice
Measure the rice to determine it's volume. Mix coconut milk, sugar and water to make the same volume of rice. Put everything in a pot, preferably non-stick. Boil over medium heat, stirring occasionally to ensure nothing sticks to the bottom of the pot. Once liquid is halfway dried up, cover the pot and simmer over very low heat until all liquid is dried up and rice turns transluscent. (if rice does not feel gritty when pressed between your fingers, it's done)
Let cool enough to touch.
Put a spoonful into a ziploc bag and knead and press towards one corner of the bag to turn it into a triangular/tri-cone shape.
Eat with Rendang or Sambal udang kering.
... rasalah ketupat ini, dengan rendang nya sekali ...
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