Rendang: All About This Traditional Indonesian Dish And Its Interesting Connection With India

Indonesian cuisine is one of the most flavorful and vibrant cuisines in the world that most people across the globe admire. The cuisine varies significantly with different influences from many countries. The most critical aspect of Indonesian cooking is that it took most of its indigenous techniques, cooking style and ingredients from countries such as the Middle East, China, Europe and India. Rendang is one of the traditional Indonesian dishes with a slight connection with India. But before getting into that, let's give you a brief introduction to this dish.

Rendang is one of the traditional Indonesian dishes originating from the Minangkabau region in West Sumatra, Indonesia. It is a dish renowned worldwide for its palatable taste and unique cooking style. Did you know that this dish takes its place in the count of world’s best dishes? Rendang is a rich and flavorful dish made with beef in an extraordinary manner that requires a great deal of effort and patience. There are about six ways of preparing this dish. The traditional method begins with braising the beef in coconut milk and thenseasoning it with a mixture of herbs and spices. This process continues until the liquid evaporates and the meat turns dark brown.

Once it turns tender, the cooked dish becomes caramelized and infused with rich flavours. The origins of this Indonesian dish traces back to the time during the 15th century when Indian merchants had a link with West Sumatra. A theory suggests that an Indian north Indian curry was possibly the precursor of rendang. The Minangkabau people of Indonesia adopted a local version of our Indian curry that is now popularly known as ‘Gulai’. This cooking process further continued, and finally, rendang was created. Rendang is a delicious dish that gets one hooked to its mouth-watering taste and indulgent aroma. If you plan to give this Indonesian dish a try at home, tap here to check out the full recipe.