Vegetarian Rendang Tofu Recipe - Learn to Cook Indonesian Food!

Vegetarian Rendang Tofu Recipe - Learn to Cook Indonesian Food!

Vegetarian Rendang Tofu

This is one of the most popular dishes in Indonesia and Malaysia. It is quite similar in flavor to other Southeast Asian curries, with the main difference being that this preparation is cooked until the coconut milk mixture has reduced and become very thick. The addition of the kerasik, or ground, toasted coconut, serves to thicken the mixture even further.

1 lb. grilled tofu, sliced

2 TB dried chilis
hot water, to cover chilis

4 shallots
3 cloves garlic
1/2 TB ginger
1 medium onion
2 stalks lemongrass, white part only
1/2 TB galangal
1 tsp. ground coriander seed
1/2 TB ground cumin
1/2 TB ground fennel
1/8 tsp. ground nutmeg
1/2 TB tamarind water

2 cups coconut milk
2 cups vegetable stock
1/4 cup dried, grated coconut
1 tsp. brown sugar
1 tsp. salt
1 TB kaffir lime leaves, finely shredded

Combine chilis and hot water until chilis are softened. Remove seeds from chilis and puree with a little bit of water until you get a thick paste. Add chili paste to shallots, garlic, ginger, onion, lemongrass, galangal, cumin, fennel, and tamarind and puree in food processor or pound in mortar and pestle until you get a smooth paste. Add this paste, along with tofu, coconut milk, and vegetable stock to a pot and simmer over low heat for one hour. Meanwhile, toast coconut over very low heat in a pan or wok until lightly browned and aromatic. Be very careful not to burn coconut. Remove coconut from pan and grind in a spice mill or coffee grinder. After the coconut milk/stock/tofu mixture has simmered for an hour (let the liquid reduce significantly), add the ground, toasted coconut and stir. Add sugar, salt, and lime leaves. Continue to cook until the mixture becomes very thick and dry, usually only a few minutes.