Indonesian Beef Curry with Coconut Rice - 5 stars

before i start talking about this fabulous dish, i'd like to mention that i'm making progress with improving my pictures. :-) perhaps not the layout of the pictures, because, well, i'm just not talented at photography. at all. i've really struggled with the quality of the pictures though, and i believe i've discovered why. going forward, *hopefully* the pictures will be of higher quality. :)

this is a lovely bowl of indonesian beef curry over coconut rice, with a salad to the right. my salads this week contain lots of kiwi - yum!

i was a little intimidated by this recipe because the curry is made from scratch, and when i've done that in the past, it's turned into a project on occasion. i'm not a fan of big projects on weekday evenings. but... it was really easy! i also don't like that some curries are really heavy because of all the coconut milk - this is a broth based one.

despite the fact that i missed a couple steps and forgot to buy an ingredient, this dish came out to be quite fantastic. to make it, i thin sliced and browned the beef in batches (london broil top round steak) in a large heavy duty skillet. i removed the beef from the skillet, and sauteed together fresh sliced shallots, garlic, and serrano chilies with some jarred ginger. i was supposed to use fresh, but ... i forgot to buy it! oops. after cooking for a bit, i added the indonesian spice mixture, which was a combo of cumin, cloves, cardamom pods, and a couple other things. i put the beef back into the pan, added some chicken broth, and let it simmer, covered, for about a half hour, then uncovered for another 10 minutes til it thickened. i was supposed to put a cinnamon stick in while it simmered, but i forgot. i found it sitting on the counter when i was done with the meal. :) ooops! i was also supposed to stir in fresh lime juice before serving... forgot that as well! i squeezed fresh lime juice over the top instead.

i had this over basmati rice steamed in coconut milk & water. the dish had a decent spice to it - not overpowering in the slightest, and the coconut milk in the rice tamed it well. i'm not very familiar with indonesian cuisine, so i'm not sure how authentic the recipe is. i'd like to experiment with indonesian food a bit, because if other dishes are as good as this one... it could become a favorite type of cuisine for me.

Indonesian Beef Curry with Coconut Rice


Coconut milk in the rice helps tame the heat from the serrano chiles. For milder curry, seed the serranos.

Curry:
Cooking spray
1 1/2 pounds lean top round, thinly sliced
1 1/2 tablespoons canola oil
1/2 cup thinly sliced shallots
2 tablespoons minced peeled fresh ginger
6 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
2 serrano chiles, thinly sliced
2 teaspoons ground coriander
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3 cardamom pods, crushed
1 (3-inch) cinnamon stick
1 cup organic vegetable broth (such as Swanson Certified Organic)
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice

Rice:
1 1/4 cups water
1 cup uncooked basmati rice
1 cup light coconut milk
1/4 teaspoon salt

To prepare curry, heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Coat the pan with cooking spray. Place half of the beef in skillet; cook 1 minute on each side or until browned. Remove the beef from pan. Keep warm. Repeat process with the remaining beef.

Lower heat to medium; add oil to pan. Add shallots, ginger, garlic, and chiles; cook 4 minutes or until tender, stirring occasionally. Stir in coriander and next 6 ingredients (through cinnamon); cook 30 seconds, stirring constantly. Return beef to pan. Add broth; bring to a simmer. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 35 minutes or until beef is tender. Uncover and cook 10 minutes or until sauce thickens. Discard cinnamon stick; stir in juice.

To prepare rice, bring 1 1/4 cups water and remaining ingredients to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 18 minutes or until liquid is absorbed. Remove from heat. Let stand, covered, 5 minutes. Fluff with a fork. Place 2/3 cup rice onto each of 6 plates; top each serving with 1/2 cup curry.

Yield: 6 servings

CALORIES 280 (30% from fat); FAT 9.4g (sat 3.4g,mono 3.4g,poly 1.2g); IRON 3.1mg; CHOLESTEROL 64mg; CALCIUM 26mg; CARBOHYDRATE 18.6g; SODIUM 536mg; PROTEIN 27.9g; FIBER 1g

Cooking Light, MAY 2007