Kitima winter warmer - Oxtail Rendang Curry

Oxtail Rendang Curry - Served with roasted sticky rice cake      and pickle vegetable.

Beef Rendang from Indonesia  

Holds top No 1 in CNN world 50 most delicious food  

Post from last year - My Beloved Rendang 

A Typical Minang Kabau Style traditional Architecture 

It's is a spicy meat dish that originated in Indonesia. I t was created by the Minangkabau as a dish served during ceremonial occasion and honour special guest.

It proved to be good thus it's popularity spread over the region like in Malaysia , Singapore , southern Thailand and southern Philippines .

I am we'll remembered growing up in melting pot culture like Malaysia this time around for Ramadan
Eating rendang at our relative home is somewhat I am always looking forward for is the beef rendang curry with lontong or most of the time is on the Malay wedding menu.

My mom elder sister mum choo ( uncalled her Tai yee) it meaning the elder sister from my mother was the one of the best cook I have come across who is so passionate about cooking and such perfectionist who will never compromise with her quality which I witness from a little young age, One day she asked me to buy some candlenuts to cooked her famous rendang curry !

Where we grew up in the village . Having have to walked miles away to the shop near by her house which took at least 30 minute by foots. She told me never compromise good food with its ingredients !

She indeed my mentor from many of her signatures dishes which inspired me being a chef which has never been an easy task for me growing with her delicious food.

One of my most recent creation at KITIMA restaurant is Oxtail rendang.

The oxtail rendang was created at my dear friend home in somerset west in Cape Town from Switzerland who felt in love with Cape of good hope on his first visit in SA.

For me a very good rendang always the steal the show and outshine the rest of the food. Growing in a Buddhist home we were banned to consume beef at home . Eating beef is only occasional outside in the restaurant of sometimes on the Muslim wedding or at the open house of my Malay relative home. you will find bamboo roasted sticky rice selling by the road side in the country side of even in downtown.

Being such a rich flavours in coconut and spices nevertheless serving with steamed rice or sticky rice was always my ultimate first choice .

I witnessed over the years of cooking oxtail s require a long period of time and the best way is to put the cast iron pot in the pizza oven just let it cook over night with the remaining heat. I got this great idea from my dear friends Kevin and Dean from Firemans Arm where they had the traditional wood pizza oven.

Having no pizza oven in my kitchen so I decided cooked my oxtail rendang on the stove for one hour and three hours on low in the oven it came out amazing.


I recommend to use medium bone cut oxtail all same size so it will cooked evenly for the same texture. I prefered to cook with coconut milk first then coconut cream cook toward the end part in the oven.

Browning the meat is very important and be aware that use only moderate heat do not burn the paste by adding some coconut milk and some salt.

                          After the oxtail is evenly coated with the paste then i will add the coconut milk.

 I roasted the decicated coconut on the pan then add the crushed lemon grass and kaffie lime leaves.

             Before putting the pot in the oven i added the palm sugar , salt for the final seasoning.