I have an awesome Beef Rendang recipe I learned from a local. The balance and depth of flavors of rendang is really remarkable considering it doesn’t contain all that many ingredients, but it does have one major drawback: it literally takes hours to make. I wanted to see if I could make a rendang with as much flavor as the original, that comes together faster, and with fewer steps. The first thing I did was swap chicken in for beef, as chicken will become fork-tender much faster than any other meat. To ensure the chicken doesn’t dry out, I used legs (thighs and drumsticks), instead of chicken breast meat. Boneless chicken will cook faster, but it won’t have the same depth of flavor as Chicken Rendang made with bone-in dark meat. My compromise was to use a cleaver to chop the thighs and drumsticks into smaller pieces, which helps the chicken cook faster, while retaining all the flavor.
After browning the chicken, you’ll notice a lot of oil in the pan. It may be tempting to dump some out, but don’t do it. The paste really needs a lot of oil to brown evenly, otherwise it will burn before it caramelizes. If the amount of oil really bothers you, you can skim some off with a spoon after you’ve added the coconut milk and chicken. Just be sure to leave a little bit of oil as some of it is needed to caramelize the sauce around the chicken in the last step.
Most rendang recipes have you add aromatics like lemongrass and galangal both whole, as well as in a spice paste. It’s extra work that’s not necessary. Grind them in the food processor and they will release plenty of flavor, reducing the amount of prep needed for the ingredients. One exception to this is the garlic. Processing garlic together with shallots can occasionally cause an undesirable reaction that turns the paste a greenish color and makes it taste bitter. By handling the garlic separately, you can avoid this problem and it doesn’t create a meaningful increase in the amount of work. Finally I’ve added kerisik (roasted coconut) to the rendang at the end. This not only imparts a wonderful nutty taste, it also absorbs any remaining liquid, allowing you to caramelize the sauce around the chicken much faster. These time-saving tricks allowed me to put this Chicken Rendang recipe together in just under one hour, making it a candidate for a weeknight dinner, but like the beef version, it will taste better the next day. That makes it a perfect make-ahead dish for a lazy Sunday, which you can then reheat and enjoy during the week. After trying my Chicken Rendang, join me on a Curry World Tour by checking out my Japanese Curry from Scratch, Thai Green Curry Chicken, and my Butter Chicken recipes. You can also explore my entire Curry collection here, featuring a variety of proteins, including some plant-based recipes.
📖 Recipe
