Singapore sojourn, part 2: Potato rendang

One of my favorite things to do when traveling abroad is to visit local food markets and come back with bags full of exotic ingredients. Usually, thanks to US customs rules, I am limited to spices and pantry ingredients. On my recent trip to Singapore, happily, I had access to a kitchen (my sister's), so aside from palm sugar, Sichuan peppercorns and the like, I also set out to gather the ingredients for rendang, a famous Malay/ Indonesian specialty.

I had long been wanting to try a recipe for West Sumatran Potato Rendang from James Oseland's Cradle of Flavor, a James Beard award-winning book featuring recipes from Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia. This is a fantastic book, which introduces a great many flavors and cooking techniques from this part of the world, along with several recipes painstakingly gathered from home cooks across the region. When browsing through the book, I was immediately drawn to the description of the technique for making rendang. This is essentially the reverse of a Western-style stew, in which the item is first browned, then simmered in a liquid. Here, you start by simmering the item in spiced coconut milk, and then finish it off by browning it in the coconut oil that is left after all the liquids have boiled away. This ingenious technique developed as a way to preserve food without refrigeration!

Making rendang is a pretty time-consuming affair, which involves prepping, chopping and grinding the ingredients for the flavoring paste, long and slow stewing of the potatoes in the coconut milk, and gently browning the potatoes and aromatics as the final step. But it's so worth it: you're left with a unique vegetarian dish that even the most confirmed carnivore would love. The potatoes are sweet and spicy at the same time, subtly flavored with ginger, shallots, garlic, chile and lemongrass. The long cooking process ensures that the insides of the potatoes are creamy soft, with crispy jackets coated with caramelized aromatics and coconut solids.

The author recommends pairing this dish with goat curry, sauteed greens and rice, though I imagine it would also make a wonderful side dish to roast chicken, eggs or just about anything. We ate it with Malaysian flaky flatbread (prata) and sauteed baby greens. I'm also considering a version with traditional South Indian flavorings replacing the more Asian ingredients like lemongrass and galangal! It can be made up to five days ahead and stored in the refrigerator - just make sure to serve the dish warm (not hot) or at room temperature.

Recipe: Potato rendang (rendang kentang), serves 4-6

Adapted from James Oseland's Cradle of Flavor

2 1/2 cups coconut milk

1 1/2 lb baby potatoes

3 whole daun salam leaves

3 sprigs Thai or Italian basil

1 1/2 tsp sea salt

Peanut oil, if needed

Flavoring paste:

1 thick stalk fresh lemongrass

4 shallots, coarsely chopped

2 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped

5 red bird's-eye chillies, chopped

5 green bird's-eye chillies, chopped

1 2" piece fresh turmeric or 2 tsp ground turmeric

1 2" piece fresh ginger, peeled and thinly sliced

1 2" piece fresh galangal, peeled and thinly sliced

First you will need to simmer the coconut milk in a large 12” nonstick skillet over medium-low heat for about 15 minutes. While it is simmering, make the flavoring paste by whizzing all the ingredients together in a food processor, adding a few tablespoons of water if necessary to keep the mixture moving. Add the flavoring paste to the simmering coconut milk, along with the daun salam and basil. Continue simmering the mixture, stirring occasionally, until it is reduced to half its original volume, about 45 minutes. While it is simmering, scrub the potatoes and slit each one half way through to help the flavors penetrate. Do not peel the potatoes as this will cause them to disintegrate from the long cooking.

When the coconut milk mixture is reduced, add the potatoes and salt, and continue cooking the mixture, stirring often to prevent sticking. Cover the potatoes and cook for about 10 minutes to make sure they cook through. Continue this until the liquid has dried up completely and the fat is rendered out. Add some peanut oil to the pan, if necessary, to have a total of 2 tablespoons of oil in the pan.

Turn the heat down to low and brown the potatoes and aromatics in the oil until medium-dark brown, about 20-25 minutes. The finished dish should be quite dry. Transfer the potatoes and the sautéed flavoring paste to a serving dish. Allow to rest for at least 30 minutes before serving.

Simple yet stylish brunch for two

The incredible edible egg. That's the slogan of the American Egg Board, and I love it! (Though I am less fond of their efforts, or lack thereof, to end battery farming of hens) Eggs are among my favorite things to cook for brunch on weekends. They're inexpensive, versatile, and best of all, quick to cook. Perfect for those mornings after a night on the town! Omelets, pancakes, frittatas, scrambled eggs...you can ring the changes endlessly and come out looking like a pro!

One of my favorite ways to cook eggs is to make a tortilla - also known as a Spanish omelet. This is for those days when you have a wee bit more time to lavish on your eggs, but it is a great dish to whip up if guests stop by unexpectedly, since you're quite likely to have potatoes and onions at hand.

Tortilla is good on its own, or with a nice green salad. Cut into small cubes and serve with drinks as part of a tapas platter, or sandwich with some crusty bread and head to the beach for a picnic! For today, though, I settled on a bright, lively salsa to accompany it - what better way to make use of those home-grown tomatoes and serrano peppers? I added some black beans as well, for a color and texture contrast.

The tortilla is proof that you don't need expensive ingredients to produce a truly delicious dish - just a little bit of love and care. Make sure to cook it on a low heat, running a butter knife around the edge every now and then. Flipping it may seem tricky, but all you need is a heatproof oven glove and a flat plate larger than your pan for it to work properly. The result? Thick, satisfying wedges of omelet, each bite laden with mellow sautéed onions and buttery-soft potatoes. You can make it thicker or thinner, well-cooked or a bit runny, depending on what your taste is.

And for dessert, I made one peach, two ways - an experiment at using a single peach to make two simple, light and healthy desserts, perfect for my husband and me to share! (Okay - I confess the ice cream was an added indulgence) I was pretty pleased with the results, so I will share that in a separate post.

Recipes:
Tortilla de patatas (Serves 2-3, depending on how hungry you are)
5 large free-range eggs
3 medium potatoes
1 medium onion
Extra-virgin olive oil, sea salt and freshly cracked pepper
Peel the potatoes and cut them in half lengthwise, then slice them thinly. Do the same with the onions.
In an 8" pan, heat a generous slug of olive oil, then add the potatoes and some salt. Fry briefly, then turn the heat down, cover an cook till the potatoes are almost done. Add the onions at this point, and fry till softened but not colored. The traditional method involves deep-frying the potatoes, then draining the oil away, but for health reasons I prefer to use this one. I think it tastes pretty good as it is.
While the potatoes and onions are getting done, crack the eggs into a bowl, season to taste, and beat with a fork until combined. Once the potatoes and onions are done, let them cool briefly, then add them into the bowl along with the eggs and stir till well mixed. Pour the mixture back into the pan, turn the heat to low, and cook for about 20 minutes, running a butter knife around the edge every now and then. When the surface looks like it is almost fully set, turn the tortilla out on to a flat plate larger than the pan, and slide it back in to cook the other side, about 10 minutes. Cut into portions of the desired size and serve.
Tomato and black bean salsa (Serves 2-3 as an appetizer with chips, or as a condiment)
1 tomato, diced
1/2 cup cooked black beans (canned is fine)
1 serrano pepper, chopped fine (You can use any hot pepper of choice, seeds in or removed, depending on how much heat you can handle)
2 tbsp finely chopped cilantro
1/2 tsp each ground cumin, coriander and cayenne pepper
Juice of half a lime
Combine all the ingredients in a bowl and season to taste. Allow to sit for 10 minutes before eating, for the flavors to meld.