Beef in Shrimp Paste Sauce

Name: Beef in Shrimp Paste Sauce
Ingredients: 500 g beef (or lamb); 1 pc big-size tomato, sliced; 3 tbsp Indonesian sweet soya sauce / Kecap Manis; 2 tbsp wet shrimp paste, (petis udang); 300 ml hot water; 1 tsp sugar; oil; crispy fried shallots to garnish (optional); 6 pc shallots, chopped; 3 gloves garlic, chopped; 5 pc small red chillies / bird chillies; 5 pc candlenuts, roughly chopped or crashed; ½ tsp peppercorn (or 1/4 tsp ground pepper); 1 tsp salt or to taste

Origin: Surabaya, East Java

Ingredients

500 g beef (or lamb)
1 pc big-size tomato, sliced
3 tbsp Indonesian sweet soya sauce / Kecap Manis
2 tbsp wet shrimp paste, (petis udang)
300 ml hot water
1 tsp sugar
oil
crispy fried shallots to garnish (optional)

Spice for the paste

6 pc shallots, chopped
3 gloves garlic, chopped
5 pc small red chillies / bird chillies
5 pc candlenuts, roughly chopped or crashed
½ tsp peppercorn or 1/4 tsp ground pepper
1 tsp salt or to taste

Beef in Shrimp Paste Sauce

If you have no problem with the smell of shrimp paste ;-), you can try this Surabaya's specialty: "Krengsengan Daging" or Beef cooked in Shrimp Paste Sauce. In his hometown, this dish is usually cooked with 2 mainly ingredients: beef or lamb. It tastes deliciously sweet & spicy, a unique combination of kecap manis, chili & wet shrimp paste. Another variant of Indonesian's spice mixture, typical Surabaya culinary's style.

Note: If you don't like meat & lamb, you can also replace them with chicken, duck, liver etc.

Instructions

Cut the beef into smaller pieces (as your preference).
Blend all ingredients for the spice paste in a blender or food processor until smooth. (If necessery add a little bit oil to help the blending process).
Heat 3 tbsp oil in a wok or shallow pan. (Don't add oil if already added in a blender).
Stir fry the paste over medium heat until well cooked & fragrant. (approx. 6-10 minutes). Stir frequently.
Add the beef, stir all the time until the beef colour turns to white.
Add the hot water *** and stir to mix.
Add the wet shrimp paste & kecap manis. Stir to mix.
Adding kecap manis.
Simmer slowly over low-medium heat until the water is absorbed and the beef becomes tender (takes about. 25 minutes). Stir occasionally.
Adjust the seasoning, add salt & sugar to taste. Serve hot.
At the end add the sliced tomato, cook briefly until just wilted.

Notes

*** Add the boiled /hot water into the meat then cook on the medium heat to preserve it's best taste.
Be careful by adding salt. Wet shrimp paste might contains lot of salt, therefore adding salt sometimes is not necessary.

Endang Lestari

Keyword beef, Indonesia, shrimp paste