Rawon

Ingredients

• 1 kg (2¼ lb) bone-in beef shank, cut into 5 cm (2 in) pieces
• 2.5 litres (10 cups) water
• 4 tbsp neutral oil, divided
• 6 prepared (jarred or packaged) keluak nuts, flesh scooped out (or 2 tbsp black bean paste plus 1 tbsp dark soy sauce)
• 2 lemongrass stalks, bruised
• 4 kaffir (makrut) lime leaves (or 1 tsp finely grated lime zest)
• 2 salam leaves or bay leaves
• 1 tbsp tamarind pulp, dissolved in 3 tbsp warm water (or 1 tsp tamarind concentrate, or 1½ tbsp lime juice)
• 1½ tsp salt, plus more to taste
• 1 tsp sugar

Spice paste

• 6 shallots
• 4 cloves garlic
• 3 red chillies (or 1 tbsp chilli paste)
• 3 candlenuts or macadamia nuts
• 2 cm (¾ in) fresh turmeric (or 1 tsp ground)
• 2 cm (¾ in) fresh ginger
• 1 tsp ground coriander

To serve

• Rice, bean sprouts, salted duck egg (or a halved hard-boiled egg), sambal and lime wedges

Steps

1. Boil the shank in water for 5 minutes, drain and rinse. Return it to a clean pot with the 2.5 litres of fresh water, bring to a boil and reduce to a gentle simmer. Skim any foam.
2. Blend the spice paste ingredients with a little water until smooth.
3. Mash the keluak flesh with 2 tbsp of the oil to a dark, sandy paste, or mix the black bean paste with the soy sauce.
4. Heat the remaining 2 tbsp oil in a frying pan over medium heat. Fry the spice paste for 8 minutes, stirring, until it smells sweet and the oil separates. Add the keluak mixture and cook 2 minutes.
5. Scrape the paste into the simmering broth with the lemongrass, lime leaves and salam leaves. The broth will turn black.
6. Cover and simmer gently for 2 hours, until the beef is tender and the broth is dark and aromatic.
7. Remove the lemongrass and leaves. Stir in the tamarind, salt and sugar, and taste; it should be earthy, savoury and slightly tangy.
8. Ladle over rice with sprouts and salted egg alongside, with sambal and lime on the table.

Notes

• Keluak: the black nuts give rawon its character; buy it prepared (jarred or packaged) from Southeast Asian stores, as raw keluak is toxic. The substitute is milder but still tasty.
• Serving: the classic partner is quick-blanched short bean sprouts, shrimp crackers and sambal.
• Make ahead: the broth is better the next day and freezes for 3 months.
• Slow cooker: blanch the shank and fry the paste first, then cook on low 8 hr. Add the tamarind at the end.