Our Recipe of the Month is Dendeng Kariang from West Sumatra, where the Minangkabau people live. This fiery-hot, jerky-like beef preparation is crunchy on the outside and chewy on the inside. Dendeng is known throughout much of Indonesia, but it originated in West Sumatra. Other dendeng in Indonesia is much milder, sweeter and softer than the original incendiary version.

This recipe is near and dear to my heart, but after 30 years of not having eaten any, I simply had to try to make it myself. Minangkabau (formerly men, now young couples) are famous for seeking their fortunes outside of their natal villages. This usually temporary outward migration, known as "merantau," is considered an essential aspect of Minangkabau culture. Traditionally, young men often left their villages before marriage to seek their fortunes elsewhere. Those who made money or otherwise increased their social standing, perhaps by earning a university degree, landing a well-paying job or achieving a position of note, could return home with better marriage prospects than when they set out. Not a few went "rantau" just for the adventure of it all. Due to this pattern of being far from home, feeling "homesick" (taragak) was a well-known sentiment among the Minangkabau. I can definitely say I felt "taragak" for dendeng; it was one of my favorite culinary pleasures when we lived there (now more than 30 years ago!). The Minangkabau habit of temporary emigration is connected with this savory and hot treat. Dendeng, like the sweet kalamai (a taffy-like confection), lasts for days without refrigeration; therefore, it is frequently brought on long trips.

Dendeng is not everyday food. Minangkabau are famous throughout Indonesia for their restaurants known as "Nasi Padang" (nasi is cooked rice; Padang is the largest city in West Sumatra). Nasi Padang serves a dim-sum-like array of delicious foods: curries, fish, rendang and vegetables. You only pay for the plates you eat. Dendeng is occasionally sold in Nasi Padang restaurants. But there is another type of eatery in Bukittinggi (the city considered the cultural capital of West Sumatra) that is known mostly by locals: Nasi Kapau. Kapau is a small village a moderate walk from where we lived. During our time in the village of Kamang Hilir, there was only one Nasi Kapau restaurant in Bukittinggi. As is typical for much of Indonesia, once or twice each week a large farmers' market was held. During market days in Bukittinggi (Wednesdays and Saturdays), several Nasi Kapau pop-up restaurants appeared. Unlike Nasi Padang restaurants, where almost all the employees are male, women were predominant in Nasi Kapau eateries. Another difference was that the food in Nasi Kapau stalls and restaurants was substantially spicier (hotter) than in Nasi Padang restaurants. And at the Nasi Kapau stalls and one restaurant we frequented, they always had dendeng kariang (kariang means "dry"; the Indonesian equivalent is "kering"). And we always ordered it, even though it set our mouths afire and our eyes rained tears. In my adulthood I have not much cared for Coca-Cola, and it's not much of a remedy for capsaicin overload, but I loved drinking a Coke whenever I had dendeng, just for the contrast it created.

Dendeng is thin-sliced beef that is pounded thin, marinated, dried, fried and then covered with a sauce made from chilies and shallots cooked in oil. The first time I cooked dendeng, I used skirt steak, as I thought it would maintain its integrity throughout the various preparation steps. Unfortunately, it proved difficult to pound thin. But the resultant dendeng, despite being a bit thick, was absolutely delicious. I then tried thin-sliced top round. It was much easier to pound to the desired thickness; however, being leaner than the skirt steak, it dried out too much, and even though I fried it for considerably less time than the skirt steak, it ended up losing all of its internal chew. When I bit into it, it shattered like a cracker. But it still tasted great (not as great as the far more expensive skirt steak). One thing to note is that dendeng in West Sumatra ends up being very black in color. This is from it being dried and fried. Next time, I plan to try the top round, pound it less thin and dehydrate it for a shorter period of time (2 hours instead of 4).

Cook's notes: For the final sauce, two types of chilies are used: the first is long red chilies (cabai keriting), which can be found in any Indonesian market—the closest match to these in America is cayenne peppers. But red Serranos (which we grow in our garden) are a close match in terms of "heat" and flavor, although they are bigger and plumper than the Indonesian cabai keriting. The other chilies that give the dendeng extra punch are cabai rawit. Elsewhere they are known as "bird's-eye" chilies and are frequently found in Thai cooking. Again, we grow these and used them when we made our dendeng. Please note that the spiciness of chilies not only differs greatly between varieties; depending on growing conditions, individual plants of the same variety can vary in the amount of capsaicin they produce. Our chilies were, in our estimation, on the mild side. In researching this recipe, I read that chilies produce more capsaicin if they experience some water stress as they ripen, and keeping them well watered (as we do) diminishes the amount of capsaicin they will produce.

Please adjust the number of chilies you use according to your tolerance level; even milder versions of the recipe taste great. Also, it is interesting to note that tolerance for hot, spicy food increases over time—you have to train yourself to withstand high capsaicin levels!

After the chili sauce is cooked, it is then pounded with a mortar and pestle. You can use a stick blender or a small food processor, but the goal is to leave the sauce on the chunky side, not produce a smooth paste (see photo).

Like most Indonesian food, dendeng is often eaten at room temperature.

Marinade Ingredients:

• 1 pound beef, sliced and pounded 1/8" thick
• 6 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 4 shallots, finely chopped
• 1 inch of shredded fresh ginger
• 2 teaspoons ground coriander
• 1 teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon ground white pepper
• 2 tablespoons tamarind juice (or 1½ tablespoons lime juice)
• 1 teaspoon palm sugar (optional)
• 1/4 cup water

Marinade Preparation:

1. Mix all the marinade ingredients in a bowl.
2. In a larger container, coat the beef in the marinade.
3. Marinate the beef for 8 to 12 hours.
4. Spread out the beef slices on a shallow oven pan and dehydrate them at 175°F for two to three hours.
5. Fry the pieces of beef in 350°F oil (we used coconut oil) until they darken, about 2 to 3 minutes per side.

Chili Sauce Ingredients:

• 10 long red chilies
• 6 red bird's-eye chilies
• 6 shallots, finely chopped
• 2 cloves garlic
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup coconut oil (or a neutral oil)

Chili Sauce Preparation:

1. Chop the chilies roughly.
2. Chop the shallots and garlic finely and then combine with the chilies and salt.
3. Heat the oil in a frying pan to 350°F (note that you can use the leftover oil from frying the beef).
4. Sauté the chili mixture in the oil for 6 minutes.
5. Let the sauce cool.
6. Pound the chili sauce in a mortar with a pestle.

Final Preparation:

After the chili sauce has cooled, coat the fried dendeng with the chili sauce.

Enjoy with rice and a vegetable.

Selamat Makan!

Recipe by T. Johnston-O'Neill
Photos by Shari K. Johnston-O'Neill