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Indonesian dendeng balado crispy beef topped with red chili sambal and shallots on a white plate with rice and cucumber on dark slate

Dendeng Balado (Indonesian Crispy Chili Beef)

Thin-sliced beef fried until crisp at the edges, then buried in a fresh red chili and shallot sambal. About 41 grams of protein per serving, in about 45 minutes.
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Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Total Time 45 minutes
Servings: 4 servings
Calories: 360
Ingredients Method

Ingredients
  

  • 750 g beef top round or eye of round sliced against the grain into 3 mm slices (freeze 30 minutes first to make slicing easy)
  • 2 tsp ground coriander
  • 4 cloves garlic grated, for the beef
  • 1 tsp fine salt for the beef
  • 1 tbsp tamarind paste or 2 tbsp lime juice
  • 2 tsp brown sugar for the beef
  • 2 tbsp cornstarch
  • 1/3 cup neutral oil for shallow frying, about 80 ml
  • 100 g long red chilies Fresno or red jalapeno also work, roughly chopped
  • 3 bird's eye chilies optional, for more heat
  • 6 shallots 3 roughly chopped for blending, 3 sliced into thin wedges
  • 4 cloves garlic for the sambal
  • 1 medium tomato roughly chopped
  • 2 tbsp neutral oil for the sambal
  • 2 tsp sugar for the sambal
  • 1 tbsp lime juice
  • 1/2 tsp fine salt for the sambal, adjust to taste
  • 600 g cooked jasmine rice to serve (not in the nutrition figures)

Method
 

  1. Toss the sliced beef with the coriander, grated garlic, 1 tsp salt, tamarind paste and brown sugar. Marinate 15 minutes at room temperature. Just before frying, add the cornstarch and toss until every slice is lightly coated.
  2. Blitz the red chilies, bird's eye chilies, the 3 chopped shallots, 4 garlic cloves and the tomato in a food processor into a coarse paste. Do not puree it smooth, the texture should be rough.
  3. Heat 2 tbsp oil in a wide pan over medium heat. Cook the paste, stirring, 8 to 10 minutes until the raw smell is gone and the oil separates at the edges. Stir in the sugar, 1/2 tsp salt and the sliced shallot wedges, cook 2 minutes more, then turn off the heat and stir in the lime juice.
  4. Heat 1/3 cup oil in a large skillet or wok over medium-high heat until a slice sizzles right away. Fry the beef in 4 batches, spreading the slices in a single layer, 1 to 2 minutes per side until deep brown with crisp edges. Drain on a rack or paper towels.
  5. Pile the crisp beef on a platter and spoon the warm sambal over the top, or toss everything together in the pan for 30 seconds. Serve right away with rice and sliced cucumber.