Coconut braised beef brisket kebab

This Biggie Smalls favourite combines Shane Delia's two favourite things - beef rendang curry and the humble kebab. #RecipeForLife

• serves

  6

• prep

  45 minutes

• cook

  6:30 hours

• difficulty

  Mid

Ingredients

• 20 g za’atar
• 100 ml olive oil
• 6 pieces pitta bread
• 100 g shredded cabbage
• 100 g red onion, very finely sliced
• 30 g coriander sprigs 

Brisket

• 60 ml (¼ cup) olive oil
• 2 kg brisket
• 600 g palm sugar, grated
• 80 g ginger, finely chopped
• 80 g garlic, finely chopped
• 300 ml rice wine vinegar
• 1 litre chicken stock
• 3 litres Kara UHT coconut cream
• 220 g kecap manis (sweet soy sauce)
• 40 g long red chillies, roughly chopped
• 10 g kaffir lime leaves, torn
• 2 stalks lemongrass, finely sliced
• 450 ml fish sauce
• 15 g ground white pepper
• 200 g shredded coconut, untoasted
• vegetable oil, for deep-frying
• 300 g tapioca starch

Tomato jam

• 50 ml peanut oil
• 1 kg red onions, finely sliced
• 50 g peeled ginger, finely julienned
• 30 g peeled garlic, finely sliced
• 3 bullet chillies, unseeded and thinly sliced
• 750 g palm sugar, grated
• 30 g Thai shrimp paste
• 140 g tomato paste
• 2 kg crushed tomatoes
• 300 ml white wine vinegar
• 225 ml fish sauce 

Pickled carrot

• 2 large carrots, peeled 
• 300 ml rice wine vinegar
• 200 ml water
• 100 g caster sugar
• 5 g table salt

Rendang mayo

• 35 g Rendang spice mix
• 250 g Kewpie mayonnaise
• 5 kaffir lime leaves, centre vein removed and very thinly sliced       

Chilling time: overnight

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 120°C.

For the brisket, heat the oil in a large heavy-based saucepan over high heat. Cook the brisket on both sides until golden, then remove from the pan and set aside. Clean the pan and place over very low heat. Add the palm sugar, ginger and garlic and cook for 2-3 minutes or until caramelised. Add the vinegar, increase the heat to medium and simmer until reduced by half. Add the stock, coconut cream and kecap manis and bring to the boil. Add the chillies, kaffir lime leaves, lemongrass, fish sauce and pepper. Return the brisket to the pan and bring to the boil. Cover with a tight-fitting lid or foil, then transfer to the oven and bake for 5-6 hours or until very tender. Turn the brisket every hour so that it cooks evenly.

Meanwhile, for the tomato jam, heat the oil a heavy-based frying pan over medium heat. Add the onion and cook for 6-8 minutes or until soft. Add the chilli, ginger and garlic, reduce the heat to low and cook for 2 minutes or until fragrant. Add the palm sugar, shrimp paste and tomato paste and cook for 5 minutes or until the sugar starts to caramelise and become aromatic. Add the tomatoes and vinegar and cook, stirring regularly for 20 minutes or until thick and jammy. Add the fish sauce to taste, then remove from the heat and set aside to cool. Once cool, store in a sterilised jar for up to 4 weeks.

Once the brisket is cooked, remove it from the braising liquid and allow to cool slightly. Strain the liquid through a sieve, discard the solids and refrigerate the liquid. Sprinkle half the coconut over a small tray lined with baking paper. Place the brisket on top, then cover with the remaining coconut. Cover with another piece of baking paper and place a second tray on top of the brisket. Add a weight such as a couple of tins of food and refrigerate overnight so the brisket sets flat.

The following day, remove the brisket from the refrigerator and cut into six 120 g pieces, about 10 cm long and 2 cm thick. Reserve the remaining brisket for another use. 

For the pickled carrots, using a mandolin fitted with a julienne blade, cut the carrots into long thin strips and place in a heatproof bowl. Alternatively, cut into julienne by hand. Place the remaining ingredients in a small saucepan and stir over low heat until the sugar dissolves, then pour over the carrots and refrigerate until cool.

For the rendang mayonnaise, combine all the ingredients in a small bowl, cover and refrigerate until ready to use.

When ready to serve, heat the oil for deep-frying in a large deep saucepan or deep-fryer to 180˚C and a chargrill plate to high. Coat each piece of brisket well in the cold reserved braising liquid, then coat each piece generously in the tapioca starch. Fry the brisket for 2-3 minutes or until the coconut is golden and the brisket is hot in the middle. 

Meanwhile, mix the za’atar and olive oil in a small bowl. Brush the pita breads with the mixture, then chargrill for 1 minute or until golden. 

To assemble, spread each piece of grilled pita bread with a generous amount of chilli jam. Top with the shredded cabbage, drained pickled carrot, sliced onion and coriander sprigs. Place the fried brisket on top and finish with a good dollop of rending mayo. Roll up kebab and serve immediately. 

Shane Delia's Recipe For Life airs 8pm, Thursdays on SBS then on SBS On-Demand. You can find recipes and more features from the show here.

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.