Sitting here freezing in the office, we can no longer ignore that winter is well and truly here. Which is sad for our skin but good for our bellies, at least in my opinion. Winter food is fun. Winter food is tasty. Winter food is nourishing for the soul. Really, I could go on. But I'll let this recipe from Light Years Asian Diner in Byron Bay speak for itself. It's a beef rendang and for anyone who has dined at this north coast institution, you'll know that it's stupidly delicious. Here is a recipe crafted with our home kitchens in mind. And for those who prefer to cut out the middleman and skip straight to the eating part, enjoy this recipe at Light Years in Byron Bay, Burleigh Heads, Newcastle and Noosa.

INGREDIENTS

Makes approximately 1kg of curry paste

Rendang Paste

Spice Mix:

• 15g chilli flakes
• 10g ground cardamom
• 10g ground cumin seeds
• 20g ground cinnamon

Curry Paste:

• 500g sliced onions
• 300g slice chilli
• 60g finely chopped galangal
• 30g roughly chopped turmeric
• 160g roughly chopped garlic
• 120g sliced ginger
• 240g finely sliced lemongrass
• 500ml vegetable oil

Beef Rendang

Braised Beef:

• 1kg Wagyu shin or beef cheek cut into 3x3cm chunks

Beef Stock:

• 1L coconut cream
• 600ml water
• 100ml fish sauce
• 2 stalks of lemongrass - bruised or smashed
• 100g palm sugar

Curry Sauce

• 500g cooked curry paste
• 1L beef stock used to braise
• fish sauce to taste

METHOD

Rendang paste

1. Over a high heat, heat the vegetable oil and curry paste ingredients in a thick bottomed sauce pan ensuring everything is coated in the oil and fry until fragrant.
2. Turn down to a medium heat and add the spice mix.
3. Let the ingredients cook out over a gentle heat, making sure to stir occasionally so it doesn’t burn or get caught on the pan.
4. Cook for a minimum of 1 hour or until the oil has separated from the paste and all the ingredients have softened.
5. Leave to cool, before blending into a smooth paste.

Braising the beef

1. Season beef with salt and pepper, before searing off in oil in a hot pan.
2. In your pressure cooker, dutch oven or large pot add beef along with the braising stock ingredients. Cook for 2.5 hours.
3. Next, remove the beef from the pot strain the braising stock to use for the curry sauce.

Making the curry sauce

1. Combine the braising liquid you saved with the cooked curry paste in a saucepan and gently bring to a simmer. Give it a whisk every couple of minutes to ensure a smooth curry sauce.
2. Add beef to the curry and bring simmer for 10 minutes.
3. Garnish with kaffir lime leaves, coconut cream, Thai basil and chilli.

In the mood for more recipes? Take this roundup of healthy recipes or a list of easy weeknight meals.