Rawon is an Indonesian black beef soup. Originating from Surabaya, East Java, rawon utilizes the black keluak nut as the main seasoning, which gives a dark color and nutty flavor to the soup.
The soup is composed of a ground mixture of garlic, shallots, keluak, ginger, candlenut, turmeric, red chili, and salt, and is sautéed with oil. The sautéed mixture is then poured into boiled beef stock with diced beef slices.
Lemongrass, galangal, bay leaves, kaffir lime leaves, and sugar are then added as seasonings. The special dark or black color of rawon comes from the keluak as the main spice. The soup is usually garnished with green onion and fried shallot, and served with rice. Other toppings include bean sprouts, salted preserved egg, krupuk, and fried tolo beans (black-eyed pea).
I still remember in Surabaya my mbok (our maid) used to cook this favorites soup for us. She did the sambal terasi so spicy and She did the tempe penyet as a side dish or condiments to match the Rawon Soup.
There is one famous place called Rawon Setan at Embong Malang, you should try when you visit Surabaya, East Java.
This recipe I got it from my new friend Pepy Nasution’s blog, you should check her blog it’s so amazing !
Ingredients:
- 600gr beef
- 4 shallots, finely sliced
- 4 lime kaffir leaves
- 1 lemongrass, bruised
- 1 cm galangal, bruised
- 2 green onions, cut into 2 cm length
- 2.5 litter
- salt and sugar as desired
Puree /Grind:
- 5 peeled black nuts, soak in 1/2 cup water
- 5 shallots
- 3 garlics
- 1 cm ginger
- 1/2 tsp ground turmeric
- 1 1/2 tsp corriander seed
- 1/2 tsp ground white pepper
- salt as desired
Sides Dishes and Condiments:
- Steamed rice
- Short bean sprouts
- Shrimp crackers
- Sambal terasi
- Deep fried tempeh
Directions:
- Stir fry sliced shallots in a small amount of cooking oil untill fragrant
- Add ground spices, lime kaffir leaves, lemongrass and galangal. Stir fry until all the spices cooked
- Add beef oxtail, sear the meat until no longer pink. Add water, bring to a boil and add sliced green onions. Turn to low medium heat, let it simmer until the meat is tender. Remove from heat and Serve with side dishes and condiments
