Recipe: Rendang Dumplings

Hold on to your hats because this cookbook truly rocks the kitchen. So colourful, so inspired, with beautiful Indo-European dishes – simply incredible. Sweet, sour, fresh, spicy, layered, savoury: all your taste sensors are triggered by Vanja van der Leeden’s Indorock. She happily shares a number of top recipes here, and believe us: you’ll want this book on your shelf.

Vanja: ‘Dumplings are ideal for dumping all kinds of leftovers into. You can find the wrappers in the freezer section at the Asian supermarket; they’re handy to have at home. The sambal served with these is a little unusual. It contains andaliman pepper (which you can order online), a fruity peppercorn from Sumatra related to Sichuan pepper. It also gives you that tingling sensation on your tongue, but to a lesser extent than Sichuan pepper, and with its citrus and mandarin notes it is much more aromatic. A truly unique flavour.’

How to make the andaliman sambal:

• First, finely grind the andaliman peppercorns in a large, flat mortar.
• Add the candlenuts and grind to a paste.
• Add the remaining ingredients (except the sunflower oil, olive oil and lime) in stages and grind to a coarse mash. Or make it easy on yourself and use a blender or stick blender.
• Heat plenty of sunflower oil in a frying pan and fry the mortar mixture in it. Fry the sambal for 8 to 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
• Add extra oil if it becomes too dry – be generous, sambal needs plenty of oil.
• Remove from the heat, squeeze the lime over it and loosen with the olive oil.
• By the way, I use olive oil here because it enhances the fruitiness.
• Taste the sambal and, if necessary, adjust with more salt or sugar.

How to make the rendang dumplings:

• Cut the pointed cabbage into thin strips and mix it into the rendang.
• Have a bowl of water ready.
• Take a gyoza wrapper and place 1 teaspoon of the rendang mixture in the centre. This is easier when the filling is chilled.
• Brush the edge of the wrapper with a little water and fold the dough in half, holding the underside of the gyoza with the thumb and middle finger of your left hand, then pinch one end closed.
• About 1 centimetre from the edge, pinch pleats with your right thumb and index finger all the way to the other end of the dumpling (you can also simply fold the edges over and press them together—less pretty but just as tasty).
• Place the dumpling on a plate and press it lightly to flatten the bottom.
• Repeat with the remaining wrappers.
• Heat a large frying pan with the sunflower and sesame oils, distributing them well across the pan.
• Place the dumplings in the pan over medium heat.
• When the bottoms are nicely golden brown, pour in 300 millilitres of water and cover the pan.
• Heat everything over medium heat for approximately 7 minutes.
• Remove the lid and allow the water to evaporate. Place a large plate over the frying pan and turn it over so that the fried side of the dumplings is facing upwards.
• Sprinkle with sesame seeds and serve with andaliman sambal.
  

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  Title: Indorock
  Author: Vanja van der Leeden
  Price: €34.99
  Publisher: Nijgh Cuisine

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  Photography: Remko Kraaijeveld

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• World record for eating dumplings broken
• Different types of sambal in a row