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Indonesian Beef and Sweet Soy Sate
Sate street food stalls are ubiquitous in Jakarta. We particularly loved the beef sate manis at Soto Tangkar Kerajinan 46, where cooks use the same sweet-and-savory seasoning paste to flavor their sate and their soup. A blender does most of the work in this recipe, so don’t be put off by the number of ingredients. Galangal resembles and is related to ginger, but its taste is piney and peppery, without ginger’s warmth. If you can’t find it, double the amount of lemon grass. Intensely fragrant makrut lime leaves may require a trip to the Asian market; simply leave them out if you can’t find them. Lastly, kecap manis, or Indonesian sweet soy sauce, is a foundational ingredient. If you can’t get it, you can approximate the flavor by whisking together ¼ cup each soy sauce, molasses and light brown sugar. This makes enough to use in the recipe and at the table. Serve with jasmine rice and lime wedges.
4-6
Servings
Tip
Don’t refrigerate the seasoned meat for longer than eight hours. We found that extended marination affected the texture of the beef, turning it slightly softy and mushy. Also, be sure to heat the grill grate before placing the skewers on the surface. If the grate is too cool, the meat will be underbrowned and stick.
1¼ hours
plus grill prep
Ingredients
-
5.4
ounce can coconut cream (about ¾ cup), divided
-
½
cup roasted cashews
Directions
-
01In a blender, combine ¼ cup coconut cream, the cashews, lemon grass, galangal, makrut (if using), bay, garlic, Fresno chili, kecap manis, coriander, turmeric, nutmeg and ½ teaspoon each salt and white pepper. Process until smooth, about 2 minutes. In a small saucepan over medium, heat the oil until shimmering. Add the puree and cook, stirring, until slightly darkened and small bubbles break on the surface, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer to a medium bowl and cool completely.
Reviews
October 1, 2025
Deeeelicious!
Delivers the flavor of Rendang with a fraction of the effort! Blitz everything in the processor and pop it under the broiler and poof you are in Bali!
September 10, 2026
Awesome
Totally Delicious!
January 2, 2026
Astonishingly good
I was excited to make this dish after a new, well stocked Asian market opened in my vicinity. Finally, I was able to obtain the necessary ingredients i. e. lime leaves, lemongrass, kecap manis, and galangal. While I try not to make substitutions to Milk Street recipes, as I trust the expertise of the recipe developers, I was unable to get flat iron steak so subbed in pork tenderloin. I was careful not to overcook the lean pork and it turned out beautifully. This is a gorgeously flavorful dish, aromatic and citrusy from the lime/lemongrass, subtle heat from the chili, appealing sweetness from the kecap manis and rich from the coconut cream. The sauce is exquisite. I served the pork alongside steamed coconut jasmine rice and steamed baby bok choy. I have decided I will make batches of the coconut/galangalpaste and keep it in the freezer for fast meals (adding extra coconut cream the day of). If you can obtain the ingredients, do make this recipe. I believe one could make this with alternate proteins such as chicken or even tofu. If I can obtain flat iron steak from our local butcher, next time, I'll try it, as was originally intended. This recipe is a keeper for sure and I will absolutely be making this again. If the paste/sauce is made ahead, this can be a quick low effort dinner.
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