Soto Padang

The clear, golden beef soup of the Minangkabau highlands: cinnamon-perfumed broth with shredded beef, noodles, and perkedel

Origin: Padang, West Sumatra, Indonesia

From the journey of Cinnamon.

Soto Padang is the defining soup of Padang, capital of West Sumatra and the culinary heart of the Minangkabau people (one of the world's largest matrilineal societies and one of Southeast Asia's most influential food cultures. Unlike the coconut milk-enriched sotos of Java and Sulawesi, Soto Padang is a clear soup: a golden, translucent broth built from slowly simmered beef and a full inventory of whole spices, of which cinnamon bark is the most characteristically Sumatran. The cinnamon used is Cinnamomum burmannii) the indigenous cinnamon of the Sumatran highlands, known as kayu manis ('sweet wood'), which grows in the cloud forests and small farms of the Padang and Agam highlands. It is a thicker, bolder bark than Ceylon cinnamon, with a more assertive warmth and a higher volatile oil content, producing a broth that smells unmistakably of the mountains where the tree grows. The Minangkabau have been harvesting and trading C. burmannii for over a thousand years, long before European traders arrived looking for cinnamon in Sri Lanka. Soto Padang is traditionally eaten for breakfast in the warungs (food stalls) of Padang's old town, served in deep bowls with glass noodles or vermicelli, crispy potato cakes (perkedel), sliced hard-boiled eggs, fried shallots, and sambal lado on the side. It is a soup of remarkable depth for a preparation with a clear broth, the clarity is achieved through patient skimming and the careful management of whole spices that perfume without clouding.

Ingredients

Broth

  • 800 g beef shank or brisket, cut into 2–3 large pieces
  • 2 L water
  • 2 sticks Indonesian cinnamon bark (kayu manis / Cinnamomum burmannii)
  • 5 whole cloves
  • 4 cardamom pods, bruised
  • 2 star anise
  • 2 lemongrass stalks, bruised and tied in a knot
  • 3 salam leaves (Indonesian bay leaves, or substitute with 2 standard bay leaves)
  • 1 tsp fine salt

Bumbu (Spice Paste)

  • 8 shallots, roughly chopped
  • 5 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
  • 3 cm fresh ginger, peeled and roughly chopped
  • 3 cm fresh galangal (lengkuas), peeled and roughly chopped, or 1 tsp dried galangal powder
  • 4 candlenuts (kemiri) or macadamia nuts, roughly chopped
  • 1 tsp ground turmeric
  • 1 tsp coriander seeds, lightly toasted
  • 3 tbsp neutral oil (such as sunflower or rice bran)

To Serve

  • 200 g glass noodles or rice vermicelli, soaked in boiling water for 5 minutes and drained
  • 3 hard-boiled eggs, halved
  • 4 tbsp crispy fried shallots (bawang goreng)
  • 3 spring onions (scallions), thinly sliced
  • 3 limes, cut into wedges
  • sambal lado or sambal oelek, to serve

Method

  1. Place the beef in a large pot with the 2 litres of water. Bring to the boil over high heat. As soon as it boils, skim off the grey foam that rises to the surface. Add the cinnamon sticks, cloves, cardamom pods, star anise, lemongrass, salam leaves, and salt.
  2. Reduce heat to the lowest simmer. Cook uncovered (or partially covered) for 1 hour 30 minutes to 2 hours, until the beef is completely tender and pulls apart easily. The broth should remain clear and golden.
  3. While the beef simmers, make the bumbu. Blend the shallots, garlic, ginger, galangal, candlenuts, turmeric, and coriander seeds together with a splash of water to a smooth paste.
  4. Heat the oil in a frying pan over medium heat. Add the bumbu paste and fry, stirring constantly, for 8–10 minutes until it is deeply fragrant, slightly darker in colour, and the raw smell of shallot has completely cooked out.
  5. Remove the beef from the broth and set aside to cool slightly. Strain the broth through a fine-mesh sieve into a clean pot, discarding all the whole spices. Add the fried bumbu paste to the strained broth and stir well. Simmer together for 20 minutes.
  6. Shred or thinly slice the beef against the grain into bite-sized pieces. Return to the broth. Taste and adjust salt.
  7. To serve: divide the prepared glass noodles or vermicelli among deep bowls. Ladle the hot broth and beef over the noodles. Top each bowl with half a hard-boiled egg, a generous pinch of fried shallots, and sliced spring onion. Serve immediately with lime wedges and sambal on the side.

Notes

Kayu manis (Indonesian cinnamon, Cinnamomum burmannii) is sold in Indonesian and Southeast Asian grocery stores as thick, rough-edged bark quills: quite different from the tightly rolled, pale quills of Ceylon cinnamon. If you cannot find it, Chinese cassia cinnamon sticks are a closer substitute than Ceylon cinnamon in terms of intensity and character. Perkedel kentang (Sumatran potato cakes) are the traditional accompaniment: mash boiled potatoes with fried shallots, salt, and egg, shape into small rounds, and shallow-fry until golden. They are sold ready-made in Indonesian grocery stores.

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