Cirebon Beef Coconut Soup (Empal Gentong)
Empal Gentong Say it: em-PAHL gen-TONG
Empal gentong is a rich, aromatic beef soup from Cirebon in West Java, sold in traditional earthenware pots and eaten throughout the day, especially with ketupat or lontong. Beef simmers until tender in a lightly creamy coconut-milk broth scented with lemongrass, galangal, turmeric, coriander, and candlenut. The soup is savory, gently spicy, and faintly sweet, with a warm golden color. It is comfort food at its most fragrant, meant to be spooned over rice cakes and finished with fried shallots, lime, and sambal.
Cirebon Beef Coconut Soup (Empal Gentong)
Empal Gentong
Pronounced em-PAHL gen-TONG
- Serves
- 4
- Prep
- 25 min
- Cook
- 1 hr 30 min
- Total
- 1 hr 55 min
- Level
- Medium
Also egg-free.
Allergens: contains nuts. Check labels on packaged ingredients.
Ingredients
Amounts are scaled. Cooking times and pan sizes stay the same.
Beef and broth
Spice paste and aromatics
To serve
Method
In a large pot, combine the beef, water, and 1 tsp salt. Bring to a boil over high heat, skim off the foam, then reduce the heat, cover, and simmer for 60–75 minutes, until the beef is tender; keep the broth in the pot.
Meanwhile, blend or grind the shallots, garlic, candlenuts, coriander seeds, cumin seeds, white pepper, turmeric, ginger, and galangal into a smooth paste, adding 2–3 tbsp water if needed.
Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the spice paste, lemongrass, kaffir lime leaves, and bay leaves, and fry for 5–7 minutes, until fragrant and the oil separates.
Scrape the fried spice mixture into the beef pot. Add the coconut milk and palm sugar, then simmer gently, uncovered, for 15–20 minutes, until the broth is slightly thickened and the flavors have melded; do not let it boil hard.
Season with more salt to taste. The beef should be fork-tender and the broth golden and aromatic; remove the lemongrass, bay leaves, and lime leaves if you like.
To serve, place the ketupat or lontong in bowls, ladle the beef and broth over the top, and finish with fried shallots, scallions, lime wedges, and sambal.
Regional variants
Some Cirebon cooks add cleaned beef tripe or tendon for a chewier, more traditional bowl, and serve with rice instead of ketupat. A pressure cooker can shorten the beef simmer to 25–30 minutes.
Cook's notes
- Keep the coconut milk at a gentle simmer; a hard boil can make it split.
- Fry the spice paste until the oil separates and it smells fragrant, which builds the soup’s deep golden flavor.
- If you cannot find candlenuts, use macadamia nuts; they give the broth its subtle body.
Serve with
Ketupat or lontong, sambal, lime wedges, and fried shallots.
Make ahead and storage
Cool, cover, and refrigerate up to 3 days; reheat gently, adding a splash of water if the broth thickens. Freeze up to 2 months.
