About this component
The fiery, funky chili relish at the heart of the Indonesian meal — chiles and toasted shrimp paste pounded to a rough, savory heat. Sambal is not one recipe but a whole family; this is among the most beloved.
Component facts
- Yield
- About 1 cup (240 ml)
- Prep
- 20 minutes
- Heat
- Hot
Development draft. This is an untested development recipe from the cookbook project. It has not been kitchen-tested, and the quantities and timings are the author’s working draft rather than a verified result.
Ingredients
- 12–15 red chiles, mixed hot and mild
- 4 shallots
- 3 cloves garlic
- 1 tsp (5 g) shrimp paste (terasi), toasted
- 1 tbsp (15 g) palm sugar
- 1 tbsp (15 ml) lime juice
- 1/2 tsp (3 g) salt
- 2 tbsp (30 ml) oil
Method
- Toast the terasi in foil or a dry pan until fragrant.
- Fry or char the chiles, shallots and garlic until softened.
- Pound everything with salt, palm sugar and toasted terasi to a coarse paste.
- Fry the paste in oil over medium heat 5–7 minutes until darkened and fragrant.
- Finish with lime juice off the heat.
Notes from the book
- Balancing
- Heat forward, grounded by savory terasi and rounded with palm sugar and lime.
- Substitutions
- Omit terasi and add extra salt + a little miso for a lighter, shellfish-free sambal (flavor differs).
- Storage and food safety
- Refrigerate under a film of oil up to 2 weeks. Contains shellfish (shrimp paste).
Pairs with in this book
Grilled fish, rice & vegetables.
The Complete Edition
Sambal Terasi (Shrimp Paste Sambal) sits in the foundations
The book carries this component alongside the other twenty-three, the twenty-seven pantry studies, and the Indonesia chapter it belongs to.
Available from Amazon
- Kindle edition — $9.99 (Kindle Store price) — available now
- Paperback — $49.99 (print list price) — available now