Indonesian Sambal

Chili is the star ingredient in my kitchen.

Whether it is a cold windy day in Rotterdam or the peak of summer, my housemates and I are always working these little babies, mixing them in stews, curries or stir-fries. It never made sense to us to adjust our tolerance for chili to the weather -- after all, we all hauled from Indonesia, where it is hot all year long and where chili is eaten all year long as well. We are not macho chili eaters, but a bit of a kick is always welcome. The friendly-faced Turkish man at the Tuesday market already recognizes me -- I'm the girl who always stands for 15 minutes in front of his pile of chilies and pick the best ones, one by one. Plump, fiery-red, blemish-free and juicy ones. Even in the coldest day of winter, I still insisted on picking them one by one myself, cursing the icy wind and not being able to feel my fingers in the cold at the same time. Such is my love.

Sambal, or the Indonesian chili condiment, is very versatile. I make a big batch every few weeks, keep a bit in a jar and the rest in ice-cube trays in the freezer -- once the sambal is frozen, I pop them out of the trays, put them in a ziploc bag and keep them in the freezer. They are very handy for cooking a number of things, or just as a condiment. Simply defrost and use as a base for fried rice, countless stir-fries, stews or curries. There are many variations of sambal, but my version is simple and can be adjusted to your preference later.

To make this, first gather up your cast of characters: fresh chilies, shallots, garlic and some shrimp paste (terasi/belacan). I usually use 2 parts chili, 1 part shallot, 1 part garlic and a few teaspoons of shrimp paste. It's very much a matter of taste, so experience and find out what works for you. It also depends on how spicy your chilies are. If you want milder heat, simply de-seed half or more of your chilies -- don't forget to take out the membranes as well, they are spicy too! Shrimp paste also has a very strong aroma and taste, so use sparingly and add as needed.

Peel and chop everything into medium-sized pieces. Heat up enough oil for deep-frying the spices. Once the oil is hot enough (when you drop a cube of bread into the oil, it should brown in 20 seconds), fry the spices in batches. Do not overcrowd the pan as this will lower the oil temperature, which means it will take longer to fry the spices and the spices will absorb more oil.

Once they are cooked through but not crispy, take them out of the pan with a slotted spoon and place in a big bowl. You don't need to blot them on kitchen paper. Once you have all your ingredients fried, take out your pestle and mortar, salt, sugar, shrimp paste, a clean jar to put your sambal in and a few spoons. Place a little bit of the fried spices on the mortar and sprinkle with some salt, sugar and shrimp paste to taste. The coarse and grainy texture of the salt and sugar will make it easier for you to grind the spices. Be careful not to overcrowd the mortar! 

And just start grinding.

Grind them like you mean it!

And yes, it would be way easier to do this with a bigger mortar -- preferably those deep-sided Thai ones. We just like to do things the painful way sometimes.

Keep grinding the spices in batches, storing them in the jar once finished. How chunky or smooth your sambal is depends solely on your preference. Add a little oil that you used to fry the spices to the sambal -- this will give it a desirable taste and help to preserve it better. Stir well and feel totally accomplished!

You can always adjust the taste of your sambal later -- just add more salt or sugar or shrimp paste or even lime juice. Taste, tweak, taste, tweak...Yummini yum.