Sambal Oelek Recipe

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon (15 g) belacan (toasted)
• 2 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 8 oz red chili peppers (Korean peppers, red jalapenos, or Thai chilis, stems removed)
• 2 Roma tomatoes (halved)
• 4 shallots (peeled and halved)
• 12 cloves garlic (peeled)
• 1 stalk lemongrass (white part only, thinly sliced)
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1/4 cup brown sugar (packed)
• 1 tablespoon chicken bouillon powder
• 1 tablespoon fish sauce
• 1 tablespoon salt (or more to taste)
• 1 tablespoon lime juice (or more to taste)

Instructions

1. 1

   Toast the belacan. Heat a skillet over medium-high heat until hot and turn your stove fan on high. The smell will be intense. Toast the belacan shrimp paste for 1 minute until crumbled and charred.

2. 2

   Char the vegetables. Heat 2 tablespoon of vegetable oil over high heat until hot. Add the red chili peppers, tomato, shallots, garlic, and lemongrass and char on each side until browned.

3. 3

   Blend. Place the vegetables in a food processor, or in a mortar and pestle. Blend the charred vegetables until it forms a chunky paste.

4. 4

   Saute. In a medium skillet over medium-low heat, add the vegetable oil, blended chillis, belacan, brown sugar, chicken bouillon powder, fish sauce, and salt. Mix until combined. Simmer on medium-low for 20 minutes uncovered. Turn off the heat, add 1 tablespoon of lime juice, and mix until combined.

5. 5

   Serve. Let the sauce cool before serving. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.