A thick, sweet-savory, deeply fermented Javanese sauce built on petis, terasi, kecap manis, palm sugar, and tamarind, simmered until dark and glossy enough to coat the back of a spoon.
Ingredients
- 120 g fresh Asian shallots
- 4 cloves fresh pink garlic
- 25 g fresh ginger
- 25 g fresh galangal
- 15 g fresh turmeric
- 12 g Indonesian terasi shrimp paste
- 80 g Indonesian petis udang
- 120 ml Indonesian kecap manis
- 35 g Indonesian gula Jawa palm sugar
- 25 g seedless tamarind paste
- 200 ml whole coconut milk
- 45 ml peanut oil
- 1 piece fresh red chile
- to taste fine salt
- 120 ml water
Method
- Peel the shallots, garlic, ginger, galangal, and turmeric. Pound or blend into a coarse paste with the red chile and a splash of water: the texture should remain moist, aromatic, and slightly fibrous, rather than completely smooth.
- Heat the peanut oil in a heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium-low heat (around 285 °F / 140 °C). Add the spice paste and sweat for 8 to 10 minutes, stirring regularly, until the water has fully evaporated, oil separates around the edges, and the paste turns a golden amber color.
- Crumble the terasi into the saucepan. Toast it with the aromatic paste over low heat for 2 to 3 minutes, until the pungent seafood notes turn toasted and mellow, and the paste darkens slightly.
- Add the petis, kecap manis, and palm sugar. Cook over low heat for 3 minutes at about 195 °F / 90 °C, stirring constantly until the sugar dissolves completely into a dark, glossy, and homogeneous paste.
- Dissolve the tamarind paste in a little warm water, then stir it into the saucepan. Cook over low heat for 1 minute, scraping the bottom to incorporate all the pan drippings.
- Pour in the coconut milk and remaining water. Bring to a gentle simmer, keeping the heat between 185 °F and 195 °F (85 °C to 90 °C), then simmer uncovered for 12 to 15 minutes, stirring regularly to prevent the coconut milk from splitting.
- Continue reducing over very low heat for 4 to 5 minutes more, until syrupy and thick enough to coat a spoon: a spatula should leave a clear trail for 2 seconds across the bottom of the pan, and the sauce should fall in a heavy ribbon.
- Taste and adjust seasoning with a pinch of fine salt if needed, off the heat.
- Remove from the heat and let rest for 10 minutes at room temperature: the sauce will thicken, turn glossier, and the fermented notes will mellow.
- Serve warm, around 115 °F to 120 °F (45 °C to 50 °C), stirred and spooned generously over hot rice, wheat noodles, steamed vegetables, or hard-boiled eggs.
Nutrition
Per serving
- Energy
- 397 kcal
- Protein
- 6.1 g
- Carbohydrate
- 45.49 g
- Fat
- 21.6 g
- Fibre
- 3.02 g
- Calcium
- 20.03 mg
- Iron
- 3.85 mg
- Magnesium
- 36.28 mg
