Sea Bass with Sambal Belado

The Indonesian long red chilli is commonly used in various types of sambals due to its vibrant color and medium level of spiciness. Sambal Belado or Sambal Balado is indeed a versatile and popular Indonesian chilli paste or sauce made primarily from red chillies, garlic, shallots, tomatoes, and sometimes other ingredients like lime juice, tamarind, or palm sugar.

The preparation method might slightly vary based on regions or personal preferences, but generally, it involves pounding or blending the ingredients together to form a coarse or smooth paste. Sambal Belado is known for its spicy, tangy, and slightly sweet flavour profile, making it a fantastic accompaniment to various dishes, such as fried fish, chicken, eggs, fried tofu or tempeh or as a condiment for rice.

Due to its adaptability and delicious taste, Sambal Belado is a staple in Indonesian cuisine and can be adjusted in terms of spiciness or additional ingredients to suit individual tastes.

𝐒𝐄𝐀 𝐁𝐀𝐒𝐒 𝐖𝐈𝐓𝐇 𝐒𝐀𝐌𝐁𝐀𝐋 𝐁𝐄𝐋𝐀𝐃𝐎

125 g Indonesian long red chillies or other fresh red chillies

10 dried chillies, cut into 2 cm pieces, soaked in hot water for 20 minutes and drained

100 g shallots

4 cloves garlic

100 g ripe tomato, seeded and cubed

3-4 tablespoons cooking oil

2-3 kaffir lime leaves, torn

1 ½  teaspoons grated palm sugar or sugar

1 teaspoon salt

3 tablespoons lime juice

METHOD

1. Place both type of chillies, shallots, garlic and tomatoes into a blender and process until fine.   You can blend it coarsely too.
2. Heat a wok with cooking oil and add in the blended ingredients and kaffir lime leaves and stir fry until aromatic for about 5-8 minutes or medium heat.
3. Add in the sugar, salt and lime juice and stir fry for about a minute.  Adjust taste.
4. Serve with fried fish on the side or pour it over the fish.

𝑵𝑶𝑻𝑬: You can store this sambal belado in an airtight container for up to a week in the refrigerator.  You can also add 100 ml water to it if you want the sambal runny.

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