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1
Grind the sambal paste
5 Mins
Room temperature, about 20°C (68°F)
Put the soaked dried chillies, fresh chillies, shallots, garlic and toasted belacan in a blender with 2 tablespoons of water and blend to a smooth, thick paste, stopping to scrape the sides down twice.
Add water a spoon at a time: a paste that is too wet takes twice as long to fry.
Done when: Paste thick, smooth and deep red, with no visible pieces.
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2
Fry the sambal until the oil splits
12 Mins
Medium-low heat, about 160°C (320°F)
Heat the oil in a wok over medium-low heat. Add the paste and the bruised lemongrass and fry, stirring often, for 10–12 minutes until the paste darkens to a deep brick red, smells fragrant and the oil separates around the edges — the stage called pecah minyak.
Keep the heat low and stir often: a burnt sambal tastes bitter and no amount of sugar will fix it.
Done when: Paste dark brick red, glossy, oil separating at the edges.
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3
Season the sambal
3 Mins
Medium-low heat, about 160°C (320°F)
Stir in the tamarind water and palm sugar and cook for 3 minutes until the sauce thickens and turns glossy. Taste it now: it should be hot, sour and a little sweet all at once. Add the salt only if it needs it — the belacan is already salty.
Taste before salting: belacan varies, and oversalted sambal cannot be rescued.
Done when: Sauce thick, glossy and balanced — hot, sour, sweet.
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4
Cook the prawns
5 Mins
Medium-high heat, about 190°C (375°F); prawns to 63°C (145°F)
Turn the heat up, add the prawns and the sliced onion rings, and toss for 3–4 minutes until the prawns turn pink and curl into a loose C and the thickest part reads 63°C (145°F). Fold in the petai, if using, for the last minute.
A prawn that curls into a tight O is overcooked: pull the pan off the heat as soon as they turn pink.
Done when: Prawns pink, plump and curled into a loose C, at 63°C (145°F).
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5
Rest and serve with rice
2 Mins
Room temperature, about 20°C (68°F)
Take the wok off the heat, fish out the lemongrass stalk, and rest for 2 minutes so the sauce clings to the prawns. Serve hot over steamed white rice with cucumber slices on the side.
Removing the lemongrass now keeps anyone from biting into the tough stalk at the table.
Done when: Prawns glossy and coated, sauce clinging, rice ready on the plate.
auto_awesome Finishing Touches & Plating
Serve the sambal udang hot, spooned over a mound of steamed rice — a little goes a long way, so let everyone take as much heat as they want.
Malaysia
1h 10m
