Soak the Tamarind (skip if using shop bought paste)
Put the kettle on and place the tamarind pulp in a bowl.
Pour about 60ml (¼ cup) boiling water over the pulp and cover with a saucer. Leave to soak while you get the other ingredients going.
Prep Work
Cut up the tofu and tempeh into 2.5 cm (1") cubes.
Slice the beans into 5 cm (2") lengths.
Peel, then quarter the onion. Drop into your chopper.
Halve or roughly chop the chillies and add to the chopper. If using really small birds eye, just detach the end, no need to chop.
Peel the garlic and add to the chopper.
Lemongrass – you have 2. One, we'll be using whole, the other is going in the paste. Slice off the tough bottom end (the root end) of both the lemongrass. And cut off the top part, leaving about 10 cm/4 inches of stalk. Peel off the top layer, if it's particularly dry or dirty, or looking a little yellow. If not, leave it alone. Rinse your lemongrass and dry.Whole – place your lemongrass on a chopping board and bash hard on the thick end with the back of your knife. This is called bruising your lemongrass. Set aside until cooking time.Second lemongrass – slice into thin rings and add to the chopper.You can read more about how to prepare lemongrass for use in this post.
Cut off the tough outer layer of the galangal and discard. Slice the galangal into thin rounds and drop into the chopper. Skip if you can't find galangal.If using shop bought paste, just add 1 tsp to the chopper.
Now, chop all the ingredients in the chopper to a fine paste. Add a tiny amount of water if you need it.
Let's Cook our Sambal Goreng
Fry the Tofu and Tempeh
Heat 2 Tbsp of the oil in a wok or frying pan on medium-high heat. Fry the tofu for 2 minutes, flipping and stirring as you go along. You want to brown the tofu pieces, so don't worry about brown ends.Tip out onto a plate lined with kitchen paper. A slotted spoon would work very well here, especially if you're using more oil than what I've listed.
Heat the other 2 Tbsp of oil and brown the tempeh, still on medium-high heat. 2-3 minutes should do. Tip out onto the plate with the tofu.
Cooking the whole thing together
Add the last Tbsp of oil into your wok/pan and fry the paste, the bruised lemongrass and the chilli powder for 2 minutes.
Mash the tamarind with your fingers (it should be cool enough now). Then fish out the seeds and pulp, discard, and pour everything else into your wok/frying pan. Or use a sieve with a large mesh. Stir to mix.
Tip the fried tofu and tempeh and the green beans and give it a good stir to mix.
No add everything else: the coconut milk, sugar and salt and bring it up to a simmer. Leave to cook, uncovered, for 5 minutes until the beans are done. If you fancy a drier sambal goreng, cook a little bit longer.Check seasoning and add more salt if you want.
Serve immediately, as described above. Will keep in the fridge, covered, for 2 days. Can also be frozen for up to a month.
Notes
If you want to make this non vegetarian/vegan, just add about 100g (3.5 oz) of fresh prawns (shrimp) or chicken (chopped up small), in step 1 of "Cooking the whole thing together".Cook the seafood/meat until it's almost done, then proceed with the rest of the steps. You may need to double up on the oil.