Vegan Sambal Tumis Recipe (Nasi Lemak Sambal)

Azlin Bloor

Vegan sambal tumis recipe. This sweet and slightly spicy hot sauce is both a condiment and a side dish and is perfect with Nasi Lemak.

5 from 4 votes

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Prep Time 15

Cook Time 25

Soaking TIme 15

Total Time 55

Course Condiments, Side Dish

Cuisine Singaporean and Malaysian

Servings 6 (4-6, even 8, depending on amount)

Calories 149 kcal

Equipment

blender or food chopper

Ingredients

30-50 g dried red chillies read article above about the weight of dried chillies
500 ml very hot water for the chillies and tamarind put the kettle on, then start cutting up the chillies
2 heaped Tbsp tamarind pulp or 2 Tbsp shop bought paste
2 medium onions (white or red, doesn't matter) about 300g/10.5 oz pre peeled weight
3 medium cloves garlic 15-20g total pre peeled weight
60 g gula melaka see article above for substitutes
125 ml room temperature water for blending
4 Tbsp vegetable oil
½-1 tsp salt
½ Tbsp dark soy sauce or kicap manis

Instructions

Prep Work

Chillies. Put the kettle on. Cut the dried chillies into 2-3 pieces with a pair of scissors directly into a bowl. Then pour the just boiled water generously over the cut chillies. Leave some for the tamarind below.
Cover and leave to soak for 15 minutes.
30-50 g dried red chillies, 500 ml very hot water for the chillies and tamarind
Tamarind. If using pulp, place in a small bowl and cover with 125ml (½ cup) hot water from the kettle. Leave to soak until needed, no need to cover.
If using shop bought paste, move on to the next step.
2 heaped Tbsp tamarind pulp
Onions. While waiting, peel and halve the onions. Thinly slice 1 half and set aside. Roughly chop the rest into smaller pieces for easier blending and add to the blender.
In the video, you'll see me blending red onions. It doesn't matter. Red onions cook up sweeter.
Garlic. Peel the garlic and drop them into the blender.
2 medium onions (white or red, doesn't matter), 3 medium cloves garlic
Grate or roughly chop up the gula melaka if it's in large pieces, for easier cooking.
In the video, I didn't bother, I can be lazy like that!
60 g gula melaka
Back to the chillies. When the chillies have had 15 minutes, drain them, giving them a quick rinse in a colander under water, and a good shake to lose as many seeds as possible. About 10 seconds is fine, we're not looking to get rid of all the seeds, just at least half. Set aside.
Blend our Sambal. Blend the onions and garlic with a little fresh water (from the 125ml / ½ cup) for about 10 seconds.
Then tip the drained chillies into the blender, and add the rest of the water and blend to a smooth paste. If using a blender, you might have to use a spoon to "dig" up the bottom bits if things get stuck. We don't want too much water here, just the half cup. So persevere. Chopping up your onions smaller will make it easier.
I find that a blender requires more water than a food processor/chopper.
125 ml room temperature water for blending

Let's get Cooking

Heat the oil in a wok or saucepan on medium heat. A frying pan will work too but that chilli paste is going to splutter like crazy, so best to use a pan with a curved side.
Tip the blended sambal chilli paste into the hot oil and fry for 2 minutes, stirring to mix. Be careful of it spluttering.
4 Tbsp vegetable oil
Reduce the heat to low and cook for 15 - 20 minutes, read the article above about pecah minyak (as in image).
Stir your sambal frequently. In the first 10 minutes, 2-3 times will do. As our sambal dries up, you'll need to stir it more frequently to avoid it burning.
Now, the sambal is going to be spitting up in all directions for the first 5-10 minutes. This is because of the ratio of oil to water. Had we been using much more oil, it wouldn't be as bad.
You have a choice here: put up with it or cover it for the first 5-10 minutes only. Ideally, we don't cover sambal tumis when cooking, but needs must and all that, I get it.
When our sambal has had enough time (15-20 minutes) and you can see that the oil has separated, even if this is just a few bubbles here and there, add the tamarind juice, gula melaka, salt and sliced onions.
Stir well to mix and cook for 5 minutes more, still on low.
If you're using tamarind pulp, mash it all up in the water with your fingers. Then pick out the seeds and as much of whatever fibrous bits there are. Then just tip the whole thing into the sambal. Click here to read more about how to use tamarind.
Don't want your sambal too sweet? Just add half the gula melaka initially, and adjust at the end.
½-1 tsp salt
Finally, stir in the dark soy sauce and cook for 1 more minute. Taste and add more salt if necessary. You should have a slightly spicy and slightly sweet sambal.
That's it. Your sambal is all done. Take it off the heat and leave until needed. It will keep in the fridge for 5 days.
½ Tbsp dark soy sauce

Nutrition

Calories: 149kcalCarbohydrates: 16gProtein: 1gFat: 10gSaturated Fat: 1gPolyunsaturated Fat: 5gMonounsaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 0.1gSodium: 111mgPotassium: 158mgFiber: 2gSugar: 10gVitamin A: 1325IUVitamin C: 5mgCalcium: 14mgIron: 0.5mg

Keyword nasi lemak, sambal, vegan

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