Sambal Oelek. Eggs and Green Beans in Chilli Sauce.

East becoming variable, 3 or 4.

Smooth or slight.

Fair.

Moderate or good.

I just love the variety of different chilli sauces. The other day I cooked with my oldest some some green beans in chilli sauce, following a recipe from Ken Hom. We both found it good, yet somehow wanting. It was not quite there yet and consequently we discussed the difference between ready- made Asian chilli sauces. My son was not convinced of the differences so I forced the poor chap to a blind tasting. Offering him 4 different Asian chilli sauces on tiny plates. And once he rejected one, he was forced to choose again between the rest. While we disagreed on the last two, it became very clear that not all chilli sauces are created equal.

To be fair to Ken Hom, our beans were a supporting act to an exquisite star of a (Japanese) main dish. My oh my, was that good. And it was also clear that you cant just mix different “Asian” foods and expect them to work together. It takes a true knowledge to be able to combine a, let`s say, a clean tasting Japanese dish with a robust Korean recipe. A knowledge we both don’t have, but thrive to achieve. So it is, for the moment, best to stick to one variety of East Asian cooking and learn from there.
Faced with the challenge of providing a typical Dutch recipe for summer (see previous posts), I was tempted to go for the easy option and go for an Indonesian meal. Indonesia is for the Dutch what India is for the Brits. And as much as a “curry” became part of the British food identity, Indonesian food found its way into everyday Dutch cuisine. And of course the ingredients. If you go into a British supermarket and walk towards the “World Food” section you find a different choice than in the Dutch “World Food” section. For example you find all the ingredients for a Rijstafel,  a dish as Indonesian as a Chicken Tikka Masala is Indian. And you cant escape Sambal Oelek, yet another variety of a South Asian chilli sauce. But different.

Robust, earthy, not as elegant as some Thai sauces. Think of Worcester sauce for the UK, Maggi for Germany, Aromat for Switzerland. Each country has a beloved ingredient which hardly finds its way into fine cuisine (have you ever encountered a restaurant which uses Milo in its desserts?

There is no escape of Milo in Asia, yet most Western countries have no knowledge of its existence).

So, as a Brit, you might not have encountered Sambal Oelek while generations of Dutch children grew up with it. But do try it out. It is a different chilli experience and I think you might start to like it.

Sambal Telur with Green Beans

1 birds eye chilli

1 clove of garlic

1 tsp of shrimp paste

2 tbsp of Sambal Oelek

1 tsp of unflavoured oil (ground nut or rapeseed)

1 tbsp of dried onions (or a fresh shallot browned to crispiness in oil)

6 cherry tomatoes cut in half

200ml of water or vegetable stock

2 eggs

1 handful of green French beans

Plain cooked rice to serve.

Top and tail the green beans and cook for 4 minutes in salted boiling water. Drain and put immediately into ice water. Hard boil the eggs. Refresh and shell. Cut in half.

Chop and deseed the chilli, cut the garlic in small pieces. Fry both in the oil, add the shrimp paste, the Sambal and the water/stock.

Shrimp paste smells weird and is certainly an acquired taste. If you don’t feel you are ready yet, leave it out. It will taste different but it will be fine. If you feel half brave add a few drops of Thai fish sauce. Reduce to a “grainy” sauce. Add hard boiled eggs and green beans, turn the heat down and let the flavours infuse.

Serve with simple rice.