AI-generated image
Lok lok
Boiled skewers with dipping sauce
Lok-lok: skewers of tofu, vegetables, fish balls and seafood dunked in boiling water, with satay and chilli dips
Late at night along Gurney Drive and in the back lanes of George Town, the lok lok vans open their side doors to reveal racks of colourful skewers: tofu, quail eggs, okra, mushrooms, fish balls, prawns and squid. You pick what you like, dunk it in a pot of bubbling water at the counter, then dip it in thick peanut satay sauce or sweet chilli sauce and pay by the colour of the stick. It makes a fun DIY supper at home, especially with children. Chef's tip: keep the water at a rolling boil and cook a few skewers at a time, so the seafood cooks through quickly.
- Total time
- 30 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
For the skewers
- 7 oz firm tofucut into cubes
- 12 quail eggs
- 8 okra
- 3 ½ oz enoki mushroomsin small bundles
- 12 fish balls
- 12 raw prawnspeeled and deveined
- 7 oz squidcut into rings
- 12 ½ cups water
- 1 tsp salt
For the satay sauce
- 4 tbsp smooth peanut butter
- ½ cup coconut milk
- 1 tbsp chilli paste
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
To serve
- 6 tbsp sweet chilli sauce
Shop this recipe on Amazon
What you'll need
Spices & pantry
Fresh ingredients (6)
Links open Amazon in a new tab. As an Amazon Associate, WhatToEat.Today earns from qualifying purchases.
Method
0/6 doneStep 1: Boil 12 quail eggs for 4 minutes, cool in cold water and peel.
8 minStep 2: Soak bamboo skewers for 10 minutes. Thread 7 oz firm tofu, the quail eggs, 8 okra, 3 ½ oz enoki mushrooms, 12 fish balls, 12 raw prawns and 7 oz squid onto separate skewers. Keep the raw seafood skewers on their own plate in the fridge until cooking, and throw away any prawns or squid that smell of ammonia.
12 minStep 3: Simmer 4 tbsp smooth peanut butter, ½ cup coconut milk, 1 tbsp chilli paste, 1 tbsp sugar and 1 tbsp soy sauce in a small pan for 3 minutes, stirring, until thick and glossy.
3 minStep 4: Bring 12 ½ cups water and 1 tsp salt to a rolling boil in a wide pot, on a table-top burner or the stove. Keep children at a safe distance from the boiling water.
5 minStep 5: Dunk a few skewers at a time: vegetables and enoki 1–2 minutes, tofu and fish balls 3 minutes, until hot through, prawns 2–3 minutes, until pink and opaque, and squid about 1 minute, until white. Common mistake: crowding the pot; the water stops boiling and the seafood stays underdone.
10 minStep 6: Serve hot with the satay sauce and 6 tbsp sweet chilli sauce for dipping. Use a clean plate for cooked skewers, never the raw one.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 330 kcal
- Protein
- 23 g
- Carbs
- 18 g
- Fat
- 18 g
- Fibre
- 3 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does lok lok take?
- About 30 minutes in total: 20 minutes to prepare and 10 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 4 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- What can I use instead of quail eggs?
- 1 tbsp ground flaxseed + 3 tbsp water per egg, left for 5 minutes (baking only; vegan).
- What can I use instead of enoki mushrooms?
- Aubergine, diced, same weight.
Reviews
No reviews yet. Be the first to cook it.
Rate this recipe
Sign in to rate and review this recipe.
You might also like
SakarpadaSweet fried dough diamonds
Sakarpada (shakarpara) are little sweet diamonds of a rich dough made with ghee, milk and sugar, fried until golden and crunchy. They are a Diwali favourite with tea, and the cubes go into bhusu too. They keep for weeks in an air-tight tin.
Indian
Yaki onigiriGrilled rice balls
Yaki onigiri (焼きおにぎり) are rice balls grilled until they form a crisp, toasty crust, then brushed with soy sauce glaze. They are eaten all over Japan, at izakaya, at barbecues and from the freezer section, as a snack or with miso soup. The inside stays soft and steamy while the outside crackles. Best eaten hot, straight from the pan. Chef's tip: let the shaped rice balls dry for 10 minutes before they go in the pan. A drier surface forms a better crust and won't stick, and the glaze goes on only at the end so it doesn't burn.
Japanese
Taiwanese grilled corn
At Raohe and Shilin night markets the grilled-corn stalls are easy to find: look for the queue and the smoky, sweet smell. Cobs are par-cooked, then turned slowly over charcoal while the cook brushes them with a dark glaze of sacha sauce, thick soy paste, garlic and chilli, layer after layer, until the kernels are sticky, slightly charred and deeply savoury. It is eaten hot from a paper sleeve while walking the market. Sacha (shacha) sauce, a Taiwanese barbecue paste, usually contains dried fish and shrimp; vegetarian sacha is sold in Asian shops. Contains soy, wheat and fish. Chef's tip: brush thin coats and turn often; one thick coat burns before the corn chars.
Taiwanese