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Sayur asem
Sour tamarind vegetable soup
Sayur asem (sayur asem): Jakarta's sour tamarind soup of chayote, sweetcorn, long beans and peanuts
Sayur asem is the soup that sits beside fried tempeh, rice and sambal on lunch tables across Jakarta and West Java, and it is most loved in the hot months, when its sharp, sweet-sour broth cools you down. Chunks of sweetcorn, chayote, long beans, raw peanuts and young melinjo leaves simmer in a clear broth soured with tamarind and rounded with a little palm sugar. It is light, with about 5 g of protein per portion, mostly from the peanuts; serve it with tempeh or tofu if you want a full meal. The most common mistake is adding all the vegetables at once: the corn and peanuts need a head start, while the long beans and leaves turn grey and soft if they boil too long. Chef's tip: dissolve the tamarind in a little hot water and add it in stages, tasting as you go, because tamarind blocks vary hugely in strength.
- Total time
- 45 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
For the spice paste
- 4 shallotspeeled
- 3 cloves garlic
- 2 red chilliesdeseeded for less heat
- 2 candlenuts (optional)or 4 macadamia nuts
For the soup
- 6 ¼ cups water
- 2 sweetcorn cobseach cut into 4 rounds
- 2 ⅛ oz raw peanutsskin on
- 1 chayotepeeled and cut into 2 cm chunks
- 5 ½ oz long beanscut into 4 cm lengths (or green beans)
- 1 oz melinjo leaves (optional)or a handful of spinach
- 1 ⅛ in galangalsliced and bruised
- 1 oz tamarind pulpsoaked in 100 ml hot water, seeds strained out
- ⅔ oz palm sugargrated
- 1 ½ tsp salt
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Method
0/7 doneStep 1: Blend or pound 4 shallots, 3 cloves garlic, 2 red chillies and 2 candlenuts into a rough paste with a splash of the water.
Step 2: Bring 6 ¼ cups water to the boil in a large pot. Stir in the paste, 1 ⅛ in galangal and 2 Indonesian bay leaves (salam) and simmer for 5 minutes, until the raw onion smell has gone.
5 minStep 3: Add 2 ⅛ oz raw peanuts and 2 sweetcorn cobs and simmer over a medium heat until the peanuts have lost their raw crunch and the corn kernels are plump, about 12 minutes.
12 minStep 4: Add 1 chayote and cook for 6 minutes, until a knife slides into a chunk with only slight resistance.
6 minStep 5: Stir in half of ¾ oz tamarind pulp, ⅔ oz palm sugar and 1 ½ tsp salt. Taste: the broth should be clearly sour first, then sweet and salty. Add more tamarind from the rest of ⅓ oz tamarind pulp if it is flat.
Step 6: Add 5 ½ oz long beans and simmer for 3 minutes, until bright green and just tender. Drop in 1 oz melinjo leaves for the last minute, only until wilted.
4 minStep 7: Take the pot off the heat and fish out the galangal and bay leaves. Serve hot or warm in bowls, with rice on the side.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 190 kcal
- Protein
- 5 g
- Carbs
- 26 g
- Fat
- 8 g
- Fibre
- 6 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does sayur asem take?
- About 45 minutes in total: 15 minutes to prepare and 30 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 4 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegan?
- Yes. It has no meat, fish, dairy or eggs.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
- What can I use instead of shallots?
- Half an onion per 2 shallots.
- What can I use instead of garlic?
- ½ tsp garlic paste or ⅛ tsp garlic powder per clove.
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