picture was cilok-ed from google search engineSambal belacan has always been essential in many a malay household. It is a must have condiment, usually eaten with hot piping rice and fried fish (ikan kembong is the best, I found out) together with mixed veges, fresh ulam and a little bit of gravy; it can be curry or lemak cili padi, whichever that suits your tastebud. Even the very mentioning of this salivates me to the core. Kecur liur tau!
There are many varieties of sambal belacan. For example, some people like to add tomato or mango or belimbing besi (smaller version of starfruit family with sour taste) or lime juice instead of tamarind juice. Normally, I'd use pestle and mortar to pound my sambal belacan. A simple sambal belacan ingredients usually consist of;
10 cili padis (or more if you like it extra hot)
2 red chillies
1 tbsp of sugar
belacan - belacan melaka is the best
tamarind juice - must be pekat-pekat (concentrated)
Heavenly yummeh!
Sambal belacan is best looking and tasting if pounded with pestle and mortar. But lately, I have succumbed to laziness, hence the use of food blender. Thank god for modern technology. Yeah, modern technology tends to bring out the worst in some people. I use food blender to make my job easier and less mess in the kitchen. And I also want to avoid the chillies from squirting into my eyes. That can be unpleasant.
Well, the outcome of it, it tastes pretty much the same but it looks a little bit bubbly and watery as compared to the original looking sambal belacan made with the pestle and mortar. I have become adept to using the food blender that I'd know when to get the right texture for my sambal belacan; not too coarse or too pureed. If kept refrigerated (with the lid on) for few days, the texture can become concentrated and tastes even better. Oh well, as long as it tastes quite the same, its really fine with me.
Sambal belacan is like my natural anti-depressant drug. I can't live without it. Can you?
