Cover image via Resepi Sahabat's Facebook
1. Sambal belacan
Image via Honey Ahmad / Fried Chillies
2. Sambal tumis cili kering
**INGREDIENTS:**
2 large onions, peeled and sliced
5 cloves of garlic
1/2 inch ginger
1 cup minced dried chillies
1 piece tamarind (*asam gelugur*)
Cooking oil
Salt and sugar to taste
**METHOD:**
1. Blend together onions, garlic, ginger, and minced chilli.
2. Sauté blended mixture with cooking oil until crisp.
3. Add in tamarind as well as salt and sugar to taste.
4. Keep sautéeing until the mixture is fully cooked.
**PRO-TIP:** Add in dried anchovies (*ikan bilis*), prawns, or cuttlefish to make a delicious side dish!
Image via norfadhillah1810
3. Kuah kacang (spicy peanut sauce)
Image via Diyana Kamaruza / HipVangelist
4. Cincalok (fermented shrimp sauce)
Image via YummyLittleCooks
5. Pickled green chilli
**INGREDIENTS:**
15 green chillies, washed and sliced
1/2 bottle vinegar
1 tbsp sugar
Salt
**METHOD:**
1. Combine vinegar, salt, and sugar in a pot and bring to a boil. Turn off heat and leave to cool.
2. Pour the cooled mixture into a jar. Add in green chilli slices. Seal tight and refrigerate.
**PRO-TIP:** Usually eaten with fried noodles, bihun, and koay teow.
Image via Goody Foodies
6. Budu (fermented fish sauce)
Image via mummysayf
**INGREDIENTS:**
1 kg fresh anchovies (gutted, cleaned, tossed and dried)
1 cup coarse salt
5 pieces of tamarind (*asam gelugur*)
1 piece nissae (*gula melaka*)
**METHOD:**
1. Combine cleaned fresh anchovies and salt.
2. Scoop the mixture into clean, dry jars and seal tight.
3. Ferment for 44 days. During the fermenting, you should occasionally dry it out in the hot sun with the cap open. Do not stir.
4. After the fermentation period is over, uncap the jar. Stir the mixture quickly so that the anchovies disintegrate.
5. Add in tamarind and *gula melaka*.
6. Seal tight and ferment until *gula melaka* dissolves.
**PRO-TIP:** Add in some cut up cili padi, fresh onion slices, and lime juice into the prepared budu paste.
7. Sambal kicap
**INGREDIENTS:**
12 cili padi
2 cloves garlic
4 tbsp sweet soy sauce
1/4 tsp sugar
Pinch of salt
**METHOD:**
1. Blend or ground cili padi and garlic until it becomes a smooth paste.
2. In a bowl, combine blended mixture with sweet soy sauce, sugar, and salt. Mix well.
**PRO-TIP:** Eat it as *pisang goreng* dip. Trust us, it's delicious!
Image via neenaanuar
8. Sambal tok tok
**INGREDIENTS:**
A fistful of anchovies (washed and crisply fried)
1 large onion, roughly sliced
15 cili padi
2 red chillies, halved
Belacan *(optional)*
Some lime juice
Salt and sugar
**METHOD:**
1. Fry all the ingredients (EXCEPT anchovies) until fragrant and soft.
2. Ground with anchovies. Add in salt and sugar to taste.
Image via azlitamasammanis.com
9. Sambal belacan Brunei
**INGREDIENTS:**
10 red bird's eye chilli (cili padi)
10 green bird's eye chilli (cili padi)
1 inch belacan, ground
1/2 onion, sliced
2 cloves garlic, sliced
1 tbsp tamarind water
Cooking oil
Salt and sugar to taste
**METHOD:**
1. Heat up some oil. Fry red and green chillies, onion, and garlic until fragrant and soft.
2. Add in belacan and fry over medium heat until fully cooked.
3. Roughly blend fried mixture, then stir in tamarind water, salt and sugar.
Image via Resepi Sahabat's Facebook
10. Sambal ikan & kelapa
**INGREDIENTS:**
1 cup shredded coconut
1 cup shreded grilled fish fillet (*ikan bakar*)
1/4 cup ginger, sliced and minced
1/4 cup lemongrass, sliced and blended
1/2 cup minced onion
Salt to taste
1 tbsp black pepper powder
**METHOD:**
1. Fry shredded coconut until it's light and dry.
2. Add in the rest of the ingredients EXCEPT black pepper powder. Fry until the onions become soft. Ground the mixture for a finer texture.
3. Combine with black pepper powder and mix well.
**PRO-TIP:** Serve with rice, sambal, budu, *ulam*, and roasted chicken or beef.
