A traditional Indonesian salad.
Ingredients
- peanut sauce:
- 2 tblsp vegetable oil
- 1 onion (finely chopped)
- 1-2 teaspoons chilli powder (depending on how spicy you want it)
- 625 ml water
- 1 cup ground roasted peanuts or 1 cup peanut butter
- salt, to taste
- 1 tblsp red wine vinegar
- 1 tsp sugar
- salad:
- 6 uncooked prawn crackers (available in most supermarkets)
- vegetable oil, for deep-frying
- 0.5 a medium cucumber, sliced
- 100 g bean sprouts
- 6 iceberg lettuce leaves
- 2 carrots (sliced lengthways and blanched for a minute in boiling water)
- 2 potatoes (boiled, peeled and sliced)
- 2 cabbage leaves (sliced into strips and blanched for a minute in boiling water)
- 125 g green beans (cut into 5cm/2in pieces, and blanched for a minute in boiling water)
- 2 tomatoes (cut into wedges)
- 3 hard-boiled eggs (sliced)
Method
- To make the sauce, heat the oil in a saucepan, add the onions and sauté until transparent.
- Add the chilli powder and stir-fry for about 30 seconds.
- Stir in the water and peanuts and gradually bring to the boil, stirring often.
- Allow to simmer for about 5 minutes, or until the mixture is smooth.
- Season with the salt, vinegar and sugar.
- Deep-fry the prawn crackers, one by one, in the vegetable oil.
- If they sink to the bottom, the pan is too cool – they should puff up and squirm around as soon as they hit the oil!
- Remove quickly before they brown.
- Drain them well on a paper towel, then break into small pieces.
- Arrange all the other salad ingredients on a large platter.
- Pour the sauce over the vegetables and sprinkle with the prawn crackers.
- Believe me, this is yummy!
