Sambal
From Freepedia
Sambal is an Indonesian, Malaysian and Singaporean condiment made from a variety of peppers, although chile peppers are the most common.
The most common kinds of peppers used in Sambal are:
- Adyuma - a.ka. habanero. These are usually yellow and blocky (like a miniature paprika). Very hot!
- Cayenne pepper - These are usually red and blocky (see above). Very hot! There are, however a number of similar looking peppers which are much milder. These can be recognized by their shiny(ier) appearance.
- Madame Jeanette - Yellow or light green elongated kind of pepper. They have a bit of an irregular shape. These are hot and very aromatic
- Rawit - Elongated and tiny. These are red or green and moderately hot.
- Spanish peppers (chile peppers) or Lombok (Javanese) - These are elongated and have a red or green colour. These are relatively mild, the green ones being milder than the red ones.
Sambal is thicker and richer tasting than Mexican salsa. It ranges in hotness from mildly sharp to incendiary. There are a number of varieties, including:
- Sambal Asem
- This is similar to Sambal Trassi with an addition of tamarind concentrate.
- Sambal Bajak
- Chile (or another kind of red peppers) fried with oil, garlic, trassi, KuKui and other condiments (darker, richer in flavor).
- Sambal Belacan
- Chile fried with belacan shrimp paste. It may be mixed with other ingredients to produce dishes such as sambal kangkong, sambal sotong (squid) and sambal telur (egg).
- Sambal Kemiri
- This is similar to Sambal Trassi with an addition of KuKui a.k.a. Candlenuts.
- Sambal Udang
- Chile fried with oil, garlic, shrimp paste (pronounced sea flavor).
- Sambal Ulek
- Chile and salt (bright red, thin and sharp tasting).
