California Farm Hot Red Pepper Sauces: Sambals

Hobby Horseman
Hobby Horseman @HobbyHorseman
California, United States

The hot peppers are ripe. We make three basic types of fresh Indonesian hot red pepper sauces for the year: vinegar boiled sweet and sour red pepper sauce ( sambal oelek), vinegar boiled sweet hot pepper sauce (sambal manis), and lemon grass oil baked hot pepper sauce with spices (sambal badjak).

The red pepper crop failed mostly this year in California, prices went sky high, so we are using fewer peppers, by using the seeds inside ripe peppers as well this year. Seeds make the sambals much hotter than if the peppers are deseeded. The recipes in here use these seeds, I reduced the serving quantities to 1/2 teaspoon per serving instead of one full teaspoon.

The taste test for sambals is listed below.

California Farm Hot Red Pepper Sauces: Sambals

The hot peppers are ripe. We make three basic types of fresh Indonesian hot red pepper sauces for the year: vinegar boiled sweet and sour red pepper sauce ( sambal oelek), vinegar boiled sweet hot pepper sauce (sambal manis), and lemon grass oil baked hot pepper sauce with spices (sambal badjak).

The red pepper crop failed mostly this year in California, prices went sky high, so we are using fewer peppers, by using the seeds inside ripe peppers as well this year. Seeds make the sambals much hotter than if the peppers are deseeded. The recipes in here use these seeds, I reduced the serving quantities to 1/2 teaspoon per serving instead of one full teaspoon.

The taste test for sambals is listed below.

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Ingredients

10 minutes till soft
2 people, 3 jars, year’s supply
  1. 100 gramsSambal oelek: 85 grams fresh thai birds eye red peppers, 5 grams salt, 5 grams palmsugar, 2 grams trassi, 3 grams vinegar or lime juice. Top with lemon grass oil
  2. 100 gramsSambal manis: 85 grams fresh thai birds eye red peppers, 10 grams palmsugar, 2 grams trassi, 3 grams vinegar or lime juice. Top with lemon grass oil
  3. 100 gramsSambal badjak: 60 grams red peppers, 10 grams ginger, 5 grams each lemon grass, peroek leaves, garlic cloves, kemiri nuts, salt, 2 grams trassi, 3 grams vinegar. Top with lemon grass oil
  4. Equipment: latex gloves, food processor, cast iron skillet, kitchen scissors, spatula, crockpot, mason jars
  5. Cost: red pepper crop mostly failed this year, peppers are expensive, $1 per stem, holding 15+ ripe peppers, 50 grams, $2 per jar, 6 cents per Tbs

Cooking Instructions

10 minutes till soft
  1. 1

    Puree the peppers. Wear gloves, do not touch face. Heat dry cast iron skillet. Hold stem, snip off peppers at the top with kitchen scissors, drop in skillet. Rinse scissors with hot water, wipe with vinegar on wet paper towel.

  2. 2

    Heat peppers in lemon grass oil in medium hot cast iron sauce pan with lid till they start blistering, shake the pan. Douse the peppers with cold water, boil, then simmer till soft, fifteen minutes, water will have mostly evaporated. Cool, puree in food processor. Use this basic puree for all three sambals.

  3. 3

    For the sambal badjak, put Tbs lemongrass oil in cast iron skillet, Tsp trassi, tsp sea salt, Tbs chopped fresh green lemongrass, Tbs crushed elephant garlic, Tbs sliced ginger, 1 Tbs peroek leaves, 1 Tbs kemiri nuts, 6 Tbs pureed peppers, fry till brown. Frying after boiling the puree makes a milder pepper sauce. Puree the fried paste and spicemix again and store in crock jar, drizzle with vinegar or lime juice, cover with lemon grass oil to preserve longer.

  4. 4

    For the sambal oelek, put 100 grams sambal puree or fresh birdseye red peppers in cast iron skillet, add palmsugar, trassi, sea salt, vinegar, blister the peppers, cover with water, boil 15 minutes till soft, puree in food processor. Put in glass jar, vinegar on top. To preserve longer, cover with lemon grass oil.

  5. 5

    For the sambal manis, blister 100 grams of birdseye red peppers, cover with water, cook 15 minutes till soft, puree, or mix 100 grams sambal puree with trassi, palm sugar, vinegar, put in glass jar, vinegar on top. To preserve longer, cover with lemon grass oil.

  6. 6

    Do the taste test: whip an egg without salt or spices, fry omelette in olive oil, spread 1/8 th teaspoon of sambal evenly over the egg. Cut a strip of omelette, taste, increase the quantity of sambal in 1/8th teaspoon increments to your liking to establish your serving size. If your mouth burns, eat a piece of pickle, or drink milk, it takes the burn away.

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Hobby Horseman
Hobby Horseman @HobbyHorseman
on
California, United States
I teach people at the farmers market to grow small scale fruits and vegetables. My grandparents and parents taught me growing, cooking and preserving home grown fruits and vegetables, eggs, meats and fish. I got certified by the University of California Master Gardener Program in 2005. I try to bring out the original flavor of ingredients, then add layers of spices, herbs and flavorings that enhance, not distort the taste. These are the global, organic and vegan family recipes we use.
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