INTRODUCTION
Today is the second day of Hari Raya Aidilfiltri and I felt the urge to introduce some simple Malay cuisine to my kids.. Since my neighbour gave me a block of lontong yesterday, I have decided to pair it with sayur lodeh or mixed vegetable curry soup to pair with it.
This combo is definitely not uncommon in Singapore hawker centre. Most Malay stalls sell this dish together with mee rebus, mee soto and etc..
I only get to know lontong when I stayed in Singapore. Lontong is a type of compressed rice cake and very similar to ketupat but in different shape. It is bland like white rice and need to be eaten with some tasty sauces like satay sauces or curry. Unlike lemang, it is prepared from normal white jasmine rice. It is believed that it is originated from Indonesia. As per Wikipedia:
“Lontong is a dish made of compressed rice cake in the form of a cylinder wrapped inside a banana leaf,[1] commonly found inIndonesia; also in Malaysia and Singapore. The rice rolled inside banana leaf and boiled, then cut into small cakes as staple food replacement of steamed rice. It is commonly called nasi himpit (“pressed rice”) in Malaysia. The dish is usually served cold or at room temperature with peanut sauce-based dishes such as gado-gado, karedok, ketoprak, other traditional salads, and satay.[1] It can be eaten as an accompaniment to coconut milk-based soups, such as soto, gulai and curries. In Indonesia, especially among Betawi people, lontong usually served as lontong sayur, pieces of lontong served in coconut milk soup with shredded chayote, tempeh, tofu, hard-boilled egg, sambal and kerupuk. Lontong sayur is a favourite breakfast menu next to bubur ayam and nasi goreng. Lontong kari is lontong serve in soupy chicken curry and vegetables.” (Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lontong)
Sayur lodeh or vegetable in coconut milk is said to be originated from Java but it is very common in Singapore and Malaysia. The Indonesian version is different from the Malaysian and Singaporean version. The later two countries uses less types of vegetables and are yellowish in colour as opposed to the Indonesian version that uses many type of vegetables and usually milky or greenish in colour.
“Sayur lodeh is a vegetables in coconut milk soup popular in Indonesia, but most often associated with Javanese cuisine. Common ingredients are young unripe jackfruit, eggplant, chayote, melinjo beans and leafs, long beans, green chili pepper, tofu andtempeh all cooked in coconut milk soups and sometimes enrichen with chicken or beef stock. The bumbu spice mixture includes ground chili pepper (optional, depends on desired degree of spiciness), shallot, garlic, candlenut, coriander, kencur powder, turmericpowder (optional), dried shrimp paste, salt and sugar.The greenish white sayur lodeh is made without turmeric, while the golden one does. Sometimes green stink beans are also mixed within sayur lodeh. Sayur lodeh could be served with steamed rice (separated or mixed in one plate), or with sliced lontong rice cake. Although sayur lodeh basically is a vegetarian dish, it is popularly consumed with ikan asin (salted fish), opor ayam, empal gepuk or beef serundeng. Sambal terasi is usually served separately.” (Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sayur_lodeh)
What I am sharing today is the Singapore hawker centre version which is yellowish red colour and without lontong, sayur lodeh can be a standalone dish that can be consumed with white rice. As for the vegetable, some families added brinjal, fu chok (dried bean curd sheets), potatoes and tempeh also.
WHAT IS REQUIRED
Servings: 6-8 adults
Main Ingredients
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1 small jicama or yam bean – cut into sticks (sengkuang)
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1 medium size carrot – cut into small chunks (lobak merah)
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1/2 a medium size cabbage – cut into big pieces (kobis)
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10 tofu puff – cut into big pieces (tauhu pok)
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10 long beans – cut into 4 cm length (kacang panjang)
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6 hard boiled eggs (telur rebus)
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300 grams of thick coconut milk (santan)
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4 cups of water (estimated) (air)
Spice mix or rempah
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2 medium size red colour onion (bawang besar)
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2 red chilli (cili)
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5 candlenuts (buah keras)
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2 stalk of lemon grass (serai)
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10 cloves of garlic (bawang putih)
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2 cm of ginger (halia)
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2 cm of galangal (lengkuas)
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2 tablespoons of dried baby shrimps (udang kering)
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2 cm of shrimp paste (belachan)
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1 tablespoon of coriander powder (serbuk ketumbar)
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2 tablespoon of chilli powder (serbuk cili)
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1 tablespoon of turmeric powder (serbuk kunyit)
Others
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Salt to taste (garam)
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Sugar to taste (gula)
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Sambal belachan of your choice
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500 grams of lontong or compressed rice cake
STEPS OF PREPARATION
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Blend all the spice mix ingredients with some water (except the powder form) in a blender until fine and resemble a paste.
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In a pot, put 3 tablespoons of cooking oil, saute the rempah, chilli powder, turmeric powder and coriander powder until fragrant and oil separated from the rempah.
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Add about 2 cups of water and bring to boil. Add the vegetables in this order (carrot, jicama, cabbage and long bean) ensure that the water just slightly cover the vegetables. Use the remaining one cup of water if necessary. During the process of cooking, more vegetable juices will be secreted. Let it simmer until the vegetable are almost soft. Add the coconut milk, hard boil eggs, the tofu puff and the seasonings (salt and sugar to taste). Off the heat and let it rest in the post for at least 15 minutes before servings.
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For assembly, have some lontong on a plate and put some sayur lodeh on top of the rice cake. Best served with sambal belachan as a one pot dish.
CONCLUSION
I really love this sayur lodeh.. Unsure how the authentic Indonesian taste like, but this recipe suits my taste buds. If the gravy is too thick , feel free to add some water. Savoury recipe is a guideline for home chefs, you are always welcome to add or minus some ingredients to suit your family’s taste buds.
Hope you like the post today. Cheers and have a nice day.
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GUAI SHU SHU 