Gado-Gado
Jakarta's warm salad of blanched vegetables, potato, egg and crisp tofu and tempeh, smothered in a sweet, savoury peanut sauce.
Method
Peel the potatoes and cut them into 3 cm chunks. Put them and the eggs in a 18 cm pot, cover with cold water by 2 cm and bring to the boil over high heat. Turn down to medium heat and simmer for , until a knife slides into the potato with no resistance. Lift the eggs out after 10 minutes and drop them into cold water, so the yolks stay bright yellow and the shells peel easily.
Add in this stepWaxy potatoes 220 gEggs 2
high heat→medium heatBring a 20 cm pot of water to a rolling boil over high heat and set a bowl of cold water nearby. Cut the beans into 4 cm lengths and the cabbage into bite-sized pieces. Boil the beans for , adding the cabbage for the last minute, until bright and tender-crisp, then scoop them into the cold water. Blanch the bean sprouts and water spinach for just , until barely wilted, and cool them the same way. Drain everything well and gently squeeze the greens; watery vegetables thin the sauce.
Add in this stepLong beans or green beans 100 gWhite cabbage 120 gMung bean sprouts 80 gWater spinach (kangkung) or spinach 80 g
high heatPour the oil into a 22 cm wok or deep pan so it is about 2 cm deep and heat over medium heat to 160 °C: a peanut dropped in should fizz gently at once. Fry the peanuts for , stirring all the time, until light golden, then scoop them onto paper towel; they keep darkening as they cool, so take them out a shade early. Fry the peeled garlic and chilies in the same oil for 30 seconds, until just soft, and drain. Keep the oil for the tofu. Keep water away from the oil, never leave it unattended and have a lid within reach.
Add in this stepNeutral oil for frying 300 mlRaw peanuts, shelled 110 gGarlic cloves 2Fresh bird's eye chilies 2
medium heatCut the tofu into 2 cm cubes and the tempeh into 5 mm slices, and pat both very dry with paper towel. Reheat the oil over medium-high heat to about 175 °C, then lower them in gently, laying them away from you so the oil does not splash. Fry for in total, turning once, until golden and crisp outside, and drain. Work in 1 batch(es) so the pan is not crowded and the oil stays hot.
Add in this stepFirm tofu 150 gTempeh 100 g
medium-high heatPound the fried peanuts, garlic and chilies with the palm sugar, tamarind and salt in a mortar, or pulse them in a blender, to a coarse, sandy paste. Tip it into a 16 cm pan, stir in the hot water a little at a time and simmer over medium-low heat for , stirring, until the sauce is thick enough to coat a spoon and looks glossy. Stir in the kecap manis and the lime juice and taste: it should be nutty, sweet and a little sour. If it gets too thick, loosen it with a spoonful of hot water.
Add in this stepPalm sugar (gula jawa) or dark brown sugar 20 gTamarind paste 1 tspSalt ½ tspHot water 180 mlKecap manis (sweet soy sauce) 1½ tbspLime ½
medium-low heatCut the potatoes into bite-sized pieces, peel and quarter the eggs and slice the cucumber. Arrange the vegetables, potato, tofu, tempeh and egg on plates and pour over the warm peanut sauce just before eating. Scatter with fried shallots and serve the prawn crackers on the side so they stay crisp. Everyone mixes it all together at the table.
Add in this stepCucumber 120 gCrispy fried shallots 2 tbspPrawn crackers (krupuk) 25 g
Cook's tip
Short on time? Use the same weight of unsweetened crunchy peanut butter instead of fried peanuts, and fry only the garlic and chilies in step 3. No kecap manis: dissolve 1 tablespoon of dark brown sugar in 1 tablespoon of soy sauce. No tamarind: add a little more lime juice.
Cooking it at camp
Make the peanut sauce at home and bring it in a jar in the cooler. At the campsite, skip deep-frying: pan-fry the tofu and tempeh in 2 tablespoons of oil instead, which is much safer. One burner is enough: boil the eggs and potatoes, then blanch the vegetables one after another in the same water.