Indonesian Gado Gado

Since travelling to Asia, I notice that my taste preferences tend to gravitate towards Thai curries, Vietnamese soups, or summer rolls, and this popular dish from Indonesia. Really, anything Asian with big flavour and I’m game. Eating is usually a casual affair for Indonesians. Typically, women prepare foods early in the day and then leave the foods out on the kitchen table, at room temperature, and everyone eats as they are hungry. A staple in their diet is rice, as it is widely grown across the country. Rice is usually the base of meals, but can also appear in desserts and drinks. Nasi Goreng is the national dish, essentially fried rice. You can buy cheeky Nasi Goreng T-shirts everywhere.

Two dishes that I tended to gravitate towards when I was travelling Indonesia is Gado Gado and Nasi Campur. Gado Gado can be described as a medley or potpourri, or vegetable salad with peanut sauce (sounds delicious, hey?!). It usually comes with rice, tofu and/or tempeh, and shrimp crackers on the side. For the most part, the vegetables were steamed so the term salad gets a little lost in translation, but still delicious nonetheless!

Nasi Campur translates to “mixed rice”. Basically, you order up some rice and choose from a variety of dishes that are on display. The food would sit out after it has been cooked, but going during a peak meal time is usually fine… Once your plate is just how you like it, the restaurant staff will ask you if you would like some sambal (chili sauce, usually prepared fresh and unique to each restaurant), and then tell you the price. Typically a dish of Nasi Campur with vegetables, some meat, and tempeh/tofu costs between $2-4 CDN.

---

Indonesian Gado Gado

Serves 4
Vegan, GF options, DF

Okay, let’s get to it. I had the urge to recreate this dish. I knew I needed some guidance, and still wanted to make it my own. I decided to use Jamie Oliver’s Gorgeous Gado Gado recipe for guidance on the sauce. I ended up using:

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup natural peanut butter

• 2 cloves garlic, minced

• 1 fresh red chilil

• Juice of 3 limes

• 2 tsp fish sauce

• 1.5 tbsp low sodium soy sauce

• 2 tbsp Tamarind sauce (found in the International aisle of Superstore. I think a plum sauce would also work in a pinch)

• 1 tbsp honey

Method

Blend all together. Taste and adjust, as necessary. If it is too thick, add 1 tbsp of warm water at a time and blend to a smooth consistency.

Salad Ingredients

• 4 cups of whatever veggies you have on hand. I like: carrots, green beans, green cabbage, cauliflower, and spinach.

• 1/2 cucumber, thinly sliced

• 1 cup bean sprouts (optional)

• 4 eggs, hard boiled, and cut into wedges

• 1 package of tempeh or tofu (or both)

• 1 tsp low sodium soy sauce (if using tempeh)

• 1 tbsp olive, canola, or sesame oil

• 1 1/2 cups of new potatoes, boiled or steamed, and sliced in half

• Fresh cilantro, chopped, to garnish (optional)

• Shrimp Flavoured Crackers (found at Superstore in the international aisle)

• Peanut Sauce, recipe above or store bought.

• Rice, cooked (optional, for serving)

Method

Steam vegetables until crisp and tender. Set aside.

Heat oil over medium heat in a skillet. If using tempeh: thinly slice (1/4 inch) and add to the skillet, laying flat. Splash 1 tsp soy sauce over tempeh. Give a quick stir and cook for ~4 minutes on each side. If using tofu: cut into small cubes (1/2 inch) and add to the skillet. Allow edges to crisp up until golden brown, about 10 minutes.

Place the steamed vegetables and potatoes on a plate, top with tempeh/tofu, cucumber slices, hard boiled eggs, and bean sprouts. Pour a generous amount of peanut sauce over top. Garnish with cilantro, and shrimp flavoured crackers. Enjoy as your tastebuds transport you to the islands of Indonesia.

Let me know if you’ve tried my recipe below!

-Andrea