Sayur Asem, The Awesome Soup from Indonesia

Yang bilang the awesome soup itu bukan saya lho...tapi teman saya dari luar negeri. Sayur Asem ini sederhana, namun demikian kesederhanaannya justru mampu menyatukan selera “East and West”

Because the Awesome Soup, I want to write the recipe in English. So that, every people in every country can cook this awesome soup by theirselves. Sayur Asem is vegetables in tamarind soup. The taste is original, a litle bit spicy and sour, but believe me, its delicious.

Sayur Asem

Ingredients :

2 pieces corn, cut into 1 inch

8 pieces of snake bean (Indonesian : Kacang Panjang) cut into bite sizes.

200 gram Melinjo Nuts (its native to Indonesia and widely used in Indonesian cuisine).

1 handful of Melinjo leaves

1 piece of eggplant, cut into 2 cm sizes.

100 gram peanuts

3 bay leaves (daun Salam)

8 tamarind seeds

850 ml water.

200 gram chayote (Labu siam), peeled, cored, and cut into bite sizes.

1 tomato, cut into 4 pieces.

5 cm Galangal (Lengkuas), grilled, peeled and bruised.

Grind the following ingredients :

6 shallots

3 Garlic

4 candlenuts

6 red chilies

1 tablespoon salt

25 grams Palm Sugar.

½ tablespoon terasi (Shrimp paste)

Instructions :

1. Boil water in a soup pot, then add the grind ingredients, bay leaves, galangal, palm sugar, tamarind seeds, and salts. Cook into 4 minutes.
2. Add the melinjo nuts, chayote, corn, peanuts and melinjo leaves with medium heat. Cook into 15 minutes.
3. Add snake beans and tomatoes, cook into 10 minutes or until all vegetables are tender. Remove from heat, and serve warm.

Sayur Asem

*for 4 portions.