Stir-Fried Shrimp Sambal

Stir-Fried Shrimp Sambal

(Sambal Udang)

Malaysia

This Malaysian dish is my favorite shrimp dish from the region. It’s a fiery-hot, ruby-red stir-fry that goes well with rice or nothing at all—it makes a fantastic snack, especially if the shrimp are left unpeeled. In Malaysia, small, whole unshelled shrimp are traditionally used for this dish; after cooking, their thin shells and heads become tender enough to eat. Small squid, cleaned and cut into one-and-a-half-inch pieces, can be substituted for the shrimp, but I find that it’s trickier to cook, as the squid tends to toughen quickly. I got this recipe from Norsiah, the wife of Mad Zan, a Malaysian fisherman. Norsiah makes it with shrimp her husband catches, and as the couple eats, they can hear the Straits of Malacca lapping away just yards from their home.

Makes 4 servings

For the flavoring paste:

  • 1 teaspoon dried shrimp paste (trassi or belacan)
  • 3 shallots, peeled and coarsely chopped (about 2.5 ounces total)
  • 2 cloves garlic, peeled and coarsely chopped
  • 5 to 10 fresh red Holland chiles or other fresh, hot red long chiles, such as Fresno or cayenne, stemmed and coarsely chopped
  • 3 candlenuts OR unsalted macadamia nuts
  • 1 teaspoon palm sugar, finely chopped, OR dark brown sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 3 tablespoons peanut oil
  • 1 pound medium unpeeled shrimp, preferably with their heads intact

1. Place the shrimp paste in the center of a 5-inch-square piece of aluminum foil. Fold the edges of the foil over to form a small parcel, and press down with the heel of your hand to flatten the shrimp paste into a 1/4-inch-thick disc. Heat a gas burner to medium-low or an electric burner to medium-high and with a pair of tongs or forks place the sealed parcel directly on the heat source. Toast until the paste begins to smoke and release a burning, shrimpy smell, about 1-1/2 minutes. With the tongs or forks, turn the parcel over and toast the other side for another 1-1/2 minutes, then turn off the burner. Remove the parcel with the tongs or forks and allow it to cool for 30 seconds to 1 minute. Carefully unwrap the foil; the edges of the disc should be black-brown and toasty, while the center should be golden with some black-brown patches. Scrape the toasted shrimp paste from the foil with a spoon into a small bowl and allow it to cool for another 30 seconds. Discard the foil.

2. Place the toasted shrimp paste, shallots, garlic, chiles, candlenuts, palm sugar, and salt in a small food processor, and pulse until you have a smooth paste resembling cooked oatmeal. Make sure not to overprocess this paste—some bits and pieces of chile skin and slivers of shallot are fine.

3. Heat the oil in a wok or 12-inch skillet (nonstick works best) over medium-low heat. Test to see if the oil is the right temperature by adding a pinch of the ground paste. The paste should sizzle slightly around the edges, not fry aggressively or sit motionless. When the oil is the correct temperature, add all the ground paste and cook, stirring frequently with a spatula, until you no longer smell raw shallots or garlic and the oil begins to separate from the paste, about 5 to 7 minutes. The aroma should be subtly sweet, not harsh and oniony; the color a few shades darker than the raw paste you started out with. Be careful not to scorch the flavoring paste; lower and raise the heat as necessary.

4. Add the shrimp, then raise the heat to medium-high. Stir-fry, stirring constantly to combine the shrimp with the flavoring paste and to prevent scorching. When the shrimp are pink and just cooked through, about 3 to 5 minutes, taste a bit of the flavoring paste—add a pinch of salt if necessary.

5. Transfer to a serving plate and serve immediately.