Prawn Sambal Bostador, a Eurasian Recipe from Singapore and Malaysia
Prawn Sambal Bostador is a delicious, somewhat spicy dish of prawns cooked in a chilli paste. This Eurasian recipe has its roots in Portuguese Malacca (Malaysia), and is very much Malay influenced in the spices used.
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Servings:
Calories: 257kcal
Equipment
- a wok or a large frying pan
Ingredients
- 500 g large prawns (shrimps), definitely not tiny ones
- 1 large clove garlic sliced width wise
- ½ tsp turmeric powder
- 125 ml coconut milk
- 125 ml water
- 2 Tbsp vegetable oil
- 1 tsp sugar
- ½ tsp white wine vinegar or any clear vinegar
- small handful fresh coriander leaves, chopped cilantro
Grind to a paste
- 1 medium onion
- 3 red Thai bird’s eye chillies the small fiery ones
- 10 dried red chillies
- 1 tsp dried shrimp
- 1 tsp shrimp paste belacan
- 3 candlenuts (or 3 macadamia nuts or 2 cashew nuts)
Instructions
Making the paste
- Put half a kettle on.
- Using a pair of kitchen scissors, cut the dried chillies up into 2-3 pieces, depending on length and soak in hot water for 15 minutes to soften.10 dried red chillies
- Soak the dried shrimp in hot water for 10 minutes to soften.1 tsp dried shrimp
- While waiting, quarter the onion, peel and clean the prawns.1 medium onion
- When the chillies and dried prawns have had their soaking times, drain and move on to the next step.
- Place all the paste ingredients in a chopper and blitz to a semi fine paste. Chances are, your dried chillies will still be a bit coarse, that's ok. Set aside.1 medium onion, 3 red Thai bird’s eye chillies, 10 dried red chillies, 1 tsp shrimp paste, 3 candlenuts
Prep the prawns (while the chillies and dried shrimps are soaking)
- Clean the prawns. Twist the head off carefully, leaving the rest of the shell on.500 g large prawns (shrimps), definitely not tiny ones
- The intestinal vein that runs along the back of the prawn should be visible and just sticking out. Give it a firm but gentle pull. Rinse the prawns well. I prefer to leave the shells on, but that's up to you.
Let's cook our Prawn Bostador
- Heat 1 Tbsp of the oil in a wok or deep frying pan on medium heat and fry the garlic slices for 1 minute until they're just beginning to brown. Drain on a saucer lined with kitchen paper and set aside.2 Tbsp vegetable oil, 1 large clove garlic
- Add the second Tbsp of oil to the wok/frying pan and turn the heat up to medium-high.
- Add the ground paste and turmeric to the oil and stir fry for about 2 minutes until you get a strong aroma off it.½ tsp turmeric powder
- Add the prawns, coating them completely with the paste, for about 30 seconds,
- Now add the the coconut milk, water, salt and sugar, cook for another 3-5 minutes until the prawns are thoroughly cooked. The time it takes will depend on the size of your prawns/shrimps; the bigger they are, the longer they will take to cook.125 ml coconut milk, 125 ml water, 1 tsp sugar
- Stir in the vinegar, and immediately take it off the heat.½ tsp white wine vinegar
- Scatter the fried garlic slices and fresh herbs and serve immediately with Nasi Lemak or just a plate of steamed rice.small handful fresh coriander leaves, chopped
Nutrition
Calories: 257kcal | Carbohydrates: 10g | Protein: 21g | Fat: 16g | Saturated Fat: 12g | Cholesterol: 186mg | Sodium: 806mg | Potassium: 382mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 877IU | Vitamin C: 51mg | Calcium: 94mg | Iron: 2mg
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