Gado Gado
A delicious light summer salad.
Gado gado is a south-east Asian salad combining the spices of the region – coconut, tamarind, ginger and chilli. I have included only a small quantity of chilli: add more to your taste; or, to make the dish suitable for all tastes, serve with a bowl of chopped green chilli on the side.
The potato is cooked in water flavoured with turmeric, giving it an earthy taste. Cooking potatoes in this way makes for a good addition to a variety of meals. I have replaced cabbage, the usually vegetable of gado gado, with spinach for colour and personal preference.
Prepare the peanut sauce and chop the vegetables in advance to facilitate quick assembly immediately before serving.
Ingredients
Preparation: 20 mins Cooking: 35 mins Serves: 2 (with extra sauce)
1 tsp turmeric
4 potatoes, small
200 gm (1 cup) tofu*
2 eggs
120 gm (4 oz) green beans
150 gm (5 oz) bean sprouts
1/2 cucumber
150 gm (5 oz) spinach
1/2 cup chopped fresh coriander
2 shallots
1/2 tbsp vegetable oil
For the Peanut Sauce
1 tbsp vegetable oil
1 tbsp harrisa**
1 tbsp ginger, chopped
2 shallots
2 garlic cloves
120 ml (1/2 cup) coconut milk
1 tbsp soft brown sugar
1 tbsp tamarind paste
250 ml (1 cup) water
1 lime, juiced (2tbsp)
1 tsp salt
120 gm (4 oz) peanuts
Method
BOIL water with turmeric and cook potatoes until tender.
PRESS the tofu to remove excess water. (Remove the tofu from its package and wipe it to remove surface moisture. Then wrap it in a couple of layers of paper towel and gently press to remove more liquid. Discard the paper and repeat with fresh paper. Place the block of wrapped tofu on a hard surface, eg chopping board or a plate; and on top of the tofu place a board with weights on it, eg a couple of unopened tin cans or a heavy cookbook. Leave for a minimum of 30 minutes to squeeze out more liquid, leaving a firmer texture.)
For the Peanut Sauce
BLEND ginger, harissa, shallots, garlic and oil to a paste.
HEAT the paste in pan for 5 minutes.
ADD coconut milk, sugar, tamarind paste, water, lime juice and salt.
COOK for five minutes.
GRIND the peanuts with 2 tbsp water to a coarse consistency.
ADD peanut paste to the coconut milk sauce.
COOK on a low temperature for 20 minutes (adding more water as required for a pouring consistency.)
For the Salad
HARD BOIL the eggs.
REMOVE the tofu from its weights and paper.
CUT the block of tofu into small squares.
FRY the tofu. (If using a non-stick pan no oil will be required.)
STEAM the green beans.
CUBE or slice the cucumber.
SLICE the spinach into 2.5 cm (1 inch) strips.
FRY the shallots for topping
ASSEMBLE the salad: line plate or bowl with spinach; top with green beans, cucumber, sprouts; add sliced egg, tofu, and potato.
POUR on the peanut sauce and top with onion or sprinkle with some peanuts.
Serve
Visually interesting salad
Peanut sauce can be refrigerated for 5 days or frozen.
Notes
* Substitute tofu, for tempeh or halloumi cheese
** Substitute with other chilli sauce or fresh chilli.
