Easy
4
By Eleanor Ford
Published 2019
The base of this pleasingly sour fermented cabbage salad has similarities to Korean kimchi, but asinan is lighter and fresher with the crackle of raw beansprouts and fried peanuts. It is usually eaten unaccompanied as a sensational comfort food snack, but I like to break the rules and serve it with Chicken sate. Jakarta resident and food expert Okty Rahardjo shared her recipe for the dressing with me. If she were from Bogor, a city an hour to the north, the dressing would be peanut free and the salad full of preserved tropical fruits from green mangoes to nutmeg fruit. Javanese traditional markets sell fermented cabbage ready for people to dress at home, so I have no compunction in using sweet-salty threads of sauerkraut as the base. Pickling spring onions (scallions) the day before adds an acerbic extra dimension, but omit these for speed.
Make the pickled spring onions by putting the vinegar,
To make the dressing, boil the chillies for 5 minutes to soften, then drain. Grind in a small food processor with the peanuts, garlic and shrimp paste until very smooth - push and scrape the sides if needed, it will get there in the end. Transfer the paste to a pan, add the remaining dressing ingredients and
Mix the sauerkraut, fresh cabbage and beansprouts and toss with the loose, creamy dressing. Rain over the cucumber and peanuts and tuck the pickled spring onions around the edge. Serve with a crunch of puffed rice crackers.
© 2019 All rights reserved. Published by Murdoch Books.