Sambal Acar and other Side-Dishes

A sambal in Indonesia is any sauce or relish made with chillies. The chillies can be red or green, small or large. They are usually not de-seeded, because we want our sambal hot and the seed is the hottest part of a chilli. That is why, in this book, I usually suggest that you remove the seeds, on the assumption that you are not used to their excessive heat. For those who like their food chilli-hot, these sambals are useful: they make it possible for the main dish to be quite mild, without disappointing guests who expect Indonesian food to have a powerful kick. Different sambal recipes produce very different flavours. And many people who object to over-hot food still enjoy a little dab of sambal from the side of the plate.