Comments on: Sambal Tumis Sotong (Squid Sambal)

By: carui

carui — Sun, 05 Feb 2012 23:09:04 +0000

One tablespoon sugar is far too much. Tamarind puree Ayam brand is not bad. Very convenient. Yes, tamarind can darken the sauce but you can use
2 fresh red chillies to lift up the reddish colour. We love tumis any time but just have to watch the sugar, just a touch is enough. I find
the food is getting sweeter and sweeter over the years in Singapore and
Malaysia. Also, the belachan. We dont toast anymore. When you live overseas, the smell of toasted belachan lingers on for days in the home. You can get away without toasting. In our home, every Nonya meal is a welcomed delight.

By: hegguiberto

hegguiberto — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 01:55:50 +0000

Thanks for the clarification on the amount of oil. The recipe came out delicious. I am replying to your comment almost 2 years late lol
I did publish the recipe on my blog too:
http://weirdcombinations.com/2010/10/calamari-and-tiger-prawns-in-sambal-sauce/

Cheers,
Heguiberto

By: John

John — Sat, 20 Aug 2011 05:16:23 +0000

I usually add lemon grass( serai ) ( abit to grind for the paste ) and 2 stalks chopped and added with the sambal. Tastes and smells awesome

By: Fadhli Jaffar

Fadhli Jaffar — Sun, 27 Feb 2011 14:46:52 +0000

For us malays, we usually add the sugar just before we take the dish off the stove or flame. If you add the sugar in early, it will caramelise and darken the sambal slightly.

Also, we would boil the dried chillies until the chillies soften up. This also brings out the bright red colour when you blend the chillies and other spices together.

For the belachan or shrimp paste, it’s best to dry toast it in a pan until it’s crumbly,almost powder like. The smell will be overpowering but it will enhance the flavour and add a bit of “smokiness”.

These small little things makes a distinction between a normal sambal and a really good sambal.

On a personal preference, I would add one or two kaffir lime leaves for seafood sambal tumis. It adds a hint of citrus note and fragrance to the dish.

The base sauce tastes great with lobsters,clams and other shellfish too.

Happy cooking.

-Fadhli

By: Vonny Groose

Vonny Groose — Mon, 20 Sep 2010 17:22:40 +0000

I had the same problem with Jake, mine also wasn’t red and I also think it was because of the tamarind concentrate. I think a cup of water is too much, the tamarind taste is barely there. Either reduce the water or add more tamarind concentrate. I also think 1 tablespoon of sugar is too much, it made it too sweet. I had to adjust the tamarind and put a lot of salt to make it right. I also think the onion slices should be put in first after sambal tumis and the squids should be the last thing to put in. That’s just my five cents.

By: Amelia Chee

Amelia Chee — Fri, 03 Sep 2010 16:21:03 +0000

Hi AJ,

I cooked this last night for dinner. It’s delish! The colour of the gravy is similar to the one of cincaluk not as red as yours and I added some starch solution to thicken the consistency. I added shrimp, green and red pepper. The gravy is spicy enough for me but will add more dried chillies to make it spicer to suit my daughter’s taste bud, the tamarind juice makes it very appetizing. Looking at the recipe, I thought I should double the quantity of the blended ingredients and keep the rest in the fridge for next use. I’m glad I did! Thank you for sharing!

By: Jade

Jade — Wed, 02 Jun 2010 03:02:57 +0000

Look yummy…make me feel hungry…
I want this sambal right now!!!

By: Selera Malaysia

Selera Malaysia — Tue, 01 Jun 2010 12:05:42 +0000

Jake: Please use a medium heat, when frying/’tumis’ the chilli paste. This will help to prevent the paste from scorched/singed(might be the reason why yours turning black. If this not the case, please use small amount of tamarind(probably half of tablespoons and soak in a cup of warm water). Hope this will help.

J2Kfm: Yes, this is a killer if adding up ‘Petai’ or Sator. But not many people like the smell.

Thanks
AJ

By: J2Kfm

J2Kfm — Mon, 31 May 2010 13:15:02 +0000

I am loving this. Sambal sotong, if together with PETAI (the crunchy stinkbeans!), is heavenly to the max!

By: Jake

Jake — Thu, 27 May 2010 18:52:10 +0000

I don’t know what I did wrong, but when I made this it didn’t have that nice red color, instead it was nearly black. Is tamarind concentrate the same as the paste? The tamarind conc. I’m using is practically black; I’m sure that’s what gave the dish the black color. Any tips?