Gado Gado (Vegetables with Peanut Sauce)

Serves 4


Ingredients:

250g potatoes
2 medium carrots
200g green beans
¼ cabbage, shredded
3 hard-boiled eggs
200g bean sprouts, scraggly ends removed
½ cucumber, sliced
150g firm tofu, cut into small cubes
½ cup (80g) unsalted roasted peanuts, roughly chopped

Peanut Sauce:
1 tbsp oil
1 large onion, very finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 red chillies, very finely chopped
1 tsp shrimp paste, optional
250g crunchy peanut butter
1 cup (250ml) coconut milk
1 cup (250ml) water
2 tsp kecap manis
1 tbsp tomato sauce


Method:

• Cut the potatoes into thick slices; place in a medium pan, cover with cold water and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for about 6 minutes or until just tender. Drain and allow to cool.


• Cut the carrot into thick slices. Top and tail the beans and cut into 4cm lengths. Bring a large pan of water to the boil, add the carrots and beans, and cook for 2-3 minutes. Remove the vegetables with a sieve and plunge briefly into a bowl of iced water. Drain well.


• Plunge the shredded cabbage into the boiling water for about 20 seconds. Remove it from the pot and plunge it briefly into the iced water. Drain well.


• Cut the eggs into quarters or halves. Arrange the eggs, potato, carrot, beans, cabbage, bean sprouts, cucumber and tofu in separate piles on a large serving platter. Cover the platter with plastic wrap and refrigerate while making the Peanut Sauce.


• To make Peanut Sauce: Heat the oil in a heavy-based pan, add the onion and garlic and cook over low heat for 8 minutes, stirring regularly. Add the chilli and shrimp paste to the pan and cook for another minute. Remove the pan from the heat and mix in the peanut butter. Return the pan to the heat and slowly stir in the combined coconut milk and water. Bring the sauce to the boil, stirring constantly over low heat, and being careful the sauce does not stick and burn. Reduce the heat, add the kecap manis and tomato sauce, and simmer for another minute. Allow to cool.


• Drizzle a little of the Peanut Sauce over the salad, garnish with the chopped peanuts and serve the remaining sauce in a bowl.

Nutrition per serve:
Protein 35g
Fat 65g
Carbohydrate 25g
Dietary Fibre 15g
Cholesterol 160mg
3520 kj (840 cal)