The national dish of Indonesia and the ultimate street food: skewers of meat, marinated and grilled to perfection, served with a creamy peanut sauce.
Course Appetizer
Cuisine Thai
Keyword Culinary 4, Southeast Asian Cuisine, Thai
Ingredients
FOR THE SKEWERS:
1 ½poundspork lointenderloin or shoulder, sliced into thin rectangles (1/4 inch x 1 inch x 2 inches; you should have about 24 pieces)
1shallotminced
2garlic clovesminced
1tablespoongrated ginger
3tablespoonschopped lemongrass
1teaspooncumin seedstoasted and ground
1teaspooncoriander seedstoasted and ground
1 ½teaspoonsturmeric
¼teaspooncayenne
1tablespoonfish sauce
1tablespoonlime juice
2teaspoonssoy sauce
1tablespoonbrown sugar
½cupcoconut milk
Cilantro and basil leavesfor garnish (optional)
FOR THE CUCUMBERS:
1poundPersian or Japanese cucumberspeeled, halved and cut into 1/4-inch slices
½teaspoonsalt
2tablespoonslime juice
2tablespoonsgranulated sugar
2small shallots thinly slicedabout 1/4 cup
2fresh Thai or serrano chilessliced into rounds
FOR THE PEANUT SAUCE:
1cupdry roasted peanutsunsalted
2clovesgarlicchopped
1teaspoonsoy sauce
2teaspoonssesame oil
2tablespoonsbrown sugar
2tablespoonsfish sauce
2tablespoonslime juicemore to taste
⅛teaspooncayenne
½cupcoconut milk
Instructions
Prepare the skewers:
Put pork in a mixing bowl. In a separate bowl, stir together shallot, garlic, ginger, lemongrass, cumin, coriander, turmeric, cayenne, fish sauce, lime juice, soy sauce, brown sugar and coconut milk, and pour over meat. Toss with your hands to coat well. Let marinate for at least 30 minutes or overnight. Meanwhile, soak 12 bamboo skewers in water.
Prepare the cucumbers:
Put cucumbers in a mixing bowl and season with salt. Add lime juice, sugar, shallots and chiles and toss to coat. Let stand for 15 minutes. Check seasoning, then transfer to a serving dish.
Prepare the peanut sauce:
Pulse the peanuts briefly in a food processor just until finely ground. Add the garlic, soy sauce, sesame oil, brown sugar, fish sauce, lime juice, cayenne and coconut milk, and process until well puréed. Transfer to a bowl, then taste and adjust seasoning. Thin a bit with lime juice or water as desired.
Assemble and Cook
Thread 2 slices of pork onto each bamboo skewer, keeping the meat as flat as possible. Grill over hot coals, under the broiler or on a stovetop grill pan for 3 minutes on each side, until cooked through and lightly browned. Transfer to a platter and garnish with cilantro and basil leaves. Serve with cucumber relish and peanut sauce.