| 1 | Inch squares; bean sprouts; carrots, sliced or julienned; green beans, in 2-inch pieces; potatoes or sweet potatoes in large dice; sliced cucumbers; watercress sprigs; tomato wedges hard-cooked eggs, for garnish fried onion flakes for garnish [i fry dehydrated onion flakes in a little oil till they"re golden brown with excellent results. |
| 2 | S.c.] gado-gado sauce 1 tablespoon minced garlic 2 tablespoons minced shallot 1 tablespoon minced fresh galangal or 1 teaspoon ground 1 teaspoon dried shrimp paste ?teaspoon ground dried chile or ?teaspoon sambal ulek 1 cup oil ?cup raw peanuts 1 teaspoon brown or palm sugar 1 cup thin coconut milk [the thin stuff from the bottom of a can of coconut milk. |
| 3 | S.c.] salt, to taste juice of ?lime, to taste Remove tofu from package and drain. |
| 4 | Place on a plate lined with cloth or paper towels, top with another layer of towel and an inverted plate, and place a weight of a pound or more on top. |
| 5 | Let stand 30 minutes, unwrap, and discard liquid. |
| 6 | Cut tofu into bite-sized squares or triangles and sprinkle with kecap manis. |
| 7 | Fry in 350 °F. |
| 8 | Oil until golden brown and puffy; transfer to paper towels to drain. |
| 9 | Reserve oil to cook peanuts. |
| 10 | One at a time, blanch vegetables in lightly salted water, rinsing them in cold water to stop cooking as soon as they reach the desired degree of doneness. |
| 11 | Cabbage and bean sprouts require only a few seconds; carrots, green beans, and potatoes may take several minutes depending on size and tenderness. |
| 12 | Do not blanch cucumbers, watercress, and tomatoes. |
| 13 | Use them raw. |
| 14 | Place gado-gado sauce in a small bowl in the center of a large platter. |
| 15 | Arrange vegetables on platter around sauce. |
| 16 | Garnish with wedges or slices of hard-cooked egg and fried onion flakes. |
| 17 | To serve, spoon some sauce onto each plate and dip vegetables into sauce. |
| 18 | Gado-gado sauce To prepare sauce in a mortar: pound garlic, shallot, galangal, shrimp paste, and chile to a paste. |
| 19 | To prepare sauce in a blender: chop together in a 1-cup jar. |
| 20 | In a wok or deep skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat until a peanut sizzles on contact. |
| 21 | Fry peanuts until lightly browned; transfer to paper towels to drain. |
| 22 | When peanuts have cooled, grind in a mortar or food processor to a coarse, grainy paste, adding a little oil if necessary to facilitate blending. |
| 23 | (may be made up to a week ahead and stored covered in refrigerator). |
| 24 | Remove all but 2 tablespoons oil from pan and reserve for another use. |
| 25 | Return pan to medium-low heat and add pounded mixture. |
| 26 | Cook until quite fragrant, but do not burn. |
| 27 | Add peanuts, sugar, and coconut milk and bring to a boil, stirring. |
| 28 | Simmer until thick and season to taste with salt and lime juice. |
| 29 | Allow to coot to room temperature before serving. |
| 30 | Makes 1 cup |
