Recipe: how to make authentic Indonesian mackerel saté lilit
The ultimate ABC of the tastiest saté is the new cookbook Indostock by Vanja van der Leeden. Vanja shows you how to make Indonesia’s most famous street food at home in different ways. From classic saté ayam to this mackerel saté lilit: every variation is divine.
Vanja: “Lilit means ‘to twist’, and that is what you do with minced fish or chicken; you twist it around a lemongrass skewer. Originally, you mix the minced fish with bumbu Bali, but I already use that in the jackfruit saté. So why not use bumbu pepesan instead? It’s wonderfully fresh and quick to prepare too.”
How to make the saté lilit
- For the bumbu, grind the lemongrass, ginger, candlenuts, lombok peppers, shallot, garlic, salt and tomato pieces into a paste in a mortar (or use a stick blender and 1 tablespoon of oil).
- Heat the oil in a frying pan and stir-fry the bumbu for 10 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and leave to cool. Stir in the lime juice and lime leaves.
- Put the fish in the food processor and process into a paste that is not too fine. Transfer to a bowl with the bumbu, coconut milk, fried shallots, grated coconut and salt. Mix everything well. Taste and adjust the seasoning if necessary.
- Make balls the size of a ping-pong ball, flatten them and fold them around lemongrass stalks or water-soaked skewers with thickened ends until you have something resembling elongated little clubs. Don’t make them too thick, otherwise they won’t cook properly inside. If the mixture doesn’t stick well, add some breadcrumbs.
- Place the clubs in the refrigerator briefly so they can firm up.
- Light the barbecue and wait until the flames die down and the coals are glowing white. Create a hot zone and a cooler zone.
- Meanwhile, make the sambal mangga muda.
- Grill the saté over the hot zone for a few minutes on each side until it has attractive grill marks. Turn it quickly and regularly.
- Then move it to the cooler zone and cook for a few more minutes.
Tip: if you have any fish mixture left over, make fish cakes with it. Coat them in breadcrumbs and deep-fry them. You can also use this bumbu for fish in banana leaves. Spread it over mackerel or sea bass, wrap in banana leaves and cook for about 20 minutes in the oven at 180 °C.
How to make the sambal mangga muda
- Peel the mango and/or papaya with a vegetable peeler, then use a julienne peeler to cut it into thin strips. Set aside.
- Grind the cabe rawits, lombok peppers, salt, terasi, Javanese sugar and tomato into a coarse paste in a mortar. If desired, add a halved kaffir lime; pound it so the juice is released and the peel gives off its aroma. If you can’t find kaffir lime, you can also add some grated lime zest.
- Fold in the unripe mango, squeeze lime juice over it and toss together. If desired, finish with another kaffir lime and sprigs of kemangi.
Title: Indostok
Author: Vanja van der Leeden
Price: €22,50
Publisher: Nijgh & van Ditmar
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