There are so many varieties of shrimp paste depending on where you are in Asia, with differences in smell, taste and saltiness. In Lombok, an island to the east of Bali, you’ll find lengkare, a sweet and savory version of shrimp paste. When rebon is mixed with palm sugar it becomes petis, another type of shrimp paste which can also be made with tuna. In Cirebon, a city in West Java, shrimp paste is made from rebon, a type of shrimp that is so abundant that it inspired the city’s name. There are three main types of shrimp paste in Indonesia, which are made from different ingredients depending on where you are. The color of shrimp paste changes depending on its country of origin, and can range from a pale pink, to a purple-reddish shade, or even dark brown. Just make sure the shrimp paste is cooked and completely dissolved before serving. The consistency determines how you cook with it - thinner versions are easier to stir into dishes, whereas firm blocks will require pounding. The acetes are sometimes formed into large blocks, but can also be sold as a coarse, ground powder or a thick sauce. Shrimp paste is salty and pungent, used either as a condiment or an ingredient in a recipe. Indonesian shrimp paste is called terasi, and is usually made from acetes, a tiny shrimp which is native to the west and central Indo-Pacific ocean. If you want to try it out yourself, and experience the explosion of salty and pungent umami that this ingredient offers, here’s everything you need to know about shrimp paste. To cook an Indonesian dish without shrimp paste just doesn’t make sense. Although you could source these in the Asian supermarkets in most cities, there was something comforting about bringing this paste (specifically lengkare) all the way from home - a little taste of Lombok. Naturally, when I moved to the UK for university, I had to bring packets of shrimp paste with me. Pelecing (water spinach topped with chilli sauce and grated coconut), tempe teri kacang (tempe, dried anchovies and peanuts tossed in a sweet and spicy sauce) and curries were (and still remain) some of my favorites. I grew up eating these traditional Lombok dishes and Indonesian cuisine every day. Other times, spoonfuls were dropped straight into the wok, sizzling away with shallots, chillies and garlic, filling the kitchen with an aroma that made my stomach rumble. Not only does this bring out the aroma and flavors of the shrimp paste, but it also kills any bacteria or pathogens in the raw shrimp paste. Sometimes, they would roast the shrimp paste over an open flame. It was the foundation on which every recipe was built. I remember them always reaching for the plastic-looking block of shrimp paste when preparing each meal - just a small, thumb-sized piece would be enough to flavor a dish. I used to spend each day in the kitchen, learning from (and sometimes getting in the way of) the cooks. I grew up in Lombok, Indonesia, where my parents had a small homestay. It’s an essential addition to dishes because it provides that essential umami flavor that is so recognizable in many Indonesian dishes across the archipelago. One of the most important is shrimp paste, one of the foundations of Indonesian cuisine. There are some ingredients that are consistent across most Indonesian recipes.
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