{"id":187727,"title":"Sayur lodeh","modified":"2026-10-06T13:03:01+02:00","plain":"An Indonesian vegetable stew in a coconut milk broth, scented with galangal, turmeric and makrut lime.\n\n\n\nCoconut milk coats the vegetables with a light, creamy texture, enlivened by resinous galangal, golden turmeric, punchy ginger, lemongrass and makrut lime. Trassi and fish sauce give the broth a salty, briny flavor, while the vegetables stay tender without falling apart. This fragrant stew takes around 30 minutes to cook and stays low in carbohydrates, with 9 g of net carbs per serving. Find this recipe among my keto main dishes.\n\n\n\nWhat is sayur lodeh?\n\n\n\nIn everyday Indonesian cooking, sayur lodeh is a vegetable stew served in a generous coconut milk broth. Its ingredients vary with the market, the season and your mood, but the idea remains the same: chunky vegetables, plenty of sauce, fresh aromatics and a gentle coconut sweetness that brings everything together.\n\n\n\nThe dish is built on a boemboe, a pounded aromatic paste combining garlic with ginger, galangal and fresh turmeric, sometimes with a little chili. Makrut lime leaves, daun salam leaves and pieces of lemongrass infuse the sauce with flavor; count them so you can remove them before serving. Coconut milk and a little solid coconut cream, known as santen, give it a velvety texture, while trassi and fish sauce supply salt and umami.\n\n\n\nAlso worth trying: Grilled chicken thighs.\n\n\n\nAn easy-to-adapt family dish\n\n\n\nSayur lodeh is one of those family recipes served in a large dish in the center of the table, with a ladle. A deep wok or saut\u00e9 pan holds the aromatics, coconut broth and vegetables; if your frying pan is too shallow, it is best to finish simmering in a large pot.\n\n\n\nThis version combines cauliflower, white cabbage, carrot, bell pepper and snow peas, cut into evenly sized pieces for uniform cooking. The flavor comes from trassi, fish sauce, fresh galangal and makrut lime leaves, balancing sweetness, citrus, warmth and briny depth. Trassi, a fermented shrimp paste, and fish sauce mean this dish is not vegetarian.\n\n\n\nThe main ingredients\n\n\n\nThe vegetables weigh 600 g in total. The cauliflower, 150 g, provides bulk and structure, and its florets soak up the coconut sauce well; the white cabbage, 125 g, adds a subtle sweetness and tender texture. The carrot, 125 g, brings color to the dish and mellows the broth; you can leave it out for a lower-carb version. The bell pepper, 100 g, retains a fruity note, and the snow peas, 100 g, are added later to keep them green and firm.\n\n\n\nAlso try: Cod en papillote with blue cheese.\n\n\n\nThe red onion forms a sweet base once saut\u00e9ed, while two garlic cloves strengthen the boemboe. Fresh ginger adds a distinct warmth, galangal brings woody, citrusy notes, and turmeric contributes a golden color and earthy flavor; half a red chili adds heat without masking the coconut. For seasoning, a 5 mm piece of block trassi or 0.5 tablespoon of the powdered version is enough, and half a teaspoon of sugar-free fish sauce adds a subtle saltiness.\n\n\n\nThe liquid base totals 750 ml, made from a can of coconut milk topped up with 350 ml of stock, for a thin sauce. A small cube of santen, around 2 tablespoons, enhances the velvety texture, and coconut oil is used to saut\u00e9 the aromatics. Cumin seeds, coriander seeds and candlenuts are optional; the latter must be toasted and then cooked, as they are toxic when raw. Trassi, fish sauce and stock already add plenty of salt, so taste before adding more.\n\n\n\nCooking tips and serving\n\n\n\nThere should be plenty of sauce, with a consistency close to a coconut milk broth. Cut the vegetables into bite-sized pieces: the firmer ones, white cabbage, carrot and cauliflower, need around 10 minutes, then the bell pepper and snow peas cook for another 5 minutes. Gentle heat keeps the coconut emulsion stable and prevents the vegetables from becoming too soft.\n\n\n\nAlong the same lines: Eggplant fries.\n\n\n\nServe sayur lodeh in a large dish with a ladle, so you can scoop up the sauce and vegetables together. The 9 g of net carbs per serving applies to the dish alone; cauliflower rice soaks up the broth nicely while keeping the meal low in carbohydrates. Cool quickly before refrigerating in an airtight container, then reheat gently while stirring, as coconut milk sets when cold and becomes fluid again when warmed. You can freeze it, though the vegetables will be softer afterward.\n\n\n\nYou can find other dishes like this among my low-carb recipes.\n\n\n\n\n\n\tSayur lodeh\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\n\t\t150 g cauliflower125 g white cabbage125 g carrot100 g bell pepper100 g snow peasSauce1 red onion2 cloves garlic0.5 cm trassi shrimp paste (or 0.5 tablespoon of trassi powder)0.5 teaspoon fish sauce (sugar-free)a small piece ginger (fresh)a small piece galangal (fresh)a small piece turmeric (fresh)1 or 2 makrut lime leaves (djeroek poeroet)1 or 2 Indonesian bay leaves (daun salaam)1 or 2 stalks fresh lemongrass750 ml liquid (1 can of coconut milk + 350 ml of stock)About 2 tablespoons coconut cream (in a block (a small cube))1 tablespoon coconut oil (for cooking)Optional0.5 to 1 red chili pepper (chili or Spanish pepper)1 teaspoon cumin seeds (ground or whole)2 teaspoons coriander seeds (ground or whole)3 candlenuts (cook thoroughly, as they are toxic when raw!)\t\n\t\n\t\tFor the boemboe spice paste, chop or grate the garlic, red chili pepper, ginger, galangal and turmeric. You can also do this in a small food processor. Then, if desired, pound further in a mortar.If using candlenuts, crush them in a mortar. Toast them in a hot pan without oil. If using whole cumin and coriander seeds, toast them briefly with the nuts at the end.Add oil to the pan. Cut the onion into half-rings and saut\u00e9 until translucent.Add the boemboe spice paste and trassi. If using ground cumin and coriander seeds, add them at this stage too.Add the coconut milk, creamed coconut, stock and fish sauce.Add the creamed coconut, makrut lime leaves and bay leaves. Bruise the lemongrass or cut it into large pieces and add it. Keep track of how many leaves and pieces of lemongrass you add, as you will need to fish them out later.Cut the white cabbage into large pieces, cut the carrot into bite-sized pieces and separate the cauliflower into bite-sized florets. Add them.If using a high-sided wok, you can cook everything in the same pan. If using a shallow frying pan, transfer everything to a large pot.Cook for 10 minutes. Wash and cut the vegetables that need less cooking time. Add the chopped bell pepper and snow peas. Cook for about 5 more minutes.Bring to the table in a large serving dish. Let everyone help themselves.\t\n\t\n\t\tUse vegetables of your choice, about 600 g in total.\nFor a strictly low-carb version, omit the carrot.\nEquipment: Wok or frying pan\/saut\u00e9 pan, with a large pot if needed, Spatula, sharp knife, garlic press, (Small) food processor (or mortar).\n\t\n\t\n\t\tPlat principalindon\u00e9sienne","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/187727","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=187727"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/187727\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/184825"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=187727"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=187727"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=187727"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}