I’m currently obsessed with sambal hijau (ijo)!!
This whole journey started when I had a nasi goreng kampung craving. I’ve eaten some really good ones before, but honestly, many commercial versions are just … not great. The rice is too soft. Not enough wok hei. Barely any spice paste. And don’t even get me started on the fried egg — I want that runny yolk with crispy edges on the white, not a sad flat thing.
So what’s a foodie who loves to cook supposed to do? Make it myself, of course.
After analysing dozens of cooking videos, I realised something important: a good sambal hijau paste would solve half my problems – and is a shortcut to multiple other dishes.
I have seen it slathered on fried chicken, used as a base for tumis dishes, and even cooked together with eggs.
Suddenly it hit me, by making one large batch of sambal hijau, I was actually building a powerful flavour shortcut for multiple meals!
This is my current base recipe after numerous experiments
Two small but important tips
1) Don’t blanch the chillies for too long.
Your objective is just to soften the chillies. You want it to retain some green colour to look appetizing (cos we eat with our eyes first).
2) Blend the chillies separately and only coarsely.
Green chillies are tougher in texture compared to tomatoes, garlic, and shallots. If everything is blended together at once, the softer ingredients will become overly smooth before the chillies are properly processed, resulting in a mushy paste. Processing them separately keeps the sambal textured, lively, and much more appetising.
Once the paste is ready, the possibilities open up immediately.
How to eat your sambal hijau (ijo)
1. Use it as a paste to make nasi goreng kampung.
Fry the paste in a little bit of oil, add rice and toss through. Add chopped vegetables (choy sum, kai lan and bok choy are good options). Add a dash of light soy sauce for colour. Serve with a sunny side up egg and crispy ikan bilis.
2. Use it as a “pesto” for fried egg.
Heat up a little bit of oil, add the sambal hijau in. Make a hole in the middle and crack an egg in.
3. A spice paste to cook curries.
Just fish out the anchovies, though I don’t mind them 🙂
4. Sambal Hijau Fried Chicken
Heat the sambal hijau up with a little oil, then scoop over butterflied fried chicken.
4. Stir-Fried Vegetables with Sambal Hijau
Just stir fry the sambal directly with any green vegetables like okra, bok choy, kai lan, etc.
Honestly, the possibilities are endless. I promise you: make one jar, and you’ll find yourself reaching for it again and again.
Now use this sambal hijau to make the warung-style nasi goreng kampung!
Sambal Hijau (Ijo)
Equipment
- saucepan
- food processor
Ingredients
- 7-8 large green chillies
- 3 –4 bird’s eye green chillies
- 2 small green tomatoes
- 5 –6 garlic cloves
- 5 –6 shallots
- Handful dried ikan bilis
- Cooking oil
- Sugar and salt to taste
- 1 yellow onion sliced
Instructions
- Bring water to a boil. Blanch the chillies, tomatoes, garlic, and shallots briefly until the chillies just begin to soften. Remove and drain.
- Coarsely process the green chillies. Remove. Now blend the tomatoes, garlic, and shallots together coarsely.
- Heat oil and fry the ikan bilis until crispy. Remove and set aside.
- Using the same oil, sauté sliced onion until soft. Add the blended mixture and cook, stirring, until fragrant and slightly thickened.
- Return the ikan bilis to the pan. Season with sugar and salt to taste.
- Cool completely before storing in sterilised jars in the refrigerator.
Notes
Sambal hijau is a green chilli sambal made from green chillies, tomatoes, garlic, shallots, and aromatics, commonly used as a condiment or cooking base. 2. What can sambal hijau be used for?
It can be used for nasi goreng kampung, fried eggs, fried chicken toppings, stir-fries, and curry bases. 3. Why blend the chillies separately?
Green chillies are tougher than other ingredients, so blending them separately prevents the paste from becoming overly mushy and preserves texture. 4. How long can sambal hijau be stored? Can I make sambal hijau vegan - without ikan bilis?
Yes. You can omit the ikan bilis for a vegetarian version. To maintain umami flavour, add a small amount of mushroom powder, soy sauce, or toasted fermented soybean paste. 5. Is sambal hijau very spicy?
Sambal hijau is usually moderately spicy. The heat level can be adjusted by reducing or increasing the amount of bird’s eye chillies used. 6. Why does my sambal hijau turn dark instead of green?
Overcooking or frying on very high heat for too long can cause the sambal to darken. Cooking gently while stirring helps preserve the bright green colour. 7. Can I use sambal hijau as a ready-to-cook paste?
Yes. Sambal hijau works well as a ready-made cooking base. Simply fry a spoonful in hot oil before adding rice, vegetables, eggs, seafood, or chicken to quickly build flavour.
When kept refrigerated in sterilised jars, it can last about 1–2 weeks.