This Could Be The Ultimate Salad!
Gado Gado is up there with the cult salads and very similar to a Cobb salad in its make up. A firm favourite, its one that I keep coming back to and making my own twists on, like this Indian version.
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Gado Gado is Indonesia’s Cobb salad. It’s one of those dishes that always tastes its best where you first had it.
For me, on the streets of Bali, about 18 year ago. It has nostalgia and feeling attached to it.
Gado Gado means ‘mix mix’ and can really be any mix of lightly blanched and/or fresh vegetables & egg with crispy tempeh or tofu all placed in piles, sometimes prawn crackers and an addictive satay sauce spooned over. You could add chicken or seafood to it as well as a variation You then mix it all up as you eat it. Its a supercharged salad that fills you up but doesn’t leave you feeling overindulged and a great way to up the veggie intake.
I the salad’s framework as a great way to use veggies on hand or in season, which is what easy and low waste cooking is all about. Taking learnt dishes and making them adaptable to whats on hand. The quick 5 ingredient satay sauce is also a winner to have on hand for other things like meats, fish, veggies, salads and noodles! the other thing I’ve come to love about this salad is that it holds up well for a make-ahead dish or bring a plate. I just leave the satay sauce off until serving then drizzle it all over.
The Recipe —
Frozen veg is ok - when I made this again recently it was to use up things I had on hand… and one of those things was frozen green beans. They worked a treat. Quickly blanched with the other veg.
All about Satay Sauce - Again this version came about with thing in the fridge and has now become a staple and i’ve leant in to the Indian vibe including pappadums as well.. I used an Indian curry paste (usually Korma) or a good curry powder (usually Keens), peanut butter, coconut milk, lime or lemon, soy and a little water to thin it out if needed. This isn’t the traditional version, but thats not too important when it’s so Damn Delicious!
Veggie swap outs - Bring in any veggie you want here. Blanched broccoli, cauliflower florets or sliced zucchini. Add them in or swap in for another veggies. I don’t use potato, but a boiled potato is quite traditional and a great addition to make this even more substantial. If you want a vegan version, simply leave off the egg.
Raw or Roasted also works - If you want to enjoy the salad with all raw veggies, then skip the blanching part of the recipe and if you are in cooler months and want to do a roast veggie version then get some things in the oven like any combo of sweet potato, onions, cauliflower, broccoli, Brussel sprouts, capsicum, eggplant can be roasted and served with the satay sauce, crispy tofu and egg or just the sauce with the roast veg would be amazing!
Do Ahead - Make the satay sauce 2-3 days in advance. Just bring back to room temp thin out with a splash of water if needed. All the veggies and eggs can be prepared a few hour in advance and either kept seperate or make the salad, leaving only the satay sauce and herbs to the last minute. The salad keeps well overnight some makes for good meal prep!
Gado Gado
Prep/cook time - 1 hour
Serves 4
Ingredients
3 potatoes
3 eggs
250g green beans, trimmed & halved
250g bean sprouts
2 carrots, sliced into thin rounds
Salt, pepper
250g firm tofu, cut into 1cm thick rectangles
2 tbsp corn flour
2 tbsp olive oil
¼ wombok (Chinese Cabbage) or iceberg lettuce
12 cherry tomatoes, halved
2 Lebanese cucumbers, sliced into thin rounds
1 shallot/spring onion (scallion) finely sliced
Handful coriander leaves
Lemon and pappadums to serve
Satay sauce
1 tbsp curry powder or 2 tbsp Indian curry paste
½ cup crunchy peanut butter
1 cup coconut milk
Juice 1 juicy lemon
2 tbsp soy sauce
Method
Place the potatoes in another pot and cover with cold water, a generous pinch of salt and bring to the boil. Simmer for 20-25 minutes until tender when pierced with a small knife. Drain and cool to room temp then cut into small random pieces.
While to the potatoes cook, bring a small and large pot of water to the boil and add a pinch of salt. Add the eggs and simmer for 7 minutes. Drain and refresh in ice water for 3 minutes then peel and set aside.
Combine the curry sauce ingredients and set aside. Use a little splash of water if needed to thin the sauce after it sits.
Set up a large, deep bowl of ice water for blanching the vegetables. In the large pot of water, add the green beans and cook for 1 minutes then remove and into the ice water. Remove the beans form the water onto a plate with paper towel then repeat with the carrots, cooking for 1 minutes then the bean sprouts. Removing each from the water before cooking the next one.
Toss the tofu with the corn flour and some salt and pepper. Preheat a medium frying-pan over a medium-high heat, add the olive oil and cook the tofu for 3-4 minutes, turning on all sides, until crispy and golden. Transfer to a plate.
To build the salad scatter the wombok over a large platter and make piles of the beans, carrots, beans sprouts, cucumber, cherry tomatoes, and potato over the cabbage. Add the tofu then halve the eggs and add them. Spoon over the satay sauce and leave some for the side then scatter the shallots/scallions and coriander. Serve with lemon and papadums.