Sotong Hitam (Malay-style Squid in Black Ink Sauce) -
you'll be a real s0t0ng if you didnt try out this recipe!! 🦑
if the Sicillians have squid ink pasta (spaghetti al nero di seppia), the Malays have Sotong Hitam. this dish, in all its glory, is synonymous to this part of the Malay Archipelago (Singapore, Johor and the surrounding regions) and demonstrates the efficient use of the humble squid, using its own ink to form the base of the sauce. this makes for a delightful meal, simply paired with a serving of steamed rice and spicy sambal belachan.
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Sotong Hitam
1kg squid, cleaned and cut into rings, reserving the ink sac
1/2 cup oil
2 sticks lemongrass, bruised
6 makrut lime leaves
6 chilli padi, whole
1 medium red onion, quartered
salt, to taste
2 tbsp kecap manis
water as needed
rempah ingredients:
8 shallots, peeled
5 garlic cloves
30g ginger, peeled
30g galangal, peeled
20 g turmeric root, peeled
5 red chillies
10 dried red chillies, soaked in hot water until soft
directions:
blend/pound all the rempah ingredients into a fine paste.
in a pot/wok, heat oil until almost smoking. add the rempah, lemongrass and lime leaves and sauté until it gets fragrant and the oil starts to separate, for about 8-10 minutes.
add in the squid, squid ink sacs, kecap manis, onion, whole chilli padi and salt. stir well, cover the pot with a lid and let it gently simmer on low heat until the squid is fully cooked.
season accordingly and add water if you prefer to be less thick. turn off the flame, serve and enjoy with steamed rice.