Urap (Balinese Vegetables with Spiced Coconut)

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Large pot for blanching
• •Wide frying pan
• •Mortar and pestle or small food processor
• •Clean kitchen towel

Instructions

1. 1

   Blanch the vegetables

   Bring a large pot of well-salted water to a boil. Blanch the beans for 3 minutes, the cabbage for 1 minute, the bean sprouts for 20 seconds, and the spinach just until it collapses. Lift each vegetable into cold water as soon as it is done, then drain very well. The cold water is not fussiness; it stops the cooking while the greens still look like themselves.

2. 2

   Dry them well

   Spread the drained vegetables on a clean towel and press out extra water, especially from the spinach. Urap hates a wet bowl. If the vegetables carry too much water, the coconut slides off them and the whole salad tastes tired before it reaches the table.

3. 3

   Make the bumbu

   Pound or blend the shallots, garlic, chilies, kencur, lime leaves, shrimp paste if using, sugar, and salt into a rough paste. Kencur is the small root that gives Balinese urap its lifted, peppery perfume; if you cannot find it, use the ginger and galangal substitute, but know what has changed.

4. 4

   Toast the coconut

   Warm the oil in a wide frying pan over medium heat and cook the bumbu for 2 to 3 minutes, until the raw shallot smell softens. Add the grated coconut and stir for 5 to 7 minutes, until it is fragrant, lightly dry, and stained orange by the chili. Do not brown it hard; you want spiced coconut, not a brittle topping.

   Fresh grated coconut matters here. Dried coconut can stand in if soaked first in a little warm water, but fresh coconut gives the soft chew that makes urap a salad rather than a garnish.
5. 5

   Toss and season

   Let the coconut cool until just warm, then put it in a wide bowl with the dry vegetables. Add the lime juice and toss with your hands or two spoons until the coconut clings through every handful. Taste for salt, lime, and chili. The finished urap should be bright, nutty, and gently fierce, with the vegetables still crisp under the tooth.

6. 6

   Serve the bowl

   Serve at room temperature, not refrigerator-cold, as part of a rijsttafel or beside plain rice, grilled fish, chicken, or tempeh. I prefer to keep it a bit more relaxed, in the Dutch way: one generous bowl on the table, people serving themselves, the coconut falling where it likes.

Chef Tips

• •Kencur is not ordinary ginger. It is smaller, more camphorous, and more floral; Indonesian or Southeast Asian shops often sell it frozen, which works well here.
• •If using dried coconut, choose unsweetened desiccated coconut and moisten it with 3 to 4 tablespoons warm water for ten minutes before cooking. Sweetened baking coconut will send the dish in the wrong direction.
• •Make the coconut mixture a few hours ahead, but toss it with the vegetables close to serving. Salt and lime draw water from greens, and urap should arrive lively, not collapsed.
• •For a vegetarian version, leave out the shrimp paste and add 1 teaspoon soy sauce or a small pinch of mushroom powder for depth. Accommodation is the tradition, provided the bowl still tastes complete.

Advance Preparation

• •The vegetables can be blanched, cooled, dried, and refrigerated up to 8 hours ahead.
• •The spiced coconut can be made up to 1 day ahead and kept refrigerated; bring it to room temperature before tossing.
• •Once assembled, serve within 2 hours for the best texture.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 165g)