Crispy Dried Shrimp Sambal

Another request from Mae Gabriel of Rice and Noodle, earlier that I have been postponing , is Crispy Dried Shrimp Sambal similar to XO Sauce that my neighbour gave us quite sometime ago.

Hell, i dont remember when but who cares, its good ! I kept them in the chiller and it chilled and freezes over.

Gave me approximate ingredient and not sure whether its correct or not. She's 86 and 100% Made In China - strong and healthy.

300 gm Dried Shrimp - soaked for abt an hour and change water about 3 times - to reduce saltiness. Pound or blend.

( She said half a catty, so am i right ? Isnt that 8 taels . 1 taels is equal to about 37.8 gm or 1 1/4 oz. So i guess i'm right)

200 gm Dried Chilli - blend . No need to soak but remove seed to cut down the fieriness.
(This time she said a handful, so, i weigh a handful and its about 200gm)
Oil
1 stalk lemongrass - use the white portion only - chopped finely.
about 30 - 50 ml of lime juice / calamansi juice or to taste
Sugar and Salt to taste

In a non stick wok / pan, sauteed the chilli and lemongrass till dry. Add in the dried shrimp and continue to saute. Keep on stirring or it will burn as they will stick to the pan even if you use a non stick pan.

Add lime juice / calamansi juice and sugar. Continue stirring until the paste is dry.

Remove and let them cool down to room temperature.

Keep in a airtight container and chill in fridge. It can last for months. Wonders of chilli.

Handme down recipe via oral. Wish the chinese have a more systematic way like the European instead of orally hand down the recipe that might be lost if one cant remember.

Remember that Lilian of 5xMom used to blog about this too. Believed she called them Sambal Hae Bee. Let me check it out first, its there alright. Click here for the archive file.

She uses different ingredient but i believe there's a lot of variation for sambal.

Cheers !