Balinese Style “Sate Lilit” is a variant of satay originating from Balinese/Indonesian cuisine. This satay is usually made from minced pork, beef, chicken, or seafood, which is then mixed with a special chilli paste made of grated coconut, chillies, lemongrass, candlenuts, turmeric, tamarind, etc. All the ingredients are then mixed and wrap around the lemongrass or skewer in a rotation motion to form a “lilit” pattern, hence the name. In our recipe, we have chosen to use seafood – mackerel and shrimps to be precise.
If you liked seafood, you may want to take a look at our seafood recipes.
How to make Balinese Style Sate Lilit
Preparation
for 12 to 15 satays
Chilli paste
- 2 red chillies
- 5 shallots
- 5 cloves garlic
- 1 inch ginger
- 3 kaffir lime leaves
- 1 stalk lemongrass
- 3 candlenuts
- 1 inch turmeric
- 50 ml oil
- 1 bay leaf
- ½ tsp tamarind water
Satay paste
- 300 g boneless mackerel
- 100 g shrimps, peeled and deveined
- 50 g grated coconut
- 1 tsp brown sugar
- 1 tsp salt
- ½ tsp white pepper
Skewers
- 12 to 15 stalks lemongrass
Step-by-step
- Blend together red chillies, shallots, garlic, ginger, kaffir lime leaves, lemongrass, candlenuts, turmeric and oil into a smooth paste.
- Add chilli paste into medium-heat pan. Add bay leaf and tamarind water.
- Stir-fry chilli paste for 8 to 10 minutes or until fragrance. Set aside and let cool.
- Blend mackerel and shrimps into a smooth and sticky paste.
- Add grated coconut, brown sugar, salt, white pepper and cooked chilli paste.
- Blend all ingredients until well combined.
- For the skewers, peel and discard the dried outer layers of the lemongrass. Trim off the root tips and ⅓ of the green parts.
- Wrap one full tablespoon of blended mixture around the lemongrass in a rotation motion until it covers the entire white part.
- In a few batches (depending on the size of your pan), cook satay for about 2 minutes each side on medium-heat.
- Serve while still hot. Enjoy!
