• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Home
  • About Greedygirlgourmet
  • Recipes
  • SEO for Food Blogs
  • Authentic South East Asian Recipes
  • Privacy policy
  • Subscribe
  • Accessibility

Greedy Girl Gourmet

menu icon
go to homepage
  • Fall
  • Halloween
  • Recipes
  • Blogging
  • About
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
  • subscribe
    search icon
    Homepage link
    • Fall
    • Halloween
    • Recipes
    • Blogging
    • About
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
  • ×
    Home » Recipe Round-ups

    Published: May 16, 2023 · Modified: Sep 14, 2023 by Zen · This post may contain affiliate links.

    19 Best Recipes with Sambal Oelek

    Sharing food makes everyone happy! :)

    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    • Email
    • Yummly
    • Flipboard

    Sambal Oelek is a deliciously tangy and fiery Indonesian chili paste. It is super versatile and can be used as a dipping sauce or in these best recipes with Sambal Oelek.

    Close-up of a bowl of homemade red sambal oelek.
    Jump to:
    • What is Sambal Oelek?
    • Condiments
    • Protein
    • Vegetables
    • Carbs
    • Vegan
    • 💬 Comments

    What is Sambal Oelek?

    Sambal oelek is a traditional Indonesian chili paste made by pounding (or blending) fresh red chili peppers, vinegar, and salt into a thick paste. (Click through for the easy recipe.)

    It is known for its spicy, tangy and bold flavor. The chili peppers used in sambal oelek can vary, but they are typically red chili peppers like bird's eye chili or Fresno chili.

    Sambal oelek is widely used in South East Asian cuisine as a dipping sauce, marinade, or flavor enhancer. However, since its basic ingredients are so simple, I can add a kick of spice and depth of flavor to a wide range of dishes from various cuisines, without making the recipe taste inauthentic!

    Note: It is sometimes confused with Sriracha in the West. Sriracha is a garlic chili paste, whilst Sambal Oelek traditionally doesn't contain garlic. For the best substitutes for Sambal Oelek, click here.

    Condiments

    Sambal Aioli

    Stirring mayonnaise into freshly made sambal oelek.
    Easy 3-ingredient Sambal Aioli (Sambal Mayo)
    This spicy, tangy sauce goes well with french fries, grilled corn, hard boiled eggs, chicken salad and a whole host of other things.
    Click here for the easy Sambal Aioli Spread.
    Close-up of sweet potato fries topped with spicy sambal mayo.

    Korean BBQ Sauce

    Because this Sambal uses such simple ingredients that can be found in almost all cuisines, it is a great way of adding spice to the recipes from many countries, such as in this Barbecue Sauce.

    Protein

    Chicken Curry

    Close-up of chicken sambal with coconut sauce and kale.
    Chicken Sambal (One Pot, with Coconut)
    This Chicken Sambal dish is simmered in coconut and made in one pot. It can be bulked up with lots of flavorful veggies, such as bell peppers, tomatoes and carrots! Best of all, it's on the table in under 30 minutes (if you use skinless, boneless chicken. You can make it with any cut of chicken, but the cooking time will change.)
    Click here for the curry chicken with sambal oelek recipe.
    A Dutch oven full of chicken sambal curry, adorned with chili, coriander and kale.

    Vietnamese Wings

    2 baked chicken wings that are super crispy and have been tossed in a sticky Vietnamese glaze.

    Note: you can use either Sambal Belacan (a cooked sambal) or Sambal Oelek (a fresh sambal) in this recipe.

    Crispy Fish Sauce Wings Recipe (Baked)
    Inspired by the famous Pok Pok wings, this Vietnamese Crispy Fish Sauce Chicken Wings Recipe has big, punchy flavors. Though baked and not fried, it is still super crispy, tangy and delicious with a fingerlicking, sweet, salty and tangy sticky glaze! 
    Click here for the finger-licking Wings recipe!
    2 baked chicken wings that are super crispy and have been tossed in a sticky Vietnamese glaze.

    Spicy Chicken

    https://www.pinterest.com/pin/921126930015884018/

    Sambal Oelek is also delicious used in marinades for meat.

    Chicken Skewer

    This is an easy 7-ingredient skewered meat recipe!

    Sambal Shrimp

    This spicy and sour condiment is great as a dipping sauce for grilled seafood but you can also use it as to stir-fry shrimp!

    Fried Egg Tacos

    Alternatively, you can substitute the chili paste and vinegar in recipes with Sambal Oelek, such as in these Egg Tacos!

    Vegetables

    Tofu & Eggplant

    Or use it in this spicy meatless tofu dish!

    Hot Salad

    The Indonesian sauce is also a great addition to spice up your greens, such as in this Spicy Cabbage Salad.

    Shakshuka

    Sambal Oelek is so versatile, some people use it to make non-traditional, spicy Shakshuka!

    Spicy Green Beans

    These Green Beans stir-fried in a sambal sauce are crunchy and delicious. Best of all, they only take 25 minutes to cook!

    Hot Guacamole

    Take your guacamole to new heights by blending the creamy avocados with sambal oelek and cilantro. (You'll only need the tiniest bit of lime juice for freshness, because the sambal is already tangy.)

    This zesty and spicy dip will be the star of your next party!

    Carbs

    Sambal Fried Rice

    Also known as Nasi Goreng, this Malay Fried Rice is a great way to use up leftover rice.

    Beef Noodles

    As mentioned, this chili paste is super versatile, so it also goes well with beef in this Thai-inspired noodle dish!

    Pork Noodles

    Now you won't see pork with sambal oelek traditionally, as Indonesia is a Muslim country and Pork is not halal. However, the sauce is now so wide-spread that we are seeing all sorts of variations, such as these spicy pork noodles.

    Tofu Noodles

    This sticky noodles owe their depth of flavor to the versatile ingredient!

    Vegan

    Ramen

    Because this Chili Sauce is vegan, it's also a great ingredient for plant-based recipes such as these Garlic Noodles.

    Crispy Tofu

    This pan-fried tofu is spicy, stick and savory!

    If these Spicy Sambal Oelek recipes were helpful, maybe you'd like to sign up for my Asian food newsletter?

    I have other recipes you may like here! :)

    • Close-up of cut cucumbers drizzled with a spicy Korean sauce.
      27 Best Korean Side Dishes for Bossam
    • A close-up of dried red chillies.
      25 Best Red Chili Pepper Substitutes
    • Close-up of gochujang butternut squash baked fries.
      27 Asian Side Dishes for Chicken Tenders
    • Vegan lemon tart made with turmeric and topped with raspberries.
      25 Easy Turmeric Recipes Beyond Curry

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    No Comments

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe Rating




    Primary Sidebar

    Greedygirlgourmet eating 2 sandwiches in Scotland

    Hi I'm Zhen also known as GGG! I couldn't boil water till I was 18! However, I love creating community and nurturing people, so when I lived abroad (in St. Andrews then London) for 11 years, I started hosting regular parties for friends and that's how I started cooking! I even organised a supper club for charity, which strangers came to! Learning to cook late, I make sure my recipes go into enough detail for those new to Asian cuisine or who love a test kitchen approach to cooking!

    More about GGG ->

    Fall

    • Close-up of a Chinese braised egg in a wooden spoon.
      Chinese Braised Eggs
    • Close-up of turmeric rice with raisins on a wooden spoon.
      Easy Turmeric Rice (One Pot, Rice Cooker)

    Trick or Treat!

    • 5 severed sausages with ketchup which look like bloody fingers.
      Bloody Halloween Hot Dog Fingers
    • Many brain-shaped cookies lined up next to each other.
      30 Creepy Halloween Recipes

    Under 30 Minutes

    • Close-up of a freshly baked Nutella cookie.
      3-ingredient Nutella Cookies (Easy)
    • A jar of homemade pickled cucumbers with chilies and an onion next to it.
      Asian Quick Pickled Cucumbers (5-min)

    Popular Dishes

    • 3 chicken thighs baked in teriyaki sauce with sesame seeds and green onions.
      Easy Baked Teriyaki Chicken Thighs
    • Someone dipping a cracker into a bowl of spicy coconut tuna curried dip.
      22 Asian Appetizers for 2023

    Footer

    ↑ back to top

    About

    • About Greedygirlgourmet
    • Privacy Policy
    • Accessibility Policy
    • All Recipes

    Newsletter

    • Sign up here!

    Contact

    • Contact
    • Buy Me a Coffee 🙂

    As an Amazon Associate, at no cost to you, I earn from qualifying purchases 🙂

    Copyright © 2023 GreedyGirlGourmet

    27 shares