My hubby's favourite version of sambal

Sambal, as I know it, has a few main components:

1. Shallots
2. Garlic
3. Dried chillies (Fresh ones don't sound and taste right to me)
4. Tamarind paste
5. Optional: soy sauce or sugar (strictly for beautiful caramel colour)

Therefore my version of sambal is a bit on the hot and sour side. And this does not fit into my hubby's mindset of sambal.

Finally I got it right while cooking for iftar yesterday. While my head was reeling from who won the 2nd season of Australia's Next Top Model (What?? And Alex is not the winner?) I accidentally put two heaping tablespoon of sugar into my squid sambal.

To me it's a tad too sweet, but it hit my hubby's spot.

My hubby may be a Malay-Javanese-Chinese-Japanese, but he's a true blue Kelantanese at heart.

Hubby's favourite version of Sambal

Blended ingredients:

1. 5 shallots
2. 2 cloves of garlic
3. 1 large onion
4. 10 dried chillies, previously soaked in hot water for 10 minutes
5. 3 fresh chillies

1 teaspoon tamarind paste

Any kind of meats: squid, chicken, prawn, anchovies, eggs

Salt to taste

2 tablespoon of sugar

Method:

Saute the blended ingredients in the wok until it is almost dry, bubbling and oily (What Malays call 'pecah minyak'). Put any kind of meats into your sambal and stir until almost cooked. Put 1 teaspoon of tamarind paste and 1/2 cup of water into the sambal. Stir until it is thick in consistency. Add salt to taste. Then add the sugar.

(My version calls for 1 teaspoon of sugar)