Recipe: Gado Gado (Indonesian salad)

GADO GADO

"Like Indonesia itself, Gado Gado blends influences from China and India with those from Arab and European cultures in both the vegetables which compose it and in its peanut dressing. Serve Gado Gado when you have a crowd and watch them discover that peanut butter blends as perfectly with heat as it does with sweet flavors."

1/4 pound green beans, cut int 2-inch pieces
1/3 medium cauliflower, broken into florets
1 small green cabbage, about 2-1/2 pounds, quartered, cored and cut vertically into 3/4-inch strips
3 medium carrots, cut diagonally into 1/2-inch slices
1 pound fresh bean sprouts
3 boiled red-skinned potatoes, peeled
3 hard-cooked eggs, cut in wedges
2 shallots, coarsely chopped
1 garlic clove, coarsely chopped
1-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and coarsely chopped
3 fresh, small red chiles or 1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper
2 strips lemon zest, 2-inches x 1/2- inch
1 tsp. ground coriander
1 tsp. ground paprika
2 tbsp. apple juice concentrate
2 cups fat-free chicken broth
1/2 cup chunky, natural peanut butter
2 tbsp. reduced sodium soy sauce

FOR THE SALAD:
In a large pot of boiling water, cook the green beans 4 minutes, until tender-crisp. Remove with a slotted spoon and immediately plunge in a bowl of ice water until the beans are cool. Remove the beans and drain in a colander. Set aside. Repeat this procedure to cook the cauliflower, cabbage and carrots, using the same boiling water and bowl of ice water.

Add the bean sprouts to the boiling water. Cook 1 minute, cool in the ice water, and drain.

FOR THE DRESSING:
Place in a food processor the shallots, garlic, ginger, chiles or cayenne, and lemon zest. Pulse to chop, then scrape down sides of the bowl. Add the coriander, paprika, and apple juice concentrate. Process until finely chopped, scraping down the sides of the bowl 2-3 times. In a medium, non-stick skillet over medium-high heat, cook the shallot mixture 1 minute, stirring occasionally. Add the broth and peanut butter. Bring to a boil and simmer, mashing the peanut butter with a wooden spoon to blend it into the liquid. Mix in the soy sauce. When the sauce has the thickness of heavy cream, remove the pan from the heat, about 4 minutes.

TO ASSEMBLE THE GADO GADO:
Place the cabbage in one layer on a large platter. Arrange the carrots and green beans in a ring around the edge of the cabbage. Add the beansprouts, covering all but the tips of the beans and carrots. Cut the potatoes into 3/4-inch slices and arrange them over the sprouts. Spoon the warm dressing over the potatoes and sprouts, just leaving the tips of the beans and carrots showing. Place the egg wedges on top of the dressing. Spoon the rest of the dressing over the cabbage. Set the cauliflower in a ring around the cabbage.

Each of the 12 servings contains 151 calories and 7 grams of fat
Source: written for the American Institute for Cancer Research by Dana Jacobi