This delicious potato dish is made from baked potatoes and tossed in a spicy Sambal sauce. It’s gluten-free, easy, and super simple to make with just a few ingredients. The recipe is a perfect addition to your lunches or weeknight dinners.
What is Sambal Ubi Kentang
Ubi kentang is a Malay word for potato and Sambal is a red chili paste so Sambal Ubi Kentang means red chili paste potato. As the name implies, this dish’s main ingredient is sambal. I used this Easy Vegan Sambal but store-bought or other chili sauce will work perfectly too.
3 ways to cook potatoes
- Bake – This is the method I used for this recipe. Simply toss potatoes with oil and baked in a preheated oven of 425°F (230°C) for about 30 minutes until crispy and golden brown. Then, season potatoes with salt right after you take out from the oven.
- Deep-fry – one of the simplest and fastest methods to cook potatoes is to deep-fry in hot oil. I rarely deep-fry my food but if I need a quick crispy layer, I’ll do a quick shallow pan-fry instead.
- Air-fry – This method uses the least oil but potatoes may look more dry compare to the other two methods. I normally use the ‘French Fries’ setting if I need crispy food. Each air fryer has different temperature settings to make food crispy, so please check your manual to find the perfect setting.
Key ingredients and substitution
- Potato – I used Russet in this recipe but other potatoes work well too including Japanese sweet potatoes.
- Sambal – store-bought sambal or my Easy Vegan Sambal works great for this dish. And other great alternatives include:
- Sambal Oelek – is a fresh ground chili paste that you can add to elevate the spiciness in any dishes. I normally add a few teaspoons of tamarind juice and a pinch of sugar to create a more complex flavor for my sambal potato dish.
- Garlic chili sauce – is a spicy chili blend that normally comes pre-seasoned in a bottle. Try adding some fresh blended tomatoes with the sauce while cooking for that umami flavor.
- Coconut milk – adds a touch of sweetness to this dish, but you can use any creamy plant-based milk such as oat milk, cashew milk, macadamia milk, or hazelnut milk. Alternatively, mix coconut milk with vegetable broth if you prefer a saucier curry dish.
This Sambal Potatoes recipe is
- Easy and simple
- Gluten-free
- Dairy-free
- Customizable
- Perfect for make-ahead meals (they taste just as great the next day)
If you try this recipe, I would love to hear your feedback and see your beautiful re-creation. Leave me a comment, rate it, and tag @woon.heng and #woonheng to your photos on Instagram or Facebook. Happy cooking, friends!
Easy Sambal Potatoes
Try this easy and spicy potato dish with homemade or store-bought sambal. It's delicious, dairy-free, gluten-free, and flavorful.
Ingredients
- 1 lb [~2-3 medium-sized] potatoes used Russet
- 1 small onion diced/finely chopped
- 2 cloves garlic finely minced
- 1 red jalapenõ diced (optional)
- 3 tablespoons sambal or sub with sambal oelek
- ¼ cup coconut milk
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- oil for cooking use oil that can withstand high heat
- salt to taste
- a handful of chopped green onions
Instructions
- Pre-heat oven to 425F (220°C).
- Wash and cut potatoes into bite-sized cubes. Drain potatoes on a paper towel to remove moisture.
- Transfer potatoes into a mixing bowl and toss with 1-2 tablespoons oil until well combined. (Please use oil that can withstand high heat)
- Place potatoes on a greased baking pan and bake for 30 mins until crispy, flipping in between.
- In a heated non-stick pan with 2-3 teaspoons oil, sauté onion until translucent.
- Then, add garlic and continue to stir-fry until aromatic.
- Add in the sambal and give the mixture a good stir. Then, stir in coconut milk and sugar.
- Finally, add the roasted the potatoes and toss them with the sauce until all potatoes are well coated.
- Garnish with chopped green onions and serve warm with a side of rice
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!
Feel free to pin the below picture on your Pinterest Board for easy reference.
My roommate and I love this dish. It made our Monday night a lot better, thank you!
Yay, thanks so much, so glad you both loved it. Thanks for trying out the recipe. Have a wonderful day!
That’s so so awesome, thanks so much.:-)