Best ever peanut sauce
======================

Although not authentic Indonesian (due to the use
of milk), this peanut sauce is a good match with
any authentic Indonesian food.

When unsure about the amounts, it is probably better
to be a bit more generous with the ingredients
rather than skimp on them. The onion will give a
wonderful sweetish flavour when sauteed slowly.

Half liter / 1 pint milk
2 big tablespoons peanut butter

  Make sure to use a simple peanut butter- 
  ideally containing only peanuts, sugar, 
  salt and the lowest amount of vegetable oil
  possible. 
  
  More expensive brands tend to contain more 
  stuff to keep the peanut butter from drying
  out- in this case, cheaper often is better.

  I recommend using non-chunky.

1 tablespoon roasted coriander seeds 
(or 1 bottlecap full of ground coriander seeds)

  When using whole coriander seeds rather than
  ground seeds, you'll want to smoothen up the
  sauce with a handheld blender later on. 

1 medium (red) onion (80 gr) or shallots, chopped small
 
1 big clove garlic, crushed/chopped very fine
1 heaped tablespoon of grated frozen galangal
1.5 heaped tablespoon of grated frozen ginger
Sweet soy sauce (Generous amount- 4 tbsp?)
1 tablespoon tomato ketchup
5cm lemongrass, crushed
1 tablespoon sambal (ground chili paste); 
	sambal bajak recommended. When not available,
	make your own or use sambal oelek and a pinch of beef
	broth powder (or half tablespoon of yeast extract).
Pepper and salt to taste
Khaffir lime leaf to taste (when using frozen,
half/whole is generally plenty. Should be removed
before shredding as it may overpower the sauce.)

Slowly sautee the onion in oil. when starting to brown,
add the clove of garlic, spices/chili and a squirt of
tomato ketchup and half tablespoon of sugar (raw cane,
brown or even better: a tablespoon of palm sugar syrup). 

Add the milk and soy sauce. You will now have a liquid
that already has mostly the colour of the sauce.

Turn up the heat, making sure that the liquid does not 
boil over). Once hot, lower the heat, add in the peanut 
butter and stir until it is dissolved. While constantly 
stirring, the sauce will thicken; it is done when it 
starts bubbling.

Remove the lemon grass and other whole spices and
use a handheld blender for a smoother consistency 
and/or if you used whole coriander seeds rather 
than powdered.

Optionally, a small amount of lapsang souchong tea 
can be added for a smoky barbecueue touch (especially
when using this sauce with satay that was prepared
in the oven or on gas).

For a vegan/lacto-friendly version of this sauce, 
the milk may be replaced with a dairy-free alternative.