Saus Ka_Ang

Saus Kacang is the Indonesian peanut sauce that makes satay worth eating. It starts by grinding chile, onion, garlic, and trassi — fermented shrimp paste — together into a rough paste, then frying that paste in oil until the onion turns golden and the kitchen smells intensely savory.

That trassi is doing serious work. A quarter teaspoon of shrimp paste might seem like nothing, but it adds a deep, funky umami backbone that separates a real peanut sauce from a Western imitation.

Once the aromatics are fried, crunchy peanut butter and coconut milk go in with pan drippings, and the sauce gets stirred and cooked until it reaches the consistency of thick gravy. The texture should coat a spoon and cling to skewers.

Serve over chicken or beef satay, as a dipping sauce for fresh spring rolls, or spooned over steamed rice with vegetables.

Kitchen Tips

• Trassi (fermented shrimp paste) is available at Asian grocery stores; don’t skip it — it’s what gives the sauce its authentic depth
• Use crunchy peanut butter, not smooth; the texture matters in the finished sauce
• Add coconut milk gradually, stirring as you go, to control the thickness
• If the sauce gets too thick as it cools, thin it with a splash of warm water

Variations

• Add a squeeze of lime juice at the end for brightness
• Increase the chile for more heat, or sub a milder pepper for a gentler sauce