Green chili sauce is an inseparable complement to the dining experience at a Padang restaurant . This typical Minang dish is famous for its spicy, savory, and delicious taste that pampers the tongue. Green chili sauce is the perfect partner for various Padang dishes, from tender rendang, crispy balado beef jerky, spice-rich curry, to fresh boiled cassava leaves.
The process of making green chili sauce is actually similar to the commonly known onion chili sauce. The main difference lies in the use of green chilies and tomatoes as the base ingredients, which give this chili sauce its bright green color and distinctive flavor. The combination of these ingredients creates a chili sauce with an attractive appearance and unique flavor.
Although it looks simple, making the perfect green chili sauce can be a challenge. Some of the difficulties that are often faced are the color of the chili sauce turning brown, not bright green as expected, or the taste of the chili sauce tends to be bitter. This is due to the natural nature of green chilies which do have a bitter taste. Proper processing techniques are needed to avoid this bitter taste from dominating the chili sauce.
To prevent this, some people usually boil the chilies first. When boiled, the chilies will cook and reduce the bitter taste. In addition, boiling is also believed to maintain the green color of the chilies.
But do you know? Actually, making green chili sauce like Padang restaurants doesn't have to go through a boiling process. There are other tricks that can be applied to make green chili sauce more practically and effectively to make it bright green and not bitter in taste.
This trick was once shared by a Padang food content creator on his YouTube channel named UDA AWAL. Through one of the videos uploaded, he admitted that the main thing that needs to be done is when processing the chilies. In the video, YouTube user UDA AWAL uses 250 grams of green chilies mixed with 6 large green chilies.
 YouTube/UDA AWAL
As reported by BrilioFood from YouTube UDA AWAL, Thursday (19/9), these green chilies must be soaked for 1-22 hours so that the color remains green and is not bitter. However, instead of soaking in ordinary water, the chilies must be soaked in water that has been mixed with vinegar. So, the green chilies must be soaked in 1 liter of water and given 1-2 tablespoons of vinegar. Stir and let stand for 1-2 hours. "Here are tips so that the color of the chili sauce remains fresh, green," said YouTube UDA AWAL.
 YouTube/UDA AWAL
Once soaked, puree the chilies together with 5 shallots, 1/2 clove of garlic, and 1 tsp of ebi (dried shrimp). Just pound or grind roughly so that the texture of the chilies can still be felt. Once done, add lime juice. It is better to squeeze the lime slices using a strainer so that the seeds do not mix with the chili sauce and make it taste bitter.
 YouTube/UDA AWAL
After that, add 5 pieces of lime leaves. Crush them a little to bruise them, no need to crush them. Once done, stir until the chili sauce is evenly distributed. Next, move on to the process of cooking the chili sauce. Heat the pan first over medium heat. Then pour in enough oil and wait until it is hot. Once hot, add 3 sliced green tomatoes. Fry until the tomatoes are wilted while pressing them.
 YouTube/UDA AWAL
When the tomatoes are wilted, immediately add the chili sauce to the frying pan. Stir and fry the chili sauce until cooked. Don't forget to add salt and seasoning to taste, stir again until evenly distributed over medium to low heat.
 YouTube/UDA AWAL
Once cooked, the color of the chili sauce is still fresh green. Even though it has been fried for a long time, the green color is still bright because the chili has been soaked in vinegar water beforehand. Well, the results of this type of chili sauce can certainly increase your appetite.