You’ve landed here because you’re either looking for a Gado Gado sauce recipe or you’re one of my awesome email subscribers. Either way, you’re gonna be stoked – because this Indonesian peanut sauce is perfect for dressing, marinade or dipping sauce.
It’s sweet, spicy and savory with a little kick, and is super easy to whisk together and drizzle over a traditional Gado Gado salad.
Balinese Gado inspiration
You may not have ever heard of Gado Gado. I hadn’t until I read Sarah B.’s post – Sarah B.’s Balinese Gado. It’s simply a mix of veggies with a peanut sauce dressing (or if you’ve got a kiddo with a peanut allergy, use tahini (sesame paste).
A list of traditional veggie options you might see in a Gado Gado salad recipe…
Potatoes
Beans
Corn
Tofu
Tempeh
Cucumber
Sprouts
Jack Fruit
Chayote
String Beans
Green Beans
Spinach
Cabbage
Carrots
But of course, I had to put my own spin. Though traditional Gado Gado salad is a mixture of fresh and blanched veggies, the idea of blanching made me feel a bit blah. I decided to roast a portion of the veggies for my base, and leave some raw for texture along with some Lacinato kale, fresh cilantro and sprouts.
The textures, flavors and temperature together are like Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey in Dirty Dancing – a little naughty, a little nice and definitely unexpected.
The sauce
Ok now, let’s get back to the real reason you’re here. The Gado Gado Sauce. It’s got more layers of flavor than a ten layer cake – sweet coconut palm sugar, spicy cayenne, savory garlic, and salty liquid aminos (or soy sauce) – and best of all, like we talked about last week, it’s oil free.
Oil-free vegan options
To keep with the oil-free (or, technically, really low-oil) theme I avoided oiling the veggies and only oiled the pan to keep the veggies from sticking and add a little flavor without the extra fat and calories. If you want to do 100% oil-free, use parchment or a non-stick silicone mat. Toss the veggies in broth or some of the peanut sauce, and baste again halfway through with broth to prevent burning.
I hope you enjoy this unexpectedly delicious salad as much as I did. Feel free to play around with both the cooking methods and how you use the sauce. I plan to try it as a sauce for some Thai chickpea burgers!
Sound good? You might like these other salad options!
Indonesian Gado Gado Sauce Recipe and Salad
Serves 6
For the Salad
Coconut oil for greasing pans
2 sweet potatoes, sliced
½ sweet onion, peeled and sliced
1 small head red cabbage, cut into six slices, the remainder shredded
1 bunch carrots, any color, sliced
1 block tofu, pressed and cubed (optional)
1/2 tsp sea salt
6 leaves kale, de-stemmed and finely chopped
1 cup packed kale sprouts (or any sprouts)
1 bunch cilantro, chopped
For the Gado Gado Sauce Recipe
½ cup natural peanut butter or tahini
Pinch of cayenne pepper powder (or more!) for heat
2 cloves garlic
2 Tbsp liquid aminos, soy sauce or tamari
Juice of 1 lime
2 Tbsp coconut palm sugar
1/3 cup full fat coconut milk
1/3 cup water
Directions
Preheat oven to 400F. Grease three baking sheets; place sliced sweet potatoes on one baking sheet; top with sweet onions; place six slices cabbage and about 2/3 of the sliced carrots on the second baking sheet (leave the remaining fresh for added crunch); place cubed tofu on the third baking sheet; bake all for 20 minutes; flip and bake an additional 25 minutes, or until potatoes are soft. Remove from oven and sprinkle ½ tsp sea salt evenly over vegetables.
Meanwhile, blend or whisk all ingredients for Gado Gado sauce and set aside.
In each of six bowls place one roasted cabbage slice, and evenly divide sweet potatoes, carrots, onions and tofu over same four bowls; top evenly with remaining fresh sliced carrots, remaining shredded cabbage, sliced kale, kale sprouts and fresh cilantro. Drizzle Gado Gado sauce over each bowl.
By Dawn Hutchins
Adapted from Sarah B
Nutrition Facts Indonesian Gado Gado Sauce Recipe And Roasted Veggie Salad
6 Servings
Amount Per Serving
Calories 309.5
Total Fat 14.4 g
Saturated Fat 3.8 g
Polyunsaturated Fat 1.4 g
Monounsaturated Fat 0.8 g
Cholesterol 0.0 mg
Sodium 401.3 mg
Potassium 643.1 mg
Total Carbohydrate 36.1 g
Dietary Fiber 8.2 g
Sugars 9.4 g
Protein 13.2 g
Vitamin A 376.8 %
Vitamin B-12 2.5 %
Vitamin B-6 23.8 %
Vitamin C 133.7 %
Vitamin D 0.0 %
Vitamin E 9.9 %
Calcium 48.2 %
Copper 18.3 %
Folate 13.7 %
Iron 19.8 %
Magnesium 15.8 %
Manganese 60.7 %
Niacin 21.0 %
Pantothenic Acid 6.6 %
Phosphorus 17.4 %
Riboflavin 14.0 %
Selenium 15.2 %
Thiamin 15.2 %
Zinc 9.5 %
*Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.
Nutrition Facts Gado Gado Sauce Recipe Only
6 Servings
Amount Per Serving
Calories 151.2
Total Fat 10.9 g
Saturated Fat 2.6 g
Polyunsaturated Fat 0.0 g
Monounsaturated Fat 0.1 g
Cholesterol 0.0 mg
Sodium 323.7 mg
Potassium 17.3 mg
Total Carbohydrate 9.5 g
Dietary Fiber 1.3 g
Sugars 2.5 g
Protein 4.7 g