ArtsAutosBooksBusinessEducationEntertainmentFamilyFashionFoodGamesGenderHealthHolidaysHomeHubPagesPersonal FinancePetsPoliticsReligionSportsTechnologyTravel

Steamed Veggies with Spicy Peanut Sauce

Updated on September 23, 2013

Pitjil, a Javanese vegetable dish

I am not a vegetarian, but grew up eating more vegetables than meat or fish per meal and I still love my daily veggies.

One of the easiest, simplest and probably healthiest vegetable dishes I know, is the Javanese "Pitjil" (Pecel), steamed vegetables with spicy peanut sauce.

What is Pitjil?

Steamed vegetables served with spicy peanut sauce, make the otherwise bland vegetables a lot more enjoyable to eat. This virtually fat free Asian "salad" can be eaten on it's own or as a side dish.

Origins

Java is one of the Indonesian islands and to keep things simple, I'm calling this a Javanese dish because that's my family's background. Pitjil as I know it, is served in countries and homes with ties to Indonesia (The Netherlands, Suriname, etc.)

In daily Javanese cooking, vegetables are seldom mixed and this dish used to be served on special occasions such as holidays or parties. It is also sold at food stands on the side of the road and in restaurants in the countries mentioned above.

Peanut sauce

The secret weapon of this dish is the peanut sauce or peanut sambal, available in Asian stores or markets. For the best (fresh) flavor you can make your own sauce, although it takes a bit more time to prepare than the store-bought version. Making your own sauce also gives you more control over the level of spiciness (heat). Click the link for a peanut sauce recipe.

Peanut Sauce

Jade All-Natural Sichuan Peanut Sauce, 13.5 oz.
Jade All-Natural Sichuan Peanut Sauce, 13.5 oz.
Voted Best Peanut Sauce by the SF Chronicle
 

The Recipe

Ingredients:

1/2 green cabbage

1 lb green beans (haricot verts)

1/2 lb bean sprouts (fresh)

1 cup peanut sauce

1/2 tsp salt

2 ltr water

Cut the cabbage in big chunks, or 1/2 inch slices (this depends on your preference). The green beans may be fresh or frozen, cut or whole (I like mine whole). Rinse vegetables.

Steaming vegetables

Boil the water with some salt, add the cabbage, stir for even cooking. When the water starts bubbling again, remove the cabbage and rinse with cold water. Follow the same procedure for the green beans and bean sprouts (dip in boiling water for 3 minutes), cooking each separately.

This method of cooking vegetables is called “blanching” and because the vegetables are not overcooked, they will maintain most of their nutrients.

Arrange the vegetables in a dish and serve with the peanut sauce on the side.

Pitjil Photo Gallery - Steamed Vegetables with Peanut Sauce

Click thumbnail to view full-size
Steamed vegetables (green beans, cabbage and bean sprouts)Dry peanut sauce (add hot water to make sauce)Pitjil with peanut sambal (steamed veggies with spicy peanut sauce)Pitjil from food stand along the road, wrapped in banana or other leavesPitjil wrapped in leaves. Bon Apetit!
Steamed vegetables (green beans, cabbage and bean sprouts)
Steamed vegetables (green beans, cabbage and bean sprouts)
Dry peanut sauce (add hot water to make sauce)
Dry peanut sauce (add hot water to make sauce)
Pitjil with peanut sambal (steamed veggies with spicy peanut sauce)
Pitjil with peanut sambal (steamed veggies with spicy peanut sauce)
Pitjil from food stand along the road, wrapped in banana or other leaves
Pitjil from food stand along the road, wrapped in banana or other leaves
Pitjil wrapped in leaves. Bon Apetit!
Pitjil wrapped in leaves. Bon Apetit!

Fresh vs. Frozen Vegetables

Which is healthier? Market Fresh or Frozen vegetables?

See results

Want to know more about Peanut Sauce?

I can write a whole lens about peanut sauce, but I'm sharing my favorite links instead.

Food processors - To make your own peanut sauce

BLACK+DECKER 8-Cup Food Processor, Black, FP1600B
BLACK+DECKER 8-Cup Food Processor, Black, FP1600B
I have used lots of Black & Decker kitchen appliances. They're good and affordable.
 

Share with us how you used peanut sauce on your food

working

This website uses cookies

As a user in the EEA, your approval is needed on a few things. To provide a better website experience, hubpages.com uses cookies (and other similar technologies) and may collect, process, and share personal data. Please choose which areas of our service you consent to our doing so.

For more information on managing or withdrawing consents and how we handle data, visit our Privacy Policy at: https://corp.maven.io/privacy-policy

Show Details
Necessary
HubPages Device IDThis is used to identify particular browsers or devices when the access the service, and is used for security reasons.
LoginThis is necessary to sign in to the HubPages Service.
Google RecaptchaThis is used to prevent bots and spam. (Privacy Policy)
AkismetThis is used to detect comment spam. (Privacy Policy)
HubPages Google AnalyticsThis is used to provide data on traffic to our website, all personally identifyable data is anonymized. (Privacy Policy)
HubPages Traffic PixelThis is used to collect data on traffic to articles and other pages on our site. Unless you are signed in to a HubPages account, all personally identifiable information is anonymized.
Amazon Web ServicesThis is a cloud services platform that we used to host our service. (Privacy Policy)
CloudflareThis is a cloud CDN service that we use to efficiently deliver files required for our service to operate such as javascript, cascading style sheets, images, and videos. (Privacy Policy)
Google Hosted LibrariesJavascript software libraries such as jQuery are loaded at endpoints on the googleapis.com or gstatic.com domains, for performance and efficiency reasons. (Privacy Policy)
Features
Google Custom SearchThis is feature allows you to search the site. (Privacy Policy)
Google MapsSome articles have Google Maps embedded in them. (Privacy Policy)
Google ChartsThis is used to display charts and graphs on articles and the author center. (Privacy Policy)
Google AdSense Host APIThis service allows you to sign up for or associate a Google AdSense account with HubPages, so that you can earn money from ads on your articles. No data is shared unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy)
Google YouTubeSome articles have YouTube videos embedded in them. (Privacy Policy)
VimeoSome articles have Vimeo videos embedded in them. (Privacy Policy)
PaypalThis is used for a registered author who enrolls in the HubPages Earnings program and requests to be paid via PayPal. No data is shared with Paypal unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy)
Facebook LoginYou can use this to streamline signing up for, or signing in to your Hubpages account. No data is shared with Facebook unless you engage with this feature. (Privacy Policy)
MavenThis supports the Maven widget and search functionality. (Privacy Policy)
Marketing
Google AdSenseThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Google DoubleClickGoogle provides ad serving technology and runs an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Index ExchangeThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
SovrnThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Facebook AdsThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Amazon Unified Ad MarketplaceThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
AppNexusThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
OpenxThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Rubicon ProjectThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
TripleLiftThis is an ad network. (Privacy Policy)
Say MediaWe partner with Say Media to deliver ad campaigns on our sites. (Privacy Policy)
Remarketing PixelsWe may use remarketing pixels from advertising networks such as Google AdWords, Bing Ads, and Facebook in order to advertise the HubPages Service to people that have visited our sites.
Conversion Tracking PixelsWe may use conversion tracking pixels from advertising networks such as Google AdWords, Bing Ads, and Facebook in order to identify when an advertisement has successfully resulted in the desired action, such as signing up for the HubPages Service or publishing an article on the HubPages Service.
Statistics
Author Google AnalyticsThis is used to provide traffic data and reports to the authors of articles on the HubPages Service. (Privacy Policy)
ComscoreComScore is a media measurement and analytics company providing marketing data and analytics to enterprises, media and advertising agencies, and publishers. Non-consent will result in ComScore only processing obfuscated personal data. (Privacy Policy)
Amazon Tracking PixelSome articles display amazon products as part of the Amazon Affiliate program, this pixel provides traffic statistics for those products (Privacy Policy)
ClickscoThis is a data management platform studying reader behavior (Privacy Policy)