Chef . Husband . Father . Culinary Lecturer . Food Lover

Rinse dry chili and simmer in hot water with a pinch of salt till soft, about 10 minutes using low heat. Drain out the chilies and set aside to cool. Reserve the liquid.
In a pot, add some oil and fry the ikan billis till golden brown, set aside and reserve the oil in the pot to cook the sambal later.
Using a blender, add in the boiled dry chilies, fried ikan billis, together with the fresh chilies and garlic. Blend to a very smooth but not watery puree by slowly adding the water from boiling the dried chilies.
Using the same pot that fry the ikan billis, cook the sliced onion in very low heat till very tender and almost sticky. Stirring frequently is required to avoid burning.
Add in the chili puree and cook over very low heat till fragrant and oil starts to ooze out from the paste. Constant stirring is a must. Add more oil if the paste seems dry. The process will take around 30 minutes.
When the sambal is cooked. Stir in the assam paste and season accordingly with salt and sugar to your liking.
Allow to cool and store in airtight jar for further uses like nasi lemak and other sambal dishes.

Homemade Sambal