Terasi substitutes

The nearest relative, and functionally interchangeable in almost every Indonesian recipe.

Best for

sambal terasi, nasi goreng, pecel and lotek dressings, sayur and vegetable stir-fries

Belacan is also a dry fermented shrimp block, so it roasts and crumbles the same way, but it is harder and drier, which means you will want to grate it or crush it with the flat of a knife rather than cutting a slice off. It is a little saltier and sharper than terasi, so if you are following an Indonesian recipe exactly, hold back a pinch of salt at the end and taste before adjusting. The finished sambal is very slightly more aggressive; almost nobody would call it wrong.

Easy to find in any Asian grocer, but wetter and milder, so you use more and cook it differently.

Best for

sambal for cooked dishes, nasi goreng and fried rice, vegetable stir-fries, curry pastes

Because kapi is a soft wet paste, it cannot be dry-roasted without scorching; fry it in a teaspoon of oil for a minute instead. It is saltier in a flatter way and slightly sweeter, and it lacks the toasted, almost cocoa-like depth roasted terasi develops. In a sambal terasi the result tastes recognisably of shrimp paste but noticeably less deep, and the paste will be looser, so cook it a minute or two longer to tighten it.

The most likely thing you already own, and it covers salt and savouriness only.

Best for

cooked sambals, nasi goreng, soups and braises, stir-fried greens

The sambal will come out bright, salty and clean, and quite thin-tasting compared with the real thing, because fish sauce brings none of the heavy roasted depth that is the reason terasi is in the recipe. Add a quarter teaspoon of palm or brown sugar with it, which rounds the sharpness and imitates terasi's slightly sweet fermented edge. Cut the recipe's added salt, since fish sauce contributes a lot of it. Add it early enough to cook for a minute or two, not as a raw finish.

The shrimp-free route, and the best option for a vegetarian sambal.

Best for

vegan and vegetarian sambal, shellfish allergy, tempeh and tofu dishes, vegetable stir-fries

Darker miso is also a long-fermented salty paste, so it delivers the same kind of concentrated savoury weight and the same thick texture, which is why it works better here than any thin liquid. What it does not have is the marine note, so a sambal made this way tastes rounder, beanier and plainly not fishy: good, but recognisably a different sauce. A pinch of crumbled nori or ground kombu adds back a hint of the sea. Fry it in oil briefly so it loses its raw edge.

Real shrimp flavour with only a fraction of the fermented funk.

Best for

sambal, vegetable dishes and urap, chili pastes, fried rice

Toast them in a dry pan for two or three minutes until they smell nutty, then pound them in a mortar with the chilies. They taste sweet and cleanly shrimpy, quite unlike terasi's pungent depth, so the sambal ends up brighter and less savoury. Adding a teaspoon of fish sauce alongside them gets you much closer. Grind them properly or they will leave a slight grit, which some people like in a coarse sambal and others do not.

Works in a cooked sambal, and is the wrong choice in a raw one.

Best for

cooked sambal goreng, braises, stir-fries, marinades

Anchovy paste is also cured salted seafood, so it melts into a sauce and leaves savoury depth behind. It is oilier and more directly fishy than fermented, and it carries a Mediterranean accent that is noticeable in a simple dish. In a fried sambal with plenty of chili, shallot and tomato it disappears usefully. In a raw sambal terasi, where the roasted paste is the dominant flavour and there is nothing to hide behind, it tastes out of place.