Balinese food series: Jukut Urab recipe (coconut snake bean salad)

Jukut Urab (or urab sayur or urap urap) is an Indonesian dish consisting of a blanched vegetable salad with grated coconut. It originated in the Java region, but it is now widespread throughout the country. This Jukut Urab recipe is really simple but due to the taste of the coconut, it is a fresh and tasty side dish for many meals. Try it at home for your next gathering and it will win over all your guests.

The basis of the dish is vegan, lactose-free and gluten-free, so it is an easy option for many people with dietary restrictions, but it can be easily tweaked to adapt to all tastes.

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Jukut  Urab recipe: ingredients (4-6 pax)

¼ kilo of snake beans or string beans

½ a whole fresh coconut or ½ cup grated fresh coconut (or, if using frozen coconut, add 1 tablespoon of coconut cream)

2tbsp of base gede, basic yellow sauce

1tbsp palm sugar

1tbsp deep fried shallots

1 lime

½tsp salt

Jukut Urab recipe: instructions

1. Boil the snake beans for two minutes so they are still firm then slice them into half-centimeter sized pieces.
2. Grate the coconut. If you use frozen grated coconut, add 1 tablespoon of coconut cream to moisten the coconut.
3. Mix the chopped snake beans, grated coconut, base gede, palm sugar, dried shallots, salt and squeeze the lime over the mixture. Work your fingers through the salad.

4. And that’s how you make Jukut Urab! Serve at room temperature as a starter, side dish or main course.

Jukut Urab recipe: variations

As I mentioned in the introduction, the basis of the dish is vegan, lactose-free and gluten-free, so it is an easy option for many people with dietary restrictions. I don’t have any of these restrictions and still find it a delicious dish! However, if you want, you can tweak it to introduce some variation and complexity by adding some boiled eggs or potatoes, fried tempeh, crab meat or chicken to the salad, although it is rarely necessary as it is often used as a side dish.

Closing statement

As you can see, there is not secret to this Jukut Urab recipe. It is a very simple yet tasty dish that you can prepare in advance to surprise your guests or as a healthy salad for your daily routine. Try it at home and let me know how it turns out!

I learned this Jukut Urab recipe at Paon Bali Cooking Class by the hand of Mama Puspa, the sassy chef that led our class. You can read more about our experience with Paon Bali and Mama Puspa in my dedicated post.

Paon Bali Cooking Class review: our experience in a Balinese cooking class

You can book your class here, through Paon Bali’s website or phone number (+62 813-3793-9095).

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