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Combro
Cassava balls with spicy filling
Combro (oncom di jero): West Java's grated cassava balls with a spicy oncom heart
Combro comes from the Sundanese 'oncom di jero', oncom inside, and that hidden centre is the point: crumbled fermented oncom fried with chilli, shallot and a little palm sugar, wrapped in grated cassava and fried until golden. Families in Garut and Bogor eat them warm with sweet tea in the late afternoon, and they appear at village arisan gatherings by the tray. Oncom is hard to find outside Indonesia; crumbled tempeh gives a similar nutty, savoury filling. Chef's tip: squeeze the grated cassava hard in a cloth; if it stays wet, the balls split open in the oil and the filling leaks out.
- Total time
- 45 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
For the cassava dough
- 1 ⅛ lb cassavapeeled, woody core removed, finely grated (or frozen grated cassava, thawed)
- 1 ¾ oz grated coconutfresh, or desiccated soaked in 2 tbsp warm water
- 1 clove garliccrushed
- ¾ tsp salt
For the filling
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil
- 4 shallotsfinely chopped
- 2 cloves garlicfinely chopped
- 5 bird's-eye chilliessliced
- 5 ½ oz oncomcrumbled; or tempeh, crumbled
- 1 tsp palm sugar
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 kaffir lime leaf (optional)finely shredded
To fry
- 3 ¼ cups vegetable oilfor deep frying
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Method
0/7 doneStep 1: Wrap 1 ⅛ lb cassava in a clean tea towel and squeeze firmly over the sink until no more liquid runs out. It should feel damp, not wet.
Step 2: Mix the cassava with 1 ¾ oz grated coconut, 1 clove garlic and ¾ tsp salt until it holds together when pressed.
Step 3: For the filling, heat 2 tbsp vegetable oil in a pan over a medium heat and fry 4 shallots, 2 cloves garlic and 5 bird's-eye chillies until soft and fragrant.
3 minStep 4: Add 5 ½ oz oncom, 1 tsp palm sugar, ½ tsp salt and 1 kaffir lime leaf and fry, breaking up the crumbs, until dry, browned in places and smelling nutty. Cool slightly.
5 minStep 5: Take a golf-ball portion of cassava, flatten it in your palm, put a teaspoon of filling in the middle and close the cassava round it into an oval, sealing any cracks. Make about 12.
Step 6: Heat 3 ¼ cups vegetable oil to 350°F and fry the combro 4 at a time, turning now and then, until deep golden and crisp all over and the cassava is cooked through (a skewer slides in easily).
7 minStep 7: Drain on kitchen paper and serve warm. Raw cassava must always be fully cooked, so don't pull them out while still pale.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 390 kcal
- Protein
- 9 g
- Carbs
- 52 g
- Fat
- 17 g
- Fibre
- 4 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does combro take?
- About 45 minutes in total: 25 minutes to prepare and 20 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 4 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegan?
- Yes. It has no meat, fish, dairy or eggs.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
- Is it very spicy?
- It has some heat. Use less chilli for a milder version, or more if you like it hot.
- What can I use instead of garlic?
- ½ tsp garlic paste or ⅛ tsp garlic powder per clove.
- What can I use instead of shallots?
- Half an onion per 2 shallots.
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