Hay Bee Hiam (Spicy Dried Shrimps Sambal)

Spicy Dried Shrimps Sambal aka Hae Bee Hiam

Spicy dried shrimps sambal or more commonly known locally as “hae bee hiam” (alternate spellings: hay bee hiam/hei bi hiam) is a popular condiment in Singapore and South East Asia. I use my base home-made sambal belacan and stir fry it with chopped dried shrimps, shallots and garlic. It’s spicy, savoury and so addictive on its own with steamed white rice. It’s also commonly used in stir fries such as sambal long beans.

Hae Bee Hiam used for stir fries -
left: Sambal Tau Kwa with Sugar Snap Peas
right: Sambal long beans

Ingredients
Serves 2

- 1 tbsp cooking oil
- 2 tbsp sambal belacan (either home made or store bought)
- salt to taste (if needed)

(A) Dried Shrimps Paste
- 2 tbsp dried shrimps (hae bee) 虾米, soaked in water till softened
- 5 shallots, peeled
- 5 garlic cloves, peeled

Directions
1. Either chop the ingredients at (A) finely or (shortcut) use a blender to grind the ingredients for a few seconds.
2. In a wok, heat the oil. Then add the chopped ingredients prepared in step 1 and stir fry till you can smell the aroma.
3. Add sambal belacan and mix it well with the dried shrimps paste. Stir fry until dry and fragrant.
4. Season with salt with needed. I do not add salt because my home made sambal belacan is already nicely salted. Serve with steamed rice or use for stir-fries.

Cooking Notes
1. Belacan is pungent smelling. Open your windows and remove all laundry (if you have them in the kitchen) when you’re frying this dish.
2. Do not chop/grind the dried shrimps too finely so that the sambal has a slightly chunky texture.
2. If you’re using store-bought sambal and it’s not spicy enough, add chilli padi to the shrimp paste at (A) for more heat.

Ingredients Used belacan • dried shrimps • garlic • sambal belacan • shallot

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