Urab Recipe | Balinese Coconut Vegetable Salad

Urab is a fresh Balinese salad of blanched vegetables tossed with seasoned grated coconut. Simple, healthy, and packed with flavor.

Urab (sometimes spelled urep) is one of the simplest and most refreshing Balinese dishes - blanched vegetables mixed with freshly grated coconut, chili, garlic, and kaffir lime. It appears on virtually every nasi campur plate and is a staple side dish at home meals.

The vegetables can vary by season but typically include: long beans (cut into 2cm pieces), bean sprouts, shredded cabbage, and spinach or kangkung (water spinach). Each vegetable is blanched separately to the right texture - crunchy for beans, wilted for spinach.

The coconut dressing is what makes urab special. Mix 150g freshly grated coconut with 2 sliced bird's eye chilies, 2 crushed garlic cloves, 1 teaspoon shrimp paste (roasted), juice of 2 kaffir limes (or regular limes), and salt. The coconut should be fresh and moist, not dried.

Assembly: Toss the blanched, cooled vegetables with the coconut dressing. Adjust seasoning - it should be slightly spicy, coconut-sweet, and tangy from the lime. Serve at room temperature as a side dish with rice and sambal.

Urab is one of the first dishes many students learn in our cooking classes because it demonstrates key Balinese principles: fresh ingredients, balance of flavors, and the importance of coconut in the cuisine. It is also naturally vegan (without the shrimp paste).