Lontong Sayur Lodeh (Indonesian Vegetable Stew With Compressed Rice Cakes)

Spice paste ingredients:

• 5 shallots or 1 medium red onion diced
• 3 cloves garlic
• 1 inch 2.5 cm. galangal
• ½ inch fresh turmeric or 1 teaspoon turmeric powder
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• 4 birds eye chilies or to taste
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice

Soup:

• 1 medium size russet potato peeled and diced into 1-inch (2.5 cm.) pieces
• 3 tablespoon oil
• 14 oz. tempeh cut into 1cm cubes
• 1 Chinese eggplant cut in half the long way, and sliced in 1 cm. sections
• 6 Thai eggplant quartered
• 2 small tomatoes quartered
• 13.5 oz coconut milk
• 3 ⅓ cups 800 ml. unsalted vegetable stock, or water
• 2 teaspoons salt or to taste
• 2 tablespoons coconut sugar palm sugar, or brown sugar
• 4 Indonesian daun salam Indonesian bay leaves, or two regular bay leaves
• 8 snake beans long beans, or string beans cut into 2-inch sections
• 2 additional whole bird’s eye chilies optional

To serve:

• 2 lontongs cut into large pieces
• sambal oelek
• cilantro leaves
• thinly sliced scallions