Page 13 - EBOOK_81 Homestyle Recipes With The True Taste Of Indonesia

wonderful home cooked meal. I give thanks for this new happy moment. For just a

second, I close my eyes, I smell, I taste, and I am there again with the people who live
in that most treasured place in my memory.

People who are unfamiliar with Indonesian cuisine always ask me “what is it like?”
and I can only vaguely describe it as somewhere between Thai and Indian cuisine. It
shares Thai cuisine’s penchant for the intensely spicy and salty, and India’s passion
for rich curries. Really though, Indonesian food has its own unique range of flavors,
ingredients, and techniques. Indonesian cuisine’s unabashed use of fresh herbs and

spices (such as garlic, turmeric, shrimp paste, Kaffir lime leaves and galangal)
contribute to dishes that are fragrant and flavorful.

To have a complete grasp of Indonesian cuisine, it’s imperative to understand that,
from west to east, there are dramatically differing ingredients and techniques used in
preparing meats, seafood, and vegetables. They stem from cultural history and
traditions that existed long before modern day restaurants and fancy kitchens.

The beautiful island of Bali is famous for its fresh seafood, which is no surprise
considering the local abundance. But Bali differs from the rest of the nation in its
culinary treatment of fresh seafood and meats. The ever popular Bumbu Bali refers to
any seafood or meat that is first marinated in a rich coating of sweet soy sauce and a
garlicky thick, red chili paste before grilling on an open air flame. What results is a
succulent, sweet, and savory grilled meat or seafood dish with just a hint of spiciness.

Moving slightly west to the east coast of the main island of Java, is the metropolitan

city of Surabaya and its surrounding neighbors, such as Malang. This eastern region is
famous for its incredible desserts, including: old fashioned mocha cakes whipped up
by grandmas in batik sarongs using butter; sweet and fluffy breads that make you forget
all about calorie counting and the kind of ice cream cakes I had as a child that make
me now desperately wish I could turn back the hands of time.

On the west coast in the capital city of Jakarta and its neighbors, we find yet another
kind of indigenous Indonesian cuisine—rich curries simmering in old cauldrons, spicy

fruit salads made with stone mortar and pestles and dishes that reflect the influences of
foreign migrations into Indonesia in centuries past.

It’s the commitment to using fresh ingredients, organic ingredients before the word
organic became a fancy marketing gimmick; it’s the fearless and bold use of herbs and
spices and the relentless clinging to traditional methods that all come together to shape
this spectacular country’s unique and exotic foods.

Happy Cooking