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Food |
| Exotic
Cuisine |
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A few years
ago, the only chicken to be found was the skinny, sinewy kampung
(village) variety, but nowadays there are juicy drumsticks, Javanese-style
fried chicken, ayam suharti, ayam chichi, and ayam timbungan
with curry. When in Denpasar, try the ayam taliwang, a superb chicken
recipe from Lombok. Beef consumption is limited in Bali because cows and
buffaloes are needed as draught animals in the paddy fields. Pork is,
however, consumed avidly by Balinese, the urban Chinese and the non-Malay
population. The favorite animal protein of Bali's Indian population is
mutton. Other main sources of protein are fish, poultry, eggs and soybean.
Soybean produces hearty organic foods such as tofu and tempeh (fermented
soybean cake).
The centerpiece
of any Indonesian meal is steamed or boiled rice. Any dish with the word
"nasi" in front of it means that it is prepared or served with rice. Nasi
Campur is the common fare in Indonesia, which is actually a heap of
steamed rice topped with vegetables, meat, pickles and krupuk (crackers).
Krupuk is a large, crispy, tangy, oversized cracker made from crab meat,
fish flakes, shrimp paste, or even fruit mixed with rice, flour or sago
flour. It is first dried to resemble thin, colored plastic and then deep
fried in oil.
Very popular
is nasi goreng, a soft and crunchy fried rice dish presented by
countless restaurants as a standard dish. Mie goreng signify wheat-flour
noodles fried in coconut oil, with eggs, meat or seafood, tomatoes, cucumber,
shrimp paste, spices and chilies. Both nasi goreng and mie goreng are
common breakfast dishes. If you see "istimewa" or special written
after either dish, it usually means that it is topped with a fried egg.
Another widely
available snack is Javanese-style sate, which is included in most
menus. These are savory, marinated mini-kebabs of chicken, beef or mutton
that are impaled on skewers of coconut palms, grilled over an open charcoal
fire, and dipped into a spicy peanut sauce before consumption. Balinese
sate are made from minced meat laden with freshly grated coconut,
prawn paste, garlic, chilies, lemon leaves and salt to compose a sticky,
dough-like mixture. This is then wrapped around a thick vein of bamboo
or sugarcane and eventually charcoal-grilled and served with either a
mild or peppery sauce. Shrimp, pork, intestines, eggs, turtle or dog meat
are popular.
There are
two Balinese specialties that should not be missed. 'Babi Guling'
and 'Bebek Betutu' are must-tries. The former is pieces of grilled
suckling pig with delicious crispy skin and the latter a duck delicacy,
where the fowl is marinated with many different herbs and spices, wrapped
in banana leaves and then baked over a low flame.
Dutch influence
can also be found in Balinese cuisine. A dish frequently encountered in
hotel restaurants is 'rijstaffel' (rice table), which is a sort
of Indonesian smorgasbord. During the colonial days, a ceremonial rijstaffel
could embrace as many as 35 courses. Today, five to ten courses are normally
offered. The total meal presents a variety of dishes, some sweet, others
spicy, and all to be eaten with boiled rice and condiments. Balinese-style
rijstaffel consists of well-seasoned regional fish, vegetable and
meat dishes, completed with black rice pudding for dessert. The rijstaffel
items are served in handmade pottery, and generally accompanied by a haunting
tingklik orchestra.
Gado-gado
is a healthy Javanese salad with a combination of potatoes and vegetables,
smothered with a hearty quantity of spicy peanut sauce - a boon for peanut
butter enthusiasts! This would cost around Rp. 5,000 to Rp. 15,000. Moreover,
gado-gado is of plant origins, thus suitable for vegetarians. Soto,
usually served for breakfast, comprises of santen or coconut cream that
is added to a soup. On the other hand, sop is synonymous to a meat
and vegetable stew except that only water is added. Chinese cap cai
is another widespread, nourishing dish, which is a type of meat and/or
vegetable chop suey.
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