[akiko]

I had the opportunity to spend a bit of time in Bali last month. I wasn't expecting much on the culinary front as I didn't really know much about Balinese or Indonesian food, and what I did know was not particularly promising.

I mean, Nasi Goreng is nice but its just stir fried rice. And gado gado is just a salad. And just about every culture in the world does sate. But I was wrong. Indonesian food is a fusion of chinese/thai/and indian cooking with elements that the dutch and then the new world have added in. Its captured my attention and I've been poring over Indonesian spice paste recipes and rice flour based desserts ever since.

First there were the basics:

Nasi Goreng



Okay, Nasi Goreng at the end of the day is still only going to be stir fried rice. But the versions we found in Bali ranged from nasty to downright delicious. The more amazing versions inevitably are begun with complex spice pastes that are sizzled in the wok before cold rice is added in. This was a good one with a fried egg and then Krupuk - indonesian fried rice cracker laid on top. I really like their various krupuks and the textural addition of something crunchy with the fried rice is a good one.

Satay


And then there is satay, which is good but again, just meat on a stick. The balinese version comes in several varieties. Here you have chicken, pork, and beef on a charcoal table top grill. It comes with two dipping sauces - a peanut and a soy/sugar/chili one. I much preferred the satay they call Sate Lilit, made with minced and spiced fish or meat but I'll get to that later.

Gado Gado



A salad, nice but I fail to understand why this has become so well known outside of Indonesia. Not when there is food a hundred times more interesting in Bali.

Food like Babi Guling. Babi Guling is made all over the island but the Gianyar area and Ubud is particularly known for the dish. There is a little shack operation in Ubud just beside Ubud palace called Ibu Oka. Ibu Oka is famous for her Babi Guling, better known as suckling pig to us westerners.

Her version is amongst the best I've ever had. She stuffs the pig with a complex homemade spice paste (I wrote the ingredients down, I'll add them here tomorrow) and pit roasts the thing. Here is the result:



there are three items on the menu - "special", regular, and pisah. This is the special. Roasted pork with the crackling (and oh, it is amazing crackling) served over a bed of rice (In balinese meals rice is king and considered the main course of the meal, everything else is a side or condiment for the rice) and some special bits like blood sausage and pieces of offal . Really incredible food. The meal, including beverage cost us just over £1.



To give you an idea on prices, approx 17,500 Rupiah's to the Pound Sterling.



Here is one of the pig carcasses. If anyone has any idea how they get such amazing crackling, I'd like to know. China/SE Asia manage to get this crackling on their pork dishes that is flat and crisp, shiny, and ever so delicious. I don't seem to be able to replicate that in my oven, and I'd like to.

more to come...

[Elissa]

Thanks akiko, nice pics and write up. I also fell madly for the food when I was there, ten days in Ubud and 4 at the 4 Seasons, where I took a cooking course. I agree though: have not once seen the cuisine done so well outside of Bali - certainly nowhere in NYC compares. It seems as if Balinese cooking is lighter (without sacrificing flavor) than much of the other Indonesian cuisine I've had - but again, that's just what I've gleaned from restaurant fare.

[Rail Paul]

Thanks for sharing this, akiko. The pictures look mouth watering, and I love the plating.

[Wilfrid1]

Great stuff. My father loved Bali and holidayed there several times, but knowing him he spent meal-times searching for egg and chips.

[akiko]

A few other typical Indonesian dishes:

I am not a fan of rice pudding (I had a roomate at university who liked to take the leftover hot rice from the cooker, pour milk over it, sprinkle in some sugar, and maybe some cinnamon and eat it with a spoon. I used to stare at her in horror... and then I described this act of sacrilege to my husband one night and to my dismay he thought it sounded wonderful and now makes and eats this for dessert).



However, this dish is rather lovely. Black rice in sweetened coconut milk and lovely creamy bananas that you can get many varieties of in Bali. Its called Bubur Injin and the flavour of that toothsome glutinous rice is wonderfully nutty.

And this is Sate Lilit. Its minced sate mixed with a spice paste and then wrapped around a stalk of lemongrass to be grilled. Sort of like a seekh kebab but much more subtle in flavor. This particular one is chicken but we also had fish and pork versions, all really wonderful.




Both of the dishes above were had at Kopi Pot on Jalan Legian in Kuta. They are justifiably well known for their coffee which is done really well at quite a few places in Bali.

Indonesia is the world's third largest producer of coffee. Robusta and Arabica is grown as well as a very special coffee deveoped that is famous in Bali. There is an animal in Indonesai known as lubak (a type of wildcat) that likes to eat ripe coffee cherries which are indigestible.... They say that these beans make for a very rich strong coffee. I wouldn't know, I didn't get the opportunity to try it

But Kopi Bali is strong, sweet, and brewed a bit on the gritty side. I loved it, smoother and richer than a turkish coffee.

Here is my iced latte at a serious cafe in Ubud (just down the street from Ibu Oka).



Fresh fruit juice is easily found everywhere in Bali



honeydew melon, mango, watermelon, limeade, lime and lemongrass, soursop, pineapple - if they have the fruit, they will juice it for you. Including the juice of this -



This is salak or snakefruit. You peel the outer snakey skin to reveal chestnut looking fruit with a very fine translucent inner skin covering it. You peel off that translucent skin and then crunch your way into the fruit. Sweet and tart, that leaves a bit of a tannic dry feeling in your mouth. Its lovely, crisp and cool, perfect for munching and the drink it makes is a nice balance of sweet and sour.

more to follow...

[akiko]

Markets

I went to two - Denpasar and Jimbaran markets, while I didn't find them as stunning as other markets in asia, they were fascinating.

Denpasar



These are row after row of rice flour based desserts. The pile of fluffy pink things are very addictive. Its simply a rice flour based cupcake, just barely sweet but extremely moist and almost chewy to eat. I woke up on the morning we were leaving determined to buy several to have on the airplane... but couldn't find them anywhere on the way to the airport. I haven't found a recipe for them yet either.




Corn is a major new world addition into the balinese diet. You see roasted corn vendors on the sides of the street as well as rolling their trolleys along the beach to sell. This woman will sell you ears of corn, grind the corn into flour for you, or sell you the freshly shucked kernels.



Balinese women carry any and everything on their head. The woman with a huge basket is one of many wallahs who will ask if you want her to carry your purchases for you. I saw women produce vendors balance table, chair, and large boxes of produce all on their head, walk through the market to her spot and set it all up.



Materials for spice pastes. I don't have a picture of it but there is a shrimp paste sold in Bali that is by far the best shrimp paste I've ever seen. It comes in a long rectangle (like a stick of butter) wrapped in a white plastic packaging. It is fragrantly rich, soft, and easily crumbled. I bought lots, wrapped it several times in plastic bags and brought it home. The wrapping didn't stop it from smelling up all the clothes in my case.

Jimbaran Market


More rice flour snacks.



Pork that was still warm from the slaughter. It was less than 3 hours since the pig had met its maker.

And then over to Jimbaran Bay Fish Market. It was actually a bit sad to see. The market is still large and bustling but has nowhere near the quality that it ought to. The waters around Bali have been severely over fished and no one is doing anything to stop it. The young aren't being allowed to grow and reproduce, instead they are being caught and sold with everything else with no care taken for the restocking of the waters. The government in Bali has yet to do anything about it. To make matters worse, its not the Balinese that are profiting from this. The Balinese are extremely superstitious. They believe that the spirits of the ancestors float out above the waters and you never know what might happen to you if you venture out onto it. So, not many Balinese know how to swim, let alone become fishermen. It's Indonesians from Java who plunder the fish supply and take the rupiahs with them back to Java.

There was, however, this beauty. Squid so fresh that the stripe along its back was still changing colour when you stroked it.



And I was sad to see this.



Rays and Turtles are my favorite things to follow when diving or snorkeling. They make you feel extremely peaceful when you watch their graceful swimming. What does a ray taste like anyhow? I've never had one, I'd much rather swim with it.

[Wilfrid1]

Ooh, squid stroking. Wonderful pictures.

[akiko]

Thank you Wilf, the squid stroking is rather a favourite of mine. I have more stuff on Bali... I just wasn't sure if anyone was interested or if anyone was looking at these, so I wasn't bothering... but for you..

Bumbu Bali

Heinz Von Holzen runs a half day cooking class, a restaurant, a bed and breakfast, and writes cookbooks, styles and photographs food, and is a really serious cyclist on the side (he had gone on an 8 hour bike ride up and around the volcanoes the day before I met him). Here are some of the pictures from what we cooked. I'd say that if you are in Bali, a meal at Bumbu Bali should not be missed. Several recipes are also on his website go here:

bumbu bali

(by the way, bumbu means spice paste)

Heinz's team gets you up at an ungodly hour to take you around the markets and explain the staples that "mama bali" (his term) buys for her kitchen. We saw some ancient looking women weave basket packets to cook rice in that were origami-like in their complexity. Birds and boxes of different shapes woven from coconut leaves that become beautiful packages of steamed rice. I took a film clip but sadly had to delete it because it took so much space up on my memory stick and I couldn't get to a computer in time to download it.



And after waking up so early and strenuously walking about the market Heinz feeds you breakfast. And an amazing breakfast it is too. Fresh squeezed juice of your choice and bali kopi is offered and then these dishes set out for you to dig into. In the bowl at the top of the plate is glutinous rice dumplings with palm sugar syrup inside as well as in the sauce around it. And the bowl beneath it is mung bean porridge with ginger.

We were then hurried into the kitchen to begin pounding, grinding, mixing, simmering, and listening to Heinz's knowledge and his joking (he has a very dry sense of humour).

Here are the base curry pastes simmering away -



In the big pots, curry paste for seafood, chicken, beef, and an all purpose. (recipes on his website).

And several hours later, here are some of the fruits of our effort.



Going from the centre to one o'clock and then counter clockwise -

Nasi Goreng - by far the most delicious I've ever had. Its a version that incorporates both rice and noodles but what made is so tasty is the spice paste base.
I think the next one is kanklung (water spinach) in coconut milk sauce.
Yellow rice (turmeric)
Gado Gado
Pork in Sweet Soy (this also is a great version of the dish, recipe on his website)
Chicken Curry
On the big plate in the parcels are steamed and spiced fish, duck, and pork (depending on the parcel shape it denotes a different type of meat). these were delicious and again the recipes are on his website. Be warned, you'll need to hone your origami skills to fold that banana leaf correctly. And you want to warm the banana leaf over the stove top just a few seconds on each side to make it pliable. Banana leaf will tear when you fold it if you don't heat it to make it pliable first.

there were a billion other dishes that I neglected to photo, I was too busy sampling. The class is well worth doing.



The dipping sauces -tomato sambal, lemongrass dressing, and sweetened soy with chilis and a vinegared cucumber relish.

[Lippy]

Looking at these beautiful pictures is a vacation in itself.

[Daisy]

Thank you, akiko. This is fascinating.

[akiko]

And the restaurant.

He does such a good job showcasing Balinese Cuisine. The restaurant is set up with an open kitchen and then much of the dining room is also open air with individual "thatched" roofing over parts of the dining areas. You can order ala carte but the menu is designed as a rijstaffle (set menu designed around rice, a concept leftover from the dutch).

You are greeted at the doorway by one of the waitstaff who will put a frangipani blossom behind one of your ears (boys too) and then shown to your table. Chris and I opted for two different rijstaffle, the seafood and the regular one. It was way too much food. But we were happy to try everything.

The meal starts with salads and sates



Sambel be Tongkol - Tuna Salad
Sate Sampi, Ayam, Lilit - Beef, Chicken and Seafood Sate
Peanut Dressing
Lawar Ayam - Vegetable Chicken Salad

Then to soups



spicy coconut milk base soup



And a chicken broth.

To tell you the truth, I wasn't so crazy about either of these soups, not well balanced in spice or flavour.



And this would be the main course in the seafood rijstaffle

Pesan be Pasih -Minced Fish Grilled in Banana Leaf
Ikan Bakar - Whole Fish Marinated and Grilled
Hasil Laut Bumbu Kuning -Seafood in Yellow Coconut Sauce
Cumi Cumi Panggang -Marinated, Grilled Squid
Sayur - Three Daily Vegetables

I love that their word for squid is cumi cumi (their c is pronounced as ch, so it becomes chew me, chew me! ). Squid in Bali, on the whole, is of excellent quality and prepared so that its tender and flavourful.



And the regular rijstaffle main course

Ayam Betutu - Roast Chicken in Banana Leaf
Be Celeng Base Manis - Pork in Sweet Soya Sauce
Be Sampi Mebase Bali - Braised Beef in Coconut Milk
Kambing Mekuah -Lamb Stew in Coconut Milk
Ikan Bakar -Grilled Fish Fillet
Pesan be Pasih -Minced Fish Grilled in Banana Leaf
Sayur - Three Daily Vegetables

And of course, all that food is actually just side dishes to the main of rice -



Balinese Red, White and Yellow rice.

Dessert looked much like the breakfast plate that Heinz served us before our cooking class.

[Wilfrid1]

akiko, on Sep 15 2005, 01:01 PM, said:

Thank you Wilf, the squid stroking is rather a favourite of mine. I have more stuff on Bali... I just wasn't sure if anyone was interested or if anyone was looking at these, so I wasn't bothering... but for you.

Sometimes the most worthy reports get little response, simply because other members haven't been to the destination and have little to add. But they are valued nonetheless.

[akiko]

.....I'm not kidding when I say I have more stuff on Bali....

There is a very hip area developing in Seminyak, I suspect that in a few years it will have developed beyond recognition. Besides the stylish boutiques the Legian and Oberoi hotels are located there (although, I didn't think much of the Legian, the Oberoi is pretty amazing). Also, numerous bars and restaurants.

There is a large Club - Bar - Restaurant on the beach called KuDeTa. I wasn't particularly looking forward to going. I expected it to be hipper than thou but had heard so much about the space that we went for a drink. When we called to make the reservation we were told that the evening was an event night and everyone was asked to come completely dressed in white

I was wrong, although there were people lounging about the bar and deck on the beach covered in more jewelry than their bikinis and (lowers her voice) lots of eurotrash, there were also plenty of families, a mother and child hanging out in the small wading pool, and surfers climbing out of the waves dripping wet with no shoes on who just walk into the bar area and plop themselves down on the benches and order drinks. The overall atmosphere is one of just kick back and relax, I really liked it. So much that we came back again for drinks and then once for dinner and once for Mezze in the bar.

KuDeTa

I'll apologize in advance for the quality of most of these photos. In the evening, KuDeTa is lit completely by candles and using the flash on my camera would have caused a lot of distraction as well as caused the photos to look too severe. So I tried using the night setting for which you need to be able to hold the camera very still for a prolonged amount of time to work. Even the fact that your heart is beating causes too much of a tremor for the pictures to come out sharply. I needed a tripod... but a tripod on the table wouldn't have been very conducive to a relaxed meal out .



The full menu is on the website and I have to say, the food is done very well. This was the second surprise because I didn't expect it to be good and it was. When we went for dinner we started with Pork Belly starter and a scallop cake



Pork Belly, juicy, succulent, with crisp cracking crackling. I'd go back and just to eat this...



Scallop cake in the style of a crab cake. This too was wonderful. Creamy lusciousness of scallops in a crisp breading, even nicer than a crabcake.



Chris had the Barramundi baked in parchment. I'd never had Barramundi before, the meat is lovely, meaty yet light. Took on the butter sauce perfectly.



And my main, lobster spaghetti.



Probably the least well executed of all the dishes, but that's not to say it wasn't good. Powerful but balanced spicing, okay noodles, good lobster.

And we finished with the double baked ricotta souffle with blueberry ice cream. I forgot to take a picture. We were so impressed with the hot souffle and the blueberry ice cream that was screaming to be eaten before it melted as it perched on the top of the souffle. I'd never had blueberry ice cream... oh, so good. We had decided to share dessert, boy was that a mistake.

Here's the dish less than a minute later



A picture of KuDeTa in the day - back deck that opens onto the beach



Their mezze was good too. They make their kibbeh in an elongated (small cigar) shape with mozzarella melting in the center. Its a nice twist to the original and a good match.

[g.johnson]

What Wilf said. This is great stuff.

[akiko]

Whatever you do, don't believe all the reviews concerning Gado Gado. Gado Gado is the sister restaurant to KuDeTa, just down the beachfront, it is the older less funky establishment for the group. The food is downright blah. I have pictures of the meal, but I'm not posting them because the pics actually look good, whereas the food definitely was not. It does have a very pretty location. If you must, go for a drink.

Then on the other hand, while I expected absolutely nothing from PJ's (the beachfront restaurant at the Four Seasons) It was actually very decent.

But the thing you should absolutely not miss doing if you are there in the summer months, is to see if Big Tree Farm is hosting a firefly dinner while you are there.

Big Tree

I cannot do justice to the wonderful things that these guys are doing for Bali - the land, the people, and their economy. Go to the website to get a taste of their work.

On top of all the wonderful farming and salt works and products they turn out, they also host dinner at their farm once every two weeks in the summer months. A car and driver will come collect you and drive you about an hour north of Tanah Lot. You pass through forests of bamboo arching over the road, across rice terraces, and finally up into the jungle where Big Tree Farm is located. The drive runs through some of the prettiest most unspoilt land I saw in Bali and that alone would have made it worth the trip.

But then you arrive at the farm -



Rows of veg



Beautiful Kale



Table of freshly picked produce



And then you get to sample the wonderful thing that is a vegetable that has just been pulled out of the ground (something that we city girls who grew up reading "Little House on the Prairie" have always dreamed of doing).







And their spices too



From 1 o clock clockwise you have cocoa, sea salt, balinese long pepper, mace, and I have no idea what is at 12:00... the english that was spoken by the staff was very limited and I never got a good explanation, and it didn't really taste like much of anything.