The Art of Sumatran Cooking
As the 17th century traveler Sir John Chardin noted, religion-as well as history and geography-has always played an important role in determining a people's diet. And so it is in Sumatra. Pork is the major dietary barrier separating the island's Muslim majority from the Christian minority. Christian Bataks around Lake Toba and elsewhere in North Sumatra eat pork (sometimes also dog). and in their village settlements they often keep pigs. For Muslims, however, the pig is ritually unclean, and may only be eaten if one is faced with starvation.
Muslims nevertheless enjoy many other meats-including the flesh of buffaloes, goats, ducks, lambs, chickens and fish-as well as eggs, fruits and vegetables. Since the 1970s, however, many Sumatran Muslims have developed an additional concern for whether or not the meat they are served is halal-slaughtered according to Islamic law by cutting the animal's throat while uttering the name of Allah.
History and geography are also important, of course. After centuries of trading contacts, Sumatran cooking now reflects influences from all around the archipelago (Java, Manado, Bali) as well as from abroad (India, Middle East, China, Holland).In the North Sumatran capital of Medan, for example, you will find several dishes that show a distinct Indian and Arab influence alongside the usual Indonesia dishes. This can be seen in the use of dried seeds and aromatic spices such as coriander, cumin, fennel, cardamom and cinnamon in the preparation of goat dishes. Gulai kumah and gulai bagar are two goat curries which are rich in flavor, but unlike native Sumatran dishes not particularly spicy.
Near the coasts, seafood features prominently on most restaurant menus. One of the most popular dishes in Palembang, South Sumatra, is empek-empek-a fish dumpling (sometimes also stuffed with egg) served hot with a bowl of spicy sauce made of chili, garlic, dried prawns, palm sugar, soya sauce and vinegar. In addition, Palembang is known throughout Indonesia for the quality of its kerupuk (deep-fried tapioca crackers flavored with seafood and spices), since the kerupuk made here have a higher proportion of fish or prawn than those produced elsewhere in the archipelago.
Near the coasts, seafood features prominently on most restaurant menus. One of the most popular dishes in Palembang, South Sumatra, is empek-empek-a fish dumpling (sometimes also stuffed with egg) served hot with a bowl of spicy sauce made of chili, garlic, dried prawns, palm sugar, soya sauce and vinegar. In addition, Palembang is known throughout Indonesia for the quality of its kerupuk (deep-fried tapioca crackers flavored with seafood and spices), since the kerupuk made here have a higher proportion of fish or prawn than those produced elsewhere in the archipelago.
Some like it hot!
Sumatra has many regional cooking styles, however the best-known is undoubtedly masakan padang-the fiery-hot cuisine of the Minangkabau of West Sumatra, named after the provincial capital of Padang. Padang-style restaurants are found throughout Indonesia, and a number of Padang dishes have achieved nationoal and even international popularity. Today, the famous meat dish known as rendang is served in restaurants as far afield as Tokyo, New York and London, and can be found in almost every Dutch town.
Rendang is usually made with beef, cut up into cubes and cooked in coconut cream with a spices mixture of garlic, shallots, chillies, turmeric, galangal, green ginger (all finely ground), lemon grass, kaffir lime leaves, turmeric leaves and salt. Special care and attention are required during cooking so the mixture does not curdle or the pieces of meat disintegrate. One the coconut cream reaches boiling point, the heat is reduced and the cooking continues until the mixture thickens. When finished, the rendang sauce turns to a rich, dark brown residue, but the pieces of meat should still be intact and slightly crisp on the outside.
The prolonged cooking and the spices, especially the chilles, preserve the meat, and it is common for rendang to be taken along on long journeys, such the pilgrimage to Mecca, Rendang is then both reminder of home and a handy dish that saves time-as no cooking is needed apart from boiling the rice to eat with it! Solicitous Sumatran mothers cook, pack and send it to their children studying or working in the outer islands. If you eat rendang-and you should be sure not to miss it-be warned not to put a whole piece in your mouth at once. It is far too rich and spicy to be eaten whole. Break off a small part, then fold it into a spoonful of rice if you want to enjoy it. One should treat all spicy meat dishes with similar respect.
Padang restaurants, wherever you find them, have a unique way of serving their dishes which never fails to intrigue visitors from abroad. There is no need to order-soon after you sit down, the waiter arrives at your table with an array of small dishes precariously poised along both arms, and deposits them all on the table. You eat whatever you fancy from among these many dishes-sampling the curiied eggs, fish, vegetables, chicken and meat, knowing you will only be charged for the number of pieces of egg, fish, chicken or meat that you eat. The sauce is free, and there are stories of skinflints who take a spoonful of sauce from each dish to flavor their rice to have a cheap meal!
Experienced Padang restaurant-goers know exactly which dishes go well together, and make their choice accordingly. Those who are less experienced my find they end up with a plate full of clashing flavors. If in doubt, ask the proprietor for a nasi raes. This is a plate of white rice with several bits of meat and vegetable on top, sprinkled with gravy and serundeng (grated coconut, roasted with peanuts) and topped off with a kerupuk. It generally ends up being cheaper than getting the whole smorgasboard.
As is the custom throughout Indonesia, you eat with your right hand by compressing a bit of rice, meat and curry together with the tips of your fingers and pushing it into your mouth. Forks and spoons are also often provided now, but it is very bad form to stick the spoon you use for eating into the dishes of curry. Use a separate spoon for this!
The normal evening meal for a middle class family consists of four or five dishes and rice. These may include one or two meat dishes-say gulai ayam (curried chicken soup) and dendeng (sun-dried spicy beef)-as well as a vegetable dish, such as cucumber salad, and a selection of condiments such as sambal (chilli paste), pickles (acar) and kerupuk. The rice supplies the bulk of the meal, and its blandness is ideal for absorbing and combining the flavors of the various dishes.
Of course not all Padang cooking is hot. Try opor ayam (chicken simmered in corander and coconut cream), ayam goreng (crisp fried chicken), or-a dish that all foreigners like-pergedel (meat and potato croquettes). Other dishes are prepared with only small amounts of chilli, such as gado gado (vegetable salad with peanut sauce), and sate. The latter is found all over Indonesia and consits of pieces of meat marinated in spices and placed on bamboo skewers, then grilled over a bed of charcoal and served with sweet-spicy ground peanut sauce.
A special type of sate prepared in Padang needs a chapter all by itself. It consits of pieces of heart, tongue and tripe boiled in finely ground spices-coriander, cumin, galangal, turmeric, ginger, garlic, chili and shallots-plus kaffirlemon leaf, lemon grass and salt. The meat is then cut into small pieces and threaded onto skewers. The broth of the meat is thickened with rice flour to make a pale yellow sauce. Sprinkled with fried onions, sate padang is a feast for the eyes as well as the stomach!
Vegetarians will delight in the variety of tempe dishes found in West Sumatra. Tempe is a kind of soybean cake prepared from boiled beans which are allowed to ferment, a process that takes three days. The finished product is firm and compact-the beans tightly bound together and covered evenly with a light coating of white mold, with an aroma reminiscent of fresh mushrooms. Tempe is a very cheap source of high-quality protein and is crunchy and tasty when fried. It may also be curried or stir-fried with vegetables, potatoes and chilies.
The prolonged cooking and the spices, especially the chilles, preserve the meat, and it is common for rendang to be taken along on long journeys, such the pilgrimage to Mecca, Rendang is then both reminder of home and a handy dish that saves time-as no cooking is needed apart from boiling the rice to eat with it! Solicitous Sumatran mothers cook, pack and send it to their children studying or working in the outer islands. If you eat rendang-and you should be sure not to miss it-be warned not to put a whole piece in your mouth at once. It is far too rich and spicy to be eaten whole. Break off a small part, then fold it into a spoonful of rice if you want to enjoy it. One should treat all spicy meat dishes with similar respect.
Padang restaurants, wherever you find them, have a unique way of serving their dishes which never fails to intrigue visitors from abroad. There is no need to order-soon after you sit down, the waiter arrives at your table with an array of small dishes precariously poised along both arms, and deposits them all on the table. You eat whatever you fancy from among these many dishes-sampling the curiied eggs, fish, vegetables, chicken and meat, knowing you will only be charged for the number of pieces of egg, fish, chicken or meat that you eat. The sauce is free, and there are stories of skinflints who take a spoonful of sauce from each dish to flavor their rice to have a cheap meal!
Experienced Padang restaurant-goers know exactly which dishes go well together, and make their choice accordingly. Those who are less experienced my find they end up with a plate full of clashing flavors. If in doubt, ask the proprietor for a nasi raes. This is a plate of white rice with several bits of meat and vegetable on top, sprinkled with gravy and serundeng (grated coconut, roasted with peanuts) and topped off with a kerupuk. It generally ends up being cheaper than getting the whole smorgasboard.
As is the custom throughout Indonesia, you eat with your right hand by compressing a bit of rice, meat and curry together with the tips of your fingers and pushing it into your mouth. Forks and spoons are also often provided now, but it is very bad form to stick the spoon you use for eating into the dishes of curry. Use a separate spoon for this!
The normal evening meal for a middle class family consists of four or five dishes and rice. These may include one or two meat dishes-say gulai ayam (curried chicken soup) and dendeng (sun-dried spicy beef)-as well as a vegetable dish, such as cucumber salad, and a selection of condiments such as sambal (chilli paste), pickles (acar) and kerupuk. The rice supplies the bulk of the meal, and its blandness is ideal for absorbing and combining the flavors of the various dishes.
Of course not all Padang cooking is hot. Try opor ayam (chicken simmered in corander and coconut cream), ayam goreng (crisp fried chicken), or-a dish that all foreigners like-pergedel (meat and potato croquettes). Other dishes are prepared with only small amounts of chilli, such as gado gado (vegetable salad with peanut sauce), and sate. The latter is found all over Indonesia and consits of pieces of meat marinated in spices and placed on bamboo skewers, then grilled over a bed of charcoal and served with sweet-spicy ground peanut sauce.
A special type of sate prepared in Padang needs a chapter all by itself. It consits of pieces of heart, tongue and tripe boiled in finely ground spices-coriander, cumin, galangal, turmeric, ginger, garlic, chili and shallots-plus kaffirlemon leaf, lemon grass and salt. The meat is then cut into small pieces and threaded onto skewers. The broth of the meat is thickened with rice flour to make a pale yellow sauce. Sprinkled with fried onions, sate padang is a feast for the eyes as well as the stomach!
Vegetarians will delight in the variety of tempe dishes found in West Sumatra. Tempe is a kind of soybean cake prepared from boiled beans which are allowed to ferment, a process that takes three days. The finished product is firm and compact-the beans tightly bound together and covered evenly with a light coating of white mold, with an aroma reminiscent of fresh mushrooms. Tempe is a very cheap source of high-quality protein and is crunchy and tasty when fried. It may also be curried or stir-fried with vegetables, potatoes and chilies.
Drinks and snacks
Beer goes very well with most Sumatran dishes-the high-quality Bir Bintang and Anker produced in Indonesia is brewed according to traditional Dutch methods. The religious prohibition against imbibing alcoholic beverages does not command universal observance in Sumatra, and foreigners drinking beer generally do not cause offense. Locals, however, usually prefer to drink weak plain tea or iced water with their meals.
There is, incidentally, one locally produced food which is mildly alcoholic. Sumatrans are very fond of between-meal snacks, and one of the favorites is tapai, sometimes spelled tape. Sumatran tapai is prepared from boiled or steamed black glutinous rice. Once the rice is cooled, it is sprinkled with a special yeast called ragi tape ; two tablets are needed each kilo of rice. The rice then is placed in a basin with a lid, and wrapped in cloth and left in a warn place for three or four days to ferment.
When it is ready, the mixture is slightly effervescent and has a port-like fragrance. It is usually served with lemang-white glutinous rice cooked in a bamboo container lined with young banana leaves in thick, salted coconut cream. (Surprisingly, tapaialso goes very well with vanilla ice cream!). It is available everyday in central Sumatra, but is especially popular during the fasting month, and around Idul Fitri (the fastive celebration of the end of the fasting month).
Another popular snack specific to the region is dadih (buffalo yoghurt). It is sold in a small bamboo container and served with emping-glutinous rice flakes rinsed with boiling water to soften them-topped with freshly grated coconut and brown palm sugar. It is very filling meal. Dadih is sold in almost every kedai or lepau (foodstall) all over the island.
On the road
When you travel by bus in Sumatra, foodseellers swarm around at every stop and bus terminal, calling out their wares. In their baskets are hard-boiled, salted duck eggs, tasty maize fritters, crispy fried banana slices (rakik), pieces of chopped sugarcane, and a variety of sweetmeats in banana leaves.
Practically every bus stop in Sumatra has one or two local specialities, and the same goes for train stations. Local women who are traveling on the buses will often buy a selection of these as gifts (oleh-oleh). When they visit relatives, it is unthinkable to arrive at a house empty-handed-one must have something to "open the door," as the say. There are always children around, and small gifts for them are always warmly welcomed.
Practically every bus stop in Sumatra has one or two local specialities, and the same goes for train stations. Local women who are traveling on the buses will often buy a selection of these as gifts (oleh-oleh). When they visit relatives, it is unthinkable to arrive at a house empty-handed-one must have something to "open the door," as the say. There are always children around, and small gifts for them are always warmly welcomed.
The all-purpose banana leaf
Banana leaves, which can be found in abundance everywhere throughout the archipelago, are indispensable in all kinds of situations. They are tough, but when heated, are pliable and easily folded. They are mostly used to wrap food for steaming or cooking over charcoal, and as a wrapper for take-away food bought at a kedai or lepau. Small items and vegetables bought at the local market, such as tapai, bean sprouts or chillies, are usually wrapped up in banana leaves.
At a local lepau or kedai (foodstall), banana leaves may also serve as disposable plates or plate covers. They meet many needs for which we in the West use cling-wrap or aluminium foil. May they never give way to plastic which cannot be disposed of easily. Banana leaves are bio-degradable and a renewable resource!
