Originally posted on March 07, 2013
TOOK an Indonesian culinary tour yesterday (March 6, 2013) without going to Indonesia. I actually just hopped over to Edsa Shangri-La Hotel’s HEAT, which was hosting an Indonesian lunch yesterday to formally open the Indonesian Berjalan-jalan food promotion that’s ongoing until March 20, 2013.
Guest Indonesian chef Didin Saepudin of Shangri-La Hotel Jakarta jetted in to Manila specifically for the food promotion, and yesterday when he gave members of the local food media and the officials of the Indonesian Embassy in Manila a taste of Indonesian cuisine, he really gave everyone an authentic Indonesian gastronomic experience. The function room in HEAT had an Indonesian feel to it, with long tables set with Indonesian fabric as tablecloth, and the buffet area in one corner teemed with authentic Indonesian dishes, starting with appetizers like Asinan Mangga (Pickled Mango), Ikan Acar Kuning (Fish with Yellow Pickle), Selada Udang dan Soun (Prawn and Glass Noodle Salad), Rujak Buah-Buahan (Mixed Fruits with Brown Sugar Sauce) and Karedok (Mixed Raw Vegetables with Peanut Sauce).
Individual servings of Soto Bandung (Beef Soup with Turnip) were served, a la carte style, and then it was back to the buffet table for the main courses of Nasi Kuning (Yellow Rice), Bihun Goreng (Fried Rice Noodles), Empal Daging (Fried Beef), Kare Kambing (Lamb Curry), Ayam Bakar Padang (Grilled Chicken Padang Style) and Tumis Cumi Cabe Hijau (Sautéed Squid with Green Chili). The carving of Kambing Guling (Roast Lamb) quickly commanded a short queue.
And, yes, Indonesians call their lamb kambing, which, in the Tagalog language, means goat.
Dessert was again served, a la carte style, in individual platters that came with three different desserts. I have yet to get the names of these desserts, as their names were not immediately available yesterday, but they bore stunning similarities to Filipino desserts. One, a banana fritter, reminded me of the local maruya. The pandan flavored balls rolled in fresh grated coconut seemed to me like a cross between our local pichi-pichi and the Singaporean ondeh-ondeh. The flat oval shaped delicacy dipped in coconut or palm sugar sauce was like our local palitaw in naked form. The dip was like a gula melaka sauce which I encountered in Singapore in the past.
Berjalan-jalan Indonesia offers diners at HEAT a taste of authentic Indonesian cuisine. On a daily basis, several Indonesian dishes will be prepared by Chef Didin and the Edsa Shangri-La kitchen team and incorporated into the daily lunch and dinner buffets. These dishes, which put together a festive presentation of Indonesia’s colorful cuisine, culture and multi-ethnicity, are sure to delight diners with curiously familiar tastes (as a lot of dishes are similar to Filipino dishes, only rendered in a more spicy way) mixed with unique flavors from Java, Sumatra, Sulawesi and the rest of the Indonesian regions, where different spices grow in abundance and are thus used heavily in Indonesian cooking.
Indonesian cuisine is quite interesting, really, and a taste of it educates the palate and makes it more sophisticated and knowledgeable to identify a wider spectrum of flavors.
