In keeping with Hindu dietary restrictions, beef is seldom served in a Balinese household. That doesn’t mean it’s forbidden though! Meat in Bali, is always cooked with a pile of fresh spices that tenderize, preserve, uplift and nurture. It’s also about aiding digestion and a...
Black rice pudding is one of Bali’s most famous desserts that, once upon a time, used to feature on the breakfast menu of most simple guesthouses around the island. Traditionally served as an in-between snack, it’s glossy blackness and almost chocolatey flavour makes it both...
One of Indonesia’s national treasures, and also found in Malaysia and Singapore, rujak, is the ubiquitous afternoon snack. When the sun starts its descent and the heat of the day starts to dull the brain, just about every Balinese I know tucks into this action-packed...
Perhaps Indonesia’s national dish, nasi goreng is enjoying a curious renaissance, appearing in all shapes and sizes across the archipelago in oh-so creative combinations of meats, herbs and garnishes. If you wander through the food courts of Indonesia’s glam shopping malls, you will see modern...
Sambals are Indonesia’s essential condiments. Not a meal goes by in our house without a sambal being served alongside. Sambals come in all shapes and sizes, cooked in all sorts of ways and they vary from island to island. Some of these are also sold...
What a lovely evening. Our first long table dinner for the season. The atmosphere was glowing in that glorious Balinese candle-lit way. Wines were poured, food was served and conversation flowed. And everything was delicious! The menu, many of my favourites; prawns and coconut in banana leaves, braised chicken with...
It's on again! My long-table dinners at home celebrating some of my favourite Balinese food will be held during the month of July. Recipes from my cookbook, Bali:The Food of My Island Home, will be featured, made fresh from my own kitchen, using organic local...
Congratulations Surabaya. I have just returned from a long weekend from this bustling centre of commerce in East Java. I am impressed with the clean streets and rivers and the overall tidiness, thanks to Tri Rismaharini, Surabaya’s first female mayor, who is running Indonesia’s second...
[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="325"] Janet DeNeefe rendang version | Photo by Mark Roper[/caption] You would think I would be tired of eating Rendang by now. Only last month I made a long-awaited pilgrimage to Padang and Bukittinggi, West Sumatra, the revered home of Rendang, to savour...