Recipes

All recipes

Vegetarian, or something you can't eat? Set your diet once and we'll hide recipes that don't fit.

Filters (9)

609 recipes

Tum ayam (Balinese steamed spiced chicken parcels)

Tum ayam are small banana-leaf parcels made in Bali for Galungan and family ceremonies, when they appear on festive plates and in offerings alongside lawar and satay; wrapping the food in leaf is part of how Balinese cooking shows care for what is offered. Minced chicken is mixed with cooked base genep, a spoonful of coconut cream and shredded lime leaf, then folded into leaves and steamed until firm and juicy. The banana leaf gives a gentle, tea-like aroma, and the filling is spicy, fragrant and moist, like a soft spiced pâté. Serve the parcels with rice and a vegetable dish, letting everyone unwrap their own. Chef's tip: cool the fried paste completely before it meets the raw chicken, so the mixture stays cold and safe and the parcels hold their shape.

60 min

Indonesian Chicken

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Turrón de maníPeanut nougat

On an Argentine Christmas Eve, after midnight toasts, the 'mesa dulce' appears with pan dulce, garrapiñadas and turrón de maní: a chewy white nougat of honey, sugar, whipped egg white and roasted peanuts, often set between two sheets of rice paper. Families make it in the days before Nochebuena. The egg white is cooked by the hot syrup. It is gluten free if you use gluten-free wafer paper or none. Chef's tip: work fast once the syrup is in, as the nougat stiffens as it cools and gets hard to spread.

60 min

Argentinian Desserts

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Be celeng base manis (Balinese sweet soy pork)

Be celeng base manis means "pork in sweet spices" in Balinese, and it is cooked in Hindu households around Galungan, when pork is prepared on Penampahan, the day before the festival, and shared with family and the temple. Chunks of pork shoulder are braised slowly with plenty of shallots, garlic, ginger and galangal in kecap manis, the thick Indonesian sweet soy sauce, until the meat is soft and the sauce has turned dark, sticky and glossy. It is sweet, savoury and only gently warm, so it suits everyone at the table. Serve it with steamed rice, a crisp vegetable such as long beans and some sambal for those who want heat. Chef's tip: let the sauce reduce only in the last 15 minutes, uncovered, so it coats the pork without burning.

95 min

Indonesian Meat

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Jaja uli (Balinese pounded sticky rice cake)

Jaja uli is one of the rice cakes that Balinese families make in the days before Galungan, when the island celebrates the victory of dharma over adharma and the ancestors come home; it is stacked into the towering banten offerings and then shared and eaten. Glutinous rice is steamed, soaked in hot salted coconut milk, steamed again and then pounded until the grains break down into a dense, smooth, chewy block with a gentle coconut flavour. Slice it thickly and pour over warm palm sugar syrup, or toast the slices in a dry pan until crisp at the edges. A tall cup of tea or coffee is the perfect partner. Chef's tip: pound while the rice is still hot; once it cools, the grains won't knit together.

90 min

Indonesian Desserts

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Quinotos en almíbar (Argentine kumquats in syrup)

In Buenos Aires and the river provinces of the Litoral, kumquat trees ripen in the middle of winter, between June and August, and the fruit goes straight into jars of syrup. Grandmothers' pantries held quinotos for the whole year, brought out for birthdays and long Sunday lunches. Each little fruit turns glossy orange and translucent, with a soft, bittersweet skin and a sharp, juicy centre. Spoon them over vanilla ice cream, serve them with a slice of fresh cheese in the style of postre vigilante, or eat them straight from the jar. Many bar menus offer them steeped in spirits; this version keeps only the syrup. Naturally egg-free, the quinotos rely on sugar syrup to preserve them, while pectin from the peel gives the syrup a light, jammy body. Chef's tip: blanch the fruit three times from cold water; the common mistake is skipping this, which leaves the skins tough and bitter.

120 min

Argentinian Desserts

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Geplak (Bantul coconut sugar candy)

Drive south from Yogyakarta to Bantul and you pass shop after shop selling geplak, the brightly coloured coconut candy that Javanese travellers buy by the basket as oleh-oleh, a gift for the people back home. Freshly grated coconut is cooked in sugar syrup until it dries and begins to crystallise, then a spoonful of toasted rice flour pulls it together into a firm, sandy-textured sweet. It is very sweet and coconutty with a gentle pandan scent, and it crumbles softly when you bite it. Serve small pieces with strong Javanese coffee or tea. Geplak is naturally egg-free: the recrystallising sugar and the toasted rice flour are what bind the coconut and let it hold its shape. Chef's tip: cook over a medium heat rather than high; the common mistake is rushing, which browns the coconut and dulls those pastel colours.

80 min

Indonesian Desserts

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Tmar mehchi (Moroccan almond-stuffed dates)

Tmar mehchi is the stuffed date of Fez and Marrakech, piled high on silver trays at weddings, engagements and Eid, and offered to guests with mint tea. Soft dates are filled with a homemade almond paste perfumed with orange-blossom water, often tinted pale green or pink to match the celebration, then scored with a knife so the filling shows. They are soft, rich and caramel-sweet, with a floral, nutty middle. The paste here is mixed from ground almonds and icing sugar, so there is no shop marzipan, which can contain egg white. It is naturally egg-free: the dates' sticky flesh and a few spoonfuls of orange-blossom water bind the almond filling. Chef's tip: add the orange-blossom water a little at a time and stop when the paste is firm like play dough. The common mistake is a wet paste, which oozes out and makes the dates slippery.

30 min

Moroccan Desserts

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Balinese spiced roast pork belly (babi guling style)

Babi guling is the great feast dish of Bali for Galungan and temple ceremonies: at the festival, a whole pig is stuffed with spice paste and turned on a spit over a wood fire for hours. This home version uses a slab of skin-on pork belly instead, with the same base genep stuffing rubbed into the meat and the same goal: tender, spice-soaked pork under crisp, golden crackling. Turmeric, galangal, lemongrass and chilli give it heat and a bright yellow colour, and the pork fat keeps every slice juicy. Serve it sliced with steamed rice, a little of the cooked spice from the tin, long beans and a sharp, fresh sambal matah. Chef's tip: leave the skin uncovered in the fridge overnight; a really dry skin is the secret of crackling that shatters.

360 min

Indonesian Meat

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Jaja begina (Balinese sun-dried rice crackers)

Jaja begina are the round rice crackers that fill Balinese offering towers for Galungan; once the prayers are said, the crackers come home as a crunchy snack for everyone. Steamed glutinous rice is pressed into thin discs and dried in the sun for days until rock hard, and then a quick fry makes them puff up, turn pale gold and become light and crisp. A thread of warm palm sugar syrup over the top makes them sweet and sticky. Without strong sun, a low oven does the drying in an afternoon. Chef's tip: make a big batch of the dried discs; stored airtight they keep for months, and you can fry a few whenever you like.

120 min

Indonesian Snacks & Starters

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Urutan (Balinese spiced pork sausage)

Urutan is the Balinese pork sausage made for Galungan: pork and pork fat are chopped with a turmeric-rich base genep, stuffed into casings and hung to dry in the breeze, so that the festival meat lasts for days after the feast. The finished sausage is golden yellow inside, garlicky, peppery and gently sour from drying, and it is always fried or grilled before eating. At home, make it either as a fresh sausage kept in the fridge, or air-dry it in the fridge with curing salt for the firmer, tangy traditional style. Serve slices with rice, sambal matah and a fried egg, or with drinks as a snack. Chef's tip: keep the meat, fat and equipment ice-cold throughout; warm fat smears and the sausage turns crumbly and greasy.

240 min

Indonesian Meat

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Jukut ares (Balinese banana stem soup with chicken)

Jukut ares is cooked in Bali for Galungan and the ceremonies around it, when families gather at home and the kitchen turns out dishes for days; the humble banana tree, which gives fruit, leaves and stem, stands for the generosity of the land. The soft white core of the trunk is sliced thin and simmered in a broth built on base genep, the island's master spice paste, until it is tender and slightly silky, like a cross between bamboo shoot and leek. Villages often use pork bones; this version uses chicken thighs, which make a lighter, golden, peppery broth. Serve it in bowls with steamed rice and sambal. Chef's tip: soak the sliced stem in salted water and pull off the stringy fibres as you go, or the soup turns grey and stringy.

90 min

Indonesian Soups

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Lontong Cap Go MehRice cakes with chicken curries

Lontong Cap Go Meh is the Peranakan Chinese feast for Cap Go Meh, the fifteenth and last night of Imlek (Chinese New Year) in Java, where Chinese and Javanese traditions meet on one plate. It is not the everyday lontong sayur, which is simply rice cakes in a vegetable curry: this is the full festive spread, with rice cakes, yellow opor chicken in coconut milk, sayur lodeh vegetables, eggs simmered in the opor, and spicy sambal goreng potatoes, all ladled into one bowl. The long rice cakes are said to stand for long life, the golden opor for prosperity and the round eggs for luck. Rich, creamy, sweet and spicy all at once, it needs nothing more than krupuk and fried shallots. Chef's tip: cook the lontong a day ahead and chill it overnight, so it slices cleanly and the feast day is calmer.

150 min

Indonesian Rice & Grains

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Garang asemChicken and starfruit in banana leaf

Garang asem is a dish from Kudus and Demak on the north coast of Central Java, where it is cooked for family lunches and sold at warungs by midday. Bone-in chicken is packed into banana-leaf parcels with sour starfruit, tomato, whole chillies and a little thin coconut milk, then steamed until the juices turn into a light, tangy, peppery broth. It is clean-tasting rather than rich, and a portion has about 32 g of protein from the chicken; serve it with steamed rice. The common mistake is wrapping the parcels loosely so the broth runs out; fold the leaves in two layers and pin them tight. Chef's tip: if you can't find belimbing wuluh (sour starfruit), use green tomatoes and a spoon of tamarind water for the same sharpness.

70 min

Indonesian Chicken

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Asinan BetawiPickled vegetable and tofu salad

Asinan Betawi is the cooling salad of old Jakarta, sold from glass-sided carts and eaten mid-afternoon in the heat or brought out at family gatherings in big tubs. Quick-pickled cabbage, cucumber and bean sprouts are piled with cubes of tofu, then soaked in a thin, tangy sauce of chilli, vinegar, palm sugar and ground peanuts. It is crunchy, sour, sweet and spicy all at once. A portion has about 300 kcal and roughly 17 g of protein, from the tofu and peanuts, so it is a light meal rather than a high-protein one. The common mistake is dressing it too early; the vegetables go limp within an hour. Street versions often scatter shrimp crackers on top, so use plain rice or cassava crackers to keep it vegetarian. Chef's tip: chill the sauce well before serving; asinan should be served cold enough to fog the bowl.

40 min

Indonesian Salads

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Sayur asemSour tamarind vegetable soup

Sayur asem is the soup that sits beside fried tempeh, rice and sambal on lunch tables across Jakarta and West Java, and it is most loved in the hot months, when its sharp, sweet-sour broth cools you down. Chunks of sweetcorn, chayote, long beans, raw peanuts and young melinjo leaves simmer in a clear broth soured with tamarind and rounded with a little palm sugar. It is light, with about 5 g of protein per portion, mostly from the peanuts; serve it with tempeh or tofu if you want a full meal. The most common mistake is adding all the vegetables at once: the corn and peanuts need a head start, while the long beans and leaves turn grey and soft if they boil too long. Chef's tip: dissolve the tamarind in a little hot water and add it in stages, tasting as you go, because tamarind blocks vary hugely in strength.

45 min

Indonesian Soups

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Pepes ikanFish steamed in banana leaf

Pepes ikan is everyday Sundanese cooking from Bandung and the hills of West Java, made in the morning and eaten with rice, sambal and raw vegetables at lunch. Fish is rubbed with a yellow paste of turmeric, shallot, candlenut and chilli, scattered with lemon basil, wrapped in banana leaf and steamed, then charred briefly on a grill so the leaf smokes and perfumes it. The flesh comes out moist and fragrant. A portion has about 30 g of protein from the fish. The usual mistake is skipping the steaming and grilling straight away: the outside burns before the fish is cooked. Chef's tip: lemon basil (kemangi) is the signature; if you can't get it, use Thai basil with a little lemon zest.

60 min

Indonesian Fish

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Oseng tempeStir-fried tempeh with chilli

Oseng tempe is the quick fix of Javanese home cooking, made in Semarang, Surabaya and every student boarding house in between for weekday lunch or dinner with plain rice. Thin matchsticks of tempeh are fried until crisp-edged, then tossed with shallot, garlic, sliced chilli, galangal and bay leaf in sweet soy sauce until sticky, sweet, salty and hot. A portion with about 125 g of tempeh gives roughly 24 g of protein, almost all from the tempeh. The common mistake is adding the sweet soy too early, before the tempeh has browned: it soaks in, burns and turns the strips soft. Chef's tip: fry the tempeh separately first, then build the sauce and return it at the end, so every strip stays a little crunchy.

25 min

Indonesian Vegetarian

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Plecing kangkungWater spinach with tomato sambal

Plecing kangkung is Lombok's signature vegetable dish, eaten in Mataram and around the island at lunch with rice and grilled food, and sold in Bali night markets too. Bright water spinach is blanched just until tender, then piled with bean sprouts and a raw sambal of tomato, chilli, lime and salt, and finished with crunchy fried peanuts. On Lombok the sambal usually contains terasi (shrimp paste); this vegetarian version leaves it out and uses a squeeze of lime leaf and a pinch more salt. A portion gives about 6 g of protein from the peanuts and sprouts, so it is a fresh side rather than a main. The most common mistake is overcooking the kangkung: it should stay vivid green with crunchy stems, so blanch for under a minute. Chef's tip: shock the greens in iced water straight after blanching, then squeeze lightly; the sambal clings better to dry leaves.

20 min

Indonesian Salads

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Ikan wokuFish in lemongrass basil paste

Woku is the signature sauce of Minahasa cooking around Manado in North Sulawesi, where fish woku is cooked for Sunday lunches after church and for family gatherings. Fish steaks simmer briefly in a bright yellow paste of turmeric, chilli, shallot and ginger, smothered in lemongrass, lime leaves, pandan, spring onion and handfuls of lemon basil, so the sauce is hot, herbal and sharp with lime. A portion has about 30 g of protein from the fish; eat it with plenty of rice. The common mistake is stirring hard once the fish goes in, which breaks it up; shake the pan instead. Chef's tip: add the basil only at the very end, off the heat, so it stays green and perfumed.

40 min

Indonesian Fish

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Tahu bacemSweet braised tofu

Tahu bacem is tempe bacem's softer sister, sold side by side on the gudeg stalls of Yogyakarta and Klaten and cooked at home on Sundays to see the family through the week. Firm tofu soaks up a braise of coconut water, palm sugar, coriander and galangal until it turns the colour of caramel all the way through, and a quick sear gives it a thin, chewy skin. A portion of about 200 g of tofu gives roughly 26 g of protein, from the soybeans in the tofu. The usual mistake is using silken or soft tofu, which breaks apart during the long simmer; buy firm or extra-firm. Chef's tip: press the tofu for 15 minutes before braising; the drier it is, the more of the sweet, spiced liquid it drinks in.

70 min

Indonesian Vegetarian

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Tahu tekFried tofu with peanut sauce

After dark in Surabaya, the tahu tek seller's cart is easy to find: listen for the tek-tek-tek of scissors snipping fried tofu, potato and egg into bite-sized pieces straight onto the plate, before it all disappears under bean sprouts, cucumber and a thick peanut sauce. It is a supper dish, filling and saucy. The street version stirs petis, a black shrimp paste, into the sauce; this vegetarian version leaves it out and gets its depth from sweet soy, tamarind and fried garlic instead. A portion gives about 32 g of protein, from the tofu, egg and peanuts. The common mistake is making the sauce too thin; it should be thick enough to sit on top of the tofu. Chef's tip: grind the peanuts with the garlic and chilli while the fried peanuts are still warm, so the oil releases and the sauce turns creamy.

45 min

Indonesian Vegetarian

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Pindang seraniFish in sour turmeric broth

Pindang serani belongs to Jepara and the fishing towns of the north coast of Central Java, where it is cooked at home for lunch and served at seaside warungs. Traditionally it is made with milkfish (bandeng) or grouper simmered in a pale yellow broth of turmeric, galangal and lemongrass, soured with sour starfruit and sharpened with chilli and basil. It is light and restoring, with about 28 g of protein a portion from the fish. Milkfish is very bony, so sea bass or grouper steaks are easier at home. The common mistake is boiling the soup hard once the fish is in, which clouds it and breaks the flesh. Chef's tip: bruise the turmeric, galangal and ginger rather than grinding them, so the broth stays clear.

40 min

Indonesian Fish

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Pepes tahuTofu and basil in banana leaf

In Bandung and the hills of West Java, pepes means anything wrapped in banana leaf, steamed and then charred over coals, and pepes tahu is the everyday meat-free one, eaten at lunch with rice, raw vegetables and sambal. Mashed tofu is bound with egg, shallot, chilli, lemon basil and lime leaf, so it sets into a soft, fragrant, smoky cake inside its leaf. Each portion has about 150 g of tofu and most of an egg, giving roughly 24 g of protein, from the tofu and eggs. The common mistake is skipping the steaming and going straight to the grill: the outside burns while the egg in the middle stays raw. Chef's tip: steam first until the filling is firm right through, then grill only to scorch the leaf and add smoke.

65 min

Indonesian Vegetarian

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Es doger (Bandung pink coconut shaved ice)

Es doger began on the streets of Bandung in West Java, where carts painted with bright patterns still sell it through the afternoon heat. The base is coconut milk and milk, coloured pink with red syrup and frozen or blended with ice into a soft slush, then piled into glasses with whatever the vendor has: cassava, avocado, jackfruit, sticky rice, tapioca pearls, and a ribbon of condensed milk over the top. It is sweet, creamy and cool, more a drink you eat with a spoon. It is naturally egg-free: the coconut milk gives body, the condensed milk binds it into a creamy slush, and the fruit and starchy cassava fill it out. Street versions use fermented cassava, which is lightly alcoholic; this recipe uses plain steamed cassava with sugar instead. Chef's tip: blend the ice in short bursts; the common mistake is running the blender until the slush melts into a milky drink.

45 min

Indonesian Desserts

by KrazyBadal 0 views

Showing 24 of 609 recipes

Show more recipes

Page 1 of 26