There's a crisis in Indonesia!
The price of chili peppers has soared in the past month. The government blames bad weather and volcanoes, but regardless of the reason, the peppers have hit Rp.100,000/kilo ($5/lb)! And it looks to keep going...
Indonesians love a little spice in their food, and some of the local cultures go pretty far with the practice. No matter how much, though, some amount of chili finds its way into the average diet.
The price of chili, however, is just one symptom of an overall trend in rising prices for all food staples. The cost of rice, vegetables and certainly meats have all been going up precipitously of late. Recently, an incident in a small east Java village has drawn national attention to the problem.
A family with six children, ranging in age from early 20s to toddler, experienced the death of all of the children. They had eaten a local casava dish. Casava is a high-carbohydrate tuber that is sometimes used as a substitute for rice, because it is so cheap. There are two primary varieties, 'sweet' and 'sour,' with sour being quite poisonous if not prepared correctly. Naturally, it is also the cheapest variety. The family had been forced to eat casava for two weeks because of the rising prices and the family's low income, which is reported to be around $16-$20 per week.
The Indonesian government measures the poverty line in calories rather than income. Poverty is considered less than 2100 calories per day. Casava, being high in carbs, can technically raise a family above the poverty level, though the quality of their food, and certainly the amount, would hardly qualify as eating for even a street bum in downtown America.
At the moment, Jakarta is the only place in Indonesia that has a minimum wage, which is around $300/month. Other areas are debating the merits of creating one, but it is rather difficult in a country where the cost of living can vary quite widely. In some areas, people are able to fish, farm and collect enough to eat well at a monetary cost of almost nothing. Other places, like the major cities, prices can be quite high, even though to an outsider, they may appear to be ridiculously cheap. For a recent college graduate, living at home, $300/month is a decent starting salary. However, even with a degree and a few years of experience, a salary over $1,000/month is very rare. For the vast majority of Jakartans, earning $5/day is about all they can expect.
The an American, the prices here look like a joke. A decent 3-bedroom/2 bath house rents for about $2,000/year. Water and electric, if you are careful, runs around $5-$10/month. If you confine your food shopping to the traditional market and avoid the supermarket chains, the average monthly food bill for one person is around $150/month.
If you are European or American, your eyes are probably bugging out about now. But go back and look at how much a great number of people earn here: $100-$200/month. Divide all the costs above into 12 months, and you get about $200/month for a basic Western lifestyle, before things like clothes, transportation, luxuries (TV, cable, internet, etc.). The standard American middle-class lifestyle requires two to three generations of a family living together and combining their incomes, substitute motorcycles for cars.
So, with all that in mind, you can imagine that when the price of basic foods like rice and chilis start going up, along with the price of gasoline and other basic modern needs, it can start to crimp a wallet pretty darned fast. You may think that, well, they can do without chilis and cut back on rice, but both are signatures of the Indonesian diet. it's like telling Americans to get by without sandwiches.
A very popular snack here is something called gorengan, which simply means 'fries.' It consists of bananas, carrots, potatoes, egg rolls, and other finger foods that are battered and deep fried. They are, without exception, served with a handful of fresh cabe rawit, which some might know as Thai peppers. Right now, you are lucky if the vendor throws 2 or 3 cabe in with your order. Normal is a handful.
There is no such thing as a dinner table in Indonesia without sambal. Sambal is made with chili peppers and the result is somewhat like ketchup that makes your eyes water and your mouth burn. To ask an Indoensian to set a table without it would be equivalent to an American home without salt and pepper.
Rice is king! One simply doesn't eat without rice. It is the Indonesian version of bread with your meal. Ask an American to eat his burger without a bun, or a hogie, for that matter. Rice is the primary carb that is used to sop up the juice and pack the corners of the stomach. It is why I consider this past Thanksgiving such a victory. I was able to get 20 Indonesians to eat an entire meal and not one grain of rice was eaten.
When one lives in Jakarta and makes a decent living, it is hard to remember that this country has, according to one report, 2.3 million people living below the poverty line. It's why the case of the six children dying from casava poinsoning has become such an issue. It has reminded people that even though Indonesia's economy is one of the fastest growing in the world right now, there are still many folks who are suffering from the expansion and the resulting inflation in core necessities. And everyone is feeling the pinch when it comes to cabe rawit.
One thing that can endanger Indonesia's explosive growth in the past few years, and the relative social order and peace that comes with it, is a rapid rise in inflation without a concomitant adjustment in earnings. In 2010, inflation ran at 7%, which doubled the rate in 2009. However, there has been no significant rise in overall incomes in that period. Ultimately, this will swell the ranks of the disaffected, destroy a newly empowered middle-class and undo a decade of properity that has seen Indonesia enter the world stage as an economic power to be reckoned with.
The symptoms are on the table, in the gas tank and in a dozen other places. If action isn't taken quickly to control the situation, the disease will over-take the body. Along with Indonesia's rise in power and prestige, it has gotten the same illnesses that have so deeply infected the Western world. Indonesia should learn from the experience of Greece, Spain, Italy, Ireland, Iceland, and of course America.
The casava deaths and the rapid rise in rice and chili prices is just the beginning, unless Indonesia takes a pro-active stance immediately. It must reduce corruption, control inflation and give particular attention to agriculture. Like all governments and societies, there's a tendency to procrastinate until the crisis is in full bloom. By then, it's too late and the solutions are years away. Indoneisa has the benefit of being at an early stage, and being able to so the results of inaction in many other countries worldwide.
The deaths of six children is a tragedy, but it can be turned to good use if everyone wakes up and takes action now. I would compound the tragedy if those six lives only became the first of many.
Besides, I miss my chilis!
Showing posts with label rice dishes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label rice dishes. Show all posts
7.1.11
1.1.11
Feed Me, Seymore!
This being the holidays and all, I thought it would be a good time to talk about one of my favorite subjects of all time: Food. It's something I haven't really addressed here, but it is one of the main attractions, in my puny little mind, that merits comment with regards to Indonesia.
Keep in mind that Indonesia is actually an amalgam of many different cultures. Not only are there hundreds of indigenous people, but there is strong influence from Dutch, Portuguese and Spanish cuisines, as well. In other words, there is a wide varity of foods with distinctinve spices and preparation styles, ranging from drop-dead spicy to mildly entertaining.
As you might imagine, the local foods involve a lot of rice and soy products, as well as fruit and vegetables. Common meats are chicken, beef goat, fish,crab, and duck, with pockets of pork and exotic things like frog, octopus, squirrel, dog and bat in some areas.
Each ethnic group has its own distinctive favorites that are generally popular and can be found in restaurants that specialize in the various cuisines. For anyone wanting to try these dishes, and who don't have an Indonesian restaurant nearby, you can search the name of the dish online and most will return some good recipes. Most of the preparations are not difficult, but you might find it hard to get bamboo or banana leaf for the proper presentation. Most of the dishes can be prepared in a mild version, though typically Indonesians like a little zip to it. Many times, the table includes spicy sauce called sambal, which is added to taste after serving.
I have heard it said that Americans will eat anything with two slices of bread, and the same can be said of Indonesians and sambal. The most common pepper is the cabe rawit, a small hot pepper that many Americans would recognize as Thai peppers or the Tobasco pepper.
So, we begin where every Indonesian does, at the end. Dessert. Indonesians have a decidedly sweet tooth, and if given the choice, will start with the sweet so they're not too full afterwards.
Martabak is a very popular treat. There are two primary varieties, manis or sweet, and telor or egg. The sweet variety is basically a variation on the Dutch panenkoeken. It is a very large pancake, about two inches thick, smoothered in butter, split down the middle and filled with chocolate and crushed peanuts. You can feel your arteries hardening as you eat! The egg variety is something like an omlette wrapped in a thin filo pastry and fried on a griddle. It generally involves any number of fillings using a variety of meats and vegetables. This one is served with a spicy sambal on the side.
Nasi goreng or fried rice, is a staple of the Indonesian diet. If you haven't been to Asia, then you may not be aware that fried rice is considered a breakfast food. The rice, meat and vegetables left-over from the night before are stir-fried together with soy sauce and bumbu/seasonings. The dish is commonly garnished with cucumber and tomato slices and, of course, sambal. A popular variation is called nasi goreng komplit, which is crowned with a fried egg.
There are dozens of snacks that involve packing some meat and/or vegetable inside a ball of sticky rice and then wrapping it in distinctive shapes that tell you what's inside. One common variety is called bacang. The balls are formed into little tetrahedrons, wrapped in banana leaf and then steamed. You can find them at the market strung together in five or ten and make a handy and quick self-contained meal. There's a variety popular in Manado, where the inside of a piece of bamboo is lined with banana leaf, stuffed with sweet sticky rice and then steamed or grilled. There are literally dozens of these kinds of snacks from every area, with a wide variety of fillings and flavors.
Bubur is a classic found all over Asia. It's a porridge made of rice to which any number of meats, vegetables and spices are added. Every region has it's own distinctive recipes. The most common are chicken, peanuts, green onions, coconut, sweet soy sauce, and of course, sambal.
One of my personal favorites is gado-gado, which is a warm salad made with chunks of tofu, cabbage, bean sprouts and various other vegetables, smoothered in a spicy peanut sauce. It is typically served with kerupuk, which is any one of dozens of varieties of fried, crispy wafers that serve the same purpose as dipping chips.
One Indonesian original that is known the world over is, of course, sate, bite-sized pieces of meat on a skewer that are grilled and served with several different sauces. The most common varieties are chicken and goat, but beef can be readily found. depending on the meat, it is served with spicy peanut sauce or sweet woy sauce with chilis and green onions. Just about everywhere you go, you will find men manning the hibachi grill, using coconut husks for fuel, and waving a kipas (a fan made of coconut fibers), smoking up a storm. It is usually served with rice and cucumber slices, and a tall glass of es teh manis Iiced sweet tea) to cool off from the spice. One variety of sate that I have tried, but am not very fond of, is usus ayam, or chicken guts. The liver, gizzard and entrails are snaked up the skewer and then the whole thing is maranated in yellow curry sauce before grilling. Not that the flavor is bad, but entrails have never been my cup of tea.
One of the most popular cuisines is padang, which is named after the region in Sumatra that originated it. The restaurants, called rumah padang, or padang house, are distinctive for having a steeply pitched roof, in the Sumatra style over the main entrance. There are three primary ways of ordering padang food: one is the ubiquitous box lunch that comes complete with meat, vegetable, rice, banana, and green sambal, which have been known to cause medical emergencies; the second is to walk in and order cafeteria-style from the steam table; finally, you can just sit down and within minutes a foot-tall stack of plates with a serving of two of everything they make appearing in front of you. Though slightly more expensive, this last option must be seen to be believed. You are charged by what you eat, and the remainder is dumped back in the pot. I've certainly never seen anything like it. it's kind of like a buffet that comes to you. The food is usually fairly spicy, though the more mainstram houses tone it down a bit. The purists, like me, prefer the original seasoning, which as noted above, strikes fear into the stoutest heart.
Another favorite is pisang goreng, or fried bananas. One must first be aware that there are a dizzing variety of bananas here. By my count, there are at least seven different types. The best for frying, in my opion, are huge, green, knarly looking things that come from Kalimantan/Borneo. They are sliced about an inch thick, smashed flat, battered and deep fried. The pisang goreng kalimantan are generally most favored for the sweet flavor and crunchy texture. The stalls who sell this variety are usually quite busy and the smell fills the street for blocks.
Finally, another ubiquitous favorite is pecel lele. Lele is a small, fresh-water catfish that is often grown in tanks on people's front porches. The fish is normally Ibut not always) gutted, the whole thing lightly battered, and then deep fried. The head and fins are considered special treats. The fins are crispy, like potato chips. Use them to scoop up some (all together now) sambal.
And so we end up back where we began, with dessert. This one is a nice treat on a hot afternoon. It's called es campur or mixed ice. You take shaved ice, add pieces of fruit and flavored gelatin, red beans, a little coconut milk, and top with sweetened condensed milk. Mix is all up and enjoy!
So there's a quick tour of Indonesian food. In a future article, I'll get into some of the more strange and unique things, like cobra blood, bar-b-qued dog, fried bat, and squirrel stew. All of it's pretty good, once you get past the part of picturing what you're eating. There's some interesting fruits and vegetables that take a little getting used to, as well. And what would a gastronomic tour of Indonesia be without talking a little about coffee. After all, 'java' is American slang for the stuff.
Until then...ojo lali mangan e! (That's Javanese for, "Don't forget to ear!")
Keep in mind that Indonesia is actually an amalgam of many different cultures. Not only are there hundreds of indigenous people, but there is strong influence from Dutch, Portuguese and Spanish cuisines, as well. In other words, there is a wide varity of foods with distinctinve spices and preparation styles, ranging from drop-dead spicy to mildly entertaining.
As you might imagine, the local foods involve a lot of rice and soy products, as well as fruit and vegetables. Common meats are chicken, beef goat, fish,crab, and duck, with pockets of pork and exotic things like frog, octopus, squirrel, dog and bat in some areas.
Each ethnic group has its own distinctive favorites that are generally popular and can be found in restaurants that specialize in the various cuisines. For anyone wanting to try these dishes, and who don't have an Indonesian restaurant nearby, you can search the name of the dish online and most will return some good recipes. Most of the preparations are not difficult, but you might find it hard to get bamboo or banana leaf for the proper presentation. Most of the dishes can be prepared in a mild version, though typically Indonesians like a little zip to it. Many times, the table includes spicy sauce called sambal, which is added to taste after serving.
I have heard it said that Americans will eat anything with two slices of bread, and the same can be said of Indonesians and sambal. The most common pepper is the cabe rawit, a small hot pepper that many Americans would recognize as Thai peppers or the Tobasco pepper.
So, we begin where every Indonesian does, at the end. Dessert. Indonesians have a decidedly sweet tooth, and if given the choice, will start with the sweet so they're not too full afterwards.
Martabak is a very popular treat. There are two primary varieties, manis or sweet, and telor or egg. The sweet variety is basically a variation on the Dutch panenkoeken. It is a very large pancake, about two inches thick, smoothered in butter, split down the middle and filled with chocolate and crushed peanuts. You can feel your arteries hardening as you eat! The egg variety is something like an omlette wrapped in a thin filo pastry and fried on a griddle. It generally involves any number of fillings using a variety of meats and vegetables. This one is served with a spicy sambal on the side.
Nasi goreng or fried rice, is a staple of the Indonesian diet. If you haven't been to Asia, then you may not be aware that fried rice is considered a breakfast food. The rice, meat and vegetables left-over from the night before are stir-fried together with soy sauce and bumbu/seasonings. The dish is commonly garnished with cucumber and tomato slices and, of course, sambal. A popular variation is called nasi goreng komplit, which is crowned with a fried egg.
There are dozens of snacks that involve packing some meat and/or vegetable inside a ball of sticky rice and then wrapping it in distinctive shapes that tell you what's inside. One common variety is called bacang. The balls are formed into little tetrahedrons, wrapped in banana leaf and then steamed. You can find them at the market strung together in five or ten and make a handy and quick self-contained meal. There's a variety popular in Manado, where the inside of a piece of bamboo is lined with banana leaf, stuffed with sweet sticky rice and then steamed or grilled. There are literally dozens of these kinds of snacks from every area, with a wide variety of fillings and flavors.
Bubur is a classic found all over Asia. It's a porridge made of rice to which any number of meats, vegetables and spices are added. Every region has it's own distinctive recipes. The most common are chicken, peanuts, green onions, coconut, sweet soy sauce, and of course, sambal.
One of my personal favorites is gado-gado, which is a warm salad made with chunks of tofu, cabbage, bean sprouts and various other vegetables, smoothered in a spicy peanut sauce. It is typically served with kerupuk, which is any one of dozens of varieties of fried, crispy wafers that serve the same purpose as dipping chips.
One Indonesian original that is known the world over is, of course, sate, bite-sized pieces of meat on a skewer that are grilled and served with several different sauces. The most common varieties are chicken and goat, but beef can be readily found. depending on the meat, it is served with spicy peanut sauce or sweet woy sauce with chilis and green onions. Just about everywhere you go, you will find men manning the hibachi grill, using coconut husks for fuel, and waving a kipas (a fan made of coconut fibers), smoking up a storm. It is usually served with rice and cucumber slices, and a tall glass of es teh manis Iiced sweet tea) to cool off from the spice. One variety of sate that I have tried, but am not very fond of, is usus ayam, or chicken guts. The liver, gizzard and entrails are snaked up the skewer and then the whole thing is maranated in yellow curry sauce before grilling. Not that the flavor is bad, but entrails have never been my cup of tea.
One of the most popular cuisines is padang, which is named after the region in Sumatra that originated it. The restaurants, called rumah padang, or padang house, are distinctive for having a steeply pitched roof, in the Sumatra style over the main entrance. There are three primary ways of ordering padang food: one is the ubiquitous box lunch that comes complete with meat, vegetable, rice, banana, and green sambal, which have been known to cause medical emergencies; the second is to walk in and order cafeteria-style from the steam table; finally, you can just sit down and within minutes a foot-tall stack of plates with a serving of two of everything they make appearing in front of you. Though slightly more expensive, this last option must be seen to be believed. You are charged by what you eat, and the remainder is dumped back in the pot. I've certainly never seen anything like it. it's kind of like a buffet that comes to you. The food is usually fairly spicy, though the more mainstram houses tone it down a bit. The purists, like me, prefer the original seasoning, which as noted above, strikes fear into the stoutest heart.
Another favorite is pisang goreng, or fried bananas. One must first be aware that there are a dizzing variety of bananas here. By my count, there are at least seven different types. The best for frying, in my opion, are huge, green, knarly looking things that come from Kalimantan/Borneo. They are sliced about an inch thick, smashed flat, battered and deep fried. The pisang goreng kalimantan are generally most favored for the sweet flavor and crunchy texture. The stalls who sell this variety are usually quite busy and the smell fills the street for blocks.
Finally, another ubiquitous favorite is pecel lele. Lele is a small, fresh-water catfish that is often grown in tanks on people's front porches. The fish is normally Ibut not always) gutted, the whole thing lightly battered, and then deep fried. The head and fins are considered special treats. The fins are crispy, like potato chips. Use them to scoop up some (all together now) sambal.
And so we end up back where we began, with dessert. This one is a nice treat on a hot afternoon. It's called es campur or mixed ice. You take shaved ice, add pieces of fruit and flavored gelatin, red beans, a little coconut milk, and top with sweetened condensed milk. Mix is all up and enjoy!
So there's a quick tour of Indonesian food. In a future article, I'll get into some of the more strange and unique things, like cobra blood, bar-b-qued dog, fried bat, and squirrel stew. All of it's pretty good, once you get past the part of picturing what you're eating. There's some interesting fruits and vegetables that take a little getting used to, as well. And what would a gastronomic tour of Indonesia be without talking a little about coffee. After all, 'java' is American slang for the stuff.
Until then...ojo lali mangan e! (That's Javanese for, "Don't forget to ear!")
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