History - Bali and Lombok - page 31

DRINKS
If you are a passionate wine drinker visiting Bali, you might do better to
take up beer! Bintang, Bali Hai and now, the new organic, Storm beer will
certainly quench your thirst on a hot day. Otherwise, Hatten wine makes an
interesting local wine, and its glowing pink rosé has quite a following. Wine
of the Gods, perhaps the finest local wine, actually imports freshly crushed
grapes from Western Australia and bottles the wine in Denpasar.
Of course, if you want a more serious shot of alcohol, arak is probably the
answer. Arak is the alcohol produced from fermented palm fruits and tuak is
made from another type of palm. Drinking either of these is guaranteed to have
you swaying like a palm tree with an immense hangover the next day. Brem,
or rice wine, is a sweeter, milder brew that is not unlike sake. It is best served
with lime juice and loads of ice. One of the most popular nonalcoholic local
drinks on the island is cendol . This is an interesting, psychedelic mix of palm
sugar, fresh coconut milk and crushed ice full of all sorts of known and un-
known extra flavourings and floaties. My daughter's favourite is es teler which
is a mix of soft avocado with young coconut and sago. Green coconut juice is
the perfect tonic for upset tummies, hangovers and fevers. Mother Nature's
perfect rehydration drink, it helps cool the body and replace all those electro-
lytes that tend to evaporate in tropical weather. Sometimes you will be greeted
in the rice fields by farmers offering green coconut juice; they'll be eager
to show their coconut-climbing skills to awe-struck tourists and make some
pocket money on the side. Try it with ice and a squeeze of lime juice.
CELEBRATIONS & CEREMONIES
Food is a major part of Balinese ceremonies, with the menu varying according
to the size and importance of the occasion. A small home ceremony might
include spit-roasted chicken, or smoked duck, whereas, with a grand affair,
suckling pig is the desired fare. The preparations begin at dawn the day before
with kilos of spices, exotic ingredients, meats and rice being cooked.
Men are ceremonial chefs for all festivities, becoming 'spice Gods' for
the occasion and creating a celebratory extravaganza to honour the deities.
The action begins in the early hours of the morning, when pigs, ducks or
chicken are slaughtered and then prepared for a multitude of lively, spiced
dishes that will be used as offerings to God and to feed all those who have

WE DARE YOU Janet de Neefe
One of my favourite drinks served at the Ubud market is daluman . Horrifying to most tourists,
this wobbly green drink is full of natural chlorophyll and a bunch of health-giving nutrients.
You could be forgiven thinking it's green slime or something scooped out of a Balinese river,
but believe me, when served with palm-sugar syrup and a swirl of roasted coconut milk, it is
sublime! It cools down a hot tummy and is said to help prevent stomach cancer.
Eels are an islandwide favourite and there is nothing tastier than deep-fried seasoned eel
or even eel chopped and steamed in banana leaves, with freshly ground spices and a touch of
delicate torch ginger.
For a refreshing treat, I dare you to try es campur . It is a mountainous mix of crushed ice, fresh
fruits, fermented yam, seaweed jelly and lashings of sweetened condensed milk and iridescent
pink syrup. I used to eat this soupy fruit salad when I was pregnant, much to the dismay of the
Balinese, as pregnant women are not supposed to eat ice.
Bee larvae is a sweet, juicy delicacy in Bali. I always buy this golden honeycomb when it's avail-
able for the Casa Luna market tour and cook it up for the class. The baby bees are simmered with
fragrant lemongrass, lime leaves and salam leaves and then mixed with roasted shredded coconut,
lashings of chilli with shrimp paste and fried shallots. The subtle hint of honey and meaty texture
of the bees, matched with gentle aromatics and spice is so delicious it makes you buzz!

Green coconut juice is
the perfect traditional
remedy for heat stroke,
Bali belly and fever.

Balinese ceremonies
are determined by the
phases of the sun, the
moon and the stars, and
you only have to glance
at a Balinese calendar to
see how many religious
celebrations are held
annually. For more
information on the
Balinese calendar, check
out www.indo.com
/culture/calendar.html.

finely to complement the cooked grains of rice and for ease of eating with
the (right) hand. As you can imagine, the Balinese are very particular about
rice - dry, fluffy grains are preferred.

Breakfast
In Bali, you can start the day with alluring flavours that will slap you out of
that early morning slowness. The best breakfast food is usually found at the
local market. Typical fare includes compressed rice cake mixed with steamed
greens tossed with a freshly ground peanut sauce bursting with flavour; or
soft, boiled rice topped with brilliant, chopped greens and sprouts mixed
with a fiery sambal (chili paste) and roasted coconut, or you might like to
eat plain, steamed rice with fried tempe (Indonesian soy-bean cake), crunchy
anchovies, bitter greens and sambal; or a variety of satay from goat meat to
pounded fish, roasted chicken, pork or even goat soup. If you have a sweet
tooth, you can eat your way through endless rice porridges, temples cakes,
squiggly rice cakes, boiled bananas and wash it all down with a green leafy
drink or cendol (coconut milk and palm suagr). You can choose to sit in the
lively ambience of the market or get your meal wrapped up in a banana leaf
or brown paper and take it home. And that's just to start the day!

If you really enjoy spicy
food, you can ask the
staff in any restaurant to
serve a fresh sambal of
chopped chilli drowned
in kecap manis (sweet
soy sauce).

BABI GULING
Babi guling, or suckling pig, appears on the menu of most major household ceremonies, from a
baby's three-month ground-touching ceremony to the fearful tooth-filing ceremony. I have seen
these small, roasted babes delivered to our door so many times, wrapped in layers of plastic,
ready to be sliced and served to friends, family and neighbours on a grand occasion. It is, by
far, the most revered dish on the island.
In the early days, tourists were advised not to eat babi guling in order to avoid the renowned
Bali belly, but nowadays you don't need to be sitting in a tight sarong at a ceremony to enjoy the
succulent meat and spicy filling. The spice paste used includes chilli, turmeric, ginger, galangal,
shallots, garlic, coriander seeds, aromatic leaves and is basted in turmeric and coconut oil. In
the cuisine capital of the island, Ibu Oka's warung (food stall) in Ubud (p193) serves suckling pig
every lunchtime and is jam-packed with lip-smacking tourists, brushing shoulders with Balinese,
Indonesians and other Asians as they vie for a table at this popular, East-meets-West local eatery.
Up to six freshly roasted pigs are brought in each day after 11am and if you are not there by

Lunch & Dinner
Lunch is eaten from 11am, and the regular fare is the famous nasi campur .
Nasi campur simply means steamed rice and a mixture of side dishes. The
combination of these is dependent on seasonal produce and economy. This
is in fact the style of eating for just about every meal. Lunch constitutes the
main meal of the day for it is at this time that the rice has finished a couple
of hours of happy steaming and all the side dishes are ready and bubbling
with vitality. The menu might consist of a stewy, meat dish such as babi kecap
(pork in sweet soy sauce) or roast chicken, steamed greens with roasted or
grilled coconut, fried tofu and tempe in a tomato-chilli sauce, fried fish and

Mixing watermelon and
palm sugar together is a
major food no-no in Bali,
and one that is bound to
leave you with painful
stomach cramps.