Bajigur ~ An Indonesian Traditional Refreshing Hot Beverage

Indonesia is rich in spices and also traditional drinks that are fresh, unique, and healthy. Many Indonesian people believe that the use of a mixture of spices as the manufacture beverages would provide health benefits so that the typical drinks like bajigur is still favored by many.

Bajigur  is a refreshing hot beverage native to the Sundanese people of West Java made with coconut milk, coffee, Javanese Palm Sugar (gula jawa), cinnamon, salt, ginger, and pandan leaves.  The drink should be consumed while it is still hot, usually when the weather is cold, or when temperatures are decreasing and it’s often served with small snacks like steamed banana or sweet potato and boiled peanuts.

Bajigur

For recipe in Indonesian, click HERE

Ingredients:

·   200 ml thick coconut milk

·   400 ml water

·   80 gr Javanese palm sugar (gula jawa)

·   1 teaspoon instant coffee

·   1/8  teaspoon ground cinnamon or 2 cm cinnamon

·   ¼ teaspoon salt

·   ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract

·   2 cm ginger (optional)

·   2 pandan leaves, knotted

Directions:

1.    Place all ingredients in a pot and bring to boil onto medium heat. Stir frequently to prevent the coconut milk from curdling.

2.    Discard the pandan leaves and strain into 2 serving glass.

3.    Served while it is still hot with steam banana or sweet potato and boiled peanuts.  

Bahasa Indonesia

Bahan:

·   200 ml santan kental

·   400 ml air

·   80 gr gula jawa

·   1 sdt kopi bubuk instan

·   1/8  sdt kayumanis bubuk atau 2 cm kayumanis

·   ¼ sdt garam

·   ¼ sdt ekstrak vanila

·   2 lembar daun pandan, ikat

Cara:

1.       Rebus semua bahan hingga mendidih sambil terus diaduk agar santan tidak pecah.

2.       Setelah mendidih, matikan api. Buang daun pandan kemudan saring dan tuang ke dalam 2 gelas saji.

3.       Sajikan selagi panas bersama pisang atau ubi dan kacang rebus.

Blooming Onion

I love any type of fried onion with dipping sauce as an appetizer.  Do you? Have you heard about the famous appetizer from Outback Steakhouse?   Outback Steakhouse’s Blooming Onion is one of the most popular and known restaurant favorites in America, maybe the world.  It is a whole Vidalia onion that is sliced to resemble a flower, coated in batter, and deep fried until golden brown.  While the onion cooks, the petals move away from the center of the onion, creating a blooming effect.

The concept behind this dish is that it’s one large fried whole onion that can be shared among friends. It’s absolutely delicious, as the onion is soft and tender on the inside, but crispy and well seasoned on the outside. The Blooming Onion is generally served as an appetizer with a spicy sauce seasoned with horseradish.

It used to be my favorite appetizer, but unfortunately, I haven’t had one of these in years because I couldn’t find any Outback Steakhouse Restaurant in the neighborhood.   But who needs Outback when you can eat it at home? Yep, now you can make this blooming onion along with the creamy chili sauce at home anytime you have the craving.

Blooming onion will be a delight for all onion lovers.  Those who love onion rings will fall in love with this dish even more.  It may not be the healthiest dish, but if you are trying to impress your guests, this is the one.  The onion is totally sexy and words can’t describe how delicious this onion looks.

This copycat recipe is easy to follow and I had so much fun making it.  To make a beautiful onion flower, you need to use a single-heart onions, which most onions are.  Be sure to cut the onion to about three-fourths of the way down.  Do not cut down to the bottom of the onion.  If you soak the onion in cold water for 10 minutes after you cut it, it should open up and it will tone down the intense onion taste. 

The dipping sauce is just like the one at Outback, but it can also be anything you like.  You can mix mayonnaise, ketchup, mustard, pepper, salt, oregano, and even Tabasco sauce together, stir it thoroughly.  If you don’t have western spices available in your market, try to mix a raw yolk, vinegar, chili, and add some oil, stir it thoroughly.

Blooming Onion

For recipe in Indonesian click HERE

Ingredients:

Blooming Onion

·         1 large (or 2-3 medium) sweet onion (white, red, or yellow)

·         2 cups all-purpose flour

·         1 teaspoon cayenne pepper

·         1 tablespoon paprika

·         ½ teaspoon dried thyme

·         ½ teaspoon dried oregano

·         ½ teaspoon ground cumin

·         Freshly ground black pepper

·         2 large eggs

·         1 cup whole milk

·         Kosher salt

·         Vegetable oil for frying

Dipping Sauce

·         ½ cup mayonnaise

·         2 tablespoons sour cream

·         1 tablespoon ketchup

·         ½ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

·         1 tablespoon drained horseradish

·         ¼ teaspoon paprika

·         Pinch of cayenne pepper

·         1/8 teaspoon dried oregano

·         Kosher salt

·         Freshly ground black pepper

Directions:

1.       Mix all dry ingredients together (flour, cayenne pepper, paprika, thyme, oregano, cumin, ground black pepper) in one bowl and wet ingredients (eggs and milk) together in another bowl.

2.       Peel the onion, keeping the hairy root intact.  Cut about 1 inch of the other side.

3.       Place the onion on a chopping board, hairy side facing up.  Make your first cut about an inch from the top of the root, and slice downward all the way to the bottom, without cutting all the way through.  Rotate the onion 90^o and repeat.  Keep going until you have 4 evenly spaced cuts.

4.       Now make equally spaced cuts in between these 4 cuts.  Continue slicing between each section until you have 12-16 evenly spaced cuts.  How many cuts you make depends on the size of the onion, the sharpness of your knife, and your steady hand.

5.       Turn the onion over and use your fingers to gently separate the outer spaces – the petals.  To help keep them separate, you could plunge the onion into  the boiling water for 1 minute and then into cold water.

6.       Put the blooming onion onto a plate and sprinkle over the dry ingredients, making sure all the layers are covered.  Turn it upside down and shake to get rid of any excess flour mixture.

7.       Submerge the onion into wet ingredients and turn it over to make sure every petal of the onion is covered.  Take it out and coat with the flour mixture again, this time just shaking it over to covers all areas.

8.       Heat oil in a deep fryer or deep pot to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).  Make sure you use enough oil to completely cover the onion when it fries.  Fry the onion, flower side up.  7-10 minutes will make sure you are left with crispy, golden beauty,  but keep an eye on it.  When you retrieve the onion, the petals will have unfurled even more, so that you have a truly blooming onion.  Give it a shake, then put it on some paper towels to drain off the excess oil.  Open the onion wider from the center so that you can put a small dish of dipping sauce in the center.

9.       To make the sauce: in a medium bowl, combine all ingredients and mix well.  Keep sauce in refrigerator until needed.

Bahasa Indonesia

Bahan:

Blooming Onion

·         1 buah (atau 2-3 buah ukuran medium) bawang bombay ukuran besar (putih, merah, atau kuning)

·         2 cups tepung terigu serbaguna

·         1 sdt bubuk cabe

·         1 sdm paprika

·         ½ sdt daun thyme kering

·         ½ sdt oregano kering

·         ½ sdt bubuk jinten

·         Merica hitam, tumbuk kasar

·         2 butir telur

·         1 cup susu cair

·         Garam

·         Minyak sayur untuk menggoreng

Dipping Sauce

·         ½ cup mayones

·         2 sdm sour cream

·         1 sdm saus tomat

·         ½ sdt kecap inggris

·         1 sdm saus horseradish 

·         ¼ sdt paprika

·         Sedikit bubuk cabe

·         1/8 sdt oregano kering

·         Garam

·         Merica hitam, tumbuk kasar

Cara:

1.       Campur semua  bahan kering (tepung, bubuk cabe, paprika, thyme, oregano, jintan, lada hitam) dalam satu mangkuk dan bahan basah (telur dan susu) dalam mangkuk lain.

2.        Kupas bawang bombay, biarkan bagian akarnya. Potong sekitar 1 inci bagian atasnya.

3.       Tempatkan bawang bowmbay di talenan, dengan bagian akar menghadap ke atas. Buatlah irisan pertama sekitar satu inci dari bagian atas akar sampai ke bawah.  Putar posisi bawang bombay 90^o dan ulangi membuat irisan yang sama. Lakukan sampai Anda mempunyai 4 irisan dengan jarak yang sama.

4.       Sekarang buatlah irisan dengan jarak/lebar yang sama di antara 4 irisan pertama. Lanjutkan mengiris di antara setiap bagian sampai didapat 12-16 irisan dengan jarak/lebar yang sama. Berapa banyak irisan yang Anda buat tergantung pada ukuran bawang bombay, ketajaman pisau, dan keahlian Anda dalam mengiris.

5.       Balik posisi bawang bombay dengan bagian akar di bawah. Dengan pelan dan hati-hati, buka masing-masing ‘kelopak’ bawang bombay dengan jari-jari Anda.  Jaga jangan sampaikelopak terlepas.  Untuk memudahkan kelopak membuka, rebus bawang bombay dalam air mendidih selama 1 menit, kemudian rendam dalam air dingin selama 10 menit.  

6.       Letakkan bawang bombay yang sudah mekar di atas piring atau mangkuk, lapisi semua kelopak dengan bahan kering (campuran terigu berbumbu).  Goyangkan untuk menghilangkan kelebihan terigu.

7.       Celup bawang bombay mekar ke dalam larutan basah (adonan telur dan susu), balikkan  dan pastikan semua bagian tertutup adonan telur.  Angkat dan lapisi sekali lagi dengan bahan kering. Pastikan semua bagian tertutup bahan kering.

8.       Panaskan minyak dalam wajan atau panci dengan suhu 350 derajat F (175 derajat C). Pastikan Anda menggunakan minyak yang cukup agar bawang bombay terendam ketika digoreng.  Goreng bawang bombay dengan posisi kelopak di atas selama 7-10 menit atau sampai bagian luarnya berwarna kuning keemasan dan kering.  Ketika diangkat dari minyak panas, kelopak bawang bombay akan semakin mekar.  Goyangkan untuk menghilangkan kelebihan minyak dan letakkan di atas wadah yang dialasi tisu makan.  Lebarkan kelopak dari bagian tengah sehingga Anda dapat meletakkan wadah kecil berisi saus celup di tengahnya.

9.       Untuk membuat saus:  dalam mangkuk, campurkan semua bahan dan aduk rata. Simpan dalam lemari pendingin sampai akan digunakan. 

Ayam Goreng Mentega ~ Fried Chicken in Sweet Butter Sauce

Ayam goreng mentega or fried chicken in sweet butter sauce is one of the well-known dishes served in many Chinese restaurant in Indonesia.  The tasty secret of this dish is the mixture of 4 sauces (Worcestershire, soy sauce, Indonesian sweet soy sauce, and oyster sauce), cooked with butter instead of oil. Use only the original Indonesian sweet soy sauce or known as Kecap Manis to get an authentic taste.

In Indonesia, soy sauce is known as kecap (also ketjap), which is a catch-all term for fermented sauces. It’s used either within cooking process or as condiment. They are 3 varieties of Indonesian soy-based kecap.  (1) Kecap asin (salty soy sauce), which is very similar to Chinese light soy sauce, but usually somewhat thicker and has a stronger flavor.  (2) Kecap manis (sweet soy sauce), which has a thick, almost syrupy consistency and a unique, pronounced, sweet somewhat treacle-like flavor due to the generous addition of palm sugar.  (3) Kecap manis sedang (medium sweet soy sauce), which has less thick consistency, less sweet, and has a saltier taste than kecap manis.   The term kecap is also used to describe other non soy-based sauces, such as kecap ikan (fish sauce) and kecap inggris (Worcestershire sauce).

 

Indonesian Kecap Manis (courtesy of www.banggaindonesia.com)

Sweet soy sauce or kecap manis is probably the most commonly used and well-liked Indonesian food condiment.  It is an important sauce in Indonesian signature dishes, such as nasi goreng (fried rice), mie goreng (fried noodles), satay, and meat or chicken stew. When you see kecap in Indonesian recipes, or when someone asks for kecap in Indonesia, they will always mean kecap manis. The sauce can be found easily in Asian grocery stores.  However,  if you can’t find sweet soy sauce everywhere, you can use regular soy sauce and then add some palm sugar or dark muscovado sugar.

For health reasons, if you don’t want to fry the chicken, since there is already so much butter as in this recipe, you can spray the chicken pieces with a little olive oil and roasted them for about 35 minutes at 220°C. They tasted just as nice!

Ayam Goreng Mentega ~ Fried Chicken in Sweet Butter Sauce

For recipe in Indonesian, click HERE

Ingredient:

·         1 medium-sized chicken (whole or boneless) cut into small pieces

·         3 cloves garlic, finely chopped

·         1 teaspoon salt

·         ½ teaspoon ground pepper

·         1 teaspoon lime or lemon juice

·         Oil for frying (corn oil, rapeseed oil, peanut oil etc.)

The Sauce:

·         4 tablespoons butter

·         2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

·         1 tablespoons light soy sauce

·         6-7 tablespoons Indonesian sweet soy sauce (Kecap Manis)

·         1 tablespoon oyster sauce

·         1 tablespoon Chinese cooking wine or dry sherry (optional)

·         2 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped

·         1 onion, peeled and thinly sliced

·         ¼ teaspoon ground pepper

·         Salt as per taste (I used only a sprinkle)

·         1 tablespoon of lime or lemon juice

Directions:

1.       Put  the chicken pieces to a bowl , add chopped garlic, ground pepper, salt, and lime juice.  Marinate in the refrigerator for at least a couple of hours. I usually leave them overnight.

2.       Heat the oil, pat the chicken pieces dry and and fry chicken until they are golden, drain on kitchen paper and set to one side. For health reason, if you avoid frying, you could spray the chicken pieces with a little olive oil and roasted them for about 35 minutes at 220°C.

3.       Heat the butter. Sauté the garlic and onion for a a few minutes, then add the remaining sauce ingredients.

4.       Stir fry for a minute and then add chicken pieces to reheat.

5.       Serve with plain boiled rice, garnished with slices of lime.

Bahasa Indonesia

Bahan:

·         1 ekor ayam ukuran sedang (utuh atau tanpa tulang), potong kecil-kecil

·         3 siung bawang putih, cincang halus

·         1 sendok teh garam

·         ½ sendok teh merica bubuk

·         1 sendok teh air jeruk nipis/lemon

·         Minyak untuk menggoreng

Saus Mentega:

·         4 sendok makan mentega tawar

·         2 sendok makan kecap inggris

·         1 sendok makan kecap asin

·         6-7 sendok makan kecap manis

·         1 sendok makan saus tiram

·         1 sendok makan angciu atau dry sherry (optional)

·         2 siung bawang putih, cincang halus

·         1 buah bawang bombay, iris tipis memanjang

·         ¼ sendok teh merica bubuk

·         Garam untuk perisa (sesuai selera)

·         1 sendok makan air perasan jeruk nipis atau lemon

Cara:

1.       Lumuri ayam dengan bawang putih, garam, merica, dan air jeruk nipis. Masukkan ke dalam kulkas dan diamkan sedikitnya selama 2 jam. Bisa juga dibiarkan semalaman supaya bumbu lebih meresap.

2.       Goreng ayam dalam minyak yang sudah dipanaskan di atas api sedang sampai matang dan kecokelatan. Angkat dan tiriskan.  Untuk alasan kesehatan,  jika  Anda menghindari menggoreng, Anda bisa mengoles ayam dengan sedikit minyak zaitun dan memanggangnya dengan suhu  220°C selama 35 menit.

3.       Panaskan margarin. Tumis bawang bombay dan bawang putih sampai harum. Masukkan bahan-bahan saus lainnya. Aduk sampai kental.

4.       Masukkan ayam yang sudah digoreng. Masak sebentar sampai bumbu meresap.

5.       Sajikan dengan  nasi hangat. 

Kkwabaegi ~ Twisted Korean Doughnut

Kkwabaegi, a pretty common street food sold by vendors in Korea, literally put a twist on traditional doughnuts. The dough is rolled into a rope and then twisted together to create the signature shape. After they are fried, the doughnut is simply coated in sugar and cinnamon powder mixture.

These Korean style twisted doughnuts are delicious and fun to make.  With simple ingredients you have on hands, you can easily make them for your family at home. They are best to eat shortly after frying, but you can freeze any leftovers for up to a month.  Thaw the frozen doughnuts at room temperature for 5 to 10 minutes before serving or you can warm them in microwave for 10 seconds in high power just before eating.  They will taste just as great as freshly made doughnut.

Kkwabaegi ~ Twisted Korean Doughnut (adapted from Maangchi)

For recipe in Indonesian click HERE 

Ingredients:

·         3 cups all-purpose flour

·         45 grams butter

·         7 grams active dry yeast

·         1 cup milk

·         1 egg

·         2 tablespoons white sugar (plus 3 tablespoons for dusting)

·         ½ teaspoon salt

·         ½ teaspoon cinnamon powder

·         Vegetable oil for frying

Directions:

1.       Melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium heat.  Remove from the heat and add milk, sugar, and salt. Mix well until all are dissolved. Add an egg and mix well.

2.       Transfer to a large bowl. Add 3 cups of flour and active yeast.  Mix well with a wooden spoon. Attach a dough hook of your mixer and knead the dough for at least 15 minutes until it becomes smooth and elastic.  Form the dough into a ball and cover with plastic wrap. Let it rise for about 1 hour in a slightly warm place until it doubles in size.

3.       Deflate the gas with your hand and knead for few minutes. Divide the dough into 16 equal sizes (about 40 grams each). Round to make a ball.

4.       Roll a ball of the dough out to about 10 inches length and ½ inch in diameter.  While you are rolling it, twist each end in the opposite directions so that the dough will become twisted when you release the tension. Take the dough off the board, hold it aloft, and bring the ends together. The tension in the dough will twist it as it hangs. You can add as much tension as you like, but the best looking kkwabaegi has 3-4 twists in it.

5.       Set it aside for about 20 minutes to rise again. 10 minutes in, gently flip each doughnut with your hands so the bottoms don’t get flat and all sides rise nice and round.

6.       Meanwhile, heat the oil on medium-high. When you drop a piece of doughnut  in the oil and it rises in about 2 seconds, the temperature of the oil is right.  Fry the doughnuts until golden brown then flip it over once.  If you flip it often, the doughnut will become too greasy.

7.       Strain the fried doughnuts. Put them in a plastic bag with the sugar and cinnamon mixture. Shake a few times until they are evenly coated. This is best done when the doughnuts are still warm.

Bahasa Indonesia

Bahan:

·         3 cups tepung terigu serbaguna

·         45 gram mentega

·         7 gram ragi aktif instan

·         1 cup susu cair

·         1 butir telur

·         2 sdm gula pasir (plu2 3 sdm untuk taburan)

·         ½ sdt garam

·         ½ sdt bubuk kayumanis

·         Minyak sayur untuk menggoreng

Cara:

1.       Lelehkan mentega dalam panci kecil. Tambahkan susu, gula, dan garam. Aduk sampai larut. Tambahkan telur dan aduk sampai bercampur.

2.       Pindahkan ke dalam mangkuk besar (atau mangkuk mikser).  Tambahkan 3 cup tepung terigu dan ragi.  Aduk dengan spatula kayu hingga bercampur.  Pasang dough hook pada mikser dan nyalakan (uleni) selama sedikitnya 15 menit sampai kalis dan elastis. Anda juga dapat menguleninya dengan tangan.  Bulatkan adonan dan tutup dengan plastic wrap. Biarkan mengembang sampai dua kali lipat selama sekitar 1-1.5 jam.

3.       Kempiskan adonan dan uleni sebentar. Bagi adonan menjadi 16 bagian sama besar (sekitar 40 gram setiap bagian). Bulatkan masing-masing adonan.

4.       Menggunakan kedua telapak tangan Anda, gulung adonan membentuk gulungan tipis sepanjang 10 inch dengan diameter sekitar ½ inch. Gulung ujungnya dengan arah yang berlawanan sehingga adonan seperti dipelintir. Angkat dan rekatkan kedua ujungnya, adonan akan dengan sendirinya melintir (twisted). Anda dapat membuat ‘pelintiran’/uliran sebanyak yang Anda suka, tetapi Kkwabaegi biasanya memiliki 3-4 uliran.

5.       Diamkan selama sekitar 20 menit agar adonan mengembang.  Pada 10 menit pertama, balik setiap adonan donat agar bagian bawah tidak pipih dan donat mengembang sempurna.

6.       Panaskan minyak dengan api sedang. Temperatur minyak dianggap tepat untuk menggoreng donat apabila donat yang kita masukkan ke dalam minyak langsung naik dalam waktu 2 detik. Goreng semua donat sampai berwarna kecoklatan dan balik hanya sekali saja.

7.       Tiriskan donat yang sudah digoreng. Masukkan ke dalam kantong plastik yang berisi campuran gula dan bubuk kayumanis.  Kocok hingga permukaan donat tertutup gula. Sajikan selagi hangat.