Month: April 2022

Kolak Candil.. Indonesian sweet dish.

dessert

The holy month of Ramadhan all over the world, has different traditions for breaking the fast,  one thing common will be sweetmeats, whether its dates or a glass of sharbat.
Here in Indonesia, people will mostly drink hot sweet black tea to be followed by various KOLAKS.
Kolaks are mostly soupy,  palm sugar  and coconut milk based. Various things are added, like jack fruit or banana, or sweet potato etc. Mostly served warm as the people here believe that breaking a fast with something cold will surely harm the stomach.😊
Kolaks are made with many twists. Here at home during Ramadhan helpers make different types of sweets. Will share some more recipes soon.
Today I will share kolak made with sweet potato dumplings. CANDIL ( pronounced Chandil) is balls of sweet potato. Hence the name.  Easy to make and light on the stomach. No oil goes in the preparation.

Step 1
Peel and chop 500 gms of sweet potato
( I have used orange sweet potato)
Heat a steamer and steam cook the sweet potatoes.
Avoid boiling them .
Once cooked, ( it took about 15 mins in my steamer) remove into a plate and mash using a fork.
Put in a  big bowl along with 150 gms TAPIOKA  flour. Add a pinch of salt and mix the warm mashed pototes with the flour. Knead into a smooth ball.
Divide and roll into small balls. Work quickly, I had help doing these, so it took about 10 mins for 2 of us .😊
I got about 75 small balls( good enough for a nice big bowl of kolak) keep aside.

2nd step.
In a sauce pan,  add 200 ml of coconut milk( I used a tetra Pack) and 100 ml of water.
Put in a knotted pandan leaf.
( or use 1/2 tsp of vanilla powder)
1/2 tsp of salt
Simmer, stirring continuously for 10 mins…keep aside.

3rd step.
Heat 600ml water in a saucepan
Add 200 gms of chopped palm sugar
( jaggery)
1 tbsps of  sugar
1/2 tsp of salt
1 knotted pandan leaf
Or you can add a little vanila essence at the end.
Boil till palm sugar dissolves, strain the water into another pan to get rid of impurities.
Boil once again and add a slurry of 2 tbsps tapioka flour mixed with 50 ml of water.
Bring to a boil and keep aside.

Final step.
Take a big pot, put about 1.5 liters of water, bring to a rolling boil and add the sweet potato balls. They will sink and rise within 5 mins. Keep on boil for another few mins, strain off the water, and add the balls to the palm sugar syrup. Give one boil and done.

AASSEMBLING.
Put few balls and palmsugar syrup in a bowl, drizzle few spoons of coconut milk on top…and enjoy warm.

Tip… to get things done faster, I put the sweet potato to steam on one stove, made the palmsugar syrup on another, and the coconut milk on another. 😊so I was done within 45 mins.

**The bland coconut milk balances the sweet palmsugar syrup.

Sindhi Chicken/ lotus stem

main meal

The recipe which I will share today is usually the base for sindhi pawa(trotters, or paya) but I cook my mutton or chicken,or Lotus stem( beeh) using this recipe of my mother, its easy enough to follow..( had shared the mutton version of this long back in a post on this blog)

SINDHI CHICKEN
1 whole chicken cut into 8 or 10 pieces.
3 big onions, cut fine
2 tomatoes chopped
2 tomatoes boiled and pureed.
2 tbsps ginger garlic paste.
1 tsp shah jeeri
3 tsps red chillie powder( or to taste)
1 tsp haldi powder.
2 tsps dhania powder.
2 tsps home made garam masala( shared recipe previously.)
Salt about 2 tsps.

Take a square piece of muslin cloth, about the size of a man’s handkerchief and put these spices onto it

1 tsp cummin seeds
1 pc of cinnamon ( about an inch long) a 2 small dried bay leaves
4 cloves
12 black peppercorns 
4 green cardamoms
4 small shallots and 4 cloves of garlic
and a small piece of ginger
2 tbsps raw rice and 1 tbsp raw chana dal
Tie this into a secure potli and make a bouquet garni, put this packet of spices into a pressure cooker, add chicken into the cooker, add sufficient water and close the lid, cook for about 2 or 3 whistles on medium flame. Once pressure is released from the cooker,  Remove the bouquet garni, open it gently, and put the spices into a mixer and blend using about one cup of water, strain this thick spice water and keep aside. ( DISCARD CINNAMON STICK AND BAY LEAVES)

Now take a pot, add about 4 to 5 tbsps of oil, and add 3 finely chopped onions. saute until onions turn pale golden in colour.

Add shah jeeri or caraways seeds to the onions
Add 2 tbsps of ginger garlic paste and continue to saute.
Now add 2 sliced tomatoes and puree of 2 boiled tomatoes

Continue to saute till every thing comes together and then add dry spices like turmeric, red chillie powder, corriander powder and lastly the king of all masalas …garam masala., season with salt.

Now is the time to add the boiled chicken  together with the stock. mix well and let it cook covered for 10 mins, then add the strained spice mixture little by little. Cover once again and simmer till your kitchen is engulfed with the fragrance…abt 15 mins on a low flame, adjust the thickness of the gravy , it should be semi thick and slightly sticky due to the starch in the rice. The chicken literally falls of the bones…

** Tip, Its better to pressure cook the chicken a day before, if possible. Keep the stock, bouquet garni, and water from boiled chicken in the fridge, next day you will see that the stock has turned into jelly. It gives awesome flavours..then you can grind the spices in the bouquet garni. BUT, if time does not permit, then go ahead and cook directly.

Finally add lots of chopped corriander leaves , stir and serve hot with phulkas or bread slices( we prefer pao or bread buns, to soak up the gravy)… and some sindhi kechumbo .

Kechumbo

Rub some salt onto 2 sliced onions, and leave for 5 mins, then wash under running water, squeeze the water out and put the onions in a bowl . now add 2 sliced green chillies , 1 tsp salt, 1 tsp sugar and 1 tsp vinegar. mix well and refrigerate.( I  even add grated raw beetroot and grated carrot to my kechumbo)

FOR VEGETARIANS I WOULD SUGGEST MAKING LOTUS STEM AND POTATOES,OR MUSHROOMS. USING THE SAME ABOVE METHOD.

Sup oyong bakso ayam/ Ridgegourd/ Turaiya chicken noodle soup.

main meal

Sup Oyong Bakso Ayam
( Turaiya/Ridgegourd chicken noodle soup)
This is one of the best ways to eat this lovely vegetable. Adding Ridgegourd to soup gives it a silken texture and surprisingly it enhances the taste.
One of our favourite soups at home. Especially on a Rainy night.  Indonesians are not familiar with cooking Turaiya in a sabji form. Its mostly made this way in a soup. Do try this soup, which is very very easy  to make and a delight to have. A meal in a bowl I love Turaiya in any form, be it the aisi turiyuoon ji bhaji which my mother made often when we were young or even the phota bhuga turi which my mother in law gave me during child birth.😊

For the bakso ayam
Chicken dumplings
Blend 200 gms of boneless chicken with
2 pods garlic
2 egg whites
1 tsp white pepper powder
1/2 tsp grated nutmeg
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp cornflour.
2 tbsp spring onion..finely chopped
1 tbsp  celery …finely chopped.

Make tiny balls with the help of 1 tsp.
Keep dipping the spoon in a small bowl of water.
Keep the chicken balls ready.

Soak about 70 gms of glass noodles in hot water. For 10 mins..drain and keep ready.

Take 2 Ridgegourds ..try to take the ones without seeds .
Peel and cut into round chunks. Not too thin, and not too thick…keep ready.
Blanch 1 bowl of moong bean sprouts in hot water , strain and keep ready( I used toge)

For the soup.
Grind 6 shallots, 3 garlic pods with a mortar and pestle. Make a paste.

Heat 1 tbsp of oil, add onion garlic paste, and 1 tsp of white pepper powder.
Saute till fragrant.
Ad 5 cups of hot water( better if you have chicken stock) I used stock. and bring to a boil.
Add the chicken balls .
Add 1 tbsp chicken sesoning or 2 cubes of knorr . I used royco.
Let the soup come to a rolling boil.
Add 1 tbsp of sesame oil.
Add  the ridgegourd / turai/ oyong.
Give a final simmer for 5 mins and take off the fire.

To assemble..
Put some glass noodles in a bowl, add blanched bean sprouts, and laddle the soup into the bowl.
Top with fried onion and chopped spring onion. And a healthy squirt of lime juice.
Serve with chilli sauce. I used fresh home made  sambal..

MACKEREL IN SPICY CHILLI SAUCE WITH STINK BEANS( Ikan kembung samal pete).

main meal

IKAN KEMBUNG SAMBAL PETE.
( MACKEREL IN SPICY CHILLI SAUCE WITH STINK BEANS)
Stink beans, bitter beans , twisted cluster beansthe names are  enough to put people off. BUT, wait, these beans are so called bcoz of their distinct taste and odour,( A bit strong, but similar to raw asparagus which I admit is an acquired taste.) The bean it self has a buttery bite to it. And the beans healing properties are many. They are very good in cleansing the kidneys., so don’t shy away…do try them Very very popular here in Indonesia. Petai( pronounced  Ptai) is mostly added to sambals or served as a side dish with rice, fish, chicken etc. Its truely delicious. Its normally just added in the last stage of cooking or eaten fried.
In India Its called YONGCHAK, ( I googled this, and saw its found in MANIPUR.) Pls do enlighten me if you know more about this in India.
Normally a single stalk will have about 10 to 12 beans, the outer covering is disposed and the beans are used.Every vegetable vendor who passes around will surely have many petai hanging on his cart.
These bright green beans surely brighten up a dish.
Ikan kembung is a distant cousin of the mackerel. Its not very fleshy, and has many tiny bones. But it fries very well and tasty to eat. Use any other fish if you want. Its the sambal which is so tasty..spicy, a little sweet and slightly tangy. Do try this recipe. Photo was a bit difficult to take..pls excuse the photography.

500 gms of ikan Kembung( chubb mackerel)..Make slits over the fish.
Wash well, rub lime juice and salt over it and let sit for half an hour.
Next rub some corriander powder and turmeric into the fish
Heat some oil in a pan and deep fry the fish till crispy…( you can cover while frying to avoid spluttering.
Keep the fish in a serving dish.

Sambal.( 1st step grinding)
7 red chillies
5 bird eye chillies
6 shallots
3 garlic pods
1 tsp salt
50 ml or 3 tbsps water.
Blend all this .keep asaide.

Step 2.
Heat 6 tbsps oil in a pan
Add the blended paste, 1 stalk of  lemongrass( slit and bashed), 3 torn kaffir lime leaves
Cook this till oil seperates.
Now add
10 whole bird eye chillies
1 big tomato sliced
1 tbsp jaggery or brown sugar
1/2 tsp sugar
50 ml or 3 tbsps water.
Also add the Petai( remove from stalk, and remove the white membrane, slit the green beans into 2)

Now cook all this for 10 mins till the beans lose thier rawness.
To assemble.
Put the fish in a platter, and pour the sambal on top of the fish, garnish with cucumber and thai basil.
Eat with hot white rice and some stirfry vegetables.
Have shared some photos in the comment section.

Egg chicken rolls

snacks

CHICKEN EGG ROLLS OR AYAM GULUNG DADAR TELOR.

This very simple , light and tasty snack comes together very very quickly.  Basically minced chicken is applied on a thin omelette and rolled , steamed and then panfried after cutting.
A no fuss recipe to make and eat😊
Please do try making this.

1st step
Beat 3 eggs lightly and season with salt and pepper.
Prepare 3 thin omelettes and keep aside.

# just cook lightly, don’t overcook the omelettes.

2nd step.
Put 200 gms of boneless chicken in a food processor.
Add 1 spring onion finely chopped
1 tbsp of ginger garlic paste
2 tsps sesame oil
1 tsp white pepper powder
1 tsp salt.
1 tsp mushroom seasoning or 1/4 tsp msg.
1/2 tsp grated nutmeg
Run the mixer till chicken is minced well.
Add 1 egg, and run the mixer once more.
Remove into a bowl.

3rd step
Take one omelette, apply 1/3rd of the chicken paste evenly all over the surface.
Roll gently.
Repeat for all 3 omelettes.
Keep the rolls in a hot steamer, seam side down, and steam for 15 mins.

4th step.
Cut the rolls at a slant to get oval pieces.
Dip all the cut pieces into cornflour.
Dust off excess cornflour.
Heat a frying pan and add about 5 to 6 tbsps of oil.
Heat oil, and add the egg chicken roll  pieces.
Pan fry till golden.
Serve hot, with a sauce of your choice.