Javanese cuisine


Javanese cuisine is the cuisine of Javanese people, a major ethnic group in Indonesia in the provinces of Central Java, Yogyakarta, and East Java.

Definition

Javanese cuisine refers exclusively to the cuisine of Javanese people, which is often brought to other regions and countries by Javanese diaspora or foreign descents who have lived in Java.
There are several native ethnic groups who live on the island of Java as well as other peoples of foreign descents. In Indonesian language, Javanese refers to people of Javanese ethnic background.
Javanese cuisine is thought to be sweet, since this is the taste traditionally preferred in Yogyakarta. However, Javanese regions do not only include Yogyakarta.
On the northern and northeastern of Central Java, for instance, the taste tends to be salty and spicy. In East Java, the level of spiciness increases. Today, as Javanese people become more mobile and may move to different regions, this typical stereotype of preferred regional tastes is outdated.
File:Nasi Kuning Ibu Sulastri.jpg|thumb|Nasi kuning with urap, fried beef, anchovy and peanuts, potato and shrimp in sambal.

History

Ancient dishes and recipes were mentioned in numbers of Javanese prasasti and modern historians have succeeded in deciphering some of them. The inscriptions from Medang Mataram era circa 8th to 10th century mentioned several ancient dishes, among others are Hadangan Harang, Hadangan Madura, and Dundu Puyengan. Ancient beverages include Nalaka Rasa, Jati Wangi, and Kinca. Also various Kuluban and Phalamula.
In Javanese culture, food is an integral part of traditional ceremonies. For example, selamatan ceremony, often performed as a symbol of gratitude, is usually involving a communal feast where participants, guests, and attendees are invited to eat together. Food is usually prepared, cooked and served together. It also symbolizes gotong-royong, guyub, abundance, and gratitude.
Most of Javanese cuisine is natively developed. Many of the foods have been absorbed to modern Indonesian culture as "national dishes". Some of them have inspired many other regional dishes, such as, lontong, tumpeng, krupuk, jajan pasar, and many more.
Foreign influences on Javanese food can be seen in some food, such as bakmi and nasi goreng, satay and kari.

Ingredients

is an important food crop in Java, dating back to ancient times. The Javanese are known to revere Dewi Sri as the Rice Goddess. Steamed rice is the common staple food, and is served at every meal. Tumpeng, a cone-shaped yellow rice is essential in slametan, Javanese traditional ceremonies. Rice can be processed into lontong or ketupat, or cooked in coconut milk as nasi liwet or colored with turmeric as nasi kuning. Other sources of carbohydrate such as gaplek is sometimes mixed into rice or replaces rice. Gaplek is usually consumed by poor commoners during hard times when rice is scarce. Tubers such as yam, taro, and sweet potato are consumed as snacks in between meals. Bread and grains other than rice are uncommon, although noodles and potatoes are often served as accompaniments to rice. Potatoes are often boiled then mashed, shaped into discs, spiced, coated in beaten eggs and fried into perkedel. Wheat noodles, bihun, and kwetiau are influences of Chinese cuisine. The Javanese adopted these ingredients and made them their own by adding kecap manis and local spices to create bakmi Jawa, bakmi rebus, and bihun goreng. Vegetables feature heavily in Javanese cuisine, notably in vegetable-heavy dishes such as pecel, lotek, and urap.
File:Nasi Gudeg.jpg|thumb|200px|Javanese complete nasi gudeg, which consist of : krechek, ayam goreng, opor telur pindang, and gudeg.
Coconut milk, peanut sauce, gula jawa, asem jawa, petis, terasi, shallot, garlic, turmeric, galangal, ginger, and chili sambal are common ingredients and spices that can be found in Javanese cuisine. Freshwater fishes such as carp, tilapia, gourami and catfish are popular, while seafood such as tuna, red snapper, wahoo, ray, anchovy, shrimp, squid, and various salted fish are popular in coastal Javanese cities. Chicken, goat meat, beef, lamb and mutton are popular meats in Javanese cuisine. Next to common farmed chicken, the ayam kampung or free-range chicken, is popular and valued for its leaner, more natural flavors. Almost 90% of Javanese are Muslim, and consequently, much of Javanese cuisine omits pork. However, in small enclaves of Catholic Javanese population around Muntilan, Magelang, Yogyakarta, and Klaten, pork might be consumed. Few ethnic groups in Indonesia use pork and other sources of protein considered haram under Muslim dietary laws in their cuisine, most prominently Balinese cuisine, Indonesian Chinese cuisine, Batak cuisine, and Manado cuisine.

Outlets

Javanese households usually purchase fresh ingredients from the local market every morning, cook and serve them in the late morning to be mainly consumed for lunch. The leftovers are stored to be heated again for family dinner. Other than homemade family dishes, Javanese cuisine are served from humble street-side carts and warungs, to fancy restaurants in five-star hotels. Small family-run warungs are the budget options for street food, serving everything from family dishes for full meals, or snack foods. The popular simple Javanese cuisine establishments are the budget food of Warung Tegal, which are mainly established by Javanese from Tegal city, and the Angkringan street-side carts in Yogyakarta and Solo that sold cheap sego kucing and various wedang.
In Javanese tradition, it is common to dine in lesehan style, which is sitting cross-legged on the mat while dining in front of a short-legged table. It was started as a warung lesehan street food dining popular among tourists along Malioboro street in Yogyakarta. Today, Javanese lesehan food stalls can be found in several cities, including Surakarta, Semarang and Jakarta.

Central Javanese cuisine

The food in Central Java is influenced by the two ancient kingdoms of Yogyakarta and Surakarta. Most of Central Javanese dishes are indigenously developed, however in coastal cities such as Semarang and Pekalongan, notable Chinese influences can be seen, such as lumpia and bakmi Jawa. While in the royal court of Surakarta, the European influences can be seen, such as bistik Jawa and selat Solo. Many of Central Java-specific dishes contain the names of the area where the food first became popular, for example:

Semarang

  • Bandeng Juwana: processed tender boned milkfish originated from the fishing town of Juwana, east of Semarang. Although originated, produced and processed in Juwana, it is largely sold in Semarang.
  • Lumpia Semarang: fried or steamed spring rolls. The filling varies, but consists mainly of meat and bamboo shoots. It is served with sweet fermented soybean sauce or sweet garlic sauce. Another accompaniment is acar and chili.
  • Nasi ayam: a dish composed of rice, chicken, egg, tofu, and served with a sweet-salty coconut milk gravy.
  • Roti ganjel rel, rectangular shaped brown bread with sesame seeds, flavored with cinnamon and palm sugar. Usually served during Dugderan and Ramadan.
  • Soto Semarang: a chicken soup in a small personal serving; mixed with rice, perkedel, and satay of cockles, chicken intestines, and quail eggs. One of the famous Soto Semarang is Soto Bangkong. Named after Bangkong crossroad in Semarang.
  • Wingko Babat: a cake made largely of glutinous rice and desiccated coconut, toasted and sold warm. Although it originated from Babat, East Java, it is popular in Semarang. Care should be taken to differentiate between Babat and babat. Babat is a city in East Java, part of the North Coast Road and where wingko Babat came from, while babat is tripe, an ingredient often used for Indonesian cuisine in general.

    Jepara

  • Soto Jepara: soto is a common Indonesian soup, usually infused with turmeric, and can be made with chicken, beef, or mutton. The version from Jepara, a Central Javanese town, is made of chicken.
  • Opor panggang: a typical opor from Jepara. It is a kind of opor ayam but with distinctive flavor, since the chicken used in this dish is first roasted in a clay cauldron.
  • Kuluban: traditional salad from Jepara Regency.
  • Kelan antep: dish made from lean meat, ginger, bay leaves, red onion, garlic, red chili, tamarind, sugar, and others.
  • Horok-horok: steamed corn starch. After being cooked, corn starch is then poured into jars and stirred with a comb. So although chewy and tough, it is shaped in small granules resembling Styrofoam. To add flavor, a pinch of salt can be added. This dish can be served as an accompaniment to meatballs, gado-gado, pecel, or satay kikil.
  • Hoyok-hoyok: also called oyol-oyol, is a dish made from tapioca flour mixed with water and oil, then served with extra grated coconut. Hoyok-hoyok is a sweet version of horok-horok.
  • Jepara shrimp soup: similar to shrimp soup in general. This version of soup use shrimp broth and fried shrimp, also raw crushed chili. This soup is delicious eaten while still hot or warm.
  • Jepara pangsit soup: considered as a fusion cuisine, this dish is a blend of local and foreign cuisines, i.e. Javanese, Dutch, and Chinese. The pangsit in this soup is not like the dumpling we know, but rather in the form of a clear soup with shrimp egg rolls. This is one of the favorite dishes of R.A. Kartini.
  • Bongko mento: originated in Jepara palace, it is a snack wrapped in a banana leaf. Consists of omelet filled with sauteed shredded chicken breast mixed with oyster mushrooms, glass noodles, and coconut milk.
  • Lontong krubyuk: similar to lontong dishes in general, this dish consists of rice cake served with shredded chicken meat stews doused in bakso soup and garnished with a mixture of half-cooked bean sprouts and sliced celery. What distinguishes this from other lontong dishes, this dish is served with a lot of soup.
  • Singit: beef shank cooked in coconut milk, soy sauce, salt, red chili, garlic, onion, and brown sugar, over low heat until the sauce thickens.
  • Semur Jepara: made of meat, salt, pepper, nutmeg powder, soy sauce, cooking oil, and others.
  • Sayur pepaya Jepara: a vegetable stew usually served in the afternoon. The main ingredients are young papaya, coconut milk, beef stew, and others.
  • Sayur asem Jepara: similar to sayur asem Jakarta.
  • Sayur betik: a vegetable stew, using young unripe papaya and beef trimming as the main ingredients.
  • Gule petih Jepara: made of tender goat meat and spice mixture. Usually served during Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha.
  • Laksa Jepara: made of chicken fillet, banana shrimp, chicken stock, coconut milk, lemongrass, kaffir lime leaves, salt, sugar, oil, and other ingredients.
  • Sayur keluak ayam: made of vegetables, keluak and chicken.
  • Kagape kambing: a dish made of goat meat. Easily found during Eid al-Adha.
  • Bakso Karimunjawa: meatballs soup made from fish, instead of beef or chicken.
  • Tongseng cumi: tongseng made of calamari or squid, instead of goat or chicken.
  • Rempah Jepara: a dish made from grated coconut, fish, and others.
  • Bontosan: a dish of mashed grouper or mackerel mixed with rice powder and shaped into spindles, wrapped in banana leaves or plastic, steamed, then thickly sliced, and served with sauce or gravy. Bontosan is actually the pre-dried form of fish crackers. It can also be served after being shallow-fried until the outside is crisp and golden brown. Similar in taste to pempek.
  • Sate sapi Jepara: satay made of cow meat mixed with spices typical of Jepara.
  • Sate kikil: a satay dish made of kikil, also called satay cecek. Usually served with horok-horok.
  • Pecel ikan laut panggang: roasted saltwater fish served with coconut milk sauce.
  • Tempong: uncooked dried anchovy, shaped like fritter.