Indonesian Style Shabbat

I didn't know where to start this week, so I  did a search on the best food in the world. The site I opened listed rendang as number 1. Rendang is usually prepared from beef. SInce the meat in Israel is not very good, I found a chicken rendang recipe. All the food was tasty but  I am not sure if rendang is the best food in the world. 
Sarida arrived home this week. A friend of hers came to see Israel and joined us for Shabbat. I think he was hoping for typical Israeli food but seemed to enjoy our custom. 
We invited friends from the moshav to join us for lunch and they brought 3 of their kids.

Jewish Life and History

Today there are 20 Jews in Indonesia! Jews arrived in Indonesia when it was held by the Dutch.  Between World War I and World War II, the Jewish population reached its peak at 2000. The Jews suffered under Japanese occupation and were sent to labor camps. After World War II, most of the Jews left emigrating to Australia, America, and Israel.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_Jews_in_Indonesia

http://www.insideindonesia.org/weekly-articles-104-apr-june-2011/being-jewish-in-indonesia-17071972

Food

Friday Night Dinner

Soto Ayam (Chicken Soup)
Urap
Satay (Chicken on skewers)


Prepared for 10.

Soyto Ayam (Chicken Soup) Recipe 1  

Delicious soup. 
We grow lemon grass and often use it in tea. This was the first time I cooked with it.


Original Recipes
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/07/dining/072lrex.html
http://indonesiaeats.com/soto-ayam-lamongan-chicken-soup/
http://beelittlefood.blogspot.co.il/2011/10/soto-ayam-classic-indonesian-aromatic.html

My Soto Ayam Recipe

Ingredients

• Chicken
• 1 stalk lemon grass with leaves
• 1 tsp peppercorn
• 1/2 tsp cumin seed
• 1/4 cup coriander
• 5 shallots
• 3 cloves garlic
• 1 tsp turmeric
• 1 inch ginger
• 1 sliced leek
• Cooked noodles

Preparation 

1. Cook chicken in pot with lemon grass, salt and pepper.
2. When cooked, remove chicken to cool
3. In food processor, make a paste from peppercorn, cumin, coriander, shallots, garlic, turmeric, and ginger
4. Add spices and leeks to broth, bring to a boil and then simmer about 15 minutes.
5. Remove chicken from bones and stir fry.
6. Prepare noodles.

Store broth, chicken, and noodles, and eggs separately.  When ready to serve, heat soup with chicken and noodles.

Urap

This is a mix of steamed vegetables with a sweet sauce.  I served it in place of our usual salad.   

I prepared the vegetables and sauce and stored them separately until I put them on the warmer together.

Original Recipe

http://asiarecipe.com/indoveg.html#coconut

My Urap Recipe

Ingredients

I wrote some suggested quantities here. I was very inexact and just prepared a lot of vegetables. 

• 8 oz green beans
• 8 oz sprouts
• 6 carrots
• 1/2 head cabbage
• 1 cup grated coconut
• 1 onion chopped
• 1 tsp brown sugar
• 2 tsp soy sauce
• juice of one lemon or lime (preferably lime if available)

Preparation 

1. Trim ends and cut green beans into bite size pieces and steam until just tender. Place in cool water, drain, and set aside.
2. Pour boiling water over the sprouts, then ice cold water. Drain and set aside.
3. Cut carrots into slices and steam until tender. Place in cool water, drain, and set aside.
4. Cut cabbage, steam briefly. Place in cool water, drain, and set aside.
5. Mix onion, coconut, brown sugar, soy sauce, and lemon juice. Set this aside too
6. Before serving, place vegetables in a pan and cover with the sauce.
7. Heat briefly on the warmer.

Satay

This is chicken pieces on a skewer, grilled and served with a peanut sauce. 
Eli grilled the chicken for us an hour or so before Shabbat so it would not be dry when I served it. 
Original Recipes
http://www.pbs.org/parents/kitchenexplorers/2011/11/01/indonesian-chicken-satay-with-peanut-sauce/
http://allrecipes.com/recipe/indonesian-satay/

My Satay Recipe

Ingredients

• 6 chicken breasts, cut into pieces
• 2 shallots
• 3 cloves garlic
• 1 root of lemon grass
• 1 hot chili pepper, stem and seeds removed
• 1/4 cup fresh coriander
• 2 tbsp cumin
• 3 tbsp soy sauce
• 2 tbsp vegetable oil
• 1 tbsp oil
• 2 cloves garlic, grated
• 6 tbsp peanut butter
• 4 tbsp brown sugar
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 1/2 cup coconut milk

Preparation 

1. Prepare chicken.
1. Process shallots, garlic, lemon grass, chili pepper, coriander, cumin, soy sauce, and tbsp vegetable oil.
2. Marinate chicken in sauce in refrigerator for several hours.
3. Place on skewers and grill.
2. Prepare peanut butter sauce:
1. Saute garlic in oil.
2. Add remaining ingredients except lemon.
3. Bring to a light boil and then simmer. The sauce should be thick.
4. Cool and add lemon.
5. Warm the sauce before serving.

Shabbat Lunch

Tahu_Gjerot (Fried Tofu)
Gado Gado
Chicken Rendang

Prepared for 15.

Fried Tofu: Tahu-Gejrot

This is served with noodles or sprouts. I added it to noodles and to a couple of salads that I served.

Original Recipe

http://www.yummly.com/recipe/Tahu-Gejrot-_hot-Tofu_-Recipeza

My Fried Tofu: Tahu_Gejrot Recipe

Ingredients

• 2 chunks tofu
• oil for frying
• 3 red onions
• 3 cloves garlic
• 2 tbsp brown sugar
• 2 tbsp soy sauce
• 1/4 cup water

Preparation 

1. Fry tofu.
2. In food processor, process other ingredient into almost a paste.
3. In a pan, place tofu and paste.
4. Store  and then heat on warmer before serving.

Gado Gado

Gado Gado consists of steamed, blanced, or boiled vegetables, served with peanut sauce. I served the peanut sauce on the side.


Original Recipe
http://www.mediterrasian.com/delicious_recipes_peanut_sauce.htm

My Gado Gado Recipe

Ingredients

.Various vegetables, steamed, boiled, or blanched. You want the vegetables lightly cooked.

• 1 tbsp canola oil
• 2 cloves garlic minced
• 1 cup coconut milk
• 1 cup water
• 6 tbsp peanut butter
• 4 tbsp soy sauce
• 4 tbsp brown sugar
• juice of one lemon

Preparation 

1. Prepare vegetables and set aside. 
2. For peanut sauce:
1. Saute garlic in oil.
2. Add remaining ingredients except lemon and bring to a boil
3. Simmmer 15 minutes
4. Add lemon

Rendang

So here is it, rendang. As I mentioned in the introduction, this is chicken rendang. Good, but not the best food in the world. Maybe meat randang prepared by an authentic Indonesian cook is better than chicken rendang prepared by a Jewish mother for Shabbat.

Original Recipes

http://www.indochinekitchen.com/recipes/chicken-rendang

http://rasamalaysia.com/beef-rendang-recipe-rendang-daging/

http://thaifood.about.com/od/thaicurrydishes/r/rendangcurry.htm

My Chicken Rendang

Ingredients

• 17 thigh and leg
• 3 lemon grass, white only
• 8 shallots
• 6 cloves garlic
• 2 inch ginger
• 1 tbsp soy sauce
• 1 tbsp brown sugar
• coriander 
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp cloves
• 2 red chili peppers, seeds removed
• 1 tsp nutmeg
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1 can coconut milk

Preparation 

1. In food processor, process lemon grass, shallots, garlic, ginger, brown sugar, nutmeg, and cumin.
2. Add spice mix to cocunut  milk heat with cinamon stick and corriander.
3. Add chicken. I cooked this in several batches. After each batch of chicken was done, I removed it. I did not remake the sauce each time.

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