Mung beans are known as kacang hijau in Indonesia and are a common legume in many countries. Originally hailing from India they are now common cooking ingredients in Chinese and South Asian cuisine, including Indonesian.

The beans have an oval shape with a beautiful green color. Hulled mung beans are readily available for purchase and are known as split mung beans. The outer green skin is removed and the bean is split into two sides revealing a light yellow color. The yellow split mung beans do not need to be pre-soaked as they cook quickly. But it is still important to soak the whole mung beans before cooking.

Mung beans feature prominently in Indian food, most notably moong dhal. Traditionally cooked with spices and herbs, ghee and vegetables, a dish of moong dhal creates a delicious, nourishing meal that, as far as beans go, is a comfort food.

A complete meal is often moong dhal paired with Basmati rice, vegetables and Indian roti bread. Mung beans are probably the most important beans in Thai cuisine with several desserts and snacks made with hulled mung beans.

In Indonesia, Mung beans are not probably the most well-known beans as we use soya beans to make soya cake, tempe, tofu and soya sauce. But mung beans are used in many different ways here. Perhaps mung bean sprout or tauge is the most popular mung beans product, used in gado-gado, soto, spring rolls, stir fries and more.

The starch from the beans can be extracted to flour to make a typle of noodle called glass noodles or soun. There are limited mung bean dishes in classic Indonesian cuisine but plenty in Indonesian modern cuisine from soup to ice cream.

Bubur kacang hijau or sweet mung bean porridge is the most popular mung bean dish in Indonesia. It is normally served with a touch of coconut milk and palm sugar with infusion of ginger and pandan leaves. This is a perfect dish for breaking the fast. You may serve it warm or cold.

If you have left over sweet mung been porridge you can turn into ice cream, simply by putting the mung bean porridge into a blender and process until the texture is fine and creamy and placing in the ice cream machine and processing until the mixture turn into frozen sweet mung been ice cream. Enjoy!

Sweet mung bean porridge, or bubur kacang hijau

You can prepare this dish in advance before breaking the fast. It is really good idea to separate the coconut cream and palm sugar syrup to let you or your guests help themselves with the sweetness and richness of the coconut cream to their taste. But you may also mix the coconut cream and palm sugar with the bean in one pot which is more convenient.

Serves 12

250gr whole mung beans, soaked over night; 1 liter water, 75gr fresh ginger, peeled and sliced roughly; 2 pandan leaves, chopped roughly, 1 teaspoon of salt

For the palm sugar syrup:
200gr palm sugar block, chopped roughly; 200ml water; 2 pandan leaves, chopped roughly

For the coconut cream:
2 mature whole coconuts; 400ml warm water or 250ml ready to use coconut cream

Directions:
1. Put one-liter water in a large pan and add the mung beans, sliced ginger and pandan leaves and bring to the boil and simmer until the beans soft and tender. Add one-teaspoon of salt to season.

2. In the mean time prepare the coconut cream. If you want to make your own coconut cream from scratch, buy 2 whole mature coconuts, which the coconut husk and coconut shell have been removed.

3. Discard the brown thin skin, make a little hole in the coconut and collect the water in a container before finely grating the coconut.

4. Add 400ml warm water and mix and squeezed the grated coconut for around 5 minutes. Then squeeze the coconut under a sieve and collect the coconut cream.  Or simply buy ready to use coconut cream.

5. To make the palm sugar syrup simply put all the ingredients in a pan and heat until the texture of the palm sugar resembles syrup. Pour the mixture over a sieve and set aside.

6. To serve: put the mung beans porridge in a large bowl and the coconut cream and palm sugar in smaller bowls to allow guests to help themselves.

The post Food for Thought: Breaking the Fast With Beans appeared first on The Jakarta Globe.

Jakarta. Speculaas is more often than not associated with a delicious biscuit, with a warm and delightfully aromatic flavor from a blend of nutmeg, cinnamon, ginger and cloves — among other ingredients — shipped from the shores of Indonesia. Originally known as speculaaskruiden, it is indeed as its name suggests a “spice mix.” But why stop there?

We all know that spices can be used as a preservative for many foods before refrigeration, so logically I see no reason not to rediscover its versatility — whether dusted over cappuccinos and lattes, to give salad dressing more bite, or as a feature in savory dishes — as much as the sweet traditions of baking. 

For this week’s recipe, I have prepared a recipe for chicken with sweet soya sauce, shallots, garlic and speculaas spice mix.

Pulled meat is an idea from the United States, which literary involves taking the skin off a pig or chicken once it’s been cooked. Pulled beef, chicken or pork has become a global food trend around the world.  There are many cooking technique to prepare pulled chicken through barbequing or roasting. I prefer to simmer the meat in low heat with spices and herbs to make it really tender and juicy.

The pulled chicken is a perfect addition to rice, mashed potatoes and some vegetables but I like the idea of serving it with some salad leaves and grated vegetables. Finally, some natural yoghurt in a tortilla wrap gives the dish a touch of acidity. It is really delicious, easy to make and something different. Enjoy!!

Pulled chicken wrap with speculaas spice mix

I use spring chicken, or ayam kampung, because the meat is gamier and far more tasty compared to broiler chicken. However, it can be quite tough. It needs to cook in low heat for between two-and-a-half to three hours to turn tender and juicy.

The ingredients listed below are enough to serve four people.

Main ingredients:

A 700-gram ayam kampung cut into 4 pieces — discard the skin (optional); 2 large onions, peeled and sliced thinly lengthwise; 3 cloves of garlic; 2 teaspoons of speculaas spice mix; 500 milliliters of hot water; 3 tablespoons of cooking oil; 3-4 tablespoons of sweet soy sauce; salt and black pepper to season

Other ingredients:

100 grams of romano or lettuce leaves; 2 medium-sized carrots, grated; 2 medium-sized cucumbers, cut into long sticks; 4 tablespoons of natural yoghurt; 4 large pieces of tortilla

Directions:

• Heat a large pan and add three tablespoons of oil. Add the onions and sauté with medium heat for about 10 minutes or until they turn soft and golden brown. Season with salt and black pepper, then transfer half of the onions into a bowl and set aside.
• Add garlic into the onion mixture still in the pan and sauté for 2-3 minutes.
• Add the chicken and mix well.
• Add the skeculaas spice mix and hot water; season with salt and black pepper and simmer the mixture for around 2 hours until the meat is tender and the water is evaporated.  Check the final seasoning. After two hours you will have nice soft texture of chicken, with skin that is easy to pull out.
• Place one chicken on a large plate and pull the chicken simply with a fork to discard the bones — but keep the mixture of onions and garlic. Transfer the pulled chicken into a bowl and repeat until all the flesh has been pulled off the bones.
  
• Pre-heat the oven to 1,80o degrees Celsius.
  
• Reheat the pan containing the pulled chicken in low heat. Make sure there is enough juice in the mixture.
• Now, you can warm the flat bread by placing it on the oven rack; warm for 1-2 minutes.
• To assemble the wrap: place the warmed tortillas on individual serving plates.
• Add some salad leaves, cucumber sticks, grated carrots, then divide the hot, pulled chicken into four equal portions.
• Top with a tablespoon of yoghurt.
• Add more salad leaves, grated carrot and cucumber sticks.
• Roll the wrap and serve immediately.

The post Spice Up Your Meal With Aromatic Chicken Wrap and Speculaas Mix appeared first on The Jakarta Globe.

For most of us, buying fresh green peppercorns is uncommon. We’re used to buying black and white pepper or whole peppercorns. While I would usually suggest you buy whole white or black peppercorns (and roast and grind them yourself) this week’s recipe uses green peppercorns, which are unripe black peppercorns.

So what are the differences between black, white and green peppercorns? To start, all come from the pepper plant, piper nigrum. The plants produce berry-like fruit (the peppercorns), which ripen from green, to red and finally brown. Peppercorns are harvested at various stages of maturity.

Black pepper — the world’s most traded spice — is a whole red peppercorn that has been dried and has strong and pungent flavor. It is one of the most common spices added to European cuisine and is ubiquitous in the modern world as a seasoning, most commonly paired with salt. White pepper consists of ripe peppercorns with the outer husk removed. It is the most common peppercorn used in Asian cuisine.

Green pepper consists of unripe peppercorns, which are usually sold dried or pickled in vinegar or brine. I adore green pepper. It has light, pungent flavor and is more fruity than other forms. It also has a touch of sweetness. Surprisingly, it is very easy to buy in local supermarkets. Green peppercorns are a common ingredient in French cooking, such as in fish terrines and some salads.

For this week’s recipe, I have prepared a very simple dish but it’s full of flavor: Pan-fried salmon with green peppercorns. Enjoy!

Salmon fillet with green peppercorn

This fish dish is so easy to prepare and can be served simply with your favorite mixed salad. To make it a full meal I serve it with silky mashed potatoes and stir-fried vegetables, such as button mushrooms, broccoli and cherry tomatoes. But feel free to use your favorite vegetables. There is no sauce for this dish but you will be surprised how tasty it is.

Serves 4

4 x 125 gram salmon fillets or any fish such as tuna, red or white snapper; juice of 2 limes; 2 tablespoons fresh green peppercorns or green peppercorns in brine; salt to season; 4 tablespoons olive oil or coconut oil.

For the mashed potatoes:

700 grams of butter potatoes, 100 grams of butter; 100ml milk, salt to season.

For the vegetables:

50 grams of button mushrooms, sliced to a thickness of abour ½cm; 150 grams of broccoli, cut into florets and blanched; 50 grams cherry tomatoes, cut into halves; 2 cloves of garlic, peeled and chopped finely; 3 tablespoons of olive oil or coconut oil, salt and black pepper to taste.

Directions:

1. First prepare the mashed potatoes. Peel and cut the potatoes into chunks.
2. Place potatoes in a pan with just enough water to cover. Bring to the boil then cover with a lid and simmer for 20 minutes or until tender, drain.
3. Put the potatoes into a blender, add the butter and process until silky and smooth. Transfer into a new pan and add the milk, reheat and keep warm. 
4. For the vegetables, simply stir-fry all the vegetables with garlic for 4-5 minutes and keep warm.
5. To prepare the fish, heat a non-stick frying pan over a medium heat and add the oil. Season the fish with salt and lime juice. Place the fish fillets into the pan. While the fish is cooking, crush the green peppercorns and season with salt. After 4-5 minutes depending on the thickness of the fish, turn each over and sprinkle with crushed green peppercorns. Cook for an extra 2-3 minutes. 
6. Make sure all the food is hot. To serve place one tablespoon of mashed potatoes, some vegetables and a fillet fish on each serving plate. Serve immediately.

The post Food for Thought: Fresh Green Peppercorns for a Light Meal appeared first on The Jakarta Globe.

As someone who has a great interest in food, I think molecular gastronomy is a lot of fun. It is like a playground for a child; you can play around with texture, colors, taste, fragrance and shape. A chef can have limitless creativity. However, this particular branch of cooking may not be for everyone.

Some people find it bizarre and over-the-top. The techniques used in molecular gastronomy are very different from those used to make everyday dishes at home or in a conventional restaurant.

Interestingly, Indonesia has experimented with the art decades before the world’s top chefs began taking an interest.

Local examples of molecular gastronomy can be found on the streets of Jakarta. Es cincau, for instance, perfectly reflects the popular technique.

The classic Indonesian dessert  is made of a grass jelly ice, derived from the leaves of the cincau plant. Simply soak the leaves in water, then wring its extracts out. Strain the resulting creamy liquid into a bowl. Place it in the refrigerator for three to four hours and your grass jelly is ready.

In my opinion, grass jelly is phenomenal; it is 100 percent natural and suitable for vegans and vegetarians.

Indonesian desserts have also been using agar-agar — a gelling agent extracted from red algae or seaweed — for centuries.

This week I have prepared a recipe for es cincau with milk, cashew brittle, coconut ice cream and chilies. You may replace the milk with light coconut milk to make this dish 100 percent vegetarian. Enjoy!

Es cincau and coconut ice cream with cashew brittle

The ingredients below will serve four, and you will need four small ramekin or glass molds.

Ingredients:

•  For the grass jelly: 250ml of milk, 60 cincau leaves or around 30gr

•  For the coconut ice cream: 3 whole young coconuts with a soft texture — not a gelatinous texture

•  For the cashew brittle: 100 gr of unsalted roasted cashews, roughly ground; 100gr of sugar.

•  Other ingredients: 1 papaya chili (large red chilies), remove the seeds and chop finely

Cooking Directions:

•  For the grass jelly: Simply wash the cincau leaves with mineral water and set aside.

•  Pour 250ml of milk into a bowl and with your hand, start to squeeze the leaves in the milk for 15 minutes.

•  The milk will turn green and become a little bit thick. Strain the liquid into a small jug. Then transfer the mixture into individual ramekin molds.

•  Keep the molds in the refrigerator for at least four hours or overnight.

•  For the coconut ice cream: simply process the coconut flesh in a blender until the mixture turns smooth.

•  Transfer the mixture into a container and place it in the freezer to set.

•  Remember to stir the mixture every hour for the first three hours to have a smooth texture for your ice cream.

•  To make the cashew brittle: Pour the sugar into a medium sauce pan and heat over a medium flame until the sugar begins to brown and transform into caramel. Do not stir at all.

•  Once the sugar begins reaches the desired caramel color, remove from the heat.

•  Immediately add the ground cashews, stir quickly and mix well.

•  Transfer the mixture into a parchment or baking paper; spread quickly to an even thickness, but make sure it is not too thick.

•  Allow the brittle to cool completely, then break into small pieces or put into a strong food processor.

•  To serve, spread the cashew brittle in the middle of each serving plate.

•  Remove the cincau from the mold, discard the liquid and place on the left side of the plates.

•  Place some ice cream on the other side and sprinkle the chilies around it for a splash of color and to add an interesting taste.

Serve immediately.

The post Create Your Own Traditional Roadside Delight: Es Cincau With a Gastronomic Twist appeared first on The Jakarta Globe.