I’m not a big fan of western food. I have never been a big fan of hamburgers, hot dogs, or pizzas. But I have always loved steaks and spaghetti. The latter is because my mum used to cook us spaghetti on special occasions. She always made the sauce from scratch and it was always good. I’m a big fan of food made from scratch. Canned food is a big no-no for me though I’ll still eat it if I have to. I guess that makes me a princess.
I’m a HUGE fan of Indonesian food and Canada is really the worst place for that. Indonesian restaurants in Ontario can only be found in the most unlikely places and even then, the food they serve is far from being authentic. The only Indonesian food I’ve had in a restaurant that tastes almost authentic is the Lobster Martabak I had at Bhima’s Warung in Waterloo on our first wedding anniversary. The authentic martabak would have ground beef instead of lobster in it, but I don’t mind lobster.
Before I left Indonesia, I hardly ever cooked. I baked, but not cooked. In order to meet my own demand for homemade Indonesian food, I have learned to come up with recipes for my favourite Indonesian food. I just have to try to remember what something tastes like and then try to extract the ingredients in my brain. I’m getting pretty good at it after several failed attempts. I cook Indonesian food a lot and I like my Indonesian food spicy, which doesn’t bode well with Troy’s western tastebud. Poor Troy. He has to fend for himself a lot. Good thing he likes his toast.
I guess I should end this post by sharing one of my favourite made-up recipes which I believe tastes very Indonesian. It’s called Spicy Oven-baked Fish Fillet. I guess it’s more or less my version of Pepes Ikan. I’ll just describe it quickly in a not so professional manner because I’m not a professional cook.
First, heat up the oven to 375° F. Then grab a piece of aluminium foil, big enough to wrap the fish fillet. Put about 2 or 3 tablespoons of sambal oelek on the aluminium foil and then a teaspoon of the following: onion powder, garlic powder, ginger powder, coriander powder, lemongrass powder, and turmeric powder, plus salt and sugar to taste, and a tablespoon of cooking oil. Mix well. Coat the fish well with the concoction, wrap, and put it in the oven for half an hour. Serve with white rice. It’s spicy, but oh so good! I had it for lunch yesterday and had it again today. It’s that good! Give it a try!
