Cooking Class with Chef Jerome Laurent of Cassis, Jakarta

Image October 31, 2014 Rian Farisa Leave a comment

Sebulan telah berselang sejak saya diajak bergabung oleh The Foodie Magazine untuk menghadiri cooking class yang dipimpin oleh chef Perancis kenamaan di Jakarta, Jerome Laurent, yang berlokasi di Le Galerie De Dietrich, Kemang. Here’s my catch of the day through the camera!

Kali ini Jerome Laurent, sang chef yang pernah memiliki Le Cilantro – restoran berpredikat bintang satu Michelin di Arles, Perancis ini mendemostrasikan tiga jenis masakan ala Perancis di depan grup kecil yang berisi para enthusiastic foodies dari Jakarta.

Setelah kami semua berkumpul mengelilingi dapur terbuka dari yang berbagai kitchen appliances-nya dilengkapi oleh pabrikan ternama De Dietrich, Chef Jerome Laurent lalu berbagi cerita untuk setiap langkah dari ketiga masakannya.

Masakannya sendiri terlihat sederhana namun dikarenakan menggunakan teknis memasak ala Perancis, maka begitu terasa betapa detail dan kerumitan setiap langkahnya.

Kebetulan dikarenakan suasana yang sangat interaktif dan menyenangkan, I lost the track of my recipe writing, namun setidaknya keceriaan dari kegiatan inilah yang bisa saya bagi di blog ini.

Hasilnya tentu tidak kalah menyenangkan. I particularly enjoy the chicken dan mengherankan juga ternyata saya bisa menyukai ati ayam in the end. Meskipun caramel pada choux pastry-nya agak gosong tapi isiannya begitu nikmat. It was indeed a very fun cooking demo!

So for you guys, stay tune for more giveaways from The Foodie Magazine through Instagram!

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Instagram:

@thefoodiemag
@kitchenatelierindonesia
@gastroficionado

Special Section – Our Indonesia: Yougwa (The Foodie Magazine, July 2014)

October 30, 2014 Rian Farisa Leave a comment

Call it an exaggeration but finding an authentic Papuan food in Jakarta is miraculous. Despite not being the first, my experience at Yougwa officially put Papuan cuisine in my foodie dictionary. Here’s the story.

Papua – the enchanting and mysterious land on the eastern part of Indonesia has long been forgotten, left alone with its archaic civilization of indigenous tribes that live within the thick forests that conceal all the exoticism from this island.

Papuan cuisine is almost unheard of, especially in Jakarta. The exchange of culinary and cultural influences are perhaps only in-between eastern provinces and they still retain pretty much what has been going on for many years. It’s really up for us whether we want to explore the mystery behind it or rather we just stay back with the mainstream selections.

Believing that the former choice is what that makes us foodies, brings us dilemma when it comes to filling the dots on our tailored map as we strive to achieve as many regional cuisines as possible from West to East. Fortunately for us, we found the one and only restaurant specializing in Papuan cuisine (with Manadonese influence) that has been operating in Jakarta for a while now.

The definition of Yougwa is actually a hut for the assembly of family patriarchs in Papuan tribes, but it was also chosen as the name of the restaurant. Within Kelapa Gading, the particularly ‘thick forest’ filled with eateries, we found another exotic persona that Jakartans must try – at least once.

Entering inside, tribal trinkets and written confessions from Papuan notable people who were pleased with their dining experiences at the restaurant decorated the wall. Once a while, Papuan family, as seen from their unique complexions, pass us by and head up and down the stairs to the second floor for perhaps, some sort of reunion party.

Papeda or the gooey sago porridge, is definitely a must-try as traditional Papuans are not used of having rice as their carbohydrate source. It took us a while to figure how to transfer the deliciously slimy sago from the bowl to our plates using two traditional forks.

The immediate match for this delicacy is none other than kuah asam ikan gabus or the Papuan sour fish soup, using the island’s native snakehead. Alternatively for the fish, they also have the fried version, grilled, and the Manadonese-style woku alongside different kinds of fish of your choice there.

It was quite adventurous for me personally, especially with papeda’s gluey texture and the sour fish soup’s refreshing taste. Perhaps next time, it would also be a good choice to have their traditional grilled fish as the accompaniment of the papeda. Additionally, Yougwa also sells indigenous crackers made from sukun (breadfruit) and keladi (elephant ear) to further enhance your experience here.

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YOUGWA
Halal-friendly
Unsuitable for vegetarians

Address:
Jalan Boulevard Raya Kelapa Gading WA 2 No. 31
Jakarta – Indonesia

T: +62.21.453.0419

Opening hours: Everyday, 10am – 10pm

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Featured in THE FOODIE MAGAZINE July 2014 edition

Download it for free here via SCOOP!

Jakarta, Tangerang

Quikskoop™: Restoran IKEA – Alam Sutera, Tangerang

October 29, 2014 Rian Farisa 3 Comments

It has now been exactly two weeks since IKEA opened its doors for the first time in Indonesia. As a foodie, naturally my instincts would lead me to go for the canteen first rather than sightseeing the megastore with my wife like in 500 Days of Summer. Well, didn’t work that way though and here’s the story when I arrived at last.

It was the second day and it feels like a shopping mall during weekend. Everybody crowded the parking lot so quick to get the best spot to park nearby the entrance and there’s plenty of people already inside.

It’s good to see my wife’s big grin when she saw IKEA for the first time ever, live, and not through commercials or its famous catalogue. So, it took us a while to get ourselves right in the canteen and just as I expected, there’s a long line already.

IKEA had anticipated this of course. So they lined up the customers pretty neat and quick but that’s not the case with the kitchen. They ran out of the side dishes so quick and so I had to ask if they have salad or sandwich left, aside from the overpriced smoked salmon.

Luckily, a kitchen attendant came by to replenish the salad fridge. Me and a customer behind me got the remaining salad right away, and I saw clearly the disappointment with the rest of the competition just behind us. No salad, no sandwich, just the smoked salmon in the end for many of them.

We decided to have the meatballs (of course) and the salmon as our mains. Additionally I also took a full bowl for mushroom soup and off we head to pay and fill our glasses with soda and coffee.

There’s always a room to sit on the right wing if it gets full too quick on the main area and it’s a good thing that everything was air-conditioned well since IKEA always designs the restaurant with huge windows to get much of the sunlight.

We enjoyed the food a lot especially with the soup and the meatballs, thanks to the hunger mainly. The salmon was okay but I think it could be better. The salad was like regular salad you’d have in Pizza Hut, but I completely enjoyed the free flow drinks at a very reasonable price.

I figure that they won’t dare to charge the food at a really exorbitant price in overall since the furniture is apparently much more expensive than in Malaysia or Singapore, so I heard.

Well, it was a pleasure by the way to finally meet IKEA again and to finally introduce my wife with it. As for us, we’d love to visit again the canteen and try something else next time.

PS: Try also the snack bar right outside the cashier section. It is heavily queued but they got good snacks at a reasonable price plus there’s also a Swedish specialty snacks store beside it. Enjoy your visit and make peace with the crazy weekend, mind you!

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IKEA – ALAM SUTERA, TANGERANG
Halal-friendly
Suitable for vegetarians

Address:
IKEA Alam Sutera
Jl. Jalur Sutera Boulevard No. 45, Alam Sutera
Serpong, Tangerang – Indonesia

T: +62.21.2985.3900

Opening hours: Everyday, 9.30am – 10pm

Website

Jakarta

Foodies Lists: Suwe Ora Jamu (The Foodie Magazine, Oct 2014)

October 28, 2014 Rian Farisa 1 Comment

Jamu, the traditional medicine made from herbs and spices, has seen around a millennium of existence in Indonesia. Two young and creative minds from Jakarta decided to refresh and revive the passion again for the metropolis citizens and present us these refreshing drinks in form of a modern café.

Despite the fact that people nowadays, who live in the city, seem to believe more in modern medicine, you cannot simply set aside the fact that traditional jamu is still running strong within the veins of so many people in Indonesia – especially in Java.

From the oldie flicks back in three or four decades ago, there’s always a scene of people drinking jamu. Or there will always be the jamu peddlers who sell these potions from neighbor to neighbor by foot, although some of them use bikes and plastic bottles now. But of course, in-between houses you can always find a small jamu watering hole open until late night to keep you awake, if you know what I mean.

Traditional big jamu pharmaceuticals are known to employ technology on their jamu recipes. You can now find jamu in form of sachets, tablets, and capsules. In actuality, the tradition is far from gone and is kept alive strong, but is it still appealing for the so-called modern society nowadays?

That “traditional feel” is probably the reason why and that’s exactly why Nova Dewi, alongside with her business partner, decided to showcase jamu in form of a nice café, served alongside good coffee and good meals.

The catchy name, derived from a classic Javanese song, was chosen as the name for the café. Within a short period of time, Suwe Ora Jamu has gained prominence within the hearts of teens and young adults of Jakarta. Many of them became intrigued to try what their parents and grandparents have been enjoying all this time and chose to set aside their usual café drinks for this experience.

Suwe Ora Jamu concocts its own basic potions such as the beras kencur (galangal rice) and kunyit asem (sour turmeric) for drink-in and takeaways, but also provides other interesting options such as those that utilize tamarind, alang-alang (graminae), rosella, temulawak (curcuma), cabe puyang (chili and rhizome), and even vitality potions for husbands and wives.

For those who may be reluctant and afraid with the taste, the café also provides assorted shot glass-sized drinks for you to try. At anytime, you can always ask for honey to make it sweeter. So we guess that there’s no more excuse for not trying our proud ancestors’ drinks and revive the traditional values, in style. Cheers for good health!

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SUWE ORA JAMU
Halal-friendly
Suitable for vegetarians

Address:
Jalan Petogogan no. 28, Jakarta – Indonesia
T: +62.21.7279.0590

Opening hours:
Everyday, mall opening hours

Website | Facebook | Twitter

Spend: IDR 25,000 – IDR 50,000 / person

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Featured in THE FOODIE MAGAZINE Oct 2014 edition

Download it for free here via SCOOP!

Recipe

Cover Feature – Recipes: Chicken by Hengky – PART 2 of 2 (The Foodie Magazine, June 2014)

October 27, 2014 Rian Farisa Leave a comment

Chef Hengky Efendy of The Belly Clan displays his mastery of Pan-Asian flavors as he shares with us fanciful ways to cook chicken.

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RECIPES

CHICKEN CLUB SANDWICH

Ingredients:

160gr White Toast
45gr Beef Bacon
80gr Chicken breast
25ml Soy sauce
5gr Butter
20gr Mixed lettuce
15gr Tomato ketchup
20gr Mayonnaise
55gr Egg
30gr Tomato
30gr Kyuri
150gr French Fries
3gr Salt & pepper

Method:

Toast the bread until golden brown and crispy.
Marinate the chicken breast with soy sauce and season it with salt and pepper, alongside the beef bacon as well. Sautee them.
On other pan, cook the egg with sunny side up method. Then fry the fries until golden brown.
In a mixing bowl, mix tomato ketchup and mayonnaise together and stir well.
Assemble the toast by spread it with mixed tomato ketchup and mayonnaise, lettuce, beef bacon, egg, sliced kyuri and tomato. Stack it also with chicken breast, cut half, and serve it with fries.

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LEMONGRASS CHICKEN SOUP

Ingredients:

30ml Cooking oil
50gr Onion
3gr Garlic
50gr Lemon grass
10gr Ginger
15gr Red chili
100gr Chicken breast
50gr Bean sprout
30gr Tomato
60ml Coconut milk
2gr Salt & pepper
Coriander
Lime

Method:

In a sauce pan, heat the cooking oil and sautee the onion and garlic.
Add ginger, lemon grass, red chili, chicken breast (diced), sautee and mixed well.
Add water and season with salt and pepper. Pour the coconut milk and stir well.
When almost ready, add tomato, lime and bean sprouts then transfer on a serving bowl.
Garnish with coriander and serve while hot.

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CHILI PESTO CHICKEN

Ingredients:

200gr Chicken breast
30ml Cooking oil
2gr Salt & pepper
30gr Thai Chili
60gr Potato (diced)
2gr Garlic
60gr Red Chili
30gr Tomato
25gr Broccoli
25gr Carrots
25gr Coriander leaves

For Pesto:

0.1gr Basil leaves
30gr Bread crumbs
2gr Garlic
20gr Cashew nuts
30gr Salad oil

Method:

Season the chicken with salt and pepper and cook on both sides until golden brown.
For pesto: mix all the ingredients until nice and smooth. Season it with salt and pepper.
For potato balado: fry diced potato until golden brown and meanwhile blend the garlic, red chili, and tomato. When both ready, mix it altogether.
Blanch the broccoli and carrots and sautee them with garlic, seasoned with salt and pepper.
Put the potato balado, chicken with mixed pesto, carrots, and broccoli on a plate.
Garnish with coriander and serve immediately.

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ROASTED CAJUN CHICKEN

Ingredients:

200gr Chicken (thigh)
5gr Cajun powder
5gr Coriander powder
5gr Paprika powder
5gr Black pepper
1gr Salt
20ml Cooking oil
60gr Tomato
20gr Onion
3gr Garlic
12gr Tomato paste
30gr Tomato concasse
2gr Bay leaves
20gr Yellow paprika
20gr Green paprika
20gr Red paprika
20gr Eggplant
70gr Potato
10gr Leek
1pc Egg

Method:

Marinate the chicken for 24 hours with Cajun powder, coriander powder, paprika powder and black pepper.
After that, sautee the chicken with the skin down first and let the skin become nice and crispy. When done, roast the chicken in the oven until cooked.
For the ratatouille: in a medium hot pan, sautee the onion, then add garlic, bell peppers, and eggplant.
Stir well and add tomato paste, tomato concasse, bay leaves, and adjust the seasoning.
For the potato cake: fry the potato until golden brown and cooked. Mashed the potato until smooth and then add egg, leek, seasoning and make it into a round shape. Dip it in an egg mixture and fry until golden brown.

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Previous post about Chef Hengky:
https://gastronomy-aficionado.com/2014/10/18/chicken-by-hengky-1/

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THE BELLY CLAN | Intiland Tower, Jalan Jend. Sudirman Kav. 32, Jakarta | T: +62.21.5790.6000 | www.thebellyclan.com

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Featured in THE FOODIE MAGAZINE June 2014 edition

Download it for free here via SCOOP!

Photos by: Dennie Benedict

THE GASTRONOMY AFICIONADO

Monthly Archives: October 2014

Cooking Class with Chef Jerome Laurent of Cassis, Jakarta

Special Section – Our Indonesia: Yougwa (The Foodie Magazine, July 2014)

Quikskoop™: Restoran IKEA – Alam Sutera, Tangerang

Foodies Lists: Suwe Ora Jamu (The Foodie Magazine, Oct 2014)

Cover Feature – Recipes: Chicken by Hengky – PART 2 of 2 (The Foodie Magazine, June 2014)