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INDONÉSIA

Mosaic of peoples, ethnic groups on a multitude of islands...

In November 1995, we left again for Asia with friends we met during a previous trip to Thaïlande, to visit four of the most important islands of this immense archipelago.

Tour details

The other parts of this Indonesian giant would still give the opportunity for another trip, but for now that seems more than enough!!

The four of us left in our small car to take the plane from Marseille to Paris and then fly to Singapore ( Icone ) with a kerosene (and duty-free) stopover in Dubaï.

The Indonesian airline Garuda is good, but it has a major flaw at that time: the flights were partly smokers and the Indonesians smoke clove-based cigarettes (hell!!).

Singapore

No city info as this was done on a previous trip to Malaisie.

Medan - Sumatra

The continuation is much more interesting after the chip jump to Medan which will only be our landing point.

We then take the road to Bohorok crossing the oil palm plantations.

Early in the morning, departure on foot along the river, which we cross by boat to reach the post of the guards of the reserve.

These rangers will guide us through the jungle to the observatory of the rehabilitation center Orangutans (Text).

Lac Toba - Sumatra

We will be able to see them during their meal. After that we take the road to Parapat on Lake Toba ( Icone ), we take the boat on this lake, a huge expanse of very blue water, located in the crater of an ancient volcano.

In the middle stands the island of Samosir, inhabited by Bataks.

On this island there are several villages including Tomok seat of a necropolis with royal burials, Amabrita and its megalithic court of justice, Simanindo where we visit typical houses before attending traditional dances.

Returning to Medan we stop at Pematang Purba to visit the palace of a former king and stroll through one of the many markets.

Jakarta - Java

Upon our arrival in Jakarta we start with a visit to the Museum of Folk Arts and Traditions and its important collections of objects representing the different regions and ethnic groups of the country.

Also visit the port where we find the famous Bugis ( Icone ) bateaux who commute between the islands.

We then take a quick tour of the city to see some monuments.

Jogjakarta - Java

Then flight to Jogjakarta ( Icone ) from where we leave quickly to visit the temple of Borobudur ( Icone ) which is one of the oldest (8th century) and the most beautiful Buddhist temples in the world.

This temple impresses both with its extraordinary size and its spiritual dimension.

Return to Jogjakarta for visits to the Bird Market and the Sultan's Palace .

Later we will discover the temple of Prambanan ( Icone ) Hindu sanctuary of an exceptional archaeological richness, but in perpetual work of consolidation.

We then fly to the north.

Ujung Pandang - Sulawesi

We arrive with the domestic company Merpati (timetables are not their strong point!!) in Ujung Pandang ( Icone ) also called Makassar , main city in the south of Célèbes.

We visit the city, the orchid garden, the shell house, as well as Fort Rotterdam , a remnant of the Dutch colonial era as its name suggests.

Tana Toraja - Sulawesi

Departure to the Toraja country along the sea to Pare-pare.
From there, continue to Rantepao by a mountain road through lush vegetation and magnificent landscapes.

Rantepao is the "capital" of Tana Toraja ( Icone ). We then visit all the important sites in the region: Lemou and Londa with the cemeteries dug in the cliff where the bodies of the deceased are placed after periods which can reach 2 years, for lack of money, because the family must be welcomed and fed during the 4 days that the funeral lasts. .... And families are getting into debt!!.

Ke'te Kesu and Nangalla are villages with traditional houses in the shape of boats, with the horns of buffaloes sacrificed during burials in front.

We were able to attend a funeral ceremony, well only a part, because of the duration of the event.

It is advisable to have a strong heart, because the animals (buffaloes, pigs and others) have their throats cut "live" and there is blood everywhere.

Afterwards the meat is shared among all in the community.

In funeral rites, the buffalo is considered the vehicle of the soul and the richer one is, the more buffaloes one passes to death.

For small children who do not yet have their teeth, their bodies are "buried" in the trunk of a tree, which performs the same function as the buffalo.

We then visit a very colorful local market where many animals are sold, even buffaloes, which promised to death will never work and are lovingly cared for until their death.

This animal is the wealth of all these peasants and its horns appear on the pediment of the house of the deceased to whom it was offered as a gift for the sacrifices.

The more horns there are, the more important this house is, but in return it will also have to give buffaloes.

Dempassar - Bali

We leave Sulawesi for the enchanting island of Bali where we end our stay by adding a few excursions to avoid staying at the beach or the swimming pool all the time.

Because Bali ( Icone ) is not just sand and waves, the interior of the land is even very interesting, we see how the majority Buddhist population lives in this Muslim country.

You can visit seaside temples, volcanoes with fumaroles, cockfights, villages where time has no influence, dance shows based on religion, Gamalans, a percussion orchestra, whose music embellishes the Chinese shadow shows, finally it there is a lot to see!!

As all good things come to an end, we only have excellent memories before a return trip which promises to be... Long!!

Weather report

JAKARTA WEATHER

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Latest news

INFORMATIONOctober 28, 2022
Provisions applicable in Indonesia:
It is strongly recommended to check with the consular section of the Indonesian Embassy in Paris the categories of travelers authorized to enter Indonesian territory.
In addition, all foreigners traveling to Indonesia must present a vaccination certificate (full vaccination) in accordance with the vaccination protocol in force in their country of residence and have downloaded the Covid-19 monitoring and tracing application 'PeduliLindungi' on their cell phone.
The passengers can be tested by temperature at their arrival in the airport (in case of the upper temperature in 37,5°C, the passengers will have to perform a test PCR (in their expenses). The passengers having accepted the single dose of vaccine will have to perform quarantine 5 days, in their expenses in a hotel indicated by local authorities. The passengers having a vaccinal schema in 2 or 3 doses are exempted from quarantine. The miners of less than 18 years travelling with their parent (s) or guardian will be subjected to the same rules as these last.

What there is to know

History

Between the 7th and 14th centuries, several kingdoms appeared on the islands of Sumatra and Java. These maritime empires of "Indo-Buddhist" culture extended from Indonesia and Malaysia to the Philippines.

Society was divided according to India's unequal caste system and later the arrival of Arab merchants had little trouble bringing in Islam which offered a more egalitarian society.

The Europeans arrived in and discovered many small states led by Princes, each with their own sector of activity.

It was only by associating with some of these Princes that the European colonial Empires managed to negotiate and then cultivate spices, the ultimate goal of their research (in the 16th century, a gram of clove was worth more than a gram Golden).

In the 17th century, the Dutch were the dominant colonial power in the region, ahead of the British and the Portuguese. However, the Portuguese controlled Timor. The Dutch of the East India Company had only a commercial purpose in Indonesia and never sought to develop any social or health policy or to want to convert to Christianity; slavery was very widespread and each family of peasants had by decree to give to the Company a part of its harvest under penalty of confiscation of the goods. In Dutch schools, only Indonesians of Chinese origin were tolerated, the others of "Malay" race (the majority) being considered incapable of learning.

Following the bankruptcy of the East India Company, the Dutch government regained possession of the territories in the 19th century. The Crown of Holland, after the Puputan (collective suicide) in Bali in 1910 and the negative echo it had in the West (thanks also to the Nobel Prize for Literature Vicky Baum for her book "Blood and Pleasure in Bali"), decided of a social and educational policy for the Archipelago.

It was the Second World War that put an end to this late momentum. During World War II, Japan invaded and occupied the majority of the islands. at the end of the war in 1945, the Indonesians declared independence led by Sukarno. The Dutch granted independence in 1949 and Sukarno then became the country's first president.

Sukarno dreamed from the beginning of the 1960s of forming a government of national unity bringing together all the political tendencies of the country; in 1964 three ministers who were members of the Indonesian Communist Party (PKI) were appointed. On September 30, 1965, Lieutenant-Colonel Untung, commander of a battalion of Sukarno's personal guard, an officer then unknown and a man of the left, took the head of a Revolutionary Council which claimed to thwart another coup d'etat whose protagonists, six generals and a captain will be tortured and assassinated before dawn on October 1st. General Suharto, then commanding the general reserves of the army, intervened immediately, took over the Post Office and the National Radio and regained power from the rebels within 48 hours.

Very quickly and throughout the country, there followed for months a hunt for the Communists that can be described as genocide (more than 500,000 dead); every city, village or farm underwent cleansing: entire families were executed for hatred of Muslims against atheist communists, for the excess of certain military units or for personal revenge.

On March 11, 1966, Suharto received part of Sukarno's powers and became president a year later. During the 33 years of his unchallenged reign, Suharto and his family grew considerably richer as his country grew increasingly poorer. In 1998, following the Asian economic crisis (the Indonesian currency lost 80% of its value), after numerous demonstrations throughout the country, and pressure from the IMF (International Monetary Fund), Suharto ended up abandoning his post. From 1998 to 2001, the country had four presidents. It was in great pain that East Timor obtained its independence in 2002. The country currently suffers from its economy, its internal politics and religious conflicts.

Added to this are the secessionist movements in North Sumatra (Aceh), in Papua (Irian Jaya) as well as in the Moluccas Archipelago where what can be described as a religious war is taking place between native Christians of a hand and Muslims rushed mainly from Java on the other hand.

Policy

Executive power rests with the president and his advisers. The Indonesian parliament is two-headed: it consists of the People's Congress and the People's Representative Assembly, each elected for five years. Indonesia is a member of ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations).

The second round of presidential elections on September 20, 2004 pitted incumbent President Megawati Sukarnoputri of the PDI-P against retired general and former minister Susilo "Bambang" Yudhoyono alias SBY of the Democratic Party. With a turnout of around 80% (or 155 million voters), Susilo “Bambang” Yudhoyono confirms his lead in the first round and will soon be sworn in as president with Mohammed Youssouf Kalla as vice-president.

The state ideology, called “Pancasila” (the five principles), imposes the principle of the existence of a supreme god. So there is no room for atheism.

Geography

The 17,000 islands of Indonesia (including 6,000 uninhabited) are distributed around the equator giving this country a tropical climate. The largest islands are Java where nearly half of the population lives, Sumatra, Borneo (which is shared with Malaysia), Irian Jaya (Western part of New Guinea) and the Sulawesi or Celebes archipelago. Indonesia is located in a tectonic friction zone.

Earthquakes are therefore frequent and often followed by tsunamis. The country is also rich in volcanoes with in particular the famous and disappeared Krakatoa. The tsunami of December 26, 2004 caused, according to the provisional assessment of January 19, 2005, 166,320 confirmed deaths.

Economy

Indonesia had many economic problems in the late 1990s, but recently the economy seems to be stabilizing. The country has plenty of natural resources such as oil, natural gas, tin, copper and gold. Agriculture mainly produces rice, tea, coffee, spices and rubber.

Indonesia's major economic partners are Japan, the United States of America and neighboring countries such as Singapore and Malaysia. Indonesia is part of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC).

The Indonesian population is roughly divided into two groups: the inhabitants of the west of the country are mainly Malays and those of the eastern regions are Papuans. However, the ethnic structure is a little more complex with several traditional tribes living inside the islands of Borneo and Irian Jaya. The Chinese are also a large minority (around 2 to 3 million) and often suffer from difficult integration into the local population.

Religion

Islam is the dominant religion in the country, adopted by 87% of the population. The other religions are Christianity (9%), Buddhism (2%) and Hinduism (1%), the latter being mainly practiced on the island of Bali. The rise of religious fundamentalist currents coupled with economic problems have often instrumentalized tensions that have tensed on ethnic and religious lines.

The Christian and Chinese minorities suffered from this policy of scapegoating, particularly in the Moluccas The official language Indonesian or Bahasa Indonesia, derived from Malay, is spoken by almost everyone although many dialects are used locally in primary language.

Source : Wikipedia

Additional Information

When to leave?

Like all of Asia in general, it is better to leave at the end of October until the beginning of May because of the monsoon, except Bali which is reversed compared to the other islands.

Transport

In general, international airlines are pretty good, but I'm more wary of domestic routes. Roads and infrastructure are quite good.

Sleep / Eat

Rice is the staple, of course, and the national dish goes by the name of nasi goreng: fried rice with eggs, small pieces of meat and vegetables, or shrimp. Food varies by island. In terms of accommodation, the island is very well endowed and the offer far exceeds the demand.

Purchase

There is a vast choice, difficult to make a description with all that there is. Sarongs, puppets, silks, paintings, wood carvings, etc... Compulsory haggling.

Sup ayam serai

Ingredients
100g rice vermicelli ¼ teaspoon shrimp paste 1 piece of ginger 2 tsp black pepper 6 cloves 1 tbsp oil 1 tsp salt 2 stalks lemongrass 2 liters water 800g chicken cut into pieces 4 hard-boiled eggs 100 g bean sprouts 2 shallots 10 Chinese celery leaves 1 lime Soy sauce
Preparation
Cut the chicken into small pieces. Peel and cut the ginger into pieces. Cut hard-boiled eggs into quarters. Cut the shallots into thin slices then fry them with 4 tbsp of oil. Reserve this shallot sauce. Chop the celery leaves. To book. Dip the vermicelli in a bowl of hot water to soften them. Put the chicken, water, lemongrass and salt in a Dutch oven. Cover and simmer for 1 hour. Remove the chicken, let it cool then cut it into small cubes. Return the chicken meat to the pot without the bones. Add the lemongrass stalks.
Preparing the spice paste : Grind the cloves and the pepper. Add the ginger and the shrimp paste and mix until you obtain a homogeneous preparation. Add a little water if necessary. Heat the oil in a wok or frying pan, fry the spicy batter over low heat for 2-3 minutes. Put the spicy paste in the chicken soup.
Tasting :Divide the noodles, eggs and bean sprouts among 4 bowls. Reheat the soup, strain it and adjust the seasoning. Pour the soup into the bowls. Sprinkle each soup with fried shallots and celery leaves. Serve hot with lemon and sweet soy sauce.

Sayur Asem

Ingredients
100g jackfruit (fruit) 100g water spinach 1 ear of corn (or, failing that, a small tin of corn) 50g unsalted peanuts 50g chayote 100g yard beans (failing that, large fresh green beans) 30g tamarind 1 beef stock cube 2 bay leaves 2cm galangal 3 red chillies 4 shallots ½ tsp prawn paste 10g palm sugar 1 tsp salt 1 teaspoon powdered sugar 20g malinjo leaves (optional)
Preparation
Cut the chayote into large dice. To book. Cut the corn on the cob into large slices and grill them quickly on the stove or in the oven for 30 seconds. Mix the tamarind with 50 ml of water. Leave to macerate for about half an hour and collect the juice with a strainer. In a large saucepan, boil 2 liters of water with the beef stock cube, bay leaves and thinly sliced galangal. Pass the peppers, shallots, shrimp paste, palm sugar, salt and sugar in a blender or crush everything in a mortar to obtain a homogeneous mixture. To book. Add the spice mix and the tamarind juice to the broth when it comes to a boil. Lower the heat after a few minutes and add the jackfruit, water spinach, corn on the cob cut into large slices, peanuts and yard beans, cut into 3 cm pieces. Cover and simmer for a good half hour. Add the roughly diced chayote and the melinjo leaves. Simmer over medium heat for 10 minutes, uncovered. Serve as a soup or with rice.

Soto ayam jawa

Ingredients
2 chickens 5 cloves of garlic salt and pepper 5 pine nuts peanut oil 110 g fresh prawns, cleaned, veins removed, then cut crosswise 1 pinch of ground turmeric 1/2 teaspoon of chile flakes 1 teaspoon grated ginger 1 teaspoon light soy sauce 950 ml chicken or veal or vegetable stock 125 g bean sprouts, rinsed and drained 1 boiled egg, sliced (optional) 1 potato, cubed then boiled but not too much (4 minutes), then fried in ghee or frozen Korean dumplings and stirred into boiling soup for 3 minutes 4 shallots, cut lengthwise 1 tbsp fresh cilantro 1 lime, quartered 1 Asian onion, finely cut then browned in olive oil
Preparation
In a Dutch oven, simmer the chicken for 20 minutes with the salt, 2 cloves of garlic and the pepper. Remove from heat, then allow to cool. Prepare the sauce. Using a mortar, vigorously crush the pine nuts and 3 garlic cloves to make a paste. Fry this paste in a Dutch oven for 1 minute, adding a little oil. Stir in shrimp, turmeric, chile flakes, ginger and soy sauce. Cut the chicken into strips, taking care to remove the skin, then add it to the sauce. Add 250 ml (1 cup) of chicken broth, cover and simmer for 5 minutes. Add the rest of the broth (about 700ml or more), then simmer for another 5 minutes. Add salt as needed. Stir in the bean sprouts then serve immediately, presenting a plate of vegetables that includes lime, potato, grilled Asian onions, coriander. Use a deep bowl of the Korean type to keep the soup warm enough during the meal.

Starters

Gado Gado

Ingredients
250g chopped white cabbage. 250 g of bean sprouts. 4 carrots cut into sticks. 4 stalks of celery cut into sticks. 1/2 cucumber cut into sticks. 1 fried onion. Salted peanuts. Sliced chili (optional). Peanut sauce. 1 small onion, finely chopped. 1 minced garlic clove. 1 small piece of peeled and minced galangal or ginger. 4 tbsp. at s. crunchy peanut butter. 1 C. at s. of oil. 1 C. at s. lime juice or 1 tbsp. tamarind paste. 1 C. at s. of brown sugar. 1 C. cumin. A pinch (1/4 tsp) chili powder.
Preparation
Blanch the cabbage, carrots and celery for 4 minutes in boiling water. Drain. Let cool. Place bean sprouts in the bottom of a large bowl. Garnish with cabbage, carrots, celery. Finish with peanuts and fried onions.
Fried onions :Peel the onions; slice with a mandolin to obtain very thin onions. Pat dry with paper towel and fry in hot oil until nicely colored.
Peanut sauce : In a saucepan, heat the oil. Reduce heat and cook onion and garlic until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add galangal, chili and cumin. Continue cooking for 1 minute. Add tamarind paste or lime juice, peanut butter and sugar. Mix well. Add hot water slowly to obtain a thick sauce. Pour over the vegetables. Mix well and serve.

Dishes

Babi goreng dengan jahe

Ingredients
2 teaspoons of curry 2 cases of soy sauce 2 cases of wine vinegar 2 bananas 1 apple 1 pepper 2 white leeks 1 beef stock cube 800 g pork shoulder 1 case of ginger 1 clove of crushed garlic 2 cases of oil 10g of butter 20cl of water
Preparation
Cut the meat into large cubes. Wash the leeks and bell pepper, then cut them into pieces. Peel the apple then cut it into cubes. Brown the pork in the sauté pan with 1 tablespoon of oil for 2 minutes over high heat then add the vinegar. To book. In the sauté pan, add 1 tablespoon of oil and sauté the leeks for 5 minutes. Add the bell pepper, soy sauce, curry, ginger, and crushed garlic. Pour in the glass of water, add the beef stock cube, then the diced apples and the pork. Mix well. Let cook covered for 30 minutes. When ready to serve, brown the bananas with the butter in a pan for 5 minutes. Serve the dish on individual plates, accompanied by rice on which you will place the bananas.

Rendang Daging Sapi Rendang

Ingredients
500 g of beef, cut into large cubes 1 stalk of lemongrass, split in half 5 lemon tree leaves 1 tablespoon of tamarind 600 ml of coconut milk 6 shallots 1 and a half tablespoons of grated or mixed galangal ½ tbsp soup grated or ground fresh turmeric ½ tablespoon grated fresh ginger 3 small red chillies 2 cloves of garlic - Garlic Sheet ½ tablespoon salt
Preparation
Pass the shallots, galangal, turmeric, ginger, peppers, garlic and salt in a blender or crush everything in a mortar to obtain a homogeneous mixture. In a large Dutch oven, pour the coconut milk, then the spice mix, the stalk of lemongrass, the lime leaves and the tamarind. Bring everything to a simmer over high heat, uncovered. Once the liquid is reduced by half, add the meat, lower the heat and cover. Simmer for at least an hour and a half, watching and stirring until the meat is tender and the sauce takes on a thick consistency and a dark brown color. Serve with white rice

Udang santan

Ingredients
600g of prawns or large raw prawns 2 tablespoons of oil 10 curry leaves 1 onion, finely chopped 2 small Thai chillies 4 cloves of garlic, finely chopped 1/2 teaspoon of chilli puree (sambal oelek) ( optional) 30g of galangal, peeled and thinly sliced 1 can of coconut milk 1 tablespoon of palm sugar/brown sugar
Preparation
Peel the prawns, keeping the heads and shells to make a stock. In a wok or sauté pan, heat a tablespoon of oil, add the heads and shells of the prawns and crush them lightly so that their juices are released during cooking. Raise the heat to max, add the galangal and stir well until the shells take on a bright red color. Pour in 1/2 liter of water and reduce the mixture by half over medium heat, stirring regularly. Filter and reserve the fumet. Wipe out the wok, heat a tablespoon of oil in it and sauté the curry leaves, whole chillies, onion and garlic over low heat for about 5 minutes, the onion should just start to brown. Add the sambal oelek, mix well. Add the prawns, sauté them for a minute until they brown. Pour in the stock, coconut milk and sugar, salt, and simmer over low heat for 5 to 10 minutes depending on the size of the prawns. Serve with white rice.

Nasi Goreng<

Ingredients
2 garlic cloves - Garlic sheet 2 onions 500g pork loin 250g raw shrimp 2 cases soy sauce 1 cucumber, sliced 3 cases chopped onion 5 cases oil Pepper Salt 3 1/2 eggs case of shrimp paste 470 ml of water 400g of rice 5 spring onions
Preparation
Cooking the rice : Pour the rice into a large bowl. Fill it with water. Wash, lightly massage the grains of rice then discard the used water. Fill with water again and repeat the operation about 3 or 4 times until the water is clear. Using a colander, drain the rice. To book. Pour the rice and the 470 ml of water into the saucepan, cover it. Begin cooking over medium heat. When boiling, lower the heat, stir the rice a little with a spatula. Then, still covered, continue cooking over low heat for 10-12 minutes. Once the rice is cooked, remove the pan from the heat and let stand for 10 minutes before serving.
Preparing the other ingredients : Beat the eggs in an omelet with the salt and pepper. Lightly heat oil in a frying pan and make two omelettes. When the two omelettes have cooled, put them on top of each other, roll them up and cut them into thin strips. Brown the sliced onions in a little oil, set them aside on absorbent paper. Shell the prawns, cut the pork into strips. Coarsely chop the onions and grind them in a blender with the garlic and the trasi (shrimp paste). If you don't have a blender, chop the onions very finely and crush the garlic. Dilute the trasi with a little hot water and mix the ingredients. Heat 3 tablespoons of oil in a sauté pan or wok and sauté the mixed mixture. Add shrimp and meat. Sauté for 3 minutes, stirring constantly. Add another 2 tablespoons of oil and, when the oil is hot, stir in the rice and spring onions. Sauté everything, stirring constantly, until the rice is heated through. Drizzle with soy sauce and mix well. Serve the stir-fried rice topped with omelet strips, fried onions and cucumber.

Desserts

Dadar Gulung

Ingredients
The pancakes : 120 g rice flour + 40 g usual wheat flour (if you don't have rice flour, use 120 g classic flour) 1 egg 30 cL coconut milk 80 ml water pandan (bought frozen in an Asian supermarket; you can replace it with a few drops of vanilla extract) a pinch of salt possibly a few drops of green food coloring
Coconut stuffing : 100 g dry grated coconut, soaked for 10 minutes in a bowl of water then wrung well 150 g of palm sugar (you will find it in small pucks, but at worst, take brown sugar)
Preparation
Prepare the pancake batter by whisking together the rice flour, beaten egg, coconut milk, pandan water and salt. Add wheat flour at the end to thicken the dough slightly. Heat a frying pan over medium heat and lightly oil it with a paper towel soaked in oil. Pour a small ladle of batter into the hot pan. Cook the pancake on both sides without letting it brown too much. Repeat the process with the rest of the dough. You get about ten pancakes. In a saucepan over low heat, slowly melt the palm sugar (or brown sugar) with a few drops of water. Add the well-drained grated coconut. Let everything caramelize until there is no more liquid at the bottom of the pan. Let cool the pancakes and the coconut then proceed to the assembly.

Nagasari

Ingredients
250 g very fine rice flour 85 g corn flour 500 g coconut milk 4 tablespoons palm sugar (gula jawa) infused in 1/2 tablespoon water over low heat for 1 minute without stirring 1/8 teaspoon of salt or 1 pinch 3 bananas, ripe but not too ripe
Preparation
In a large 30cm bowl, combine the flours. Add the coconut milk to a non-stick skillet, then raise the heat without bringing it to a boil. Stir in sugar and salt. Before the milk boils, turn off the heat. Let cool. Peel the bananas, then cut them in half crosswise, then in three sections each. Incorporate the coconut milk mixture into the flour, then beat vigorously by hand to obtain a smooth paste. Then add the banana pieces. Grease ramekins, then place sections of bananas coated with the mixture of flour and coconut milk. Place the pieces in the ramekins, then cook them for about 45 minutes, preferably steamed or in an oven if this is not possible. When the cakes are cooked, remove them from the heat and let them cool.

Pisang goreng

Ingredients
3 ripe plantains or 4 almost ripe bananas 90 g rice flour 30 g all-purpose flour 30 g clarified butter pinch of salt olive or peanut oil for frying
Preparation
Mix the two flours, the butter, the coconut milk and salt in a bowl to obtain a velvety mixture. Peel the bananas then cut them lengthwise to the center and cut them in half. If using plantains, cut them into three sections. Coat the bananas with the mixture then fry them in butter or oil to brown them.

Klepon

Ingredients
225 g flour glutinous rice 3 tablespoons coconut cream a few drops of essence or pandan flavor BUT NOT artificial essence (optional) 225 g grated palm sugar 1/2 coconut flesh 1/2 teaspoon salt or to taste
Preparation
Place the flour in a transparent or opaque bowl. Make a well then pour the coconut cream and pandan essence if used. Start kneading the dough. Continue to knead, adding 1/4 cup of water a little at a time so that the dough becomes flexible and not stiff. Take a small amount of dough a few centimeters then fill it with a small amount of grated palm sugar. Form a small ball then set aside. Do the same with the rest of the dough. Place water in a Dutch oven or saucepan then add a pinch of salt. Bring to a boil. Stir in the klepon one at a time to hold an amount of about a dozen. Boil for 10-15 minutes until they float to the surface of the water. Remove from the water then drain on a sieve. Remove the brown that covers the rice cakes -klepon. Mix the salt with the coconut meat. Roll the klepon one at a time to dress them.

Drinks

Jus alpukat

Ingredients
1 ripe avocado 250 ml vegetable milk (your choice) 2 tbsp. coffee rice or maple syrup (or other thick sweetener) 1 small strong coffee 3 ice cubes
Preparation
Prepare a small strong coffee, for this, use the dose of ground coffee for a 150 ml drink but only use 50ml of water. Let cool. Place the flesh of the avocado in a blender with the milk, coffee, sweetener and ice cubes. Blend very vigorously until a thick but smooth liquid forms, taking pauses to be careful not to overheat the food.

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