The Unforgettable Dishes of Balinese Cuisine

The Unforgettable Dishes of Balinese Cuisine
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An integral part of the island’s traditions, Balinese cuisine mirrors the ancient culture of a population dedicated to the care of body and spirit. A light and flavourful art, with Indian and Chinese influences, fragrant with fresh spices and dazzling aromatic sauces. The principal element of every meal in Bali is steamed rice (nasi), grown locally in the vast rice paddies of the island. In the most famous dish, nasi goreng, there is fried spiced rice with fish, vegetables and meat, topped off with a “sunny-side-up” egg. Meat-based dishes include babi guling, a favourite of family gatherings, the roasted suckling pig flavoured with garlic, pepper, turmeric and ginger and the famed satay, skewered meat or fish served with peanut sauce. And the street food is hard to resist - from nasi campur, rice with tofu, sateh, tuna and vegetables to bakso, fish or meatballs in a soy and vegetable soup, to pepes (grilled) and tum (steamed), rice dumplings with meat or fish, wrapped in banana leaves. And on the beach, try ikan bakar, spiced local fish grilled on coconuts. There are vegetarians dishes as well, such as Gado Gado, mixed vegetables in peanut sauce with fried tofu, tempeh and egg. Among the deserts to try are Dadar Ulung, rolled green crepes and Balinese Cake, sweets of various forms and colours, often sold right on the street. The fruits are as numerous as they are sweet, good at any time of the day, on their own or in a smoothie - from papaya to mango, from coconuts to bananas to pineapples and the lesser known rambutan, salak, pitahaya and mangostina. And to start the day or end a meal, a hot kopi luwak, the naturally sweet coffee, the most prized and costly in all the world.
Marzia Acampora - © 2021 ARTE.it for Bulgari Resort Bali