Jakarta, May 31 (Antara) - Indonesia, with its at least 300 ethnic groups and over 1,300 tribes, is surely rich in local delicacies and special dishes that could make the country popular in the world when it comes to culinary products.
Some popular Indonesian dishes such as nasi goreng (fried rice), gado-gado (vegetable salad), sate (small pieces of meat roasted on skewer/satay), and soto (soup) are ubiquitous in the country and considered Indonesia's national dishes.
Indonesian Tourism Minister Arief Yahya said various Indonesian special culinary products had gone international and some were liked by world leaders such as United States President Barack Obama who liked 'bakso' (meat ball soup).
"The presence of many Indonesian restaurants in various countries is a testament to the fact that Indonesian delicacies are popular at the global level," the minister remarked in Jakarta on Monday.
Yahya noted that Indonesian culinary products were not inferior to those of China, Japan, South Korea, India, Thailand, Vietnam and Malaysia as the country has a varied range of cuisine. Indonesia needs to now package these dishes, so that these can have huge commercial and cultural value.
The minister cited the presence of Indonesian dishes in Hefei, Anhui, China, where the "Wonderful Indonesia" slogan worked very well. The "Wonderful Indonesia" restaurant serves at least 30 national iconic dishes as part of its main menu.
"As many as 20 million packs of 'kerupuk udang' (shrimp cracker) were put in the market for sale in China," Minister Yahya noted.
Indonesian culinary products gained greater popularity after three books on the country's culinary arts were successfully nominated for the "Gourmand World Cookbook Awards 2016."
The nomination for the award, which was initiated by Edouard Cointreau and Remy Martin, is a form of recognition and appreciation for the authors and publishers of books on cuisines and cultures of the world, he added.
This year, the Gourmand World Cookbook Awards committee received more than 10,000 cookbook entries from 209 countries. "Let's Cook Indonesian Food" succeeded to be nominated in the Best Culinary Travel Book category. This book, published by the Indonesian Tourism Ministry, was written by the "Spice it Up! Indonesia" team, which was also the culinary team for the Guest of Honor Frankfurt Book Fair 2015.
During the Frankfurt Book Fair 2015, copies of "Let's Cook Indonesian Food" book were distributed to 1,100 European students who were taking part in a Classroom of the Future program.
Also, another book, titled, "30 Indonesian Traditional Culinary Icons," authored by Bondan Winarno in support of the Ministry of Tourism, was nominated in the Special Awards category.
Yet another book, "Trailing the Taste of Gorontalo," published by the Omar Niode Foundation, was also nominated in the "Best Asian Cuisine Book" and "Best Charity and Fund Raising Cookbook" categories.
"We hope the three books would win for their best achievements," noted Noviendi Makalam, Assistant Deputy for Tourism Marketing Communication Development of the Tourism Ministry, referring to the would-be award winners to be announced in China in the near future.
Noviendi said Indonesian natural and cultural richness was reflected in the country's food creation and services. Through the cookbooks, Indonesia could promote its tourism destinations and the delicacy of its culinary products that had gone international.
In Denmark, in the meantime, the Indonesian culinary products have also attracted the local people and the Indonesian community to visit an Indonesian bazaar and cultural festival in that country, organized by the Indonesian Embassy in Copenhagen.
The Indonesian Embassy in Copenhagen said in a press statement made available to Antara on Saturday (May 28) that various Indonesian delicacies were sold to visitors during the festival. The culinary products included chicken sate, bakso and various other cakes. They were sold at an average price of 15 to 50 Kroner or about Rp30,000 - Rp100,000 per portion.
In order to support Indonesian exports to Denmark, the embassy invited PT Mayora to export Indonesian coffee products. This company, which partnered the Danish firm Tylstrup Kager A/S, has begun expanding its market in Denmark.
The festival also featured traditional dances, kebaya and batik fashion show, Minang traditional wedding ceremony, Batak folksongs and angklung (bamboo music). A number of Danish people grouped in the Setia Hati Anom martial arts also took part to see a martial art display.
Indonesian Ambassador to Denmark Muhammad Ibnu Said said cultural and culinary promotion is one of the embassy's main tasks abroad. The Indonesian embassy in Copenhagen will continue to introduce Indonesia's cultural richness, including its culinary products, to the Danish people. By doing so, more Danish people would be attracted to visit Indonesia, he said.
The Indonesian cuisine was also introduced to the people in Chicago, Illinois, the United States.
The products were introduced through the Indonesian Trade Promotion Center (ITPC). It promoted Indonesian natural and organic culinary delicacies at the National Restaurant Association (NRA) Show at the McCormick Place, from May 21 to 24, 2016.
"We wish more Indonesian restaurants come up in the U.S. If there are more such restaurants, it will be easier to promote the country's culinary products," he stated.
According to him, if Indonesia wants to promote foods and beverage products and cooking ware in the U.S., one of the best ways to do so was through restaurants. Thailand, Japan and China opened many restaurants, so their foods and beverages became popular in the U.S.
"The rapid growth of the culinary industry and new restaurants in the U.S. that one sees today happened along with a growing culture of American people always wanting to try new cuisine," he explained.
This is a good chance for Indonesia to introduce its different national and local dishes.
According to Wikipedia, Sumatran cuisine often has Middle Eastern and Indian influences, featuring curried meat and vegetables, while Javanese cuisine is more indigenous. The cuisines of Eastern Indonesia are similar to Polynesian and Melanesian cuisine.
Elements of Chinese cuisine can be seen in Indonesian cuisine: items such as bakmi (noodles), bakso (meat or fish balls) and lumpia (spring rolls) have been completely assimilated.
Some popular dishes that originated in Indonesia are now common across much of Southeast Asia. Indonesian dishes such as satay, rendang (meat simmered in spices and coconut milk), and sambal (spicy source) are also favored in Malaysia and Singapore.
Soy-based dishes, such as variations of tofu (tahu) and tempe (fermented soy been cake/tempeh), are also very popular. Tempe is regarded as a Javanese invention, a local adaptation of soy-based food fermentation and production.
Another fermented food is oncom (fermented cake made from soybean sediment), similar in some ways to tempe but using a variety of bases (not only soy), created by different fungi, and particularly popular in West Java.***1***(a014/INE/B003)EDITED BY INE
(T.A014/A/BESSR/Bustanuddin) 31-05-2016 19:47:0 |
Tidak ada komentar:
Posting Komentar