spices & herbs of indonesia

Shallot ( Allium ascolonicum )

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Shallots grown in Southeast Asia have a purplish skin which encloses a delicately flavoured interior. They grow in clusters, similar to the much larger brown-skinned European shallot.

Their aromatic flavour makes them an important addition to many seasoning pastes. Rempah in Malaysia and bumbu in Indonesia, for example, use shallots along with other herbs, roots or rhizomes and dried spices.
Shallots are preferred to onions not only for their better flavour but because they contain less moisture.
Spice pastes can thus be fried rather than stewed in oil at the beginning of cooking, a subtle, but important detail.

Shallots are also treated as a seasoning in pickles and salads throughout the region, their mild flavour making them perfectly palatable and easily digestible while sill raw.

Slices of deep-fried shallots are one of the most widely used garnishes in Malay and Indonesian cooking, and are sold pre-cooked in plastic bags in markets.

Botanical Family : Lillaceae
Thai name : Horm lek, horm daeng
Malaysian name : Bawang merah
Indonesian name : Bawang merah
Tagalog name : Sibuyas tagalog

source : Hutton, Wendy; (1997); Tropical Herbs & Spices of Indonesia; Periplus Editions

Salam Leaf ( Syzygium Polyantha )

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This large, dark green leaf is a very popular herb in Indonesia, and although the tree
( a member of the cassia family ), will grow in other parts of Southeast Asia, only
Indonesian cooks seem to use it.

Sprigs of fresh or even slightly dry salam leaves, usually measuring 8 - 10 cm (3 - 4 inches) in lenght, are slod in most markets. It is also possible to buy packets of the dried leaf, which still releases its aroma when cooked. The young leaves at the tips of the stem are lighter in colour than the mature leaves.

Salam leaf is not used raw, but is added - usually whole - to various curry-like dishes, stews and some sauces. It is difficult to describe the flavour, and even more difficult to recommended a subtitute for this herbs.
A number of books translate daun salam as bay leaf, to which it
beas no resemblance whatsoever in flavour. Rather than using bay leaf as a substitute if salam leaf is unavailable, omit the herb altogether.

Botanical Family : Myrtaceae
Malaysian name : Daun Salam
Indonesian name : Daun Salam

source : Hutton, Wendy; (1997); Tropical Herbs & Spices of Indonesia; Periplus Editions

Asam Gelugor ( Garcinia Atroviridis )

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This fruit, which is native to Peninsular Malaysia, is a member of the Garcinia Family,
a family which also includes the highly prized fruit, the mangosteen.
The small round fruits of asam gelugor, which does not have a common English name, are very sour
and therefore not eaten fresh. Instead, they are thinly sliced and droed until
shrivelled and brownish black.

Asam gelugor, also known as asam keping (literally "sour slices"), is used
primarily in fish curries in Malaysia and Singapore. Its acidity and flavour
are subtlely different to the sour fruitiness of the more commonly used
souring agent, tamarind, but this can be substituted.

Another member of the sama family, a tree known as goraka in Souteast India
and Sri Lanka, produces a fruit used in similar ways to asam gelugor.
In Thailand, yet another Garcinia, G. schomburgkiana, shares the same sourness
as asam gelugor and is used fresh in some salads, and also in fish curries.
It is known in Thai as madan.

Botanical Family : Guttiferae
Thai name : Som khaek, sommawon
Malaysian name : Asam gelugor
Indonesian name : Asam gelugor

source : Hutton, Wendy; (1997); Tropical Herbs & Spices of Indonesia; Periplus Editions

Pepper ( Piper Nigrum )

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Pepper, once such a valuable spice that it was literally slod by the grain in mediaeval Europe,
comes from the dried berries of vine native to the Malabr coast of India.

The pepper vine, now grown in much of tropical Asia - particularly in the East Malaysian state of Sarawak - produces black, white and green peppercorns. The black variety, which are the whole berries picked unripe and sun dried until shrivelled, is the most widelyused form of pepper in Southeast Asia. Before the arrival of chillies from the Americas in the 16th century, peppercorns
were the main source of heat on tropical Asian food.

White peppercorns are ripe berries with the red skins removed before being bleached white by drying in the sun. Chinese cooks are the main users of white pepper, springkling it in powdered form on many cooked dishes.

Green peppercorns, which are not used by Southeast Asian cooks, are the immature berries pickled
in brine or freeze-dried while still fresh.

Botanical Family : Piperaceae
Thai name : Phrik Thai
Malaysian name : Lada hitam
Indonesian name : Merica

source : Hutton, Wendy; (1997); Tropical Herbs & Spices of Indonesia; Periplus Editions

Annatto ( Bixa Orellana )

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The annatto, a native tropical America, was introduced to the Philippines by the Spanish.
It has spread to other parts of Southeast Asia, where it is a common shrub, grown for its
decorative furry red seed pods which look somewhat like an elongated rambutan fruit.

When the annatti pods are ripe, they turn brown and split open to reveal bright
red seeds. These are used primarily as a food colouring or dye in the Philippines,
but are not used in other Southeast Asia cuisines. Filipino cooks usually fry
them gently in a little oil so that the oil takes on a bright red colour.
This oil is then used to cook paella and other rice dishes. The seeds can also
be soaked in water and the resulting liquid used in recipes where oil would
be inappropriate. Today, commercial food colouring has largely replaced the use
of annatto seeds.

Annatto is ground and used as a spice in parts of Latin America, although it is
not used in this fashion in the Philippines.

Botanical Family : Bixaaceae
Thai name : Kam tai
Malaysian name : Jarak belanda, Kesumba
Indonesian name : Kesumba
Tagalog name : Achuete, atsuete, echuete

source : Hutton, Wendy; (1997); Tropical Herbs & Spices of Indonesia; Periplus Editions

Candlenut ( Aleurites Moluccana )

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This waxy, beige nut, a native of Malaysia and Indonesia, is related to the Queensland Bush Nut, which is better kniwn internationally as the macadamia. ( Perhaps to the chagrin of the Australians, the macadamia, which is an excellent eating nut, was first exploited commercially by the Hawaiians, after they imported the plant from Queensland and developeda way of cracking the hard shell. )

Unlike its relative, the candlenut is never eaten raw as a savoury or dessert nut, but always cooked. In large quantities, the candlenut is said to be poisonous, althought its purgative qualities, which are strongest when the nut is freshly picked, disappear after it has been kept
for a while. The candlenut is used in Malay and Indonesian cuisine. A few nuts are pounded to a paste and used to add texture and flavour to curry-like dishes.

As the candlenut contains a larga amount of oil, it can become rancid if kept for any lenght of time. It is best to store them in a closed container in the refrigerator.

Botanical Family : Euphorbiaceae
Malaysian name : Buah keras
Indonesian name : Kemiri

source : Hutton, Wendy; (1997); Tropical Herbs & Spices of Indonesia; Periplus Editions

Chilli ( Capsicum SPP )

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The chilii is such a hallmark of regional cuisines that it is surprising to reflect that it was introduced by the Portuguese in the 16th and early 17th centuries.
Prior to its availability, pepper was used to provide the pungency or "heat" of regional food.

The chilli is found in a bewildering veriety of colours, sizes and flavours in different parts of the world. There are more than two dozen varieties encountered in Southeast Asia, including finger-lenght chillies in red and green; medium-lenght plump chillies which can be yellow, pale creamy white, orange, green or red; tiny bird's eye or, as the Thais call them in an accurate

description of their size, "rat droppings" chillies; and short bulbous chillies known as tabia Bali and found in that Indonesia island.

The most common chilli is perhaps the finger-lenght chilli ( C. annum var. longum ), of medium
intensity on the "heat" scale. This is sold green ( unripe ), red ( ripe ) and dried.
The flavour and fragrance of green and red chillies differs slightly, and where one particular
type is specified in a recipe, this should be used.

When dried, the chilli turns dark reddish brown.
Dried chillies are usually cut in 2 cm ( 3/4 inch ) lenghts and soaked in warm water until softened, then punded to a paste before being cooked.
Some ir all of the seeds may be removed according to the desired degree of heat.
Dried chillies are commonly used by Malaysian and Sumatran chefs, as they add deeeper red colour to a curry then fresh chillies, and lack the smell. Dried chillies are also dry fried or roasted gently until crisp then ground to a coarse powder and used as a condiment in Thailand.

The tiny fiery hot bird'a eye chilli ( C. frustescens ) is another regional favourite, pounded
and added to frash or raw sambals and side dishes in Thailand. In the Philippines, where lical
tastes do not run to really pungent foods, bird's eye chillies are put in a bottle of coconut
vinegar which is used as a condiment.

Botanical Family : Solanaceae
Thai name : Prik kee fah; prik kee nu
Malaysian name : Lombok, lada, cili, cili padi
Indonesian name : Cabe, lombok, cabe rawit
Tagalog name : Sili, siling labuyo

source : Hutton, Wendy; (1997); Tropical Herbs & Spices of Indonesia; Periplus Editions

Galangal ( Alipinia galanga )

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A native of Java and the Malay peninsula, this member of the ginger family has a pungency and tang quite unlike that of common ginger ( Zingiber officinale ). It is often referred to as greater galangal, to distinguish it from another variety grown in China, lesser galangal.

The young shoots of the rhizome are pale pink, and are more flavourful and tender than the older beige coloured rhizomes. Galangal is too spicy to be eaten raw, an is used in slices, chunks or pounded to a paste for various curries and side dishes. When pounding or blending galangal to a paste, first chop it into small pieces as it is often obstinately tough.
Perhaps this is why Thai cooks often just bruise a large chunk with the flat side of a cleaver and add it whole to the cooking pot.

Slices of dried galangal are exported from tropical Asia, as are pieces of the young rhizome packed in water inside glass jars. However, nothing quite matches the inimitable jungle fragrance of fresh galangal.

Botanical Family : Zingiberaceae
Thai name : Kha
Malaysian name : Lengkuas
Indonesian name : Laos

source : Hutton, Wendy; (1997); Tropical Herbs & Spices of Indonesia; Periplus Editions

Ginger ( Zingiber officinale )

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Around 400 members of the ginger family grow wild in tropidal Asia, but this particular variety is the one universally known as ginger. Two forms of the common edible ginger are found in Asian markets : young ginger has very thin skin, is pale yellow and has pinkish shoots with green stalk ends, while old ginger is beige-brown with a thicker skin. This should be
scraped off with a knife before using.

Young ginger is more tender and juicy than the mature rhizome, so it is prefferd for grating or pounding
to extract the juice, a popular marinade with Chinese chefs.
It can be eaten raw, and is also pickled ( a treatment very popular in China and Japan ).

Mature ginger, although sometimes served raw in very fine sheeds, is more commonly cooked as
the flavour is more emphatic than that of young ginger.

Ginger is widely used for medicinal purposes throughout Asia, particularly to improve digestion
and to counteract nausea and vomiting.

Botanical family : Zingiberaceae
Thai name : Khing
Malaysian name : Halia
Indonesian name : Jahe
Tagalog name : Luya

source : Hutton, Wendy; (1997); Tropical Herbs & Spices of Indonesia; Periplus Editions

Turmeric ( Curcuma domestica )

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A member of the prolific ginger familiy, turmeric is cultiviated for its flavour and
vivid yellow colour.In India, the rhizomes are dried and crushed to form powdered turmeric,
but in Southeast Asia, the fresh rhizome is generally preferred.

The juice extracted from crushed turmeric is favoured for giving bright yellow colour to ceremonial rice dishes in Southeast Asia. It was also widely used as a dye for cloth, but has been replaced these days by commercial dyes.

As the flavour and colour of fresh turmeric rhizomes is so intense, it is used in small quantities, often no larger than the sizes of a pea. Care should be taken not to sain clothing or utensils when using fresh turmeric.

Fresh turmeric leaves are used as a herb in some Malay and Indonesia dishes. In Thailand, young shoots and inflorescences can also be cooked with eggs to make an unusual omelette.
The rhizome us used in folk medicine throughout the region.

Botanical Family : Zingiberaceae
Thai name : Khamin
Malaysian name : Kunyit
Indonesian name : Kunyit
Tagalog name : Dilaw

source : Hutton, Wendy; (1997); Tropical Herbs & Spices of Indonesia; Periplus Editions

Historical Overview of Spices, Herbs and Aromatics

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Spices have had a greater impact on the world than any other foodstuff. Fragrant cloves with their woody overtones, heady sweet cardamon, pungent black pepper, the nutmeg whose complex flavours burst forth when grated.
Spices have been used for thousands of years. The ancient Egyptians, Romans, Greeks, Indians and Chinese all held spices in great esteem, not only for flavouring food and as medicine but also as an ingredient in magic potions, breath sweeteners and to perfume the air. A few spices, as cumin which is native to Egypt, originated in the Middle East, but the majority grew in Asia, along the Malabar coast of India, in China and in parts of what is now Indonesia.

As can be imagined, by the time these spices had travelled as far as the markets of mediaeval Europe, the prices were astronomical and spice cupboards in homes that could afford such luxuries were kept under lock end key. It was in an effort to break the Arabian monopoly on spices provided to the Venetian markets and to therefore reduce their price that European explorers such as Christopher Columbus and Vasco da Gama set out on their epic voyages across uncharted oceans.

It is interesting to note that coastal areas of Southeast Asia countries with a long history of contact with India show a much greater usage of spices in their cuisine than inland civilisations which had virtually no direct contact with the outside. One need only compare the richly spiced, complex dishes of Sumatra with, for example, the relatively simple food of Central Java.

China, even more than India, has influenced the cuisines of the region. Although Chinese trading junks have plied the seas for centuries, it was the immigrations of hundreds of thousands of Chinese to every part of Southeast Asia during the past century that had the greatest impact. Ingredients such as soy sauce, beancurd, bean sprouts and noodles were all introduced by the Chinese, as were spices native to China, particularly the cinnamon-scented star anise and cassia.

In today's world of modern transportation and international trade, spices are treated much the same as any other commodity. They are not only put to culinary use but incorporated in toothpastes, perfumes, cosmetics and soaps. The mistery and rarity of spices have virtually disappeared, but their magical effect on food and their ability to delight the palate remain unchanged.