How did a small group of strangers go on an island getaway in October without leaving Philadelphia? Diana and Maylia Widjojo of Hardena put on an authentic Indonesian feast at COOK last night, that’s how! The sister duo gave our guests a taste of what a typical dinner in Sumatra (the largest Indonesian island) is like with their a five-course dinner. Read on to learn about Indonesian cuisine and the great food that the Widjojo family serves up at Hardena.
Everyone may have come to the dinner as strangers, but they certainly left feeling like family. This was due to the delicious food that the Widjojo sisters prepared and dished out family style. Diana said it is common in Indonesia to have a table laid out with a variety of dishes to be shared in a communal, informal manner. The first two courses were served way, breaking the ice between guests as they held a banana leaf covered plate with perkedel jagung – corn fritters with sambal sour cream and pickled veggies – which they sell at the restaurant. The sambal sour cream was a combination of the Hardena house sambal (a chili paste mixture) and sour cream, which mellows out the spice.
Speaking of spicy, Diana said that Sumatra cuisine tends to be spicier than other regional Indonesian cooking styles. Our guests certainly agreed as they continued to rave about the kick in each dish. The Widjojo family,especially mother Ena Widjojo, keeps their family recipes close to their hearts. Just try getting their house sambal recipe from them – you won’t! This is representative of many Indonesian families, as most have their own secret family sambal recipe. However, I was able to get Diana to give me a basic breakdown of the red chili paste she prepared for the kentang balado – potatoes and shrimp with sator beans.
Red Chili Paste
Ingredients
- shrimp paste
- red pepper
- onion
- paprika
- chili peppers (optional for a spicy paste)
- tomato
- garlic
- salt
- sugar
Directions
Diana said recipes can be great, but more commonly in Indonesian family cooking everything is usually done to taste. So If you’re making this red chili paste, just adjust your ingredients accordingly and constantly taste with a spoon along the way.
Start by taking the shrimp paste, which you can find in block form at most Asian markets, cut off a portion of it and pan fry it until dry. This process in the words of Diana Widjojo “will stink up your house like 10 times worse than frying a fish,” so do a large batch and keep it in your fridge for later use.
Next, blend together the red pepper, onion and paprika until it’s a paste. Then transfer that mixture and the rest of the ingredients to a pan and sauté until everything has broken down.
You can add any protein and or veggies to the red chili paste such as the shrimp, potatoes and sator beans that Diana and Maylia added. If you’re unfamiliar with sator beans, they are a large bean that comes in a long pod common in Southeast Asian cuisine. They are colloquially referred to as “stink beans” for the way the way they affect your bodily functions, a’la asparagus. You know… They give the dish a bitterness and aroma that is so unique and worked really well with the red chili paste. Sator beans are packed with nutritional benefits and are great for your kidneys and bladder.
If you’re in the mood for some authentic Indonesian cooking, check out the humble Point Breeze BYOB, Hardena. Look for Diana and Maylia, and tell them COOK sent you!
Address
1754 S Hicks Street
Philadelphia, PA 19145
Hours
Wednesday – Monday, 11:30 AM – 8:30 PM
Closed Tuesdays
