Happy Eid al-Adha!

This year, my family are celebrating Eid al-Adha at yours truly! I woke up today to a series of lebaran-themed dishes cooked by my Mom and my aunt. There weren’t any mutton curry, but we sure didn’t skip on the Opor Ayam. 

My Aunt, Tante Ira, brought a bucketfull of Opor Ayam and, my all-time favorite dish of hers, Sambal Goreng Paru. They were very vibrant in color and very flavorful. The only thing that was missing from the two dishes is a bigger portion. 

Indonesia is famous for its’ spices. Every dishes are cooked with spices and it is guaranteed that the flavor will be wholesome. One of the easiest dish to cook is Sambal Goreng, which is, basically, any ingredient cooked with sambal, or chilly paste. You can use tempeh and it’ll be Sambal Goreng Tempeh. You can use potato and it’ll be Sambal Goreng Kentang. The concept of the dish is very simple, don’t you agree? This time, Tante Ira took the liberty to use cow lungs to make Sambal Goreng Paru and, I bullshit you not, I bet you can’t just have one serving of it and be content. 

Tante Ira’s Sambal Goreng Paru was spicy and full of flavor. I could definitely taste the shallot and garlic that she used to cook the dish. There was a hint of sweetness here and there, but savory is the one that dominate the whole flavor wheel. The cow lungs were tender, yet also chewy, but still easy to nibble to, even for my Grandma. 

On the one hand, Tante Ira’s Opor Ayam was also a two-thumbs-up kind of dish. The broth was very creamy and lip-smacking. The chicken was very succulent and tender, and finger-licking good! Combine the broth with a handful of rice, then add some shrimp crackers while you’re at it, and you got yourself a very delicious meal. 

Mom, on the other hand, cooked a very similar dish to Tante Ira, but she used baby squids instead of cow lungs. Yes, Sambal Goreng Cumi! Mom shines bright in terms of cooking, just like Tante Ira and my Grandma, as her Sambal Goreng Cumi captured the heart of everybody in the house this afternoon. It was savory, even though a wee bit too spicy for my taste, and the green tomato slices gave that sour and juicy zest that elevates the deliciousness of the dish to another level. 

Tante Wai just got home from Solo last night and she brought with her some chicken that she bought from the traditional market, Pasar Gede. The chicken was fried at home earlier this morning and it is one of the best fried chicken I have ever tasted! Despite the fact that fried chicken are mostly savory, this particular chicken tasted sweet as well because of the sweet soy sauce that they used to bathe the chicken with at the market. We, Indonesian, refers the spices used on this particular chicken as “bumbu bacem”. It can be used to other food base as well, such as tempeh, tofu, and egg.

Other dishes were also available! We got Orek Tempe, Bakwan Jagung, thin omelettes, fried Tempe Bacem, fried tofu, sweet and spicy potato chips, fruits, Sayur Asem, a lot of Ketupat, as well as some Lontong. The bunch of us gathered immediately in the dinning room as soon as all the dishes were served and dig in together. Blessed. 

P. S. Tante Ira's dishes are available to order if you would love to try some. Her Instagram account goes by the name Dapurnya Tante Manado. Just slide in her DM and order away!