Garuda Indonesia Colours Magazine July 2019 | Page 61

Lifestyle / Flavours
2
Medan, North
Sumatra, is famous
for durian pancakes
– the bright, vibrant
colours make them
irresistible to taste.
1. Bandung's surabi
with durian topping.
2. Delicate durian
pancakes in vibrant
colours.
3. Soft yellow durian
flesh, eaten raw or
cooked into dishes.
3
The Temptations of Durian
A soft piece of durian pancake melts on my tongue,
giving me intense gastronomical pleasure. There’s
no pungent smell, only the luscious taste of the king
of fruits wrapped in the delicate thin pancake.
The spiky fruit has been known
and consumed by Indonesians since
around the 9 th century, as shown
on the relief panels on the walls
of Borobudur Temple in Central Java.
Indonesia is blessed with abundant
varieties of durian including Durian
Lay, Durian Medan, Durian Petruk,
Durian Sunan, Durian Otong and
many more. Recently, a new durian
variety, J-Queen, gained huge
publicity due to its fantastic price.
It is sold for IDR 14 million (around
US$965) for a single fruit! It comes
from a tree which produces just
20 durians in three years, hence
its hefty price tag.
Durian flesh is good eaten raw, but
some people grill the whole fruit first
before enjoying it. For those who are
not a big fan of durian’s famously pungent
odour, durian bakar (grilled durian) is the
perfect answer since the method removes
the strong smell. Durian flesh can also
be creatively transformed into many
kinds of delicious snacks, desserts,
cakes, curries and even a side dish
to serve with glutinous rice.
Medan, North Sumatra, is famous
for durian pancakes – the bright, vibrant
colours make them irresistible to taste.
Cooking durian pancakes is no hassle at
all since you simply blend the fruit with
whipped cream and sweetened
condensed milk for the filling. It is
then wrapped in the thin pancakes,
made of wheat flour, eggs, milk
and pandanus leaves.
In Aceh, in the southwest and southern
parts of the region, durian flesh is normally
first fermented to produce a sour taste,
then added to vegetables, coconut milk
and shrimps. The dish is known locally
as gule jruek drien or gulai asam durian
(sour durian curry). The vegetables used
in the delicacy include green eggplant,
daun melinjo (gnetum gnemon leaves),
kaffir lime leaves, tapak liman (elephantopus
scaber) leaves, yardlong beans and
lemongrass.
The fermented durian, known
locally as tempoyak, is also popular
in Palembang, Bengkulu, Lampung,
Jambi, and Pontianak in Kalimantan.
Preparing it is very simple. Durian flesh
is mixed with salt and kept in a closed
jar for three to five days. Each of
the regions in Sumatra has its own
traditional way of serving tempoyak.
People in Lampung combine tempoyak
with grilled freshwater fish, shrimp paste
59