Papeda Recipes, Prehistoric Cuisine That Still Exists in Papua Indonesia

Papeda menu original Papua Indonesia

Papeda Recipes, Prehistoric Cuisine That Still Exists in Papua Indonesia.

This time we will discuss a dish originating from Papua, an area located in the eastern part of Indonesia.

You know papua?!

If you know the term Golden Mountain, and the largest American company Freeport, then that's Papua, an area rich in natural resources, exotic natural scenery, and the unique life of its inhabitants.

Not only does Papua have abundant natural wealth, Papua also has many unique and interesting foods that you should try.

And this time we will talk about one of the unique foods, originating from Papua, Irian Jaya Indonesia.

Before we talk further about papeda, it would be nice, we discuss the raw material of papeda, namely sago.

how to get sago

Where did the sago come from?

Sago trees or can also be called trees with the scientific name Metroxylon sago.

Including the palmae family in the wet tropics, this plant is found in freshwater swamp areas, or peat swamp areas, riverbanks, close to water sources and swamp forests.

Sago trees are famous for their life in the form of clumps, which in one clump consist of one to eight sago sticks and each sago base will grow five to seven stems.

Under certain conditions in a natural or clay environment, the sago palm will grow wider with the number of children growing more in various stages. Sago trees also have a canopy, which is the appearance of the entire leaf, branches, twigs, flowers and fruit formed from the midrib with finned leaves.

Mature sago palms can reach 8 to 17 meters. In fact, some thatch trees can reach 30 meters depending on the type and conditions in which the tree grows.

The sago tree cycle is quite long. However, when cut down for processing, this sago tree will grow its own shoots. Sago trees are one of the staple foods for Indonesian people, especially those living in eastern Indonesia such as Papua, Maluku, and Nusa Tenggara.

In Indonesia, sago flour is a non-timber forest product in the form of starch produced from sago tree trunks which will then be harvested for consumption.

One sago tree that has a height of up to 150-300 kilograms of raw material for sago flour.

The activity of looking for sago in forests and riverbanks has become a community activity in eastern Indonesia. This activity is similar to the Javanese people who go to the fields to harvest rice.

The process of getting sago starts from the tree

The process of obtaining sago can simply be described starting from a sago farmer who will look for quality sago trees and then cut them down. Sago trees that have been cut down will begin to peel the bark and the flesh will be cut into 50-100 cm long pieces.

After that, the pieces of sago sticks filled with sago will go into the grating process, which has now been replaced by a machine.

Given water then filtered, squeezed, and become flour. The process in this stage will be repeated several times until the flour is completely smooth.

Well, that's how the Papuan people get sago flour.

sago caterpillar nest

Extreme food menu

Before we dive deep into the recipe for making papeda, it's a good idea to explore the extreme food found in rotting sago tree trunks, namely sago caterpillars.

Sago caterpillars have long been a favorite food of the people in Papua, there is no special menu for cooking these sago caterpillars, usually the people of Papua and its surroundings consume these sago caterpillars by swallowing them raw, by first removing the head of the sago caterpillar.

processed sago caterpillar

It can also be grilled over a fire for a short time and then swallowed.

In general, sago caterpillars are three to four centimeters in size and white in color. The trunk of an old and fallen sago tree is usually a place for sago caterpillars to live. Sago caterpillars are in the trunk of the sago tree because in the trunk there is a lot of starch, the main food of sago caterpillars.

Sago caterpillars are widely consumed because they contain high enough protein. Has a protein content of 32.54 percent in each unit. The sago caterpillar is an additional menu for the coastal community of Papua, because it is not always found this caterpillar.

For one hundred grams of sago caterpillar, it contains 181 calories with 6.1 grams of protein and 13.1 grams of fat.

Do you dare to try to eat it?!

After you know how to get sago, and there is a food source in the rotting sago stalks, it's time now for us to make papeda, the staple food of the people of eastern Indonesia.

What materials do we need in making papeda papua?

Ingredients:

• 1/4 sago flour
• pinch of salt
• enough chicken stock
• 4 glasses of water
• 2 cloves white onion

Cooking steps:

1. Boil three cups of water
2. Mix the sago flour, broth, salt, and garlic that has been in a fine blender with one cup of water, stir in a bowl.
3. Slowly pour the sago liquid into the boiling water and continue to simmer until it explodes.
4. Lift serve.
5. can also be served with yellow fish sauce or chicken curry.

That's one way to process sago typical of the people of Papua, an area in Indonesia known as the golden mountain.

Until here first papeda recipe, tomorrow we will continue with recipes that are unique and certainly arouse your taste buds.

May your life be full of "Warna Dunia".