Seblak

Seblak ( Sundanese: ᮞᮨᮘᮣᮊ᮪) is a Sundanese savoury and spicy dish, originating from West Java, Indonesia. Made of wet ''krupuk'' (traditional Indonesian crackers) cooked with protein sources (egg, chicken, seafood or beef) in spicy sauce. ''Seblak'' is a specialty of Bandung city, West Java, Indonesia. ''Seblak'' is common at restaurants, '' warungs'', and ''gerobak'' (cart) street vendors. It is one of the most popular street foods in Indonesia, especially in Bandung and Jakarta.

Etymology

The word ''seblak'' may have originated Sundanese that is ''Nyeblak'' or surprising, because it tastes spicy and rich in spices. Seblak also refers to ingredients of Sundanese cuisine, made from ''cikur'' or Galangal (''Kaempferia galanga'').

Ingredients

At first glance, the ingredients and cooking method of ''seblak'' is quite similar to other common Indonesian food, such as '' mie goreng'' and ''kwetiau goreng'', however ''seblak'' differ with the chewy gelatin-like texture of wet ''krupuk'', and mostly quite spicy, owed to generous addition of ''sambal'' chili paste. Customer might order the degree of spiciness of their ''seblak'' priorly, although the default taste was quite hot and spicy. Almost all kinds of ''krupuk'' can be made as ''seblak'', but the most savoury (and usually more expensive) version uses ''krupuk udang'' (prawn crackers). The wet ''krupuk'' is boiled or stir fried with scrambled egg, vegetables, and other protein sources; either chicken, seafood (prawn, fish and squid), or slices of beef sausages or ''bakso'', stir-fried with spicy sauces including garlic, shallot, ''kencur'', ''kecap manis'' (sweet soy sauce), and ''sambal'' chili sauce.

Moisted ''krupuk'' would shrunk into smaller size compared to crispy fried ones, thus a lot of ''krupuks'' are required to make a bowl of ''seblak''. Since ''krupuk'' — especially prawn and fish crackers, are quite costly, the cheaper street food version usually add other carbohydrate sources as a filler in order to lessen the use of wet ''krupuk'', and to make it more satisfying. These extra carbs are slices of '' kwetiau'' and/or macaroni. Another popular variant uses chicken feet as one of main ingredients.

Origin

In earlier days, the term ''seblak'' refer to hot and spicy spice mixture made from ground ''kencur'' (''Kaempferia galanga'') and chili pepper. It is also refer to a traditional hot and spicy crispy ''krupuk'' crackers originate from rural southern Cianjur area before the independence era, this food was an alternative food, which is now called as ''seblak kering'' (dry ''seblak'') or ''krupuk seblak''. However, today it is mostly refer to its wet and savoury version; the ''seblak basah''.

''Seblak'' is relatively a recent invention in Bandung, this new street food appeared in Bandung circa 2000s. It is suggested that the dish was originally started as a method to avoid wasting uneaten old ''krupuk''; a way to safely (and pleasantly) consume stale old ''krupuk'' by cooking it with other ingredients, to make it more satisfying.

Nevertheless, the pleasantly soft and chewy texture, also its savoury, rich and spicy taste, has made ''seblak'' a street food favourite in Indonesia, especially the Sundanese people.

File:Seblak street vendor 1.jpg, ''Seblak'' cart street vendor
File:Seblak street vendor 3.jpg, ''Seblak'' ingredients
File:Seblak street vendor 4.jpg, Street vendor cooking ''seblak''
File:Seblak street vendor 5.jpg, Cooking ''seblak''

See also

* Krupuk
* Siomay
* Batagor
* Mie goreng

References

External links

How to make SeblakYoutube video on Seblak with chicken claws

{{Street food

Sundanese cuisine
Fried foods
Street food in Indonesia