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Acar is a type of vegetable pickling, pickle of Maritime Southeast Asia, most prevalent in Indonesian cuisine, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei. It is a localised version of Indian ''South Asian pickle, achar''. It is known as atjar in Dutch cuisine, derived from Indonesian ''acar''. ''Acar'' is usually prepared in bulk as it may easily be stored in a well-sealed glass jar in refrigerator for a week, and served as a condiment for any meals.
The Southeast Asian variations are usually made from different vegetables such as cucumber, carrots, cabbage, shallot, bird's eye chili and yardlong beans, which are pickled in vinegar, sometimes with kaffir lime to add citrus aroma, and also dried chile pepper, chillies. Some recipes might have the vegetables tossed in ground peanuts. ''Acar'' is commonly served as a condiment to be eaten with a main course, such as ''Murtabak, martabak'', ''nasi goreng'' (fried rice), satay, and almost all varieties of ''Soto (food), soto''. Just like common List of pickled foods, pickles, the sour taste of ''acar'' is meant to freshen up a meal, especially fishy dishes such as ''ikan bakar'' (grilled fish) or rich and oily dishes such as Satay#Sate kambing, mutton satay to neutralize the fat.
History
Pickling Pickling#History, originated in India around 2400 BCE, and with expansion of Indosphere, Indian cultural influence on Greater India, through transmission of Hinduism in Southeast Asia, Hinduism leading to Indianization of Southeast Asia, Indianisation, and the formation of native Southeast Asian Indianized kingdom, kingdoms which adopted many Indian cultural elements, including food processing techniques. Through examining the etymology, the similar sounding name strongly suggests that indeed acar was derived from the Indian South Asian pickle, achar pickle. Indian achar was transmitted in antiquity to the maritime realm of Southeast Asia, which today is recognized as acar in Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei, and then on to the Philippines as ''atchara''. The adoption of this vegetable pickling technique possibly took place during the Srivijaya period between 7th to 13th century. British navigator Thomas Forrest (navigator), Thomas Forrest wrote that acar made of salted limes and palm vinegar were often of use to Coromandel Coast, Coromandel Tamil Muslims, Muslim sailors (''Chulias'') to prevent scurvy and were sold as far as Aceh.Ingredients
The Southeast Asian variations are usually made from different vegetables such as cucumber, carrots, cabbage, shallot, bird's eye chili and yardlong beans, which are pickled in vinegar, sometimes with kaffir lime to add citrus aroma, and also dried chile pepper, chillies. Some recipes might have the vegetables tossed in ground peanuts. ''Acar'' is commonly served as a condiment to be eaten with a main course, such as ''Murtabak, martabak'', ''nasi goreng'' (fried rice), satay, and almost all varieties of ''Soto (food), soto''. Just like common List of pickled foods, pickles, the sour taste of ''acar'' is meant to freshen up a meal, especially fishy dishes such as ''ikan bakar'' (grilled fish) or rich and oily dishes such as Satay#Sate kambing, mutton satay to neutralize the fat.
Regional cuisines
In Indonesian cuisine, Indonesia, acar is commonly made from small chunks of cucumber, carrot, shallot, bird's eye chili and occasionally pineapple, and marinated in a sweet and sour solution of sugar and vinegar. Some households add lemongrass or ginger to spice it up. It is usually used as condiment to accompany grilled foods such as satay. Nevertheless, ''acar'' can also be consumed as a whole, complete dish. For example, ''ikan acar kuning'' is a fish dish (gourami, Mackerel as food, mackerel or tilapia) served in ''acar'' pickles of cucumber, carrot, shallot and red chili, mixed with yellow spice paste made of ground turmeric, candlenut, ginger, garlic and shallot. It is known as ''atjar'' (pickle) in Dutch cuisine, derived from Indonesian ''acar'', since the Netherlands and Indonesia share colonial ties. Variations of Malaysian and Singaporean ''acar'' include ''acar awak'' or Peranakan cuisine, Nyonya ''acar'' and Malay people, Malay ''acar''. ''Acar awak'' is more elaborate, containing additional vegetables such as eggplants as well as aromatic spices in the pickling mix. The salad has also been adopted into Thai cuisine, where it is called ''Thai salads#Other Thai salads, achat'' (, ). It is made with cucumber, red chilies, red onions or shallots, vinegar, sugar and salt. It is served as a side dish with the Thai version of satay (). With Indian and Malay slaves initially brought by the British Empire, ''atchar'' became a favourite condiment in South Africa. The local variation is usually made with green mangoes.See also
* (Philippine cuisine) * * *References
{{Salads Betawi cuisine Javanese cuisine Malay cuisine Indonesian Indian cuisine Peranakan cuisine Bruneian cuisine Dutch fusion cuisine Malaysian cuisine Singaporean cuisine Thai cuisine Indonesian pickles Indonesian condiments Malaysian condiments Salads Indonesian salads Vegetarian dishes of Indonesia Vegetable dishes of Indonesia Malay words and phrases Indonesian words and phrases