Who doesn’t know the special dishes from the Land of Minangkabau, West Sumatra, especially the worldwide Rendang dish? Yes, the foods from this province are very famous not only in their own country but also abroad.
Padang itself is one of the areas in West Sumatra which is also famous for food made from meat and coconut milk. As for taste, the Minangkabau people prefer spicy flavors, so most of their dishes are spicy in taste.
The following are the 10 Mouthwatering and Must Try Legendary Foods in West Sumatra.
1. Gajeboh
Apart from Rendang, in the capital city of West Sumatra, Padang, there is also another preparation called curry gajeboh or also called brisket.
The main ingredient for making it is beef in the hump, so usually there will be a lot of lard (fat).
But that’s why there will be 3 flavors if you enjoy it, namely the usual savory taste because there is more meat than fat.
In addition to the savory taste, thanks to the gravy, there will be a spicy taste that arises. Even thanks to the combination of gravy with lots of fat, many say that gajeboh is the most delicious food.
However, it is not recommended for people with high cholesterol, because food prices start from Rp. 23,500 plus this rice, can make the neck feel heavy.
2. Asem Padeh Meat
From the name alone, it can be seen that tamarind spicy beef is made with meat as a base, especially beef. Even though now many restaurants are trying to make spicy tamarind from fish or chicken meat, so it’s not just beef.
To make this food, you only need to mix fine spices in the form of shallots and garlic with the meat, and even add red chilies, ginger, Kandis acid, and crushed tomatoes.
After letting it sit for 30 minutes, the mixture can be fried until it turns brown.
After it’s cooked, it’s ready to be served with rice. If you want to buy it, just come to a restaurant in the Minang realm because quite a lot of sell it.
3. Beef Rendang
As a typical food from West Sumatra which was included in the World’s 50 Most Delicious Food from CNN in 2011, the taste of rendang deserves to be on this list.
This food made using beef even uses abundant spices to create one portion.
Call it various ground spices, namely chili, garlic, galangal, shallots, turmeric, and lemongrass. Not to mention the addition of coconut milk as a mixture when rendang is cooked which makes it even more spiced.
Initially, one pot can contain a lot of water, but after cooking for about four hours, the water will run out and the marinade will seep into the meat. That’s what makes rendang taste so delicious, as well as when consumed with rice.
4. Lung Rendang
If usually rendang is made using beef, then lung rendang is the exception.
As the name implies, this type of processed rendang is made using beef lung which is softer and wetter than beef. Not only the basic ingredients are different because the spices used to cook them are also different.
But the results are still different, the lung that has been cooked will have a harder texture with a dominant brown color.
5. Kapau Rice
As a typical food of West Sumatra, this Kapau rice does have the most delicious taste.
If there is nasi gudeg in Yogyakarta which is well known, then in Bukittinggi there is such a thing as nasi kapau, which both use jackfruit.
But the difference is, Nasi Kapau is more complete because apart from rice and chili sauce, there is also a jackfruit vegetable curry jackfruit which can be added with dozens of other side dishes.
The jackfruit curry used is also watery, unlike gudeg, because it is cooked in coconut milk but not too thick.
Usually, Nasi Kapau traders will serve this staple food typical of West Sumatra and then be given various side dishes in the form of vegetables and meat, but jackfruit curry will always accompany one portion.
To meet the traders, in the Pasar Bawah area of Bukittinggi there are many rice kapau traders mushrooming. The price depends on the number of side dishes chosen, but the average price starts from 15 thousand or 20 thousand rupiahs.
6. Lado Mudo Itiak Curry
Lado Mudo Itiak Curry is actually a type of menu that is in the itiak Lado Mudo Ngarai Restaurant, Jalan Binuang, Bukittinggi.
As a mainstay menu, gulai itiak lado mudo is a curry made with young duck meat and chopped green chilies.
Although originally this West Sumatran dish was typical of Gadang City, Agam Regency, the restaurant has modified it so that it tastes spicier and is prepared without coconut milk.
Another goal is to make the meat softer to make it easier to eat. The price for one portion of duck curry is only 22 thousand if that’s just the cut, but the price will be 100 thousand if what is ordered is a full ducks.
7. Dendeng Balado
Dendeng is the name of a traditional food from West Sumatra originating from the Minangkabau area which is made from dried beef.
According to history, this food is made dry is because this food lasts a long time, so when it is taken on a trip it will take longer to stale.
This food, which is made from sliced beef into small pieces, will then be dried, but because this is jerky Balado, it will be seasoned with Balado.
Apart from being known as jerky balado, people also often call it jerky batakok.
But actually, batakok and balado have differences in the use of chili as a compliment. For batakok, the chili used is green chili, while the balado used is red chili.
8. Banak Curry
If usually curry is made from chicken, beef, and mutton, it’s different from banak curry which uses the beef brain as its main ingredient.
This food is a typical curry from West Sumatra with a fresh but slightly spicy sauce that is brown in color.
The use of brain-based ingredients is indeed very unique because it will taste very soft in the mouth, not to mention the vitamins B5 and B12 it contains. Even so, bank curry still has its drawbacks, because it has a fairly high cholesterol content.
In addition, there will be additional mug leaves and Kandis acid so that the aroma is not fishy. Although this delicious preparation is high in cholesterol, the protein content can also make up for this deficiency.
9. Fern Curry
After previously there was a curry made from cow’s brain, now there is another curry preparation that is also very unique, namely, nail curry.
From the name, some might think this dish is made from iron nails, but that’s a big mistake because the main ingredient for its manufacture is ferns or ferns.
Not only ferns are the main actors, but usually, the community will also provide a complement of jambul salted fish, shrimp, or anchovies. This curry will be given a cooking sauce with a spicy and sour taste, which is eaten together with boiled eggs or pieces of ketupat.
10. Pop Chicken
Pop chicken is a typical West Sumatran dish made with free-range chicken, galangal, shallots, garlic, bay leaves, salt, and lime.
Usually, chicken pop is only served in parts, for example, the thigh, and then sprinkled with chili sauce on top. To beautify the appearance, usually, in several places to eat or restaurants that provide it, there will be additional cassava leaves and boiled long beans.
Enjoying this pop chicken will taste very tasty, and it will taste spicy when mixed with the chili sauce.
Then there will be chili sauce smeared over the chicken which is made from finely ground chilies, shallots, and tomatoes. To get it, you can visit the Benteng Indah Bukittinggi Family restaurant.
