Sunday dinner in the village

When we were in Jogjakarta I had asked my language teacher if she knew of a cooking class I could take while I was there. She said that her sister owned a restaurant that was closed on Sundays, so if I liked the idea, I could have a class there and we could all share a meal. That sounded fine, but as I found out more details, I began to fret about hygiene issues and regret my acquiescence. But it would have been too rude to back out. We were consulted about the menu which was ultimately decided to be 2 vegetable dishes, a fish, a curry, and a tofu dish.So at the appointed time we (Tom was along as well)headed to her restaurant which was in a village, adjacent to her home and set among rice paddies. My fears were confirmed on arrival by the look of the place- open to the air with no screens on windows or doors. But the welcome was warm and so we got to work. She had prepared the two veg dishes and the fish, a d they were covered with sheets of kraftpaper to keep off the flies, but I would "make" the lamb curry and the tofu. She directed me to the bathroom to wash my hands- a good sign perhaps?In class we had learned a nice way of referring to the bathroom is the "little room out back". And so it was to there I went. It did have plumbing, but consisted of a "squatting toilet" ( see photo) and a rectangular enclosure full of water with a faucet and a bar of soap. The idea is to use the toilet, then scoop some water with a dipper into the hole to flush it. I did as requested and noticed upon leaving that there were rectangular ponds with mud walls behind the house where she raised fish for the restaurant. Thank goodness I had said we preferred ocean fish or we might have eaten some of that and it looked most unappetizing.

 I worked on demo examples as she and a servant had really prepped everything. I began by grating fresh cocoanut for the coconut milk. The shreds are soaked in the coconut water and then squeezed. Next I began to grind in a mortar and pestle the fresh ingreds for the curry. I must say I had never seen fresh turmeric, which is a rhizome something like ginger. I peeled and pounded that along with black peppercorns, coriander seeds, and a few other things, then added garlic and shallots. That gets fried in a wok for a while, then coconut milk is added along with lime leaves. After simmering for a while we added cubed lamb. Then we started on the tofu. She said (thru her sister) that we had to deep fry the tofu before we stir fried it or it would fall part. We did that and drained it well, then commenced to stir fry it with vegetables. Indonesians are very fond of tofu and tempe and it is a major source of protein in the diet. 

 Meanwhile other people began drifting in, the owner's husband and her daughter who is a college student and speaks perfect English. Later our teacher's husband arrived with their 4 year old daughter and his mother-in-law. Lastly, the owner's high school age son showed up, just in time to eat. While the food was finishing we had some excellent ginger tea.When all was ready, we sat around the table and enjoyed(?) all the food. Of course, it goes without saying that there was a huge bowl of rice. One of the veg dishes was with a peanut sauce, which we already knew we liked. The curry was tasty but the lamb in it was inedible due to gristle. It was embarrassing, but neither Tom nor I could eat it. The tofu was very good and maybe my favorite. I feel like it was probably a real feast for them. My only cost was our share of the food, although AMINEF would be billed for the time.There was a surprisingly lively conversation around the table with translations where necessary. we practiced some of our new language skills. Our teachers husband is an entrepreneur who dries flowers and exports them. In the US he sells to Pier One and World Market. The college student asked a lot of questions about the US. She is a senior in accounting and will go to work for the government in a tax office after graduation. The grandma had strong opinions about everything. The four year old behaved typically.We finished the meal with rambutans from a tree in their yard. I asked about the business the restaurant does and it is mostly farmers and students from a nearby university who come for lunch. She serves about 25 people per day. I find it interesting that she also made sure her children went to the best private school in Jogjakarta, hence their good English.Although it was an experience that stretched the limits of my comfort zone, I am glad I did it. Not so much because of what I learned(not really much, although I have since experimented with fresh turmeric) but just the experience of dining with an extended family in a traditional village setting. And neither of us got sick afterwards!