Explore the Many Flavors of Indonesia with Lara Lee

Made up of some 18,000 islands, Indonesia is the largest country in Southeast Asia. But while the cuisines from nearby Thailand and Vietnam have made a name for themselves, Indonesian food has struggled to gain popularity. “We’re the largest country in Southeast Asia, but there are not many people that know our food outside of Indonesia,” remarked food writer Kevindra Prianto Soemantri in an interview with The New York Times. “We need chefs and cooks to promote our cuisine, the same way people have done with Thai and Japanese food.”

According to Prianto Soemantri, cookbook author Lara Lee might just be the nation’s ambassador when it comes to Indonesian food. A half-Indonesian, half-Australian foodie, Lee published last year a celebrated cookbook titled Coconut & Sambal: Recipes from my Indonesian Kitchen. “This book is a dream for our culture,” said Prianto Soemantri. “A cookbook like Lara’s gives us representation.”

With more than 80 traditional and vibrant recipes that have been passed down through the generations, Lee’s cookbook offers insights into authentic Indonesian cookery. Recipes include tried and true dishes such as Nasi goreng, Beef rendang, Chilli prawn satay, and Pandan cake, alongside a variety of recipes for sambals: fragrant, spicy relishes that are undoubtedly the heart and soul of every meal.

“This cookbook is also the story of my grandmother and her dishes and our family, and me discovering my heritage,” relayed Lee in an interview with The Star. While Lee herself didn’t actually grow up in Indonesia, her book forms a bridge between East and West. Writing the book included much research in advance, as well as trips around the country.

“I think what I find so interesting about Indonesia is that wherever you travel, the flavour profile completely changes, whether it’s Bali, Timur, Sulawesi or Padang,” she notes. “So to capture it all in a cookbook, I travelled as much as I could in the time I had. I also met a well-known Indonesian chef called William Wongso, who took me under his wing and introduced me to some of the best home cooks in Indonesia, so I was really lucky to have incredible experts support me.”

Her favourite savory dish? Beef Rendang. The rendang begins in a large pot filled with coconut milk, chunks of stewing beef, and a fragrant spice paste that includes chillies, galangal, garlic, shallots, and turmeric, along with aromats like lime leaf and lemongrass. It simmers on a low heat until the beef has softened, the sauce is thickened, and the oil from the coconut milk has split and risen to the top. The heat is turned up and the coconut oil browns and caramelizes the beef until all that’s left is a darkened and powerfully flavorful sauce.

“Basically, because Indonesian food is not mainstream, I wanted it to feel accessible—something that people could make in their home kitchens, ” says Lee. Her recipes might just inspire you to visit Indonesia. In the meanwhile, you can at least experience it through your tastebuds.