My favourite lunch in Bali? If I can choose, it’s freshly made spring rolls with sweet-and-sour sauce. Ayu and Sepi know how much I love them by now. They make plenty, and a few portions go into the freezer too. That way, I know I can enjoy them again later in the week. Perhaps twice.
The flavours of Bali, and why I always eat too many spring rolls
It’s one of those little things that makes Bali feel like home. The girls know what I like, I hardly need to explain, and there’s always something delicious to look forward to.
There’s just one thing they can be certain of: no chilli for me, please.
Just a little chilli? I’m not falling for that again
The cooking in Bali can be wonderful. But what counts as “a little spicy” there can leave me speechless at the table.
Surely one tiny chilli won’t hurt? Well, for me, it probably will. I speak from experience. And even if it looks like a sweet pointed pepper, it may still be a chilli. 🙂
Prawn crackers have come to my rescue on those occasions. I don’t know whether they help everyone, but I certainly reach for them. Better still, I explain beforehand that I don’t want spicy food. I love plenty of herbs and flavour, but the sambal can stay on the side.
The same goes for our guests. Tell Ayu and Sepi what you enjoy. You don’t need to love spicy food to eat wonderfully in Bali.
Start with a look at the menu
At Villa Bima Sena, we have a menu to help you get started. Especially when you’ve just arrived, it’s nice to take your time and see what’s possible.
And there’s plenty to choose from.
Satay from the barbecue, fresh fish, spring rolls, a lovely soup or something sweet after dinner. The menu gives you an idea, and then you can discuss what you fancy with the girls.
In the morning, they go to the market for meat, eggs, vegetables and fruit. Meals are prepared around what’s available and what you enjoy eating. I often choose chicken. I’ve had beef in Bali too, but I usually find the chicken tastier and more tender.
Sometimes a simple meal is exactly right. A bowl of soto ayam, a delicious chicken soup, makes a lovely lunch. Although I’m unlikely to say no if there’s a spring roll to go with it.
Mangoes from the garden and something sweet
We have a mango tree and a papaya tree in our garden. There’s something special about seeing fruit growing on a tree when you’re used to finding it on a supermarket shelf. When it’s ripe, it’s an extra treat.
Then there are the desserts. Rice pudding, dadar gulung, the sweet filled pancakes, and mango sticky rice pudding. That last one is absolutely delicious. Take a look at the photograph and you’ll probably understand why.
Sometimes I promise myself I’ll eat a little less. But when something like that arrives at the table, the promise quickly slips my mind.
Kadek, could you open a coconut?
A young coconut is another of my favourite tastes of Bali. You drink the coconut water straight from the fruit. On a hot day, it’s wonderfully refreshing.
Feel free to ask Kadek, our gardener, whether he can open one for you. Or ask Ayu and Sepi, and they’ll ask him to help.
Enjoying a fresh coconut in the garden is one of those simple pleasures I don’t have back home.
What have the fishermen caught today?
Our villa is in Brongbong, a working fishing village. Walk to the right along the beach and you’ll often see the boats pulled up on the shore. Sometimes there are long strings of little fish drying in the sun: sardines.
I love seeing everyday village life right on the beach in front of our home.
The catch can include snapper and mahi-mahi. Mahi-mahi has delicious, firm, pale flesh. What’s available naturally depends on what the fishermen have caught that day.
Perhaps you’d enjoy going fishing yourself. Ask about the possibilities. It hardly gets fresher than your own catch.
For tuna, the fishermen usually head further out to sea. Sometimes, during an early-morning dolphin-watching trip, the captain puts out a fishing line along the way. You’ve gone out to see dolphins, and he’s caught his dinner. That can happen here.
Tuna, garlic and a cold Bintang
Barbecued tuna with onion and garlic is something I really enjoy in Bali. Add a cold shandy or a well-chilled Bintang beer, and I’m perfectly happy.
Coffee with a little patience
Naturally, my day starts with coffee.
Traditional Balinese coffee is often made directly in the cup: finely ground coffee, hot water and a little patience. The grounds settle at the bottom. It’s best to leave the final sip unless you enjoy chewing your coffee.
We also have ordinary filter coffee at the villa, but it’s fun to try the local coffee too. Coffee grows in Bali, along with ginger, turmeric, vanilla and all sorts of chillies. So many things we buy in packets or jars at home grow right here.
Then there’s the famous kopi luwak. The luwak is a civet that eats coffee cherries. The beans pass through the animal and are then collected, cleaned, dried and roasted.
It’s certainly an unusual story behind a cup of coffee, even if it doesn’t sound immediately appealing. If you’re curious to try it, our driver can suggest somewhere to stop for coffee.
Go on, just one more
What I love about eating at the villa is how naturally it becomes part of the day. A morning conversation about what we’d like to eat, the girls heading to the market and, later, lovely smells coming from the kitchen.
Sometimes we have a generous meal. Sometimes it’s soup, a salad or a plate of spring rolls. And sometimes I linger after dinner with a cold drink, looking out to sea.
For me, those are the flavours of Bali. They belong to this place and to the people who make it feel so special.
And those extra spring rolls in the freezer? They certainly won’t go to waste.
Warm wishes,
Karin