Tender sweet and salty pork morsels of joy that tantalize the taste buds.

Have you ever had a nostalgic memory of food that is near and dear to your heart? Do you think of it over the years, and perhaps cook the dish on occasion because it reminds you of a far but fond experience you can never forget? Perhaps this memory diverts you back to cooking in the kitchen with your mom, as she shows you how to cook one of your favorite meals. Or, perhaps this memory takes you on a fantasy, forgetting about reality for a bit because you are engaged in pure delicious bliss.

I am confident that you, my dear reader, have said “yes” in your mind, to these pondering questions. We, as humans, all have at least one memory of food from the past that brings us joy, with the urge to cook and/or eat it again because this food brings comfort and happiness to our lives.

I’d like to share a food memory with you that goes back to my childhood days. At the tender age of eleven, on my first trip from Chicago as an American, to stay with my family in the Netherlands, is when I started to really explore the elevation of food and my passion for cooking.

I remember my wonderful aunt, who was a fantastic cook, who made delicious Indonesian food that, for lack of a better word, “blew” my taste buds out of the water! She would cook these “rijst tafels” or “rice tables” in Dutch, for the family. Being of Indonesian and Dutch descent (a bit of history, the Netherlands colonized Indonesia more than at least a hundred years ago or more; hence why the unique mix of heritage in my family), these rice tables were very common in the Netherlands (and yes, not so common in Chicago where I was born). So, as you can imagine, my eyes would light up at the precious sight of amazing Indonesian dishes adorning the table in a buffet style, all to be eaten up along with laughs and fun camaraderie with my family members.

As I walk up to the rice table with my plate in my hand, I eagerly look for one of my favorite dishes of all time, Babi Kecap. Babi Kecap in Indonesian means pork made with sweet soy sauce that is served with rice. The mere thought of saltiness mixed with the sweetness of juicy pieces of succulent pork, makes me salivate because I remember how delicious this dish was to me back then. Babi Kecap is my nostalgic memory. And somehow, I remember that my aunt was the only family member that could cook this dish, the best out of anyone else in the entire world.

Thankfully, I learned how to cook this beautiful dish when I was eleven. You may think that is young, but honey, I’ve been cooking since I was seven. 😉 My aunt taught me how to cook many wonderfully appetizing Indonesian dishes, but Babi Kecap kept on being one of the dishes I would always want to cook over the years until now. And, what a waste, not to share my recipe of Babi Kecap to the world? It would be a shame to hide this gem of deliciousness all to myself, when others can enjoy this beautiful, tasty and even easy to make, meal.

So hear we go. Are you ready? I sure am, because I’d like to have a luscious bite of Babi Kecap in my mouth asap! I’ll provide the recipe below. However, let me summarize how I normally cook this dish. And you will say to yourself, “Wow, that was easy, peasy!” It’s a perfect dish that you can make on a weeknight for your family or just for yourself. Or have at it if you want to impress your guests for dinner on a Saturday night!

You’ll need to cut up pork (I like country ribs because the pork has a great ratio for lean meat and fat that gives more flavor) into small half inch pieces. You can also use pork chops, pork belly or even pork loin for this recipe. Once cut up, put the meat in a mixing bowl. Add the sweet soy sauce, fresh garlic, fresh ginger, fresh shallots, white vinegar or lemon juice, ground coriander, water, regular soy sauce, and pepper into the mixing bowl. Don’t add any salt! There is plenty of salt in the soy sauce. Mix the meat into this marinade until all the meat is covered. Put plastic wrap on the bowl and refrigerate for at least 2 hours overnight (the best and preferable for flavor).

After the amount of time has passed, take the pork marinade out of the refrigerator. Put vegetable oil in a wok or large frying pan and let it get hot for 2 minutes. Next, strain the liquid marinade from the mixture and add just the meat to the pan. Stir and cook continuously for about 10 minutes, until all pork pieces are thoroughly cooked. You can add a bit more marinade into the pan if it gets too dry.

Next, serve a small mound of pork over steaming hot jasmine rice in a bowl. I like to sprinkle minced fresh cilantro on top to make it pretty. Then, eat it all up and enjoy! Hopefully you will agree with me that this dish is amazing, where the salty and sweet pork just melts in your mouth, making your taste buds dance with delight.

Until my next blog, my friends! And remember, eat well!

Recipe

“Note” If in a rush and have little time to prepare this dish, you can skip the marinade directions and simply add the ingredients in the frying pan and cook until done. The flavor will still be delicious as using the marinade technique. If you want to have more robust and richer flavor though, continue to use the marinade directions.

Ingredients (feeds 2-3 people):

• 2-3 pounds of chopped pork into ½ inch pieces (country rib, pork chop, pork belly or pork chop according to preference)
• 3 tablespoons ground coriander
• 12 cloves of chopped garlic (can be roughly cut in half for each piece as it will be in a marinade)
• 1 tablespoon garlic powder
• 1 tablespoon white vinegar or lemon juice
• 3 tablespoons of fresh ginger (roughly cut)
• 2 tablespoons of fresh shallots (roughly cut)
• 1 tablespoon pepper
• 2 cups sweet soy sauce (ABC Kecap Manis or any other brand that can be found in an Asian store)
• 1 cup soy sauce
• 2 cups water
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 6 cups cooked jasmine rice
• 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro

Directions:

Cut up raw pork into small half inch pieces. Once cut up, put the meat in a mixing bowl. Add the sweet soy sauce, fresh garlic, fresh ginger, fresh shallots, white vinegar or lemon juice, ground coriander, water, regular soy sauce, and pepper into the mixing bowl. Do not add any salt. Mix the meat into this marinade until all the meat is covered. Put plastic wrap on the bowl and refrigerate for at least 2 hours overnight (the best and preferable for flavor).

After the amount of time has passed, take the pork marinade out of the refrigerator. Put vegetable oil in a wok or large frying pan and let it get hot for 2 minutes. Next, strain the liquid marinade from the mixture and add just the meat to the pan. Stir and cook continuously for about 10 minutes, until all pork pieces are thoroughly cooked. Add a bit more marinade into the pan as the meat cooks, if it gets too dry.

Next, serve a small mound of pork over steaming hot jasmine rice in a bowl. Sprinkle the minced fresh cilantro on top of the meat. Enjoy!