7 Delicious Traditional Dishes You Must Try When Visiting Banyuwangi
Banyuwangi is one of the districts known for its mystical stories since the KKN Desa Penari tale went viral on Twitter at the end of 2019. Many travelers intentionally visit the area just to uncover the truth behind the horror story. However, Banyuwangi is not only famous for its mystical tales, my friend.
There are many delicious culinary delights that you can taste when you visit Banyuwangi. The flavors of its dishes are unique because usually, a single serving of food combines two types of cuisine and is quite hard to find in other regions. Here are 7 addictive culinary specialties from Banyuwangi.
Pecel Rawon
In Banyuwangi, it is easy to find pecel and rawon. In this district, you can also enjoy both dishes in one serving! Yes, it's called pecel rawon.
The boiled vegetables typically found in pecel, such as long beans, cabbage, water spinach, spinach, and bean sprouts, are served with rawon broth. As we know, rawon broth has a unique flavor because it is made with kluwek, a spice that gives the broth its black color. Not to forget, pieces of meat are also included in a serving of pecel rawon.
Rujak Soto
Rujak and soto are usually two separate dishes in other regions. However, in Banyuwangi, you will enjoy these two foods as one unique dish!
Like typical rujak, boiled vegetables such as water spinach, long beans, cabbage, along with tofu and tempeh are served in a bowl. The rujak ingredients are then drizzled with savory soto broth containing beef tripe. Wow, guaranteed to be addictive!
Sego Tempong
Sego means rice and tempong means slap. Yes, literally, sego tempong means slapped rice. However, it doesn't mean that buyers will be slapped with rice, my friend. What slaps in sego tempong is the chili sauce because it is so spicy that it feels like a slap when enjoying this Banyuwangi specialty.
Sego tempong consists of rice with side dishes of corn omelet, fried fish or fried chicken, fried tempeh and tofu, along with some boiled vegetables. The rice and various side dishes are then enjoyed with super spicy chili sauce made from raw chilies that are pounded. Guaranteed to be spicy and keep you awake while enjoying it!
Uyah Asem Pitik
Pitik means chicken in Javanese. Usually, the chicken used in uyah asem pitik is free-range chicken, giving it a distinctive taste. What’s unique about this soupy dish is the use of ginger flower, which adds to the deliciousness due to the fragrance produced by the ginger flower.
Pindang Koyong
Pindang koyong is fish pindang with a savory broth. The tender fish meat makes pindang koyong popular among culinary lovers. Moreover, the spices in pindang koyong are also unique because they use starfruit, giving it a sour and refreshing taste. If you go to Banyuwangi, pindang koyong is a must-try dish.
Botok Tawon
Who would have thought that wasps or bees could be turned into delicious dishes in Banyuwangi? Including extreme food, botok tawon uses honey bees as its main ingredient.
Like typical botok or pepes dishes, botok tawon is wrapped in banana leaves and then steamed. Seasoned with spices, botok tawon has a savory and delicious flavor that pairs well with warm white rice.
Sup Kesrut
The term kesrut is used when someone with a cold tries to hold back the spiciness while eating soupy food. Well, true to its name, this soup has a sour-spicy flavor that is perfect to enjoy when you're feeling under the weather. This soupy dish contains slices of chicken cooked in spicy broth.
Wow, those 7 culinary specialties from Banyuwangi make you hungry, right, my friend? Because of their uniqueness in combining two types of cuisine into one dish, these Banyuwangi culinary delights are hard to find in other regions. As for the taste, it cannot be denied how delicious each Indonesian dish is, rich in spices.
Author: Nisa Maulan Shofa
