As a bit of a follow up to my last post on my ‘Top 5 Tips to Enjoying Indonesian Street Food’; I thought I’d share a recipe with you, for one of my favourite Indonesian snacks; perkedel jagung or corn fritters.
Now, don’t get me wrong here, I’m definitely no MasterChef, not even close! I make a terrible mess in the kitchen when I cook, I have to read the recipe a few hundred times to get it to sink into my head and so that it actually makes sense to me, I’m hopeless at maths so I’m also hopeless at working out weight and volume in recipes {Thank God for the iPhone and the Converter App!}, I have a tendency to burn whatever I’m cooking and the end result is not always perfect. But… I do enjoy cooking, I like giving it a go and seeing what my end result is. Sometimes I can actually pull it off and I’m quite stoked with the end result of a few hours dedicated in the kitchen.
Plus, although I might not be the greatest cook, sometimes it is just really nice to spend some time in your kitchen! I was actually talking to a friend of mine about this the other day. She is an amazing cook and has recently had her kitchen remodeled. Honestly, it looks incredible, and her new sink is absolutely stunning. My friend is so talented when it comes to home improvement projects, but there are some tasks that she always leaves to the experts, and apparently installing her new sink was one of those tasks!
To be honest, I cannot blame her, my knowledge of plumbing is extremely limited. I would not know where to begin where installing a new sink is concerned. Fortunately, my friend was able to find an experienced plumber in Beaverton who was able to take care of fitting her new sink quickly and professionally. My friend has actually inspired me to think about calling out a plumber to take a look at installing a similar sink in my own kitchen. Watch this space!
Anyway, talk about kitchens and plumbing to one side, in the past, I also used to love integrating cooking {and more importantly, food!} into my Indonesian Language Program when I was teaching primary students. I do truly believe that food is an integral part of gaining understanding of a culture, it’s also an integral part of gaining sudden interest and excitement from your students. Ha! Of course, kids love to eat, so why not include some cooking into your Language Program?
I used to always look for opportunities to integrate Indonesian cooking into my Indonesian Language Program and there were many different ways to do this. Firstly; through aligning to the curriculum, so if I was focussing on a topic about ‘Eating out’ for example, then cooking a dish would only naturally be relevant to your student’s learning objectives and outcomes. It’s almost a given really, isn’t it? Other ways I used to integrate cooking into my program was through Indonesian Cultural Day or Indonesian Independence Day celebrations; including cooking classes with students and parents and an Indonesian lunch for staff {which was usually nasi kuning!}, Multi-age days are also a good opportunity to include some cooking into your program, and you have the bonus of some older students in the group to help out with the younger students! If my school was having a fete, I’d ensure there was an Indonesian food stall {with school-cooked snacks/dishes from my students} to sell, an Indonesian Pasar Malam {Night Market} – full of many different tastes from Indonesia {this is a great fundraiser activity!} and lastly, even as a special treat at the end of the term {a tiny bit of bribery doesn’t hurt with some difficult classes you may have on a Friday afternoon! Does it?!}.
Anyway, let’s get on to the recipe I promised…one that I have taught to many of my students and one that I have cooked for loved ones at home too.
A little about perkedel jagung:
Perkedel jagung – corn fritters – a popular favourite amongst locals and tourists in Indonesia. It can be found from morning until evening and is enjoyed as a breakfast snack, a late afternoon snack or even on the side or an appetiser at lunch or dinner. Basically perkedel jagung can be enjoyed any time! There are many different types of perkedel jagung throughout the different regions of Indonesia, and also different names such as; bakwan jagung {West Java} and dadar jagung {East Java}, which differ slightly in recipe and texture, just to name a couple.
PERKEDEL JAGUNG
Ingredients:
- 3 cobs of corn {or 1 tin of corn kernels}
- 1 cup of minced meat {I like to use 1/2 cup minced chicken and 1/2 cup chopped prawns}
- 1 medium onion, chopped finely
- 1 stick of celery, chopped finely
- 1 tsp of chilli sauce {I usually add an extra spoonful, as I like a bit of extra zing!}
- 2 cloves of garlic, crushed
- 1 small knob of ginger
- 2 tbsp of coriander, chopped finely {I use way more than this but I love coriander!}
- 1 tsp ground candlenut – kemiri {optional}
- 2 eggs
- 4 tbsp of corn flour
- salt to taste
- oil for frying
Method:
Remove the corn from the cob {or open tin} and empty corn kernels into a large mixing bowl, and combine with all other ingredients and mix. {If the mixture is too runny, add more corn flour to thicken the mixture.}
Using a tablespoon, scoop mixture up and then drop mixture into hot oil for frying. Fry until both sides of the fritter are browned.
Drain fritters on paper towel and serve hot.
And that’s it. Yep. It’s that simple! You can’t really go wrong…that’s probably why I love making perkedel jagung! I hope you’ll include some yummy Indonesian cooking into your language program…and if you are not quite brave enough to try this out with your class at school just yet, then at least give-it-a-go at home, your own kids will love them {and so will you!}! It pairs well with fried chicken too so you can have the best of both worlds! If you want to fry chicken with it, it might be best to use the Best Deep Fryer, if you have one, and fry these corn fritters whilst the chicken is resting. That was you can still have them fresh and hot.
*I still have the school’s newsletter page where I featured an article on cooking perkedel jagung with my students, I included the recipe {as many students had asked me for the recipe so they could cook them at home with their family} and I also included some comments from the students {in the form of a small written evaluation after the lesson}. Looking back now, it makes me smile reading the student’s comments, as those kids obviously really enjoyed the cooking lesson {and so did I!}.
And for some inspiration, I’ll leave you with this quote from one of my ex-students that is now on an educational scholarship, studying at Universitas Gadjah Mada in Yogyakarta, Central Java, Indonesia. {Hi Pete! You rock! And I bet you are eating THE BEST perkedel jagung right off the streets of Yogya, right now! I wonder if you remember making these in Indonesian class all those years ago?…} .
The first thing that we have ever cooked this year was corn fritters. Corn fritters are so delicious. Once you have a bite you’re going to feel like you are going to have 1 million bites. “
– Peter Eleftherakis
Have you made perkedel jagung in your Indonesian Language class? What’s your favourite food to cook in class with your students?
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