Some like it hot

ith more than 300 ethnic groups, Indonesia is blessed with an abundance of regional cuisines that makes defining the country’s cuisine an insurmountable task. From the Arab-influenced cuisine of Aceh in Sumatra’s northernmost province, a vast repertoire of spices in Javanese and Balinese cooking, to the seafood laden fare of Minahasa in North Sulawesi, it’s no surprise that Indonesia owns more than 5,000 traditional food recipes. Sambal, however, is the common component of every meal in Indonesia. A recent study conducted by Gajah Mada University in Yogyakarta found that there are 322 varieties of sambal: each sambal enhances the flavour of the main ingredients. For example, a typical Manadonese meal consists of a freshly grilled seabass served with a diced tomato, raw shallots and fiery bird’s eye chilli known. This specialty sambal is from North Sulawesi and demonstrates the function of sambal as a relish, a sauce and a salsa.