Rawon ( Javanese: ) is an Indonesian beef soup. Originating from

East Java East Java ( id, Jawa Timur) is a Provinces of Indonesia, province of Indonesia located in the easternmost hemisphere of Java island. It has a land border only with the province of Central Java to the west; the Java Sea and the Indian Ocean bord ...

, rawon utilizes the black keluak nut as the main seasoning, which gives a dark color and nutty flavor to the soup.

Ingredients

The soup is composed of a ground mixture of garlic, shallots, keluak, ginger,

candlenut ''Aleurites moluccanus'', the candlenut, is a flowering tree in the spurge family, Euphorbiaceae, also known as candleberry, Indian walnut, ''kemiri'', varnish tree, ''nuez de la India'', ''buah keras'', ''godou'', kukui nut tree, and ''rata k ...

turmeric Turmeric () is a flowering plant, ''Curcuma longa'' (), of the ginger family, Zingiberaceae, the rhizomes of which are used in cooking. The plant is a perennial, rhizomatous, herbaceous plant native to the Indian subcontinent and Southeast ...

, red chili, and salt, and is sautéed with oil. The sautéed mixture is then poured into boiled beef stock with diced beef slices. Lemongrass, galangal, bay leaves,

kaffir lime ''Citrus hystrix'', called the kaffir lime or makrut lime, (, ) is a citrus fruit native to tropical Southeast Asia. Its fruit and leaves are used in Southeast Asian cuisine, and its essential oil is used in perfumery. Its rind and crushed leav ...

leaves, and sugar are then added as seasonings. The special dark or black color of rawon comes from the keluak as the main spice. The soup is usually garnished with green onion and fried shallot, and served with rice. Other toppings include bean sprouts, salted preserved egg, ''

krupuk ''Krupuk'' ( Javanese), ''kerupuk'' ( Indonesian), ''keropok'' ( Malay), ''kroepoek'' ( Dutch) or ''kropek'' (Tagalog) is a cracker made from starch or animal skin and other ingredients that serve as flavouring. Most krupuk are deep fried, ...

'', and fried tolo beans (

black-eyed pea The black-eyed pea or black-eyed bean is a legume grown around the world for its medium-sized, edible bean. It is a subspecies of the cowpea, an Old World plant domesticated in Africa, and is sometimes simply called a cowpea. The common commer ...

History

Rawon is one of the oldest historically identified dishes of ancient Java. It was mentioned as ''rarawwan'' in an ancient Javanese Taji inscription (901 CE) from the era of the

Mataram Kingdom The Mataram Kingdom (, jv, ꦩꦠꦫꦩ꧀, ) was a Javanese Hindu–Buddhist kingdom that flourished between the 8th and 11th centuries. It was based in Central Java, and later in East Java. Established by King Sanjaya, the kingdom was rule ...

Variants

There are several variants of rawon, with the most popular being rawon from Surabaya. A version called ''rawon setan'' ("devil's rawon") is sold as a late-night meal at Indonesian food stalls open from midnight to dawn, supposedly the hours during which devils roam. In

Balinese cuisine Balinese cuisine is a cuisine tradition of Balinese people from the volcanic island of Bali. Using a variety of spices, blended with the fresh vegetables, meat and fish. Part of Indonesian cuisine, it demonstrates indigenous traditions, as well ...

, rawon does not use any keluak—thus, the color is brown instead of black. Additionally, as the Balinese are mostly

Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...

, they tend to favor pork over beef.

References

{{Indonesian cuisine Indonesian soups Javanese cuisine

Ingredients

History

Variants

See also

References