Urban Urab: Balinese style coconut and vegetables

Urab Sayur is a green vegetable and coconut salad that we often enjoy in Bali.

Whilst we can’t get the ingredients for our favourite fern tip “Urab” in Sydney, my so-called Urban Urab comes close to replicating the fresh and delicious flavours using local ingredients.

Bubu’s famous Fern Urab in Ubud

It goes well alongside Zuchinni in Coconut Milk Curry Sauce and Balinese Pork or any grilled or roast seafood or meat.

Ingredients:

  • 250g green beans, finely sliced
  • 2 cups of baby spinach sliced finely into shreds
  • 1/2 cup dessicated coconut
  • 2 small red chillis
  • 4 eschallots or a small red onion
  • 2-3 cloves of garlic
  • 1/4 teaspoon shrimp paste (optional)
  • 1 tablespoon fish sauce
  • juice of one lime
  • 1/4 cup Asian fried shallots
  • 2 tablespoons oil

Method:

  1. Pound garlic and chillies together in a mortar and pestle to create a paste
  2. Finely slice eschallots or red onion and the green beans….as finely as you can. Keep them in seperate bowls.
  3. Heat oil, add onion and cook slowly until caramelised and brown, then add garlic chilli paste and shrimp paste (if using) and cook for 1-2 minutes. (The shrimp paste will be smelly but adds depth and authenticity)
  4. Add green beans, fish sauce and water and cook until beans are tender but still have some crunch …about 2-3 minutes (I don’t use extra salt as the shrimp paste and fish sauce are salty but you can add salt to your taste)
  5. Remove from heat, add shredded spinach, dessicated coconut, drizzle with lime juice and scatter over the Asian fried shallots

Zuchinni in Coconut Milk Curry Sauce

Inspired by the delicious, light “Kari Sayur” or vegetable curry side dishes which accompany most Balinese meals, this is a simple, quick side dish alongside Balinese Pork or just eat the whole bowl as a main course!

This version is very simple but comes close to the real deal using basic ingredients which are easy to get outside of Bali.

Ingredients:

1-2 eschallots (small red onion) finely diced

2-3 cloves of garlic

2 small red chillies

2 tablespoons of vegetable oil

1/4 cup coconut milk

1 tablespoon of fish sauce

1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder

1/4 cup water

2-3 zuchinnis cut into medium size chunks

Salt to taste

Method:

  1. Pound together garlic and chillies to create a paste or if easier just use a garlic press and finely chop the chillies.
  2. Finely dice the eschallots or red onion
  3. Heat oil over medium heat, add onion and cook slowly until soft and transparent about 5 minutes
  4. Add garlic and chillies, turmeric powder and cook for about 1 minute, then add coconut milk, zuchinni, salt, fish sauce and water…bring to boil and simmer slowly until zuchinni is tender. You might need to add more coconut milk and/or water as you want the end result to be soupy and not dry.
  5. Serve as a delicious side dish to anything, but great with Balinese Pork and jasmine rice.

Sunday Buffet @yellowflowercafe #ubud #penestanan

If you want a truly authentic Balinese buffet experience then this is it! Stunning setting, warm and friendly service, off the beaten track. Take your phone torch and trek up through the back lanes of Penastanan village on the outskirts of Ubud for a truly memorable feast,

View of Mt Agung from Yellow Flower Cafe
Red bean soup appetiser
Not just veg, Sunday buffet at Yellow Flower Café Ubud
Fern salad, tempeh, tofus, chicken lawar, sambal, pandan rice….list goes on!
Stunning setting for Sunday buffet at Yellow Flower Cafe Penestanan, Ubud.

Rendang and Rawon rock at Waroeng Bernadette #penastanan #ubud

We were so excited to hear that a new Waroeng Bernadette had opened earlier this year in Penstanan, just on the outskirts of Ubud central.

Having visited their original establishments, in Mas and then in Ubud central in the past, we knew already from friends who live in Penastanan that the new restaurant is living up to high expectations from diners.

Serving authentic Javanese specialities, Warung Bernadette will definitely be giving one of our other old favourites Warung Mendez a run for its money! (But Mendez does have a wider range of dishes in their menu)?

We started with crispy Indonesian sweetcorn fritters, followed by beef rendang and beef rawon.

Crispy Indonesian corn fritters

The slow cooked beef rendang is melt in the mouth and served with pickled vegetables, tofu, tempe, greens in a delicious coconut sauce. Crackers and rice.

Beef rendang

The beef Rawon soup was redolent of the unique flavour of the keluak nuts which give it the trademark almost black colour. One of the best Rawon soups I’ve tasted, served with preserved egg and crackers.

Beef Rawon soup

Beautifully designed interiors, great service and just down the road from our villa in Penastanan.

Waroeng Bernadette in Penastanan, Ubud

Tick Tock Diner ticks the box #ticktock #diner #newyork

Of course we had to eat at an American diner while we were in New York City recently!

Tick Tock Diner in Midtown Manhattan claims to be the largest diner in New York and it certainly is very big! However the design with shared tables and traditional booths and the fact that it is full of locals (Madison Swuare Gardens and Penn Station across the road) and tourists alike at anytime of the day makes it feel much more intimate than you would expect.

The original Tick Tock opened in New Jersey in 1948 so the formula has now been extended to a number of diners in locations throughout New York and beyond..,

Serving traditional and run-of-the-mill American comfort food including Italian, Tex-Mex and Greek favourites, the huge all day menu caters to all tastes.

Service is a mixture of curt and courteous, with old school waiters in traditional diner uniforms.

Coffee is American style – percolated and poured into tin mugs with milk in plastic (!!) but all you can have.

Whilst our breakfast there wouldn’t rate as the best we had in New York it was in fact not too big and overwhelming and exceeded our expectations. On reflection it is probably better than some of the real tourist traps closer to Broadway/Times Square but not as good as some of the traditional smaller local favourites like Chelsea Square Diner on W23rd and 9th Ave.

We certainly got our diner experience just down the road from the apartment we were staying in and it set us up well for a visit to MOMA and some pre-Thanksgiving shopping in Manhattan!

Ticks every box in terms of a budget American diner brunch and experience if that’s what you might like to try!

Fusion flavours @ Ez Paella #New York #spanish #Venezuelan

Stopped by for a quick but delicious dinner in Hell’s Kitchen on our way uptown for a night of Jazz at Dizzy’s and the Lincoln Centre.

We were on a tight deadline so wanted something fast and filling. Reviews of Ez Paella assured us that it would fit the bill and it sure did.

The original restaurant which struggled to get going due to Covid disruptions has now found it’s feet and the owners are expanding the chain to other US cities and even Venezuela where they hail from.

It’s a vibrantly decorated restaurant adding to the buzzy buzzy atmosphere .

The menu features their famous fast Paella as well lots of interesting Venezuelan specialities.

Anchovy, tomato tostadas

We tried some of their tapas dishes such as anchovy tomato tostadas, and a version of Venezuelan Tequenos cheese puffs as well of course seafood Paella.

The Paella is made with Venezuelan spices and arrived as promptly as promised! Obviously this is because it is pre-made in a big batch, but it was fresh and tasty.

Ez Paella means easy paella

We were sorry to miss out on the great looking churros for dessert due to time constraints!

This was a great pre-show stop for dinner and great value for money! Ole!