A Traveler’S Guide to Balinese Street Food

By David Barratt and I. Wayan Budiasa

This book has been written to give the tourist the knowledge of the difference between the food eaten by the average Balinese and food prepared for festivals.

The food easily available on the trollies ( kaki limas) and small restaurants (waungs)is a great way to eat at an inexpensive price but also meet the Balinese and if you enjoy it you can make it at home knowledge.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris AU
• Release date: Oct 1, 2015
• ISBN: 9781503509740

David Barratt

David Barratt My grandparents, who travelled extensively in Asia buying food, manchester and decorative goods for their shop and home often reminisced about the intriguingly different cultures; introducing us to non European delicacies including savoury rice and spicy curries, mangos, avocados and pawpaws all almost unknown delicacies in post -war Tasmania. Budi My name is I. Wayan Budiasa. I am a Bali-Hindu cultural guide and have for many years been escorting international tourists from universities and other special interest groups to teach them about my religion and the culture; this includes travel to different Temples and cultural events including dancing and gamelan-music performances, cremations and family celebrations. No visit to our island’s culture would be complete or satisfying without the actual taste experience and understanding of the importance of food and its preparation in our lives, so introducing my clients to our dishes is both delicious and significant.

Book preview

The Island of the Gods

Bali is a small island of 89 miles (143 km) east to west, and 50 miles (80.5 km) north to south, lying between 8 and 9 degrees north and south of the equator.

Most of Indonesia is on the joint between two tectonic plates, and the resultant volcanoes dominate and are the reason for Bali’s scenery and fertile soil.

Bali has two seasons, wet with the monsoon and a cooler dry season. Because of the abundance of water and sunshine, and in spite of occupation by the Dutch and Japanese between 1906 and 1947 after which Indonesian independence was recognised, Bali has maintained its culture and cuisine.

The Balinese Hindu religion is a hybrid, containing elements of Buddhism and the animism of the Bali Aga, the original natives of Bali; these elements combined with the Hindu religion and traditions imported with the coming of the Maja Pahit from Java to Bali in the seventeenth century. For when Islam became dominant in Java, the Hindu kingdoms’ ruling classes immigrated to Bali, taking their people, culture, and crafts with them, thus ensuring the most vibrant and colourful display of worship in the South Pacific.

On such a well-managed and fertile island, food for their gods, as well as the people, ensures a fantastic array, a feast for the eyes as well as the taste buds.

Bali has a plethora of different vegetables and fruit sold each day fresh in the markets, leading to a large range of meals made with fresh food.

Rice is the staple meal of the Balinese, and they do not consider they have had a meal if there is no rice. The Balinese eat very small amounts of meat, as this is expensive; poultry is the most available, and pork is used at festivals. Fish is not favoured by the Balinese Hindus as the volcano Gunung Agung and Pura Besakih, the mother temple where all other temples get their power from, are considered to be the home of the gods; the sea, to be the home of the evil spirits. Barbecued fish is, however available from street-side sellers in coastal villages and in the market in Denpasar. There is now a considerable population of Muslims resident on Bali, and they have grown this niche into a thriving tourist