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Alternative names | Atjar (Dutch) |
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Type | Condiment and salad |
Course | Side dish |
Region or state | Indonesia, [1] [2] [3] [4] Brunei, Malaysia, the Netherlands, Singapore, South Africa and Thailand |
Main ingredients | Vegetables (cucumber, carrots, cabbage), shallot, bird's eye chili and yardlong beans, vinegar, dried chillies, pineapples |
Acar is a type of vegetable pickle of Maritime Southeast Asia, most prevalent in Indonesia, [5] Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei. It is a localised version of Indian achar . [6] It is known as atjar in Dutch cuisine, derived from Indonesian acar. [7] Acar is usually prepared in bulk as it may easily be stored in a well-sealed glass jar in refrigerator for a week, and served as a condiment for any meals. [3]
Pickling originated in India around 2400 BCE, [8] and with expansion of Indian cultural influence on Greater India, [9] through transmission of Hinduism [10] leading to Indianisation, and the formation of native Southeast Asian kingdoms [11] which adopted many Indian cultural elements, including food processing techniques.
Through examining the etymology, the similar sounding name strongly suggests that indeed acar was derived from the Indian achar pickle. Indian achar was transmitted in antiquity to the maritime realm of Southeast Asia, which today is recognized as acar in Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei, and then on to the Philippines as atchara . The adoption of this vegetable pickling technique possibly took place during the Srivijaya period between 7th to 13th century.
British navigator Thomas Forrest wrote that acar made of salted limes and palm vinegar were often of use to Coromandel Muslim sailors (Chulias) to prevent scurvy and were sold as far as Aceh. [12]
The Southeast Asian variations are usually made from different vegetables such as cucumber, carrots, cabbage, shallot, bird's eye chili and yardlong beans, which are pickled in vinegar, sometimes with kaffir lime to add citrus aroma, and also dried chillies. Some recipes might have the vegetables tossed in ground peanuts. Acar is commonly served as a condiment to be eaten with a main course, such as martabak , nasi goreng (fried rice), satay, and almost all varieties of soto . [5] Just like common pickles, the sour taste of acar is meant to freshen up a meal, especially fishy dishes such as ikan bakar (grilled fish) or rich and oily dishes such as mutton satay to neutralize the fat.
In Indonesia, acar is commonly made from small chunks of cucumber, carrot, shallot, bird's eye chili and occasionally pineapple, and marinated in a sweet and sour solution of sugar and vinegar. Some households add lemongrass or ginger to spice it up. [13] It is usually used as condiment to accompany grilled foods such as satay. Nevertheless, acar can also be consumed as a whole, complete dish. For example, ikan acar kuning is a fish dish (gourami, mackerel or tilapia) served in acar pickles of cucumber, carrot, shallot and red chili, mixed with yellow spice paste made of ground turmeric, candlenut, ginger, garlic and shallot. [14] It is known as atjar (pickle) in Dutch cuisine, derived from Indonesian acar, since the Netherlands and Indonesia share colonial ties.
Variations of Malaysian and Singaporean acar include acar awak or Nyonya acar and Malay acar. Acar awak is more elaborate, containing additional vegetables such as eggplants as well as aromatic spices in the pickling mix.
The salad has also been adopted into Thai cuisine, where it is called achat (Thai : อาจาด, pronounced [ʔāː.t͡ɕàːt] ). It is made with cucumber, red chilies, red onions or shallots, vinegar, sugar and salt. It is served as a side dish with the Thai version of satay (Thai : สะเต๊ะ).
With Indian and Malay slaves initially brought by the British Empire, atchar became a favourite condiment in South Africa. The local variation is usually made with green mangoes.
Satay, or sate in Indonesia, is a Javanese dish of seasoned, skewered and grilled meat, served with a sauce. Satay originated in Java, but has spread throughout Indonesia, into Southeast Asia, Europe, America, and beyond.
Malay cuisine is the traditional food of the ethnic Malays of Southeast Asia, residing in modern-day Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, Brunei, Southern Thailand and the Philippines as well as Cocos Islands, Christmas Island, Sri Lanka and South Africa.
Fried rice is a dish of cooked rice that has been stir-fried in a wok or a frying pan and is usually mixed with other ingredients such as eggs, vegetables, seafood, or meat. It is often eaten by itself or as an accompaniment to another dish. Fried rice is a popular component of East Asian, Southeast Asian and certain South Asian cuisines, as well as a staple national dish of Indonesia. As a homemade dish, fried rice is typically made with ingredients left over from other dishes, leading to countless variations. Fried rice first developed during the Sui dynasty in China.
Pickling is the process of preserving or extending the shelf life of food by either anaerobic fermentation in brine or immersion in vinegar. The pickling procedure typically affects the food's texture and flavor. The resulting food is called a pickle, or, if named, the name is prefaced with the word "pickled". Foods that are pickled include vegetables, fruits, mushrooms, meats, fish, dairy and eggs.
Chinese Indonesian cuisine is characterized by the mixture of Chinese with local Indonesian style. Chinese Indonesians, mostly descendant of Han ethnic Hokkien and Hakka speakers, brought their legacy of Chinese cuisine, and modified some of the dishes with the addition of Indonesian ingredients, such as kecap manis, palm sugar, peanut sauce, chili, santan and local spices to form a hybrid Chinese-Indonesian cuisine. Some of the dishes and cakes share the same style as in Malaysia and Singapore, known as Nyonya cuisine by the Peranakan.
Peranakan cuisine or Nyonya cuisine comes from the Peranakans, descendants of early Chinese migrants who settled in Penang, Malacca, Singapore and Indonesia, inter-marrying with local Malays. In Baba Malay, a female Peranakan is known as a nonya, and a male Peranakan is known as a baba. The cuisine combines Chinese, Malay, Javanese, South Indian, and other influences.
South Asian pickle is a pickled food made from a variety of vegetables, meats and fruits preserved in brine, vinegar, edible oils, and various South Asian spices. The pickles are popular across South Asia, with many regional variants, natively known as lonache, avalehikā, uppinakaayi, khatai, pachadi or noncha, achaar, athāṇu or athāṇo or athāna, khaṭāī or khaṭāin, sandhan or sendhan or sāṇdhāṇo, kasundi, or urugaai.
Peanut sauce, satay sauce, bumbu kacang, sambal kacang, or pecel is an Indonesian sauce made from ground roasted or fried peanuts, widely used in Indonesian cuisine and many other dishes throughout the world.
Atchara is a pickle made from grated unripe papaya originating from the Philippines. This dish is often served as a side dish for fried or grilled foods such as pork barbecue.
Asinan is a pickled vegetable or fruit dish, commonly found in Indonesia. Asin, Indonesian for "salty", is the process of preserving the ingredients by soaking them in a solution of salty water. Asinan is quite similar to rujak, which is usually served fresh, while asinan is preserved vegetables or fruits. Of the many types and variations of asinan in Indonesia, the most popular are asinan Betawi and asinan Bogor. Asinan can be found in restaurants, warung, and travelling street vendor.
Bumbu is the Indonesian word for a blend of spices and for pastes and it commonly appears in the names of spice mixtures, sauces and seasoning pastes. The official Indonesian language dictionary describes bumbu as "various types of herbs and plants that have a pleasant aroma and flavour — such as ginger, turmeric, galangal, nutmeg and pepper — used to enhance the flavour of the food."
Ikan goreng is a hot dish consisting of deep fried fish or other forms of seafood. Ikan goreng literally means "fried fish" in Indonesian and Malay languages.
Sambal is an Indonesian chili sauce or paste, typically made from a mixture of a variety of chilli peppers with secondary ingredients such as shrimp paste, garlic, ginger, shallot, scallion, palm sugar, and lime juice. Sambal is an Indonesian loanword of Javanese origin. It originated from the culinary traditions of Indonesia and is also an integral part of the cuisines of Singapore, Malaysia, Brunei, and Sri Lanka. It has also spread through overseas Indonesian populations to the Netherlands and Suriname.
Acehnese cuisine is the cuisine of the Acehnese people of Aceh in Sumatra, Indonesia. This cuisine is popular and widely known in Indonesia. Arab, Persian, and Indian traders influenced food culture in Aceh although flavours have substantially changed their original forms. The spices combined in Acehnese cuisine are commonly found in Indian and Arab cuisine, such as ginger, pepper, coriander, cumin, cloves, cinnamon, cardamom, and fennel.
Indo cuisine is a fusion cooking and cuisine tradition, mainly existing in Indonesia and the Netherlands, as well as Belgium, South Africa and Suriname. This cuisine characterized of fusion cuisine that consists of original Indonesian cuisine with Eurasian-influences—mainly Dutch, also Portuguese, Spanish, French and British—and vice versa. Nowaday, not only Indo people consume Indo cuisine, but also Indonesians and Dutch people.
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