Purwokerto offers unique snail curry at Ramadhan fasting month

Agus Maryono, The Jakarta Post, Purwokerto

Thirty-eight-year-old Kustini has been very busy wrapping kraca for her customers. They start lining up at her stall from 3 p.m. and Kustini employs the help of her daughter to help with the demand.

Kustini, a resident of Bantarsoka subdistrict in Purwokerto, Central Java, is only one of numerous kraca vendors during Ramadhan.

Kraca is a type of snail most often found in rice fields, and about as big as an adult's thumb. It is curried in its shell and served as a snack.

Farmers usually feed their ducks kraca but during Ramadhan it becomes very valuable. Many people, including students and office workers, buy this specialty food of Purwokerto.

For only one month, many housewives are kept busy with their new business, while food stalls also offer kraca to meet the high demand. Kraca vendors can be easily found on roadsides in Purwokerto. However, these vendors disappear as Ramadhan ends.

Kustini tastes a month full of blessings during Ramadhan by selling kraca. She can earn at least Rp 200,000 (US$19) per day from her business.

"Cooking kraca is similar to preparing a curry dish and the ingredients are no different from those for lamb curry," she told The Jakarta Post, which interviewed her at her kraca stall on Jl. Setasiun Purwokerto.

She buys raw kraca from villagers, who deliver them to her house every day.

"I buy raw kraca at Rp 3,000 per kilogram. Each kilogram of cooked kraca is divided into seven portions, which I put into plastic bags. I sell each bag for Rp 1,000," said Kustini, adding that she can sell an average of 40 kilos every day during Ramadhan.

There is a special method to cook kraca, otherwise it will have a fishy smell. Fresh kraca should be cleansed and boiled for three hours.

"It is boiled for a long time to remove all the filth. I still have to clean and cook it again in boiled water. After that I pour out all the ingredients," Kustini said. There are 15 different ingredients in the recipe, including ginger, turmeric, sugar, salt, pepper, oil, coconut milk and chili.

Kraca curry, which sells better than lamb curry during Ramadhan, is savored just as deliciously as lamb curry.

To eat kraca is a unique experience. Those who have never tried it could initially get confused as the flesh is closely laid in the shell.

"There is a cover in the front part of the snail. The cover is opened and we sip at it so that the flesh is sucked into the mouth," said Kustini. If it is difficult to dislodge the flesh, a toothpick can be used to get to it.

Ernawati Indah, a 22-year-old student at the University of Soedirman Purwokerto, said she was an avid kraca eater. "It is delicious. It tastes both sweet and hot. They are really suitable for breaking the fast," she said.

Kustini said many of her consumers come from out of town. "Many buyers come from Cilacap, Banjarnegara and even Cirebon, West Java," said Kustini, whose stall opens from 2 p.m. until dusk.

"I tasted kraca when I was in Purwokerto. At first I didn't like them, but after giving them a try I found them delicious and now I can't stop eating them," said Liliek, 26, from Klaten.