The freshest seafood satay at Bali's Kedonganan beach
Think Bali, and its famed sandy beaches and hallowed temples spring to mind. But the island's little-known cuisine includes a mean satay cooked fresh on Kedonganan beach. The Ritz-Carlton invited The Jakarta Post reporter Christiani S. Tumelap to take a bite of the tasty kebabs and photograph the local scene recently.
JIMBARAN, Bali (JP): Like satay? Lots of us do. But have you tried the Balinese variety?
Many of us will probably shrug our shoulders and answer "nope". But Bali serves up satay unique to the island.
The difference is in the seasoning spice paste, locally called base, which is prepared separately for chicken, beef, minced seafood, lamb, pork, turtle and even vegetables.
It is made from a heady concoction of red chilies, garlic, shallots, gingers, turmeric, tomatoes, coriander seeds, tamarind pulp, candelnuts, bay leaves (salam) and lemon grass.
Of all the Balinese satays, the minced seafood (sate lilit) is revered as the most delicious. It is a mixture of spiced prawn and snapper molded on stalks of fresh lemon grass and grilled over charcoal or, for an even better taste, coconut husks.
The secret to making a luscious satay is the use of fresh ingredients. Thawed frozen seafood exudes too much moisture which impairs the flavor.
Bali is a great place to haggle over fresh prawns, snapper and other firm white fish in the fish market at Kedonganan beach, located adjacent to Jimbaran in the north.
The view of the sunset from the harbor beach, which faces Jimbaran bay, is amazing. Ngurah Rai International Airport's runway is visible far off to the right and land's end to the left.
Hundreds of fishing boats painted in bright colors of azure, pink, turquoise, mauve and vermilion anchor along the sandy beach.
At dawn, boats start approaching the beach and unloading their catch. The crews quickly gauge their catches and hand them over to middlemen, who carry them in large bamboo baskets to the beach to sell them to either the fishermen's cooperative or directly to the fish vendors on the beach.
Dozens of women hawking fresh fish, prawns or squid in large buckets line the beach.
Most of the hawkers look typically Javanese and have distinctive accents evoking their native East Java hometowns in Banyuwangi and Madura.
Zainal Arifin from Banyuwangi has been a fisherman for the past 17 years at Kedonganan beach.
He used to go deep sea fishing on his own boat with his Javanese associates. But he got sick a year ago and he is now unable to go out to sea.
A couple of his Javanese friends now operate the boat.
"I had the boat made in Surabaya about four years ago. I had to save a lot of money before I could buy it for about Rp 2 million.
"I get 60 percent of the profits they obtain from selling the fish," he said.
He listed the different types of vessels as the non konol, a quite small vessel with one engine for up to three fishermen who use fishing rods; the pakisan, a single-engine craft used to catch squid; the ijo-ijo, a double-engine medium boat to catch all types of fish used mostly during the day as they lack proper lighting equipment; and the four-engine-powered selerek vessel for fishing day and night.
But the most common vessel at Kedonganan and the other beaches around Jimbaran is the jukung, a general term referring to any kind of small boat equipped with an outrigger.
The outrigger, made of a single piece of bamboo, is always attached to the right side of the boat as fishermen usually handle the net on the port side, according to Zainal.
Zainal is now focusing more on being a middleman for selling the fish.
Profitable
Samijan, who hails from a village near the Bromo mountain in East Java, has lived and worked in Kedonganan beach with his family for five years.
"The fishing business is more profitable than the farming I used to do in my home village," Samijan said. He now sells fish in the neighborhood.
Samijan sells Indonesian sardines for between Rp 800 (less than 30 US cents) and Rp 1,200 per kilogram. He claims they are between Rp 100 and Rp 250 cheaper than those sold by vendors in the market or on the beach.
He also sells eastern little tuna, locally called kenya or tongkol, at between Rp 1,000 and Rp 3,000 per kilogram, and small squid for Rp 2,500 to Rp 5,000.
The best time to buy the fish at Kedonganan is early in the morning, when the fleeting sweet fresh smell still wafts through the air.
It is not advisable to buy straight from the fishermen unless planning to order more than 10 kgs. It is also not a good idea to buy it from the vendors on the beach because there is limited choice.
Best choice all around is the market. For those not lucky enough to visit Kedongangan, fresh ingredients for making the Balinese satay can be bought at local markets and stores all across the country.
Kedongangan's fish trade is threatened. Zainal, Samijan and their friends may have no choice but to move their businesses. Local authorities are reportedly planning to relocate the fishing trade to Pengambengan, a beach about 75 kilometers north near the Negara area.
The beach activities are deemed too close to the airport runway, and the fishy odor could be offensive to arriving foreign tourists.