'Tiwul' back in fashion in Ponorogo
Kartika Bagus, The Jakarta Post, Ponorogo, East Java
Go to East Java and you will find plenty of pecel (spicy vegetable salad) and satay, two specialties of the region. But if you go to Ponorogo, some 200 kilometers southwest of Surabaya, don't be surprised if you are served a plate of tiwul.
Tiwul, a dish traditionally associated with poverty, is made of cassava flour. The flour is soaked, finely ground by hand and then steamed.
The dish is particularly delicious if eaten along with some side dishes. Of course, if you say you eat tiwul people may facetiously call you poor, because in the past only people who could not afford to buy rice ate tiwul.
When Indonesia was in dire condition during the Dutch colonial period and the Japanese occupation, tiwul was a staple food for people in impoverished areas like Ponorogo. In those days, rice was too expensive so the locals turned to cassava.
Times have changed and so have people's lifestyle. Today, tiwul has again become popular among the people of Ponorogo, even though now most of them can afford rice. A number of food stalls in the city offer tiwul plus side dishes.
Some people in Ponorogo eat tiwul out of nostalgia, while others believe it is good for gastronomic problems because it is chemical free.
One of the traditional food stalls in Ponorogo offering tiwul is owned by Marjuni, 32. The stall is mostly made of bamboo and is called Warung BMW. BMW stands for the Javanese phrase Bar Mangan Wareg (come and make a glutton of yourself).
Apart from tiwul, Warung BMW also offers corn-based food and 25 kinds of side dishes. On the menu is such traditional fare as prawns and kukus (food wrapped in banana leaves).
Marjuni said most of those ordering tiwul were middle-aged, adding that she usually went through 15 kilograms of cassava flour a day.
"People come here because very often they cannot prepare tiwul at home. They come here once a week or so and many of them are old friends who come here as a sort of reunion," she told The Jakarta Post.
Marjuni has opened BMW branches in other locations, and tiwul has become a popular take-away food.