Bola Bola Recipe

Some like 'em big, while others prefer 'em pop-in-the-mouth-small. Beef, pork, veal or poultry , anything slaughtered and minced could be turn into this bite size delectable treats. Deep fried or baked, spicy or not, dry or with sauce, making Meatballs or ''Bola Bola'' as Filipinos fondly call it,  is as versatile as it could get.

The are probably thousands of Meatball recipes out there, but this I keep. I got it from my husband's aunt. You know those terse and tight lip Tantes, who spend most of their lives in the kitchen, making sure that the rest of the family is well fed and deliciously so? She is that kind of Tante. A Tante who plays deaf to this silly little nonsense called   '' diet'' and doesn't tolerate '' too-much-carbs'' or '' too  much butter'' gibbering at her dining table either. No wonder everybody and I mean everybody in the family is keen to be in her kitchen..on diet or not!

Ingredients:

Extra-virgin olive oil

1 large onion, finely diced

4 cloves of garlic, minced

400 g minced beef
200 g minced pork

2 large eggs

1 cup Parmesan cheese

a handful of parsley, chopped

1 bun or 2 slices of loaf bread, soaked in 1/4 cup of milk

1 tsp. of Worcestershire sauce

salt and pepper

Tabasco sauce, optional

 1. Soak bun or loaf bread slices in milk until it absorbs the liquid.

2. Heat olive oil in a pan, sauté onion until soft and translucent. Add in minced garlic. Take out from the heat and let it cool. 

 3. In a mixing bowl, put together minced meat, cheese, parsley, eggs and milk- soaked bread. Mix  everything until well combine.

 4. Add in sautéed onion, garlic and Worcestershire sauce and tabasco sauce , if using.  Season generously with salt and pepper. Form into balls. I like them not too small and not too big. About the size of a golf ball.

6. Heat olive oil in a pan, brown meat balls .

7. Transfer in a baking pan, lined with baking paper. Bake in a preheated oven ( 180° C) for about 15 minutes.

Serve on rice with ketchup like any sensible Pinoy, or go Italian and eat it with tomato sauce and spaghetti. Your call!

Bewitching Bali Day 4

Juli's boyish grin greeted us on our 4th day . He is once again, today's tour guide  and was  noticeably  less shy compared to our initial meeting.  Today, we are about to explore the east side of Bali and can't hardly wait. The more we discover and see the island, the more we learn to love it.

The first place we visited was a  unique temple that centred around a cave full of bats, thus its name Pura ( walled city ) Goa ( cave) Lawah ( Bats).

 Pura Goa Lawah , holds many religious ceremonies during the year and we are lucky to witness and observe one of it at a distance.

Worshipers pray, give offering like flowers, incest and sweets to their gods. Holy priest bless them in return. In Bali, Goa Lawah is  a place to worship a god that rules the oceans.

 And just across the temple is a scenic, black sanded beach which provides no greater reminder .


After a breath of salty air, we drove off and  stopped by this  indigenous Tenganan Aga village . This historic village  gives  a glimpse into the old Balinese lives. There's  a communal hall, where talks and story tellings by villagers were once held. The place is in the midst of restoration with some building visibly spruced up while others, still stood in half ruins.

There are crafts sold in this place and we are able to look at the artisans' work closely without being pushed to buy it. The villagers are friendly and welcoming and  not in any way intrusive.

 We stop at a nice area along Candidasa Beach. I asked Juli to pull over so we could check the place out and stretch our legs. We saw few stalls along the bay and the fragrant smell of barbecued sea creature lured us to take a closer whiff.  We were greeted by the sight of sizzling meat . Exactly how  how I want my animal to be.. grilled and on a stick.

The food was honestly not as good as it smelled. Whatever it was, it was tough and leathery. The over generous starch in the gravy did not make it better. But the view and the cooling breeze was gorgeous.

Our next destination,  Tirta Gangga in Karangasem, is one of my favourite spots in Bali. Beautiful gardens, stunning landscape, impressive pagodas, stone steps,  tranquil ponds with mammoth sized koi fishes and  interesting statues sprung amidst the lush greeneries and mountainous backdrop. The air is cool, making walks and exploration relaxing and serene. One could spend  lazy afternoons , napping under the shadows of trees.

There's an elevated restaurant within this compound that offers a great view of the water palace. We went there for lunch. Ordered a traditional set menu called Megibung.

Traditionally, Balinese enjoyed eating together off one large plate or banana leaf at ceremonies or at preparation of a ceremony. People would sit crossed-leg around it helping themselves with their right hand scooping a portion of food onto a banana leaf or eating it straight off the plate. This communal way of eating is called Megibung. In east bali, the karangasem Regency, people still practice the megibung style. It's a very intimate and social way of sharing food.

Lunch: Begibung Menu for 2. With with white and yellow rice are minced mat sate, vegetable urab, spicy prawn, grilled chicken, pulled udang, pepes ikan and babi kecap.

We were full to the brim! 

Just few minutes drive away is another water palace. Taman Ujung. Compared to Tirta Gangga, this area is massive with a colonial palace smack in the middle of its man made lake.

Due to the wide area and less abundance of shades, this place was scorching hot. Bring an umbrella and enough water when visiting.

Still within Karangasem, Juli asked us if we want to see a less touristy and less crowded beach. It has many names and ' White sand beach' and ' Virgin beach' are just few of them. The road up and down the area once really bad, I'm happy I'm not driving. There are few stalls selling drinks and foods by the bay but no hotels in sight, making tourists and visitors scarce. 

Dinner was in the dim lit and romantic  Sarong restaurant. Where gorgeous and chic ladies in stilettos and satin dresses and despite the dress code,   flip flops  and beach short clad men dine and socialise.   The foods was the best I had in our 10 day trip in Bali. It's a modern Asian fusion. Food, service and setting is top notch. I highly recommend it.

Sarong Restaurant Bali

Jl. Petitenget No, 19 x
Kerobokan, Bali 80361
Indonesia

T. +62 361 4737 809
F. +62 361 4737 810
E. info@sarongbali.com
W: www.sarongbali.com

Bewitching Bali Day 3

Yasa was once again waiting for FF and me at the hotel lobby right on time. Sated from breakfast and almost rubbing our hands in anticipation, we readily jump into his comfortable ride and off we go to explore another side of Bali we've never seen before.

From  Seminyak,  it was a long drive to Karangasem where Puri Agung Semarapura  or KlungKung Palace is located. A historical building complex , housing   the Hall of Justice or Kerta Gosa Pavillion where Kings of old , cast judgement over local disputes  or punish to the wrong doers. While on trial, convicts can view depicting murals  of what  awaits the sinners in the afterlife painted on the ceiling of the hall. Thieves, adulterer, liars, rapists, murderers will reap what they sow. What comes goes around, comes around. Most Balinese people are Hindus and are deeply religious at that. They strongly believe  in Karma.

The painted ceiling of Kerta Gosa
pavilion

After flipping through the very graphic paintings that made me hope I haven't step a single toe out of the 10 commandments, the beautiful surroundings ,  well manicured  gardens,  paintings and carvings of mythical being made me  sigh in relief that  I still got to enjoy earthy Nirvanas.

We visited a nearby market, which is more colorful and interesting than most malls here in Germany. Bought a couple of sarongs and turban for FF to use while visiting our next destination.

On the way to the next destination, Yasa bought us some snack on a go. Some sugar filled  rice cakes with caramel coconut-y bits that kept us going through the afternoon.

The Besakih Temple or the Mother of all Temples in Bali.

The most important Hindu temple in Bali. Grand and  majestic, it certainly fits the bill.

There are many religious festivities all throughout the year, and many believers, some even travel all the way from Jakarta come to this place to pray and give offering to their gods.

The journey from Besakih Temple led us around Gunung Agung  . The highest point on Bali that dominates the area.

Today's trip is long and tiring and we even forget lunch. On the way to home we passed by a coffee farm and tried the infamous Kapi Luwak. Known to be the most expensive coffee in the world. Apparently, coffee beans that has been eaten and defecated, yes you read it right, defecated, by  a certain feline specie fetch as much as 6000 dollars a kilo in some countries! Somewhere between its snout and anus must lie the secret process of  making the perfect , few dollar$$$ a cup  Cat-Poo-chino.

A short stop at this waterfall on the way to Seminyak completed today' s tour. It started to rain again so we did not really manage to expore the place more that we want .

It was a tiring yet fulfilling day. After a heavy dinner and an hour of pampering at the neighboring spa, FF and I went back to our hotel room with a contented smile, many happy holidayers wear. His, was as a matter of fact, much wider. I' not sure if it's the tour, the delicious foods or the 20 finger massage we just had from the Indonesian ladies we thoroughly enjoyed . Yup, 20 fingers....