"Indonesian" Oxtail Soup

Previously, I bitched about what should be considered Indonesian food and decided to call some of my dishes "Indonesian". Recently, after reading hundreds of posts on my Indonesian friends' blogs, I realised that my so called "Indonesian" cooking (note the quotation marks and the phrase "so called") is the most unauthentic one in the whole galaxy, measured by traditional Indonesian standard. It hardly involves classic Indonesian ingredients such as galangal, bay leaves, turmeric, corriander seeds, cumin, candlenuts, tempe etc etc...and more often than not, the whole mix of exotic spices came out of an instant packet :p. The most Indonesian thing about the dishes is...the person eating it.

However, this time, no instant spice packet. It's not because of my determination to try cooking everything from scratch...but it's because there's no spice packet for Indonesian oxtail soup (or I couldn't find one). HAHA! Believe me, if there's one, I would buy it in a heartbeat.

I consulted my friend, whose oxtail soup received rave reviews and repeat orders from her husband's friends, and she gave me her recipe. I bet you a new kitchen that I won't be able to stay within the guidelines of her recipe...I was so sure of this(more than the sun rising in the East). I would definitely add this and that and ruin her true and tested recipe. It's my defect, really.

"Indonesian" Oxtail Soup

Indonesian oxtail soup is something extraordinarily simple, yet bursting with flavors. It's perfect after a long medley of dining out.

Recipe
- 1 lb oxtail (I bought frozen)
- 1 onion, roughly chopped
- 4 cloves of garlic, crushed
- 4 small tomatoes, cut into sections
- 1 potato, chopped into bite sized chunks
- a pack of straw mushrooms, quartered
- 1 sprig of spring onion, chopped
- a dash of nutmeg
- olive oil, salt, pepper, sugar, hot water, vinegar, corn starch

I am using pressure cooker for this, but you can cook it slowly in a regular pot. Boil oxtail for a few minutes to get rid of excess fat and quickly defrost it, drain, cut off excess fat, set aside. Season oxtail chunks with salt, pepper, sugar and dust with a bit of corn starch. Brown oxtail chunks in a bit of hot oil, add onion chunks, garlic, tomatoes, potato chunks, add hot water. Season with salt, pepper, sugar, vinegar and nutmeg, cook for about 20-25 minutes (in a pressure cooker. Or 1.5-2 hours in a regular pot, with low heat, until meat is falling-off-the-bone tender). Release steam off pressure cooker, add mushrooms, cook for about 5 minutes, adjust seasonings if necessary. Serve with steamed rice, kecap manis and garnish with chopped spring onion and fried shallot.

You aren't as lazy assed as me, you could whip up some perkedel (fried potato cakes) or bakwan jagung (fried corn fritters) to eat with this dish. But generally...

...this Indonesian is pretty happy with this unauthentic dish *grin*

How do I dress Indonesian without batik? Check it out here.