Almost 50 years after it was first published, culinary enthusiasts have the opportunity to get a new edition of Mustikarasa, the iconic Indonesian cookbook.

Seven years in the making (1961 – 1967) Mustikarasa, The Jewel of Taste, was the brainchild of Sukarno, the first President of the Republic of Indonesia who envisioned it to be a complete reference for home cooks.

The first edition of the 1123-page cookbook has 1600 recipes collected from all over Indonesia. It aimed to guide families in taking advantage of food resources in their areas to create tasty meals. The main objective, however, was food diversification to anticipate food crisis at that time by harnessing local ingredients as alternatives to rice.

The first part of the book (chapter 1) contains information on food ingredients, food chemistry, meal planning, nutritious menu, cooking terms, home cooking measurements, kitchen, fuel, fire prevention, and table setting. The second part (chapter 2 to 9) consists of recipes categorized into main courses, side dishes with sauces, side dishes without sauces, fried foods, grilled foods, condiments and hot sauces, snacks, and drinks.

 Image: Buku Tempo Doeloe

JJ Rizal, a well-known young Indonesian historian who heads Komunitas Bambu, a publisher of Indonesian history and humanity books, initiated the second edition of Mustikarasa. Rizal, who undertook the efforts to share President Sukarno’s food legacy, led his team to retype all the texts, and maintained the book as is, including the original old Indonesian spelling and the book illustrations. There is additional information that help readers understand and appreciate the book more, Rizal’s introduction to the book titled: Mustika Rasa Sukarno: Dari Makanan Kesukaan sampai Politik Pangan (Mustika Rasa Sukarno: Favorite Foods to Politics of Food).

The title of the first edition, 1123 pages, is Mustikarasa, Buku Masakan Indonesia (Mustikarasa. Indonesian Cookbook), while the second edition, 1208 pages, is called Mustikarasa. Buku Masakan Indonesia Warisan Sukarno (Mustikarasa. Indonesian Cookbook. Sukarno’s Legacy).

The launching of Mustikarasa second edition was an event with nostalgic ambience. Held at Kedai Tjikini, a cozy restaurant in a colonial building with antique interiors that serves home-styed meals, the event featured 3 reputed speakers. JJ Rizal himself; Santhi Serad, food scientist and chair of Aku Cinta Masakan Indonesia, a movement to encourage the love for Indonesian cooking; and Dharmawan Handonowarih, one of the founders of Kedai Tjikini, as the moderator.

Image: Santhi Serad

Interspersed with stories about Sukarno’s favorite foods, all Indonesian traditional dishes, JJ Rizal detailed the enormous struggles in the making of this national cookbook, organized by the Government of Indonesia, 50 years ago.

During the first phase (1961-1962), the cookbook committee sent questionnaires to regional government officials, women organizations and vocational schools all over he country, requesting the name of foods in their areas. Alas, after a year of waiting, the result was unsatisfactory with very small responses.

On the second phase (1962-1964), the committee, still using questionnaires, expanded its search for recipes through related government organizations such as education, agriculture, fisheries, and health department. Nutritionists collected recipes directly from the sources combined with cooking tests. This proved to be the most effective method, along with roadshows and food festival in many regions to gather traditional recipes.

The final phase (1964-1966) was allocated to refining the manuscript, layout, design, and printing. Even with 1600 recipes collected, the committee realized that the book is far from a complete book of Indonesian cuisines. Hence, the committee was open to further input and encouraged continuous food research.

Santhi Serad viewed Mustikarasa from the uniqueness of the foods presented in the book in terms of names, foods origin and combination of ingredients. Many in the audience shared her sentiment, reminiscing about comfort foods and hometown foods listed in the book.

Santhi entertained the audience by providing samples of food to taste, which recipe is available from pages 234-244 in the book, Gulai Pliek Ue, a traditional curry from Aceh. The main ingredients are Pliek Ue (dried residue of coconut oil), young jackfruits, young papaya, melinjo leaves and nuts (Gnetum gnemon), coconut, and shrimp or oyster. This savory dish is flavored by shallot, garlic, green chili, red eye chili, turmeric, lemongrass, turi leaves (Sesbania grandiflora), coriander, ginger, kaffir lime leaves, and salt.

I couldn’t help but relate Mustikarasa to my own experience and interest. I first got hold of the first edition of the book as a student 40 years ago while rummaging through secondhand bookstalls. I did buy the yellowish worn book and has kept it ever since. Only after buying the second edition did I try to find out whether there are recipes from Gorontalo, an area of Omar Niode Foundation’s interest.

When the book was first published in 1967, Gorontalo was only a District. It became a Province in 2001. Surprisingly, Mustikarasa has at least 8 recipes from Gorontalo. Those are pilitode (fish, herbs, spices cooked in coconut milk), biluluhe (steamed corn with herbs and spices, wrapped in banana leaves), jilabulo (spiced sago and gizzard/liver), bilentango (fried fish split, topped with herbs and spices), binte biluhuta (corn soup with grated coconut and shrimp/fish), kejabu (steamed grated cassava, grated coconut and palm sugar in banana leaves), kue tobuu (boat shaped custard in pandan leaves), and tjala isi (savory cake).

Mustikarasa is indeed a reference cookery book for all interested in Indonesian cuisines. Impressed by the launching event, most in the audience, almost one hundred in total, look forward to more events in reference to the book. There have been requests for cooking shows and food tastings using recipes in Mustikarasa, preferbly arranged at Kedai Tjikini. Should there be such events, The Omar Niode Foundation will be ready to present one or two Gorontalo dishes.

--------------------

Text: Amanda Niode

Images: Omar Niode Foundation, unless otherwise noted.