The love of a boy for the humble bakso soup dominates world headlines after Barack Obama’s visit to Indonesia.
While giving a speech at a state dinner in Jakarta during his recent visit to Indonesia US president Barack Obama exclaimed:
“Terima kasih untuk bakso, nasi goreng, emping, krupuk. Semuanya enak!”
The bakso speech
In the main Associated Press article doing the rounds on newspapers around the world – “Single comment by Obama sends Indonesia’s national street food to stardom” – bemused international audiences are told: ap
Bakso, a savoury soup of meatballs and noodles often garnished with bok choy, wontons, tofu, crisp fried shallots and hard-boiled egg, is Indonesia’s national street food, a go-to dish sold from pushcarts to hungry students, midnight revellers and just about anybody who wants a satisfying snack any time of day.
Foodie blogs throughout the world have also lit up with discussion over Obama’s love for the mysterious “bakso soup”, with in one piece by food writer Charles Ferruzza entitled “If President Obama loves bakso, I want to taste it, too” the question is asked: pitch
Where can I find it in Kansas City?
Charles finds out the owners of the local Malay Cafe in Kansas City have never heard of bakso.
Robert Sietsema of Slashfood says bakso is also known as bakmi, and says the key ingredient is that the meatballs are extended with tapioca flour, giving the meat a “bouncy consistency”. slashfood
The origins of bakso also arouse interest, with Ken Woytisek, chef instructor in Asian cuisines at the Culinary Institute of America’s St. Helena, California, being quoted as positing a Chinese-Dutch heritage for bakso:
The soup and the noodles probably originated in China, but the meatball may have come from the Dutch.
Ya, why would in the land of gloriously scrumptious Rendang, Karedok or Semur Jengkol Obama choose a random Bakso? Just like he said he was just reminiscence what his family could afford from nearby warung. Had SBY spent his childhood in the West and ordered his meals from a hole in the wall joint he too would prolly picked crappy foods like fish n chips, pindakaas patat, bagel w sauerkrauts, canned ravioli and the whole enchiladas 🙂
Its funny that Obama picked a dish that originally came from China. However, Bakso is far more popular in Indonesia than it is in China.
http://www.theepochtimes.com/n2/content/view/42534/
Most Chinese have never tried the bakso found in China. I don’t know why. Outside of Fujian and Taiwan, most people in China eat other types of meatballs similar to the ones found in the West,
A properly made bakso contains far less fat or binder than your typical western meatball. Only lean cuts of meat are used. Really high quality Bakso is best made with meat that comes from freshly slaughtered cattle.
Haha Ikea meatballs rule!!! They also sell them frozen 🙂
The Chinese mainly eat fishballs/any variety of fish-based balls like squid, or fish with seaweed, etc etc… and I’ve never found meatballs similar to that from home, here. Iceland sells boxes of minced beef made into balls which are not bad actually, but these are purely meat so might need to add some spices to make it taste like real Indonesian meatballs (formalin anyone?? haha)
timdog… have u tried Cornish pasties outside of Cornwall???? Yuk.
Concur, I wrote above something along that line too.
With free endorsement like that from the Salesman in Chief himself, could Bakso be the new kid on the block just like Vietnamese’s Pho Bang and Thai’s Tom Yum Goong when Campbell Soup kicked the bucket in Good Ol’ USA ?, what do ya think Ody.
I don’t know, but I felt that Bakso was an appropriate dish to choose. It’s one of those common and ubiquitous street food that you can find anywhere, well at least almost anywhere in my hometown of Surabaya that is; very much unlike Rendang and Semur as mentioned by Agan.
I might be wrong though. I have spent most of my life overseas and I hardly ever return to Indonesia, although when I do, I never fail to see street vendors selling Bakso, satay or Nasi Goreng. Rendang and Semur though, never. Someone correct me if I’m wrong!
p.s. Hans – Ikea meatballs (and even Chinese ones) are a world of a difference compared to Bakso. The only thing similar is that they are all meatballs.
True. Meatball is a category, and bakso is specific to Indonesian version of it. See Wikipedia’s article on Bakso (looks like being updated — both Indonesian and English Wikipedia — post-Obama visitation)
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I guess Indonesia may well become Michelle’s next holiday destination.