Beef Bakso – A Cultural Blend Between Chinese Culinary and Indonesian Culinary
Beef Bakso, Indonesian savory delight meatballs would certainly be loved by your tongue and other parts of your body.
Enjoyed by inhabitants of Indonesia’s archipelago, Bakso is a soup with meatballs that provides an intense taste enhanced by the chewy texture reminiscent of Chinese beef or fish balls.
Generally prepared with beef, these light meatballs contain chicken or pork where the autochthonous recipe is concerned.
In the coming section, we will try to unravel the real recipe of beef Bakso right from the ingredients and process of preparation to hint at how to best serve it.
Prepare yourself to become a master of this delicious Indonesian cuisine that you can easily prepare at home and wow your guests.
What is Beef Bakso?
Bakso, or Baso, is an Indonesian meatball made from beef, with a texture similar to Chinese beef balls or fish balls.
The name “Bakso” originated from the Hokkien pronunciation “bah-so” (肉酥), meaning “fluffy meat” or “minced meat”, suggesting its Chinese cuisine origin.
Indeed, Chinese influences are evident in Indonesian cuisines, such as bakmi (noodles), mie ayam ( Chicken noodles), Pangsit ( Dumplings), mie goreng ( Fried noodles), Kwetiau goreng ( Fried Kwetiau, Bakso, and Lumpia ( Spring roll ).
Origin and History
Despite its possible Chinese roots, Bakso has undergone localization, particularly in Chinese Indonesian, and Javanese cuisine.
Today, most bakso vendors are native Javanese from Wonogiri (near Solo) and Malang.
Bakso Solo and Bakso Malang are the most popular variants, named after the cities they originated from – Solo in Central Java and Malang in East Java.
Popularity in Indonesia
Bakso is one of the most beloved street foods in Indonesian cities and villages alike.
Moving street vendors, either with carts or bikes, frequently visit residential areas, while bakso warung (food stalls) and humble tent stalls are ubiquitous on city streets.
Bakso even gained international recognition when former US President Barack Obama reminisced about it as one of his favorite foods from his childhood in Indonesia.
Cultural Significance
The moving meatball vendor has become associated with intelligence undercover activity in Indonesia.
On social media, memes often depict meatball vendors communicating through walkie-talkies,
as the profession is sometimes used by intelligence agencies like Densus 88 to spy on terrorist or criminal activities
Ingredients for Beef Bakso
To get the best Indonesian beef bakso, there are main ingredients required for the preparation which determines the taste and appearance of the final product. Let’s explore the essential components
Bakso’s basis involved the choice of the meat that would be used. Traditionally, we use a blend of
Ground beef and ground veal- These form the base for the meatballs as they add to the flavor and the texture of the food.
Ground pork or chicken (optional): Some recipes include pork or chicken in the dish to add some variety.
Spices and Herbs
Aromatic spices and herbs infuse the meatballs with distinct Indonesian flavors
Garlic
Raw garlic is also used minced or pounded and gives the food depth and aroma.
Coriander leaves and stalks (cilantro)
Some people like to add fresh coriander to the dish, which adds a more pleasant, herby flavor.
Salt and white pepper
A must-have as it helps in covering the raw taste of the meatballs.
Ginger or galangal
Either grated or ground into fine particles, these root spices take the meal to warmer notes of the earth.
Additional Ingredients
Depending on personal preferences, some additional ingredients can enhance the bakso:
Cornmeal or tapioca starch
It assists in contributing towards the formation and contributes to the structure of the final texture of the mixture and is bouncy.
Baking powder or baking soda
Aids in the production of tender inclusiveness that is crucial for the formation of meatballs.
Fish sauce
Furnishes a certain depth of flavor.
Onion and garlic powder
Enhances the food flavor by increasing the equipment of the savory flavor compounds.
Thus, with a combination of the type of meat, spices, and other binding elements, it is possible to achieve the delicious of Indonesian bakso at your home.
How to Make Beef Meatballs
Preparation To make the meatballs, mix the beef, egg, corn flour, salt, flavoring, and fried onions in a blender,
don’t forget to add a few ice cubes, you grind until smooth, and then you can form one-inch balls that fit the shape.
While preparing the meat mixture, you bring four cups of water to a boil (but on low heat) or you can add beef broth on the stove
and add a few cardamom pods to infuse the broth with a subtle aromatic flavor.
If you need a blender to grind the beef meat you can check it here
Cooking Instructions
Once the meatballs are formed, you carefully place them into the simmering broth in batches of 8-10.
Initially, the meatballs sink to the bottom, but after a while, they start floating on the surface, indicating that they are done.
It is important to ensure that the meatballs are relatively firm and do not crumble when pressed gently.
If the meatballs look crumbly, leave them a few minutes longer.
Once they are ready, you remove them from the broth and let them cool.
While the meatballs were cooking, you prepared the aromatic base for the broth by sautéing the onion, celery, ginger, and garlic until fragrant and the onion softened.
To complete the dish, you cooked the rice noodles in the flavorful broth, added the sautéed onion mixture, and simmered until the rice noodles were done.
When ready to serve, you ladled the extra broth over the meatballs and hard-boiled egg to reheat them, then garnished them with fried onions and spring onions.
Additional Tips
Here are some additional tips so you get better results when you cook Bakso in your home
Meatball Texture
Do not make the mixture too dry, you should be able to form the meatballs easily with your hands.
If too dry, add a little of the broth or a few drops of water.
Cooking Meatballs
Let water hot but not too boil, do not let the meatballs boil as this will cause them to crumble.
Adjusting Seasonings
Taste and feel the broth then add the noodles in, and then regulate the taste of the broth with fish sauce, salt, or pepper.
Noodle Doneness
To avoid having the noodles soggy, cook them al dente.
Toppings
To add some attractive features, it is okay to add the bean sprout top, lime wedges, or chili flake to the dish.
Storage
To better reheat the leftovers you should store the meatballs, noodles, and broth in different containers for better results.
So that is the simple way to cook bakso, it’s so easy and all the ingredients are easy to get even in your country,
If you are still confused about how to cook it you can watch on YouTube videos, there are a lot of tutorials that you can learn
If you need a blender to grind the beef meat you can check it here