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Two chefs from Qatar admire Bali’s ‘megibung’ culinary tradition
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hef Noof Al Marri and chef Hassan Abdullah Al Ibrahim from Qatar are in Bali to continue their visit to Indonesia under the Culinary Journey Program, part of the annual cultural exchange, Qatar-Indonesia 2023 Year of Culture.
The two prominent chefs will be on the Island of Gods until Sunday and will continue their culinary journey to the Ubud Food Festival (UFF), which will feature programs such as a cooking demonstration and a panel discussion, on Saturday and Sunday.
Prior to their visit to Bali, the two chefs visited Jayapura on June 19-24 and Medan on June 24-27.
Once they set foot in the park of Taman Soekasada Ujung, Bali, on June 28, chef Noof Al Marri and Chef Hassan Abdullah Al Ibrahim delivered their honor greetings and gave their hospitable smiles to local figures from Puri Karangasem and chef Wayan Kresna Yasa, who took part in welcoming the two guests.
Upon introducing each other and posing for a photograph along with Anak Agung Bagus Partha Wijaya, (Manggala Puti Agung Karangasem) and Anak Agung Made Dewandra R Djelantik, in charge of operating Taman Soekasada Ujung Karangasem, at Balai Kapal, they climbed the stairs leading to Balai Gili and Balai Kambang. Anak Agung Made gave some brief information about Taman Soekasada Ujung to the distinguished guests.
Chef Noof Al Marri is a well-known chef from Qatar specializing in Middle Eastern food, and chef Hassan Abdullah Al Ibrahim, “The Captain Chef”, has explored restaurant and street food in 175 cities across the world in a series of programs under the Culinary Journey.
“Karangasem Kingdom is proud to be able to introduce the megibung tradition born from our kingdom and the megibung tradition is very special due to ethics that must be considered. These include the one who deserves to distribute the food is the eldest one, the importance of sanitation because those following the megibung tradition must wash their hands first, taking the food portions of others is forbidden, and participants must not leave the group before the program is over,” said Anak Agung Dewandra R Djelantik, the heir of Taman Soekasada Ujung.
According to him, Karangasem King I Gusti Agung Anglurah Ketut Karangasem dined together with his soldiers in 1614 Çaka or 1692 AD following their expedition related to their success of conquering kings in Lombok, West Nusa Tenggara. The tradition building a sense of togetherness by setting aside social status continues until today and is conducted at traditional and religious ceremonies, serving as a bridge that connects Qatar and Indonesia culturally.
Chef Wayan Kresna Yasa, a native of Nusa Penida, Bali, has more than a decade of working at fine dining restaurants in the United States.
The specially prepared megibung menu was comprised of nasi sela, urab paku dan abisn, kacang barak, pelecing kacang panjang, sate lembat be pasih, be siap betutu, brengkes oong and tempe manis.
“All of the foods prepared are the results of mebat, a Balinese traditional way of cooking that accompanies the megibung tradition, in which cooking starts at 5 a.m. in Bali’s authentic restaurants,” said Chef Wayan, explaining that the megibung menu had been modified to make it halal.
After trying a range of culinary products from Papu and Medan when they were in Bali, the chefs were introduced to a communal dining tradition.
“It is absolutely right with the Qatar-Indonesia 2023 Year of Culture as the background. Culture is one of the most effective mediums to bring people closer, encouraging dialogue and deepening international understanding so that the many similarities between Qatar and Indonesian people can be showcased,” chef Noof said.
The chefs were amazed by the beauty of Bali. They are scheduled to visit Dapur Bapli Mulia in Les Village, Tejakula subdistrict, Buleleng, where for the menu, they will be served fresh fish caught by local fishermen, as well as other available ingredients.
“The resto adopts a concept in which the menu it serves depend on the availability of local crops that are rising to prominence in the culinary world. What is interesting about Dapur Bali Mulia is that the payment system is in the form of donation. This is very good to apply in other sites to help surrounding people,” chef Hassan said.
