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Jakarta Post

Dear Jakartans, here are some healthier street food options

Culinary night: People chow down at Kuliner Blok S, a culinary spot in South Jakarta that provides healthier street food options

Audrie Safira Maulana (The Jakarta Post)
Jakarta
Wed, November 13, 2019

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Dear Jakartans, here are some healthier street food options

Culinary night: People chow down at Kuliner Blok S, a culinary spot in South Jakarta that provides healthier street food options.

Amid the hustle and bustle, street food is popular among urbanites, offering authentic flavors at low prices.

Despite the popularity of street foods among city dwellers, most street food is notorious for being unhygienic and having very little nutritional value as the dishes are usually heavily processed and cooked in unhealthy oils.

Noticing an opportunity in the healthy street food niche, a number of culinary spots in Jakarta are offering healthier options of similar dishes. 

One such example is Ayam Bakar Taliwang Mbok Sutil, which sells spicy barbecued chicken with other fresh and healthy condiments such as tofu, tempeh and vegetables.

Though it is not an easy task, the food vendor tries to provide a healthy option with the chicken dish. 

“There are no preservatives in any of our dishes and we mix the spices ourselves,” one of Ayam Bakar Taliwang Mbok Sutil’s vendors, Isah, said.

Another Ayam Bakar Taliwang Mbok Sutil vendor, Purnomo, added that he only purchased fresh chicken.

“It [buying straight from the butcher] is safer than buying chickens from the market, where preservatives have been added,” Purnomo said.

Preparation: Street food vendor Mardiyah prepares spices for her satay.
Preparation: Street food vendor Mardiyah prepares spices for her satay.

Meanwhile, Kuliner Blok S (Blok S Culinary) is also home to a variety of healthy street foods. Located in South Jakarta, this culinary spot offers a wide range of healthy street foods, from chicken satay and meatballs to grilled steak and fruity desserts.

One of the eateries at Blok S is Es Teler Bu Min, which offers a dish consisting of avocado slices, coconut, jackfruit and cincau (grass jelly) in coconut milk with ice, sweetened condensed milk and syrup as toppings.

To maintain the fruits’ nutritional value, Es Teler Bu Min co-owner Joko said he only used granulated sugar to sweeten the desserts.

“We try to keep these desserts as healthy as possible,” he said.

In addition, Joko said he was very selective about the fruits he purchased. A nutritionist also assists him, visiting the vendor every month.

“The fruits we serve are fresh and even slightly rotten fruits are not used. This applies to condiments as well,”

Like Es Teler Bu Min, Sate Ayam Bang Amat is also visited by a nutritionist every month who checks on the menu, which features healthier options of chicken satay and taichan satay.

Mouthwatering: Chicken satay (left) and taichan satay from Sate Ayam Bang Amat.
Mouthwatering: Chicken satay (left) and taichan satay from Sate Ayam Bang Amat.

“The chicken satay that we serve consists of pure chicken meat with no addition of fat or skin,” said Mardiyah, who owns Sate Ayam Bang Amay with her husband Amat and son Sofiyan.

The absence of both fat and skin results in satay that is priced higher than what is usually found on the streets. Here, a portion of satay is priced at Rp 23,000 (US$1.64) to Rp 45,000, while satay is usually priced between Rp 15,000 and Rp 20,000. But Sofiyan said his satay had gained a following. 

“That is what our customers want, satay without any fat,” Sofiyan said.

One of his regular customers is Gery, a student from Depok who has frequented the eatery over the last two months.  

“I learned about [this dish] from my parents when they took me here not too long ago and their food is quite delicious, so it is definitely worth the price,” Gery said.

Like Gery, Cutdyta, who works nearby, is a regular. 

In terms of adopting healthy eating habits, both said they were not on a restricted diet, though they were mindful of what they ate. 

“We measure our health by ourselves, and personally, I try not to eat too much fast food […] because, aside from the cooking process, we might not know if the food is healthy or not,” Cutdyta said.

Freshness: Es teler from Es Teler Bu Min.
Freshness: Es teler from Es Teler Bu Min.

The writer is an intern at The Jakarta Post

— Photos by JP/Audrie Safira Maulana

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