Going Home? How Pleasant…
Wonosobo, the small town near Dieng Plateau in Central Java, has various specific food, among others mi ongklok, tempe kemul, opak, and mushroom chips. The best thing is to enjoy the food in the cool air of the town. In my way home to Wonosobo, what is in my mind is a hot tempe kemul eaten with extra hot chili in a fresh and cool atmosphere of the city. It must be delicious!
Wonosobo, at a glance
Wonosobo, which is located under Dieng plateau, can surely make any food taste delicious. Although this pension city is located in the middle of Semarang and Purwokerto, the noise of tobacco and vegetable trade always colors the life there. Therefore many Chinese live their life to trade there.
Long time ago, there were so many foreigners visited Dieng and spent the night in Wonosobo. There were many restaurants and hotels at that time. But now, there are only a few left. It is because Wonosobo and Dieng plateau are not as beautiful and convenient as 10 years ago. But don’t be upset! After three hours enjoying the wonderful scenery of Sindoro and Sumbing valley as well as the tea plantation in the edge of the mountains, you can still go to Dieng Mountain. Unfortunately, the flower garden has disappeared. The green savanna and small lakes surround Pendawa Lima Temple are conjured to be vegetables plantation. The tourism area is narrowed because of the economical problem.
However, since it is my hometown, it does still have a magnet that cannot be repressed. There is such an energy that freshen us after we breathe its fresh air.
Tempe Kemul
Tempe kemul is different from the famous tempe mendoan from Purwokerto. Tempe mendoan is made of unripe tempe, the soybeans are unencumbered and the color of the flour is white-brown. The shape is rectangular. Tempe kemul is made of ripe tempe. The shape of tempe kemul is circular. It is named tempe kemul because the atmosphere of Wonosobo is very cold. Not only the people, but also the tempe needs to be covered over.
I wonder why I never feel bored of eating tempe kemul. Tapioca that is flavored by turmeric, coriander, candlenut, greater galingale, white onion, salt, and a little leek onion tastes so delicious in my tongue. The yellowish flour is so crispy.
If you want to taste it, be careful with the hot chili. Once, we served tempe kemul to a friend of my brother from Yogyakarta. He was very enthusiastic. He ate the chili all at once. When the chili was chewed, he spontaneously dropped his tears. His ears were red. He cried for a drink. But it didn’t make him stop eating tempe kemul with the chili. This time he ate one chili for two or three tempe kemul. The chili was eaten bit by bit.
Sometimes children like to eat the flour only for the side dish. That’s why there are people who make tempe kemul with only a very tiny tempe but with a very wide flour. Yeah, it is for the sake of fulfilling the costumer’s appetite. But perhaps it can be a business strategy.
Tempe kemul is available from morning untill night, because it can be a complement when people eat bakso, soto ayam, nasi megono, nasi gudangan, or a special Wonosobo food, mie ongklok. The aroma of tempe kemul that is being fried is so delicious. We can smell it from the food stall around the market. Tempe kemul is easy to be found in every food stall in the evening. The price is varied, from Rp 250,00 to Rp 500,00. It is nutritious and also cheap.
Mie Ongklok
The name represents the way to make the food. Chopped cabbage and green onion and half boiled noodles are put into a small long-handle bamboo basket. They are mixed in a hot water. Then, some chilies (based on costumers’ request) are pulverized in the bowl. Next, the vegetables, noodles, and tahu bacem are poured into the bowl.
The next step, brown-thick sauce from cornstarch which is flavored by chicken stock, shrimp, salt, white onion and a little brown sugar are poured. After it is scattered with pepper and fried onion, mie ongklok is ready to be served. People who never eat it before will not be interested seeing the stock. Even some people cancel their willing to try it. Moreover, after seeing that all ingredients are mixed in the bowl before it is served. However, the stock is melt and the taste is like boiled noodles.
Mie ongklok will be more delicious if it is eaten together with tempe kemul and sate sapi. The sellers usually open their food stall from 4 pm until night. When the weather is cold and the body needs a warmer, mie ongklok can be a good option. Yeah, we will get sick if we do not eat. If you want to try it, just go to Mie Ongklok food stall in Jalan Masjid, the south of Masjid Kauman Utara. With Rp 8.000,00 your stomach will be full after you eat mie ongklok with tempe kemul and sate sapi.
Gifts
There are many choices if we want to buy gifts. Mushroom chips and Dieng nuts are the spicy and the most popular gifts. Mushroom chips are spicy, salty and crispy. The taste is similar with Paru chips. Mushroom chips are made from sliced merang mushroom, smeared with flour, and then fried. Dieng nuts are similar to Bogor nuts. The shape is like a coma, but it is fatter, approximately 1,5-2 cm. Its color is yellowish brown.
These nuts grow well in Dieng plateau. Those two snacks (Dieng nuts and Mushroom chips) are salty. The cost of ?? kg of mushroom chips is Rp 7.500,00 and ?? kg of Dieng nuts is Rp 6.000,00. The price will be more expensive in Jakarta and other cities.
You should also try Carica or Dieng papaya! The shape is like star fruit but rather big and plumper. The texture is like papaya but the color is yellowish green. The papaya is cut into small shape and then boiled with sugar water. It is usually packed in a bottle or plastic glass. It will be fresher when it is put it into the fridge before you drink it.
Another gift is Opak. Opak is a kind of chips which is made of cassava. There are various shapes and flavor. If you want to eat it directly, buy the fried one! But if you want to have it for your stock, buy the unripe one! Besides, there is thin Sagon, the modification of big, white and round Sagon. Unfortunately, this sweet chip with a little orange flavor is rarely found in the market nowadays.
If you are a snack lover, you can go to the east of Plaza (in the city park near city market). There are some food stalls that sell wet Lumpia, cream puff, citak (red cake with mung bean), Resoles, fried tahu panir, and many more.
There is one more special food in Wonosobo, called Jenang Ireng. It is black, sweet and a little hot. It is served with thin coconut milk and wrapped with banana leaf.
I think you will be full after reading this article. Actually, there are some other foods; such as: jangan gewos (old cabbage stir-fried). Just go to Wonosobo. Have a nice adventure and taste of the food there! Since the weather is cool and the Chinese are smart and creative cooks, the foods taste very delicious.