'Sayur Asem' for the longing soul

if 'home' had a flavour, what would it be?

growing up in a Baweanese family, the dining table was often dotted with simple dishes which were recurs throughout the week that thankfully, I never got sick of eating.

there’s a simple vegetable soup dish that we have a lot of, aptly name in Baweanese as 'Kuah Chelok' or 'sour soup'. as the name might suggest, it's light, refreshing and tangy with tamarind as it's main acidic component, alongside vegetables which sweeten the soup naturally and a bit of chillies for piquancy. if there is a dish which could instantly remind me of my late grandmother, it’s exactly that.

recently, we sat down with our office building’s cleaning assistant on her lunch break. when we asked what we could cook for her for lunch, Ibu Ram, who hails from Purwakarta in West Java, politely requested for a Sayur Asem, a simple yet much acquired dish from her Sundanese culinary heritage. this instantly reminded me of my grandma's Kuah Chelok which is essentially almost similar of a dish (me same but maybe abit different lah). much like how Kuah Chelok has become a gateway to reminiscing sweet memories of family, Sayur Asem reminds her of her mother and growing up in her village, before migrating to Singapore at the age of 18.

below is the recipe for Sayur Asem, as how we cooked for Ibu Ram. with Sayur Asem, the choice of vegetables is entirely up to you, however, the key to a good soup is keeping in mind of the balance of sour, sweetness and spice - which would result in a simple & hearty, yet vibrant soup dish which is perfect for any time of the day,

@nomies.coif 'home' had a flavour, what would it be? 🥹🏡 link in bio for the recipe! #fyp #sg #sgfood #recipe #sgfoodie

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get ingredients for the recipe here:!, candlenuts, belachan, palm sugar mushroom stock granules

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need a soupy fix today to cure the perpetual blues? try out our other soup recipes!