6 Dishes You Need to Try in Bali – Tempting Treats for the Discerning Foodie 

An excellent choice with which to commence your sampling of authentic local foods would be the much-loved nasi campur Bali. This dish would be a rice speciality that would be a local staple, featuring steamed rice accompanied by side dishes such as shredded chicken, grilled meat, tofu, sate, bean sprouts, tempe and sambal. In fact, nasi campur may be regarded as a tasting platter of Balinese foods that each chef would prepare somewhat differently. Whilst this dish could be found across Indonesia, the Balinese version would use a selection of special traditional spices. 

Bali’s roast suckling pig or babi guling would be a dish that wouldn’t be commonly available in other parts of Indonesia due to the predominantly Muslim culture. Originally, a dish of celebration babi guling in the past was prepared for important occasions and religious events. However, as a result of tourism, it is now commonly available in restaurants. To prepare this dish the pig would be marinated with spices and then roasted slowly on a spit. Once done, it would be served along with rice, pork crackling, vegetable salad and other side dishes. 

Should you have a liking for sweet rice cakes like the Japanese mochi, you are sure to appreciate the distinctive laklak of Bali. This dish may be described as a traditional pancake made using rice flour. Often enjoyed as a breakfast dish or snack, this food could be difficult to find in sizable Indonesian cities, yet in Bali, laklak could be readily found at stalls serving street food. Often, this dish would be presented along with a serving of grated coconut and palm sugar. 

The distinctive tum ayam would be a delectable dish that employs the method of using banana leaves to wrap food. Tum ayam would basically consist of a delectable blend of finely ground chicken that is flavoured with spices and herbs. This mixture would then be enveloped in banana leaf and sewn at one end. This parcel would then be grilled or steamed so that the flavours would permeate the whole dish. 

The ever-popular sate (sometimes called satay) would be abundantly available in Bali as well as Indonesia as a whole. These tasty grilled meat skewers would come in a number of different forms. For instance, sate lilit would be made with finely diced meat that has been marinated in spices and coconut milk. On the other hand, sate plecing would feature meats like pork or beef and a distinctive sauce. To try this dish check out some of the popular Uluwatu restaurants including dining venues at properties like Anantara Uluwatu Bali Resort which serve such culinary creations.

Another outstanding Balinese dish would be ayam betutu which would be a slowly cooked dish of chicken that is noted for its special aroma. To make it, a whole chicken would be seasoned and stuffed with a paste composed of a blend of spices. The chicken would then be wrapped in the bark of the banana tree and banana leaves, after which it would be baked for several hours.