School holidays have started for many of us here in Jakarta and for our northern hemisphere friends, the lengthy holiday period will soon be here.

For Liz and I, 'holiday' means many things - family trips to destinations both local and abroad, afternoons playing in the pool with the kids, the obligatory sleep ins & lazy pyjama days ( - the ultimate reward after a long and arduous school term) and of course the delight of no-fuss catchups with friends. To keep the entertaining stress levels at a low, we have prepared a couple of recipes that you can whip up in no time.

The following two recipes use ingredients that are easily found in Jakarta (although at the time of writing, coriander seemed to be a bit allusive!). In fact, you might be familiar with the first recipe.. but if you haven't already tried it, it's sure to be a hit! The second recipe is a take on a drink that we enjoyed in Bali. It features the 'snake skin' fruit (salak) and is a refreshing drink with a spicy punch.

We hope you enjoy :)

Coriander and Sweet Chilli Dip

Ingredients
Coriander leaves (one bunch, carefully washed and chopped roughly)
Sweet chilli sauce
Cream cheese
Corn chips or crackers to serve

Method

1. Onto a serving plate, spread the cream cheese to create an even layer

2. Drizzle sweet chilli sauce on top and spread, covering all the cream cheese completely (add more sauce if you want a spicier dip)

3. Top with a generous amount of chopped coriander

4. Serve with plain tortilla chips (our favourite are the Balinese made brand, 'Cornitos' which are wheat free, gluten free and most importantly, contain no MSG.

5. Selamat Makan! (Enjoy!)

Refreshing Spiced Salak Drink

Ingredients
(makes 4 drinks)

2 Salak (snake skin fruit) - finely chopped
Cloves (4 pieces) or Star anise (optional)
Cinnamon quills (3)
Lemongrass - 1 length
Ginger Ale (1 can)
Lemonade (1 can)
Soda Water (1 can)
Jeruk nipis (local lime) for garnish

Method
1. Peel and finely dice the salak

2. Into a bowl place salak, cloves and liquids

3. Gently mix and transfer liquid into preserving bottles or a stoppered bottle
4. Add cinnamon quills
5. Using a mallet or the side of a heavy knife, bruise the lemongrass and add to bottles

6. Refrigerate and allow flavours to infuse
7. When serving pour over ice and garnish with a slice of jeruk bali

Selamat Minum!

Cook’s Notes
To sweeten things up a bit you can add a cup of pineapple juice to the drink and give it a good stir

When serving this drink, be sure to provide a long-handled spoon so that the pieces of salak can be enjoyed

Avoid eating the cloves and other spice pieces as the flavour is not very palatable

Although we used a stoppered bottle, it is better to use a bottle with a wide neck, allowing the salak and other solid ingredients to flow from the bottle with ease

Interested in tropical fruit or trying other recipes that feature ingredients local to Indonesia? We invite you to check out the following:

Tropical Fruits of Indonesia
Hummus and Tropical Spiced Punch
Jeruk Bali and Goats' Cheese Salad
Pineapple Upside-Down Cake
How to make Indonesia’s spicy fruit salad - Rujak

Words: Jo Stevens  Photography: a journey bespoke