Javanese cuisine
Ancient dishes and recipes were mentioned in numbers of Javanese prasasti (inscription) and modern historians have succeeded in deciphering some of them.
The inscriptions from Medang Mataram era circa 8th to 10th century mentioned several ancient dishes, among others are Hadangan Harang (water buffalo minced meat satay, similar with today Balinese sate lilit), Hadangan Madura (water buffalo meat with sweet palm sugar), and Dundu Puyengan (eel seasoned with lemon basil).
For example, selamatan ceremony, often performed as a symbol of gratitude, is usually involving a communal feast where participants, guests, and attendees are invited to eat together.
Potatoes are often boiled then mashed, shaped into discs, spiced, coated in beaten eggs and fried into perkedel.
Vegetables feature heavily in Javanese cuisine, notably in vegetable-heavy dishes such as pecel, lotek, and urap.
Coconut milk, peanut sauce, gula jawa (palm sugar), asem jawa (tamarind), petis, terasi (shrimp paste), shallot, garlic, turmeric, galangal, ginger, and chili sambal are common ingredients and spices that can be found in Javanese cuisine.
However, in small enclaves of Catholic Javanese population around Muntilan, Magelang, Yogyakarta, and Klaten, pork might be consumed.
Other than homemade family dishes, Javanese cuisine are served from humble street-side carts and warungs, to fancy restaurants in five-star hotels.
The popular simple Javanese cuisine establishments are the budget food of Warung Tegal, which are mainly established by Javanese from Tegal city, and the Angkringan street-side carts in Yogyakarta and Solo that sold cheap sego kucing and various wedang (hot beverages).
Today, Javanese lesehan food stalls can be found in several cities, including Surakarta, Semarang and Jakarta.
Most of Central Javanese dishes are indigenously developed, however in coastal cities such as Semarang and Pekalongan, notable Chinese influences can be seen, such as lumpia (spring roll) and bakmi Jawa.
Many of Central Java-specific dishes contain the names of the area where the food first became popular, for example: Refers to Javanese cultural region of Western Central Java bordering West Java, including Banyumas, Tegal, Brebes, Cilacap, Kebumen, Purbalingga, and Banjarnegara.
