West Papua (Oceania) 9 June 2023

West Papua is located in the continent of Oceania. It has the Pacific Ocean to the north, Papa New Guinea to the east, the Arafura Sea and Australia to the south, Indonesia and Malaysia to the west, and the Philippines to the northwest.

The capital is Manokwari.

The official language is Indonesian.

The climate has high humidity, and hot temperatures. Is mostly tropical and warm all year round (https://www.google.com/search?q=climate+in+West+papua&oq=climate+in+West+papua&aqs=chrome..69i57j33i160l2j33i22i29i30.5248j1j15&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8).

The staple foods are sago paste, sweet potatoes, bananas, taro, cassava, chicken, pork, fish, rice, greens and more (https://provincesofindonesia.weebly.com/cuisines/cuisines-in-west-papua).

https://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Western_New_Guinea

HAZELNUT-CRUSTED SALMON (https://www.diamondnuts.com/recipe/hazelnut-crusted-salmon/):  

– 1-1/2 ~ 2 lbs. salmon with skin on, sliced into 4 pieces

– 2 TBSP fresh lime juice

– 1 TBSP honey

– ½ C Diamond of California® Chopped Hazelnuts

– ¼ C panko breadcrumbs

– 1 tsp salt

– ¼ tsp pepper

– 2~3 TBSP olive oil

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper and space the pieces of salmon evenly on top.
2. In a small bowl, whisk together the lemon juice and honey. Drizzle the mixture over the salmon pieces.
3. In a food processor, pulse the hazelnuts until finely ground. Add the panko breadcrumbs, salt and pepper, and olive oil and pulse until combined. You want the mixture to be wet enough to stick to the salmon, so add olive oil accordingly. Pat the hazelnut mixture onto the salmon pieces until they are well covered.
4. Bake salmon until cooked all the way through and hazelnut crust is golden brown, about 20-25 minutes. Serve immediately.

I really like hazel-nut, so put a lot of breading on. It was delicious!!

PAPEDA (https://bucatarasul-vesel.blogspot.com/2015/01/how-to-make-papeda-papua-delicious-food.html):  

            – ¾ C + 1 TBSP cornstarch

            – ½ tsp salt

            – ½ tsp sugar

            – 4-1/2 C water

1. Melt the sago flour (cornstarch) with 1-1/2 C water.
2. Add salt and sugar.
3. Boil the rest of the water.
4. Pour the boiling water into the cornstarch, stirring carefully until well mixed.
5. Continue to heat the mixture over low heat, stirring continuously until the mixture is thick, and clear.
6. Serve as a compliment to the fish.

I have never had this before now, but it really another flavor to the salmon!!

MIXED VEGETABLES:

Nothing too difficult in preparing this!!

BALINESE MILK PIE (Kue Lontar) (https://whaleshares.io/@thekitchenfairy/balinese-milk-pie-kue-lontar):

Crust:

            – 1 C flour

            – 1 TBSP sugar

            – a pinch of salt

            – 1/3 C (94g) vegetable shortening (or margarine)

            – 1/3 C nut milk

1. Mix everything and knead.
2. Roll flat and place it on a pie plate, and poke holes all over with a fork.
3. Preheat oven to 450F.
4. Bake for 9-10 minutes.
5. Let cool to room temperature.

Filling:

            – ¾ C nut milk

            – 1 TBSP + 2 tsp cornstarch

            – ½ C coconut milk

            – ¼ C maple syrup

            – 1-1/2 tsp vanilla essence

            – a pinch of turmeric powder (optional)

1. Mix everything in a pot and bring to a boil, stirring continuously until thicken.
2. Take off from the heat and pour into the crust.
3. Sprinkle the top with grated nutmeg if you wish.
4. Chill to firm up.

This was really good as well. This was the first I have eaten something like this!!!