Saffron may help Lift your mood

Saffron has long been used in traditional Persian medicine as a mood lifter, usually steeped into a medicinal tea or used to prepare rice. Research from Iran's Roozbeh Psychiatric Hospital at Tehran University of Medical Sciences has found that saffron may help to relieve symptoms of premenstrual syndrome (PMS) and depression.

In one study, 75% of women with PMS who were given saffron capsules daily reported that their PMS symptoms (such as mood swings and depression) declined by at least half, compared with only 8 percent of women who didn't take saffron.

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Cilantro, Soapy but has many Health Benefits

This herb, popular in Mexican and Asian dishes, is surprisingly divisive. There's even a website dedicated to cilantro-haters. The aldehydes give cilantro its fragrance and give off that soapy smell and flavor, but some people find it pleasing.

Want to make it more palatable? Crush up the leaves, which converts the aldehydes into a less noxious aroma, making it easier to eat.

On the other hand, Cilantro has many health benefits, such as:

Protects against the Salmonella bacteria
Reportedly works as a natural chelation treatment
Aids in digestion and helps settle the stomach and prevent flatulence
An anti-inflammatory that may alleviate symptoms of arthritis
Protects against urinary tract infections
Prevents nausea
Relieves intestinal gas
Lowers blood sugar
Lowers bad cholesterol (LDL) and raises good cholesteraol (HDL)
A good source of iron
A good source of magnesium
Rich in phytonutrients and flavonoids

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Sweet Marinated Bean Cake (Tempe Bacem)

250 g tempe, cut into 6-8 pieces
1 cm of galangal*
2 Salaam leaves (bay leaves)
250 ml thick coconut milk
250 ml water
*can be substituted with 1 tablespoon of galangal powder

Spice Paste
2 cloves of garlic
1 tsp of coriander
4 shallots or half medium red onion
1 tsp of tamarind (asem jawa)
2 tbsp of palm sugar/brown sugar
salt to taste

Grind or blend the spice paste.

Boil the coconut milk/coconut water together with tempe, galangal, Salaam leafs, and spice paste. Add the water and continue cooking until the spices and water are absorbed. Then cool them off.

Heat up 50 ml oil into deep frying pan and fry the tofu both sides, but don't do it too much (too dry/crunchy).

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Health Benefits of Sage

Do you know that Sage may help Preserve memory, soothe sore throats? Herbalists recommend sipping sage tea for upset stomachs and sore throats, a remedy supported by one study that found spraying sore throats with a sage solution gave effective pain relief.

And preliminary research suggests the herb may improve some symptoms of early Alzheimer's disease by preventing a key enzyme from destroying acetylcholine, a brain chemical involved in memory and learning.

In another study, college students who took sage extracts in capsule form performed significantly better on memory tests, and their moods improved.

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Chile Peppers Boost Metabolism

Chile peppers add a much-appreciated heat to chilly-weather dishes, and they can also give a boost to your metabolism. Thank to capsaicin, the compound that gives fresh chiles, and spices including cayenne and chipotle, their kick.

Studies show that capsaicin can increase the body's metabolic rate (causing one to burn more calories) and may stimulate brain chemicals that help us feel less hungry. In fact, one study found that people ate 16 percent fewer calories at a meal if they'd sipped a hot-pepper-spiked tomato juice (vs. plain tomato juice) half an hour earlier.

Recent research found that capsinoids, similar but gentler chemicals found in milder chile hybrids, have the same effects-so even tamer sweet paprika packs a healthy punch. Capsaicin may also lower risk of ulcers by boosting the ability of stomach cells to resist infection by ulcer-causing bacteria and help the heart by keeping "bad" LDL cholesterol from turning into a more lethal, artery-clogging form.

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Health Benefits of Turmeric

May help: Quell inflammation, inhibit tumors. Turmeric, the goldenrod-colored spice, is used in India to help wounds heal (it's applied as a paste); it's also made into a tea to relieve colds and respiratory problems.

Modern medicine confirms some solid-gold health benefits as well; most are associated with curcumin, a compound in turmeric that has potent antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. Curcumin has been shown to help relieve pain of arthritis, injuries and dental procedures; it's also being studied for its potential in managing heart disease, diabetes and Alzheimer's disease.

Researcher Bharat Aggarwal is bullish on curcumin's potential as a cancer treatment, particularly in colon, prostate and breast cancers; preliminary studies have found that curcumin can inhibit tumor cell growth and suppress enzymes that activate carcinogens.

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Spicy Shredded Chicken (Ayam Suwir Pedas)

250 g chicken fillet
1 stalk of white part of lemon grass
1 Salaam leaves(Indian Bay Leaves)
2 fresh Kaffir Lime leaves
1 tbs Tamarind (asam jawa) juice
100 ml chicken stock
Half fresh tomato, chopped

Spice Paste:

3 shallots
2 cloves of garlic
3 red chillies
3 bird's eyes chillies (optional)
1/2 tsp of pepper
Salt and sugar to taste

Bring to boil the chicken. When it cooked, take out from the stock then shred. Set aside.

Grind or blend the spice paste.

Heat the oil, then sauté the spice paste until fragrant. Then add salam leaves, kaffir lime leaves, lemongrass, fresh tomato,tamarind juice and the chicken.

Mix them well for few minutes, and then give the chicken stock.
Cook until the water absorbed. Add sugar or salt to adjust the taste.

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Sweet Marinited Tofu (Tahu Bacem)

250 g tahu/tofu, cut into 6 - 8 pieces
2 Salaam (Bay Leaves) leafs
1 cm of galangal or 1 tablespoon of galangal powder
250 ml thick coconut milk or 250 ml coconut water
250 ml water

Spice Paste:
4 shallots or half medium red onion
2 cloves of garlic
1 tsp of coriander
1 tsp of tamarind (asem jawa)
2 tsp of palm sugar/brown sugar
salt to taste

Grind or blend the spice paste.

Boil the coconut milk/coconut water together with tofu, galangal, salam leafs, and spice paste. Add the water and continue cooking until the spices and water are absorbed. Then cool them off.

Heat up 50 ml oil into deep frying pan and fry the tofu both sides, but don't do it too much (too dry/crunchy).

Serve with green bird's eyes chillies.

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East Java Traditional Black Beef Soup (Sop Rawon)

600g Beef rump
20g Ginger roots
30g Turmeric roots
50g Garlic

100g Shallot
50g Candlenut
20g Red chili
5g Kaffir lime leafs
30g Lemon grass

200g Black Nut (Kluwek) use the meaty part
10g Coriander Powder
2g Bay leaf (Salam)
20g Galangal
3g Cumin

Salt to taste
White Sugar to taste
White Pepper Powder
Cooking oil

Clean the beef rump and cut into cubes.
Blend shallot, garlic, ginger, candlenut, turmeric, red chili and black nuts (kluwek) until smooth.

Heat pan and put all blended ingredients and saute until cooked and fregrance.
Add beef rump cubes and water to make the stock.
Put kaffir lime leafs, salam, galangal, lemon grass and boil until beef is tender.
Season with coriander powder, cumin, salt and sugar according to taste.

Serve this soup with steamed rice, salty egg, small beans sprout, and shrimp crackers.

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Smashed Sweet Fried Beef (Empal Gepuk)

600 gr beef shanks, cut into 4 big pieces
4 dried bay leaves
1 stalk lemongrass, take the white part and bruise
650 ml coconut milk
2 1/2 tsp salt

spices (blend) :

7 cloves of shallots, sliced then sauteed
5 cloves of garlic, sliced then sauteed
5 candlenuts, toasted
1 cm ginger
2 cm fresh galangal
3 tsp corriander
60 gr brown sugar

Combine all the ingredients in "spices" together and process in a blender or food processor until smooth.
In a big pot, stir in beef shanks, coconut milk, blended spices, bay leaves, lemongrass, and salt.

Bring them to boil, then cook on low heat (simmer) until the beef is fully cooked and the liquid has decreased by half (about 2 hours)

Remove the pot from heat. Cut the beef chunks according to the meat pattern into 2 cm slices.

Heat oil in a sauteeing pan, then fry the beef with the remaining liquid until all the liquid is drained.

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Langga Roko Traditional Grilled Fish (Ikan Bakar Khas Makassar)

2 rabbitfish* 1 kg
5 tsp tamarind juice
4 cm turmeric, smashed
1 tsp salt
3 tbsp oil for frying
banana leaf

*ikan baronang

Blend :
10 pcs red onion
3 cloves garlic
5 pcs red chili
5 pcs hazelnut
1 tsp coriander
2 slices galangal
2 stalk lemon grass
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp tamarind water

Clean the fish, rub the fish with tamarind, turmeric, and salt, set aside.
Heat oil and saute the blended spices until fragrant.
Enter the fish, stir briefly. Lift.
Place fish on banana leaf.
Grilled over hot coals until cooked.

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High Pressure Cooked Milkfish (Bandeng Presto)

3 fresh milkfishes (1 kg), remove gills and stomach part
1 tablespoon tapai yeast (read below), grounded
2 tablespoon salt
3 tablespoon tamarind water
10 bay leaves
10 cm galangal (see: opor ayam), sliced and pounded
2 1/2 litre water

Spices (Ground) :
14 cloves red onion
7 cloves garlic
4 cm ginger
4 cm turmeric
1 teaspoon salt
150 g big red chili peppers, boiled
10 small green chili peppers, boiled
8 cloves red onion, boiled
4 cloves garlic, boiled
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon terasi (shrimp paste), fried

Banana leaves for wrapping
Egg’s white or flavoured flour

Slice the stomach part of the fishes. Clean them up using water and let them dry.
Smear the fishes with tapai yeast, salt, and tamarind water. Leave them for about 1 hour.
Smear the fishes with grounded spices evenly.
Put bay leaves and slices of galangal on top of the fishes.
Wrap with banana leaves so that the fishes are easy to lift from the pressure cooker.

Pour 1 litre water into the pressure cooker. Put a sieve on top of the cooker
Arrange the wrapped fishes ontop of the sieve.
Cook until the cooker hissed, 30-50 minutes depending on the type of pressure cooker you use.
Let the cooker cool with open lid.
Pour water again and cook until the water is no more.
Take out the fishes and let them dry.

chili sauce :
Heat vegetable oil.
Sautee grounded spices until the sauce smells good.
Put into plate and let it cool.

Serving :
Smear the fishes with egg’s white or flavoured flour.
Fry until golden brown.

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Black Gravy Squid (Cumi Masak Tinta)

3 squid in medium size, clear them without remove the ink pouch, cut into pieces
1 big tomato, shred
1 garlic clove
2 small red onion
1 stalk green onion, shred
1/2 tea spoon salt
1/4 tea spoon pepper powder
1/2 tea spoon sugar
1 table spoon cooking oil
3 cup water

Heat cooking oil in a pan, add garlic, red onion, and green onion, mix till fregrance.

Add the squids and tomato, pour in water, cook about 10-13 minute in high heat (don't cook it too long or the squid will become rubbery), add salt, sugar and pepper powder, mix then remove.

Ready to serve

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Buntil (Cassava wrap in coconut sauce)

Buntil Stuffing Ingredients :
Grated coconut
Red pepper
chili
onion
garlic
anchovy
pete cina
salt
sugar
flavoring

Buntil Wrapping Ingredient :
Cassava leaves or papaya leaves

Buntil Sauce Ingredient :
coconut milk
red pepper
chili
onion
garlic
turmeric
alpina galanga
lemon leaves
lemon grass
salt and sugar to taste

Buntil Stuffing :
Mills finely red pepper, chili, onion, garlic, salt, sugar and flavoring
Pouring grated coconut, anchovy, pete cina to the dough 1.a.

Buntil Wrapping :
Heap up 7 plies cassava leaves, put dough
wrapped around as a ball
Steamed within 7 hours

Buntil Sauce :
Mills finely red pepper, chili, onion, garlic, turmeric and alpina galanga.
Prepare frying pan and cook doug 1.c until good smelt ±5 minutes
Pouring coconut milk, wait till its boiled

To serve, prepare a bowl, place the buntil and then pour the sauce.

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Beef Rib Soup From Gorontalo Sulawesi (Kuah Bugis ala Gorontalo)

1000 g beef ribs
200 g grated coconut, brown roasted
3 litres water
2 tbsp oil
1 tbsp salt

6 tomatoes sliced
1 stalk lemon grass
2 cm cinnamon
3 tbsp roughly chopped spring onion
2 kaffir lime leaves
1 pandanus leaf
15 sweet basil

Spices blend :

4 tbsp sliced garlic
1 tbsp sliced red chili
5 tbsp sliced shallots
2 tsp sliced turmeric
1 tsp sliced ginger
6 candlenuts
1 1/2 tbsp galangal
Pinch of cumin
1 tbsp coriander
1/2 tsp nutmeg powder

Put the beef ribs and water in a pan and bring to boil over medium heat until the beef tender and the stock remains 1000 ml, set aside.

Pound the roasted coconut until smooth an oily, set aside.

Blend all spices into a paste. In a wok, put oil and saute the paste over medium heat. Add salt, cinnamon, lemon grass, and tomatoes.

Add the coconut, mix well. Add this mixture to the beef rib stock, bring to boil over medium heat.

Before removing from heat, add spring onion, kaffir lime leaves, sweet basil, and pandanus leaf, continue boiling until done.

Transfer into a serving bowl and serve.

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Vegetable Curry Indonesian Style (Sayur Lodeh)

1 1/2 cups cut green beans
2 carrots
1/2 turnip
1/2 head cabbage
250 g firm tofu
1 1/2 cups coconut milk
2 cups water

Spice blend

1 inch fresh ginger
1 teaspoon coriander powder
1 teaspoon turmeric
1 teaspoon cumin
1 tablespoon chili powder
2 tablespoons chili paste
2 teaspoons shrimp paste (optional)
2 medium onions
4 garlic cloves
2 stalks lemongrass
20 small dried shrimp, first soaked in hot water to soften
4 tablespoons oil

Chop all the spice blend ingredients and add them to the blender, except the chilli powder. Blend it into a paste.

Combine coconut milk and water to form thin coconut milk.

Cut all the vegetables into small cubes and sticks.

After all the spices are blended, add chilli powder according to your tastes.

Fry it in oil till the oils in the paste ooze out.
Add thin coconut milk and bring it to a gentle boil.

Dump in all the vegetables and tofu and simmer it till the vegetables are tender. Add salt to taste.

Adding pepper is not reccomended.
Serve Sayur Lodeh over rice.

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Chicken in Coconut Milk (Opor Ayam)

1 whole chicken
4 cups of coconut milk
6 pieces of shallots
3 pieces of garlic
120 gram candle nut
10 gram coriander
5 gram cumin
3 pcs bay leaves
1 pcs lemongrass
100 gr galangal
salt and pepper to taste

Cut chicken into pieces
Grind shallots, garlic, candle nut, coriander, and cumin
Boil chicken with 2 cups of coconut milk, put in lemongrass and galangal.

When chicken is about done, pour in the rest of the coconut milk along with the spice mix above.
Add salt and pepper to taste.
Cook until the chicken is done
Serve warm.

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Spicy Tegal Soup Traditional Style (Soto Tegal)

150 g chicken breast boiled, fried, and cubed
100 g cow's heart boiled, fried, and cubed
100 g tripe boiled, fried, and cubed
150 g boiled chicken intestine, fried
750 ml stock
100 g bean sprouts, blanched, drain
5 tbsp sliced green onion
3 tbsp fried sliced shallots
2 tbsp fermented soybean (miso)
2 tbsp oil for sauteing

Spices :

3 tbsp sliced shallots
1 tbsp sliced garlic
5candlenuts
1 tsp shrimp paste
1 tbsp sliced boiled red chilies
2 1/2 tbsp sliced capsicums
1 tsp sliced galangal
2 salam leaves/bay leaves
1 stalk lemon grass
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp salt

Sambal Tauco :

1 tbsp sliced red chilies
1 tbsp fermented soybean (miso)
1 tsp sugar
1 tbsp oil
To make the sauce : Blend all the spices. Put oil in the pan, saute the paste over medium heat, add fermented soybean, salam leaves, lemon grass, sugar, and salt as seasoning.

Boil the stock over medium heat, put the seasoning and continue boiling for 10 minutes, turn off the heat.

In a serving bowl, put bean sprouts, chicken pieces, entrails, and green onion. Pour the hot sauce and serve immediately.

Serve with sambal tauco and sliced lime.

To make sambal tauco : blend red chilies, fermented soybean (miso), and sugar into a paste. Put oil in a pan, saute the paste over medium heat until done.

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Chicken Grilled In Turmeric Spice (Ayam Bakar Bumbu Kuning)

1 whole chicken, cut up into 4-8 pieces
500 cc thick coconut milk
1 stalk lemongrass, bruised
3 kaffir lime leaves
2 cloves
2 cardamom, bruised

1 Tbsp. tamarind juice
3 Tbsp. vegetable oil

Spices :

3 cloves garlic
8 small shallots
5 candlenuts, dryly fried
3 tsp. coriander seeds
1 tsp. pepper
¼ tsp. aniseeds
½ tsp. cumin seeds
½ tsp. nutmeg
¼ tbsp. galangal
2 tsp. ginger
2 tsp. ground turmeric
1 tbsp. salt

Stir fry the spice paste over medium heat with 3 Tbs. vegetable oil for a minute or two and then add the lemongrass, kaffir lime leaves, cloves and cardamom until fragrant.

Add the chicken pieces and stir well until the chicken is half done.

Pour in the coconut milk and tamarind juice.

Cook it until the chicken is almost done and the sauce is thickened, remove.

On a barbeque grill or in an oven over moderate heat, grill the chicken until done while brushing it with the spices.

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Indonesian Spice Cake (Spekkuk)

2 cups cake flour, sifted
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon nutmeg, grated
1/2 teaspoon clove, ground
4 teaspoons cinnamon, ground
1 pinch salt
3/4 lb butter, unsalted (3 sticks)
1 2/3 cups sugar
4 eggs, large
3 egg yolks, large, lightly beaten
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 tablespoon confectioners' sugar (for garnish)

Preheat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit; grease and flour a bundt pan.

In a medium bowl, resift the sifted flour along with the baking powder, nutmeg, clove, cinnamon, and salt; resift one more time, then set aside.

In another bowl, beat the softened butter until it is soft and very pliant, about one minute, gradually add the sugar and beat on high speed until it is pale and fluffy, about 3 to 5 minutes.

Beat in the 4 whole eggs by hand, one at a time, until the butter and egg mixture is light and fluffy, about 2 minutes.

Add the flour mixture to the butter and egg mixture in 3 equal parts, beating on low speed (or stirring with a wooden spoon) until the batter is smooth and the flour is well combined with the butter and eggs; add the lightly beaten egg yolks and the vanilla, and continue to beat or stir until they are well mixed into the batter.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan, spreading it until the surface is even; then place the pan in the middle reack of the oven and bake about one hour, test with a wooden pick; this cake will nearly double in size as it cooks.

Remove the pan from the oven and set it on a wire rack to cool for about 10 minutes, when cool enough , invert the cake onto a wire rack to finish cooling; then transfer the cake to a serving platter and sprinkle the top with sifted confectioner's sugar.

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