Pomelo Fruit: Bali

By Wombat | May 31st, 2006 | 2 Comments »

I was reading an article in the Jakarta post on the weekend about the Bali Polemo fruit. The homestay where I reside when in Bali, Prawita cottages, has a few of these trees growing in the gardens. The fruit is forever dropping off the trees and Candika gathers them up for a later feast.

True local: The Bali pomelo

Let us enjoy a citrus fruit of true Indonesian origin. It is a rather large fruit sometimes nearly as big as a football. Its name is jeruk Bali or Bali pomelo.

According to some botanical experts though named Bali pomelo the fruit does not originally come from Bali and until now the origin of Bali pomelo is still not precisely known.

Though relatively cheap, Bali pomelo is a popular tree. In Subang, West Java, many farmers have changed from other citrus varieties to Bali pomelo. In other regions, like on the eastern islands, Bali pomelo has grown into its own specific variety, though it is still named Bali pomelo. Other names for the same citrus variety on other islands are for example jeruk delima, citrus pomegranate, jeruk gulung (citrus roll), jeruk lemo-gula, lima kesumba and munte-bangko.

Today the Bali pomelo tree is scattered across the archipelago. From Aceh in the West to Papua in the East one can easily obtain the local Bali pomelo.

The fruit is also known throughout Asia. In China, India, Thailand and the Philippines, for example, Bali pomelo is a popular fruit eaten as is or mixed with other ingredients in a salad. The rather distinctive flavour, not very sweet or sour but rather tart, makes the Bali pomelo an easy-to-mix fruit. It is however seasonal and when in full season many fruit stalls along the roads sell the fruit. In Jakarta you can get three for Rp 10,000 and toward the end of the season four for the same price.

For those not familiar with Bali pomelo the Latin name is Citrus grandis L Osbeck and it comes in two varieties.
The fruit of a tender pinkish color is called jeruk Bali merah (red Bali pomelo) and the other one with the whitish flesh is called jeruk Bali putih (white Bali pomelo). The fruits are equally consumed but the pink one has a sweeter flavor and can be eaten as is whereas the whitish one is mostly mixed with other fruits to make rujak (fruit salad with pungent dressing).

Because of its tartness Bali pomelo is also used to enhance the flavor of meat. One of the fruits it is most often eaten with is the kedondong a tropical seasonal fruit with a yellow greenish skin, thorny pit and sweet sour flavour.

The very simple looking Bali pomelo is also very nutritious. One hundred grams of flesh - which contains 48 calories -contains 0.6 g protein, 0.2 g fat, 23 mg calcium, 27 mg phosphor, 0.5 mg iron and vitamins A, B1 and C.

The skin and the pith of the Bali pomelo can also be made into a syrup. Its skin can be made into a dried sweet and its oil is used to give traditional sweets a citrus aroma. The flowers of the Bali pomelo are said to have medicinal properties.

In regions where Bali pomelo are grown, like East Java,; children anxiously await the dry monsoon to collect the rather thick skins of the Bali pomelo to make mobil gerobak. They cut a large piece into a container and two or four smaller round pieces for the wheels. A long rope is attached and they can imagine themselves driving around the countryside in their trucks!.

– Suryatini N. Ganie

Recipes

1. Suar suir jeruk bali
Bali pomelo and meat, good with French or toasted bread.

Ingredients:

250 g fillet of beef, cut in rather small cubes
2 tablespoons margarine or oil, for stir frying
1/2 teaspoon salt or to your liking
1/2 tsp ground pepper or to your liking
4 shallots, cut finely
1 tsp granulated sugar
1/8 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/2 tsp vinegar (apple cider or to your liking)
2 Tbs wheat flour
4 Tbs tepid water
350 g sweet red jeruk bali fruit flesh, roughly shredded

Method:

1. Stir fry meat in margarine or oil and season with salt and pepper. When done take out of the pan, set aside.
2. Stir fry shallots in the remaining margarine or oil until aromatic and season with sugar, cinnamon, cloves and vinegar. Return meat into pan, simmer.
3. Mix wheat flour and tepid water, stir well and add to the stir fry.
4. Add the jeruk bali fruit flesh and mix.

Makes three portions.

2. Jeruk Bali saus merah
Bali pomelo served with a sour reddish sauce.

Refreshing when the temperature is soaring high.

Ingredients:

400 g Bali pomelo flesh, roughly shredded
350 g fresh pineapple, cut in thin rounds
2 corn on the cob, boiled, remove the kernels from cob
4 green chilies, cut in thin rounds
4 cloves garlic
A slice of fresh ginger
2 tbs butter or margarine, for stir frying
2 red tomatoes, skinned, pounded
1/2 tsp salt or to taste
1/2 tsp sugar
2 tbs lime juice
Green salad leaves, for garnishing

Method:

1. Make garlic and ginger into a paste and stir fry until aromatic.
2. Add tomatoes and season with salt, sugar and lime juice.
3. Arrange the all the salad ingredients on a suitable plate and serve the sauce in a bowl or pour the sauce over the salad.

Makes three portions.

3. Es krim jeruk bali
A quick to make dessert.

Ingredients:

75 g granulated sugar
1 tbs water
150 g jeruk Bali fruit flesh
4 cups ice cream to your liking: vanilla, chocolate or mocha, etc.

Method:

1. Heat the sugar to caramel by adding water and stirring over a low flame until caramelized.
2. Take a suitable glass or bowl and put the Bali pomelo flesh into the glass or bowl.
3. Divide the ice cream into portions and quickly pour the caramelized sugar over it.

Makes three portions.

4. Jeruk bali mosterd
An unusual appetizer with a tropical flair

Ingredients:

400 g sweet jeruk bali flesh, divided into pieces.
3 ripe kedondong, peeled, hairy pit discarded, cut into vertical pieces.
2 red tomatoes, cut in vertical strips
4 tablespoons sweet soy sauce
2 tbs mustard
8 red or green tiny chilies, mashed
1/2 teaspoon salt or to taste
2 tsp granulated sugar
mint leaves, for garnishing

Method:

1. Put the Bali pomelo flesh into a suitable bowl and add
kedondong pieces or arrange the fruit on a flat serving plate.
2. Mix sweet soy sauce with mustard, tiny chilies and season with salt and sugar. Mix well.
3. Pour the sauce over the fruits and garnish with mint leaves.

Makes four portions.