Food in Bali, Indonesia

 Food was definitely very high on my list of fears before going to study abroad. I tried researching what people normally ate in Bali. What the national foods were. But I swear I did not understand or recognize anything that showed up on the google search. And I am a very picky eater. I was absolutely terrified, to say the least, about what I was going to be fed by my homestay family. I did not want to be rude, or make people feel disrespected by their cultural foods either, so I knew I was going to have to gulp down whatever I was given. 

To my pleasant surprise, the Balinese food will now be one of the aspects of my study abroad experience that I will cherish forever. I could not. get. enough. of every single meal I was given. I even took a Balinese cook book to learn how to make the traditional food back home. 

From what I learned in my time away, rice is a very sacred food in Bali. It is the staple, base of every meal. Additionally, tofu, egg, and tempeh are very popular proteins followed by chicken and pork (on holidays or special occasions). Most meals are accompanied by "sayur" or veggies. These are usually sautéd in a mix of soy and fish sauces with lots of spices. Lastly, it is very common to use banana leaves as plates in Bali. This is cheaper (since there's so many bananas!), less wasteful, and more convenient.  

Here are a few of my favorite meals: