Indonesian Recipes (Bali, Java) - Pork Cutlets in Date and Mushroom Sauce (Babi Cin) Recipe

Ingredients

• 4 pork cutlets

• 1 handful pearl barley

• 7 dried red dates

• 7 dried shiitake mushrooms

• 2 cloves garlic

• 1 piece ginger root, about 1 cm/3/8 in long

• 1 tablespoon sugar

• 4 tablespoons soy sauce

• 2 tablespoons arrack or rose schnapps

• 2 tablespoons five-spice mixture, not ground

• 1 clove

• coarsely ground black pepper

• 1-2 tablespoons oil for searing the meat

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Method:

1. Soak the pearl barley in water. Soak the dried dates and shiitake mushrooms. Peel the garlic and cut into thin slices. Peel the ginger and crush.

2. Heat the oil in a pan and fry the cutlets briskly. (In Bali belly of pork is also often used instead of cutlets.) Add the garlic and ginger and fry with the cutlets.

3. Reduce the heat and add the sugar so that it caramelizes. Add the arrak or rose schnapps, soy sauce, five-spice powder mixture and cloves and stir well.

4. Next add the pearl barley, shiitake mushrooms and dates together with the water in which they have soaked. Season with coarsely ground black pepper and a little more soy sauce.

5. Cover and braise for a further 15 to 20 minutes. This is a very traditional dish, served with Lontong cap goh meh ebes (refer recipe).