Petojo Food & Catering

Stories, recipes and news about our budding food business

[petojofood]

Traditional Gado Gado

Serves four

For salad: 1 carrot, chopped and blanched 1 chayote, chopped and blanched 1 cup of green beans, halved and blanched 2 cups of cabbage, chopped and blanched 2 cups of bean sprouts, blanched 1 ripe tomato, wedged 1 cucumber, sliced 1 Russet Potato, cubed and boiled 2 hard boiled eggs 1/2 block of tempeh, cubed and fried 1/2 longtong, cut into pieces Shrimp crackers Crispy shallots For dressing: 1 shallot 1 garlic clove 1/2 of one red chile 1 tsp of shrimp paste 1 tbsp of peanut butter Kecap manis (sweet soy sauce), as needed Lime juice, as needed Water Salt Start by making the dressing by combining the shallot, garlic, chile and shrimp paste in food processor then purée. Stop machine to add peanut butter, kecap manis and lime juice. Purée again until ingredients are thoroughly incorporated. Adjust consistency and seasoning with water and salt as needed. On a plate combine sliced longtong, fried tempeh and blanched vegetables. Place tomato wedges, cucumber slices, boiled potato and egg around the blanched vegetable mixture. Pour the sauce over the salad and top with shrimp crackers and crispy shallots.

[petojofood]

Spicy Green Beans

Serves two people

1 tbsp high smoke point oil such as grape seed, avocado or canola 1 qt fresh green beans, washed and dried 2 tbsp fish sauce 1 tbsp Bapak’s Sambal Oelek

In a frying pan or wok, heat your oil. When oil is hot and shimmering, add green beans. Sauté for one minute until blistered. Add fish sauce, toss and let cook for another minute. Add Bapak's Sambal Oelek and let cook for one last minute.

[petojofood]

Satay

Makes 15 satay skewers

1 lb chicken breast, beef sirloin or your preferred grilling meat 4 tbsp Satay Marinade 15 bamboo skewers, soaked in water salt

Cut meat into half inch cubes and place in bowl. Coat meat with marinade and let sit for 15 minutes. Thread meat on soaked skewers, about 4 to 5 pieces on each stick. Grill or bake for 3 to 5 mins on each side at 400F. Sprinkle with salt just before putting on grill or in oven.

[petojofood]

Shrimp Laksa

Serves two people

1 tbsp of your favourite cooking oil 1 cup of your favourite vegetables 1/2 lb shrimp, peeled 1 container Laksa Sauce (12 oz), thawed

Heat oil in sauce pot and sauté your vegetables until soft. Add shrimp and season with salt. Add thawed sauce to pot and bring to simmer. Let simmer for 3 minutes. Serve over vermicelli noodles. Garnish with cilantro, green onions, crispy shallots and fresh lime wedge.

[petojofood]

Nasi Goreng (Fried Rice)

1 tbsp oil, vegetable or canola 1/4 lb chicken, meat or plant-based protein 1 cup of your favourite veggies 2 tbsp butter or margarine 2 cups of cooked rice, day-old and cold 4 tbsp Nasi Goreng Spice Paste Heat oil in wok or large frying pan. Fry meat or plant-based protein and vegetables cooked. Add butter and rice then toss. Mix in Nasi Goreng Spice Paste until rice is evenly coated. Serve with a fried egg sunny side up, sliced tomato and cucumber and Bapak's Sambal Oelek.

[petojofood]

Recipe: Mie Goreng (Indonesian Fried Noodles)

Mie Goreng, or Fried Noodles, is a family favourite. Chef Anthony recently shared his recipe and method for making a quick but tasty Mie Goreng during a cooking demonstration at the Western Fair in London, ON.

Mie Goreng

1 tbsp canola oil 1 tsp sesame oil  ¼ cup carrot, julienne  ¼ cup mushrooms, sliced ¼ cup bok choy, roughly chopped  3-4 tbsp Petojo Food Nasi Goreng Spice Paste 1 pack Indonesian egg noodles, cooked

To garnish: 

½ cup crispy shallots 1 lime, wedged ½ cucumber, sliced 

Method

Pre heat oils in large frying pan or medium sized wok.

Add carrot, shallots and mushrooms. Sauté until soft and shallots are translucent. Add bok choy and cook until wilted.

Add Petojo Food Nasi Goreng Spice Paste and stir.

Add noodles and toss.

Place in bowl or on plate and garnish with crispy shallots, cucumber slices and lime wedges.

[petojofood]

Recipe: Parsnip Soup

Chef Anthony recently shared his recipe and method for making a delicious spiced parsnip soup during a cooking demonstration at the Western Fair in London, ON. Although this parsnip soup is not a traditional Indonesian dish, it does use cinnamon and star anise, both found on the Spice Islands.

Chef Anthony’s Parsnip Soup

4 tbsp olive oil 1 lb parsnips, sliced ½ cm thick 3 cloves garlic, crushed 2 tsp ground cinnamon 1 medium onion, sliced  ½ leek (white part only) 2 star anise ½ tsp dried thyme, rubbed 2 bay leaf 3 cups vegetable or chicken stock 1 cup 10% cream Salt and pepper, to taste

Method

Place parsnip in a large bowl with garlic cloves, cinnamon, 2 tbsp of olive oil, salt and pepper then toss thoroughly until evenly coated. Place on baking sheet lined with parchment paper and bake in preheated oven at 375℉ for 20 minutes.

Place remaining 2 tbsp of olive oil in a medium sized pot over medium heat. Sweat onions and leek until soft and translucent, about 15 - 20 minutes. Season with salt and pepper and add star anise, thyme and bay leaf.

Add roasted parsnip and garlic to pot along with 3 cups of chicken or vegetable stock and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes. 

Remove from heat, add cream and purée. Taste and adjust seasoning.

[petojofood]

Recipe: Atjar Tjampoer

In preparation for the limited release of the Petojo Burger next week, Chef Anthony wanted to share our recipe from one of our Summer 2017 products so that you can enjoy it atop your fresh off the grill burger. It’s a lovely sweet and sour coleslaw-type salad or condiment that is similar to ‘curdito’, the El Salvadorian relish served with pupusas.

We also love to serve it along side satays and rice as it gives a nice touch of acidity to the meal. If you’re a smart eater (and we think you are), you’ll dollop some warm peanut sauce on top.

PETOJO’S ATJAR TJAMPOER ½ white cabbage, shredded ¼ purple cabbage, shredded ¼ to ½ cup demerara or white sugar 1½ tsp salt 1 medium carrot, shredded 1 cup bean sprouts ½ red bell pepper, small diced ½   english cucumber, small diced ¼ cup white vinegar ¼ cup cider vinegar

1. Combine white and red cabbages in large mixing bowl. Add sugar and salt then toss to evenly coat. Let sit for 5 minutes.

2. Add remaining vegetables along with both vinegars to cabbage mixture. Toss until evenly coated. Refrigerate for minimum 1 hour before serving.

[petojofood]

Recipe: Kimi’s Opor Ayam

This mild, white Indonesian curry usually takes hours to make. Traditionally a spice paste (or ‘bumbu’) is made first by assembling fresh and dry aromatic spices then grinding and cooking them to reduce the bite and develop a depth of flavour. The ‘bumbu’ would then be added to a pot of bone-in chicken pieces, vegetables and coconut milk which would simmer for hours until the meat was tender and falling off the bone. Sounds delicious right? Well, ain’t nobody got time for that! Instead of making a ‘bumbu’ from scratch, my recipe uses Petojo Food’s White Spice Paste and skinless boneless chicken so you can enjoy that curry in less than 45 minutes.

KIMI’S OPOR AYAM

1 lb boneless skinless chicken thigh or breast, cubed 1 carrot, cut in ½ inch pieces 1 celery, cut in ½ inch pieces 1 cup mushrooms, halved 1 cup nappa cabbage, julienned 1 cup snow peas 2-3 tbsp Petojo Food White Spice Paste 2 tbsp avocado or vegetable oil 1 can coconut milk 1 lime leaf Salt and pepper, to taste Cornstarch and water paste (optional) Crispy shallots (optional)

1. In a cast iron pot (French or Dutch oven), heat oil then add chicken. Cook for 1 to 2 mins, until the chicken is seared, then add carrots, celery, mushrooms, spice paste, salt and pepper.

2. When the carrots and celery begin to soften, add the coconut milk and lime leaf. Stir and let come to a simmer.

3. Simmer until vegetables are tender and chicken is cooked through (about 7 to 10 mins). Add snow peas and cabbage and cook until tender (about 1 to 2 mins). Use a little cornstarch with water to thicken the gravy if you wish. Serve with jasmine rice and top with crispy shallots.

[petojofood]

Recipe: Sweet & Spicy Wings

These baked wings are so easy to make and ready in the same time it would take to make those boxed ones. I used turkey wings because they were on sale at the store, but this recipe easily works with chicken wings. If you aren’t a big fan of spice, simply omit the Bapak’s Sambal Oelek and you’ll be left with sweet and sticky wings. 

SWEET & SPICY WINGS

Ingredients:

1 lb turkey or chicken wings ¼ c all purpose flour ½ tsp salt ½ tsp pepper 2 tbsp Petojo Satay Marinade 1 tsp Bapak’s Sambal Oelek

Preparation:

1. Pre-heat oven to 425℉.

2. Mix flour, salt and pepper in a large bowl. Toss wings into flour mixture until evenly coated. Lay single layer onto a parchment paper lined baking sheet.

3. Bake for 15 minutes, flip wings, then bake for another 15 minutes. Remove from oven and place in clean bowl. Reduce oven heat to 400℉.

4. Drizzle Petojo Satay Marinade and Bapak’s Sambal Oelek over wings and toss until evenly coated. Place wings back onto the baking sheet and into the oven. Bake for an additional 5 minutes on each side.

[petojofood]

Recipe: Bapak’s Bubur

Chef Anthony was recently interviewed for the local Lifestyle Magazine for an article on comfort food. You can find the article here. With the extreme cold that has swept through the region in the last few weeks who couldn’t use a little ‘food hug’.

Bubur is Indonesia’s version of a rice porridge similar to Chinese congee. The savoury porridge is a staple that can be found everywhere from people’s homes to the street food vendors to 5-star hotel breakfast buffets. We know it to be a breakfast food, but it can be eaten any time of day really. Our favourite memories is waking up on a weekend morning with scents of a big pot bubbling on the stove and Bapak hovering over it adding spices, leftover meats, and vegetables.

To be honest, it’s something that Anthony only recently learned to make. We really prefer it when Bapak’s makes bubur. It never quite tastes as good as when he makes it.

BAPAK’S BUBUR Serves 3-4

Ingredients:

1 cup long-grain white rice (such as jasmine) 2 cups water 2 cups chicken or vegetable stock 3 tbsp carrot, finely chopped (1/4 of medium carrot) 3 tbsp celery, finely chopped (1/3 of one stalk) ¼ cup cooked chicken (such as leftover rotisserie chicken), roughly chopped 3 tbsp bok choy, finely chopped (1/2 of one small bulb), optional salt, to taste

Serve with: green onion, thinly sliced fried shallots kecap manis (sweet soy sauce) sambal oelek

Preparation:

1. In a medium sized pot, combine the rice, carrots and celery with 2 cups of water and bring to a boil over high heat.

2. Reduce heat to medium-high and continue to boil, stirring occasionally. When water has reduced by half (the rice will still look uncooked), add the stock, continue to boil and stir occasionally.

3. Rice grains will begin to break after about 15 minutes and the mixture will thicken. Then add the chicken and bok choy (or your favourite vegetable). Season with salt.

4. Allow people to serve themselves from the pot or serve in a large bowl garnished with green onions. Serve alongside accoutrements like fried shallots, kecap manis (sweet soy sauce), sambal oelek, tomato ketchup, and your favourite Asian condiment

[petojofood]

Easy Entertaining

It’s the most wonderful time of the year, right? 

For those of us who get a little stressed around entertaining, the glow of the holidays can lose a bit of luster. Fear not, we have a five tasty ideas using Petojo products that are quick to assemble and budget friendly.

1. Satays & Veggie Platter

Grill or bake a pack of our chicken or beef satays and arrange on a platter with veggies like cucumber sticks, sugar snap peas and grape tomatoes. Serve with warm Petojo Peanut Sauce. Want a spicy peanut sauce? Add a touch of Bapak’s Sambal Oelek.

2. Crispy Tempeh Bites

Cut tempeh into squares and pan fry in oil until brown on each side. Remove to paper towel to soak excess oil. Generously season with sea. Serve with warm Petojo Peanut Sauce, Bapak’s Sambal Oelek or Petojo Satay Marinade.

3. Ginger Carrot Shots

Warm Ginger Carrot Soup and portion into shot glasses. Add a dollop of cold coconut cream (put can of coconut cream in the fridge for at least a hour) and sprinkle black sesame seeds.

4. Sweet and Spicy Wings

Using a box of your favourite chicken wings, follow the instructions for heating and cooking the wings. Instead of using the sauces provided, toss wings in a mix of Petojo’s Satay Marinade (about a 1/2 cup to 1 lb of wings) and Bapak’s Sambal Oelek (1 tbsp).

5. Chocolate Tipped Coconut Macaroons

Melt chocolate chips or semi-sweet chocolate in a microwave (about 1/2 cup). Dip the top of Petojo’s Pandan Coconut Macaroons in the chocolate and top with your favourite sprinkles.

[petojofood]

Beef Redang Reboot: An Experiment in Core Values, Traditional Dishes and New Recipes

About a year into founding Petojo, we established our core values as a company. We were gearing up to cater a wedding and we were having to engage the freelance help of cooks, servers and bartenders. We wanted to make sure we had a guiding document in place that would direct everyone’s approach to work at Petojo, founders included.

One of our core values is: experiment. We chose it because we believe that we should always be learning and to us the best way to do that is to experiment. Try new flavours, test new cooking methods and explore ways to improve products, packaging, process, etc. The idea is to regularly work at improving our products so we arrive at a better product that in turn will result in better sales (we need to eat too!). That all sounds great, however in practice it can be a little difficult, if not scary.

Customers like what they like and when you spend a lot of time convincing them to try a certain product that they then fall in love with, it’s hard to want to change that product. This is when you need to rely on your core values to guide your decision making.

One product that has cause me (Kimi) particular angst was our Beef Rendang. I’m not one for being a strict traditionalist - we (blasphemously) put rice in our Soto Ayam instead of glass noodles, for heaven’s sake! - but I do like to make sure that we capture the ‘spirit’ of a dish, and this one didn’t quite hit the mark. Don’t get me wrong, it’s delicious with a lovely gravy, tender beef and the right mix of veggies. But it just wasn’t quite right to me. It needed tweaking.

After the summer market season, we made time to assess our performance throughout the summer and I mention my concern about the rendang to Anthony. He agreed that we needed to experiment with our recipe and find something closer to the classic dish. He got to work on it immediately. He returned to the customary stovetop method of cooking the curry (previously he prepared the curry sous-vide style) and played around with different spice blends until he settled for a warmer, earthier blend with cinnamon, cardamon, clove and star anise that compliments the red chile, tamarind and lemongrass notes perfectly.

To me, Anthony developed a better product. It’s closer to what I know to be a traditional rendang, but it’s still got that Petojo Food spin. For the record, Bapak (our Father, chief food critic and Petojo’s unofficial judge on what is classic Indonesian or not) says it tastes and smells good, but it’s not traditional. Take from it what you will, but to me it means we have truer Petojo Food product.

This month, we re-launch the Beef Rendang with the new recipe and put our core value to the test.

[petojofood]

Recipe: Roast Cauliflower

Cauliflower has enjoyed the food spotlight for a number of years now which is well deserved. It’s a big vegetable with a high yield, it’s nutrient packed, and it’s very photogenic. So it’s not surprising that roasting a cauliflower whole has become popular, especially since it’s easy to do and required few ingredients and kitchen tools.

Recently, I roasted a whole head of cauliflower modifying the method outlined on Nom Nom Paleo by using our white spice paste to infuse flavour into the vegetable. It made a great side to crispy skinned rainbow trout. Side note: Crispy skin fish is my favourite quick but fancy meal protein and I highly recommend Bon Appetit’s method.

ROAST CAULIFLOWER WITH WHITE SPICE PASTE

Ingredients:

1 whole cauliflower, cleaned and trimmed of any green leaves ¼ cup avocado oil 3-6 tbsp Petojo White Spice Paste, enough to coat Kosher salt Lime wedges, to serve

Preparation:

Pre-heat oven to 375°F with a rack placed in the middle position. Massage oil over cauliflower and liberally sprinkle with salt making sure to season the underside of the cauliflower. Place on parchment lined cookie sheet then cover with aluminum foil and bake for 30 minutes. Then remove the foil and continue to bake for 45 mins to an hour, until the whole vegetable is golden and you can slide a small pairing knife in and out with ease. Serve with lime wedges to squeeze over cauliflower.

If you don’t want to roast a cauliflower whole, simply cut into florets and toss with a little oil, some white spice paste and salt. Place on parchment lined cookie sheet and bake at 400°F for 20-30 mins, rotating at the halfway mark.

[petojofood]

Recipe: Grilled Corn with White Spice Paste

My favourite thing about summer is corn-on-the-cob. In Ontario we are lucky because the corn season is long, starting in July and going well into September.   It’s easy to get corn fatigue, but this preparation of an classic summertime staple is certain to wake up your tastebuds. Fire up that grill!

GRILLED CORN WITH WHITE SPICE PASTE

Ingredients: 3 ears of fresh corn, husked and cleaned ½ cup butter or margarine, soften 3 tbsp Petojo White Spice Paste 3 lime wedges Preparation: While your barbecue is pre-heating, mix your softened butter and spice paste. Place your corn on the hot grill. Turn the ears every 60-90 seconds, generously basting with the butter mixture using a brush with each turn. You should fully turn your ears of corn at least twice. Before you pull from grill, give it one last brush with the butter. Squeeze fresh lime over your grilled corn just before you eat. 

[petojofood]

Recipe: Chicken Satay Tacos with Pineapple Sambal (Sambal Nanas)

Who doesn’t love taco night? My favourite part about taco night is putting them together myself, always experimenting with a mix of meat, vegetable, salsa and hot sauce to get the combination just right. I also love how quickly dinner can be whipped up, of course with the right shortcuts!

To make chicken satay tacos, I thawed one package of Petojo’s Traditional Chicken Satay and pan fried the chicken in a little bit of oil until fully cooked through. It only took about 5 minutes. At the same time, I heated about a half cup of our Peanut Sauce. I shredded iceberg lettuce then washed and picked cilantro leaves.

I got the idea to use some leftover pineapple, tomato and cucumber with a little of Bapak’s Sambal Oelek to make a quick and fresh pineapple ‘sambal’ (Indonesian for sauce or condiment), or sambal nanas as I’m now calling it!

For these tacos, I made my own tortillas using Jamie Oliver’s method described in his Tasty Fish Tacos recipe, but instead of using all whole wheat flour I used equal parts of all-purpose and sprouted whole wheat flours. Of course you can use store bought flour or corn tortillas or pick up some hand made ones from a vendor at your local farmers’ market.

To assemble the tacos, I layered the lettuce, chicken, peanut sauce, sambal nanas, and a few cilantro leaves. 

Enjoy! Kimi

SAMBAL NANAS (Pineapple Sambal)

Ingredients:

½ fresh, ripe pineapple, diced (about 2 cups) 1 roma tomato, diced ½ cup english cucumber, seeded and diced ¼ cup shallot, minced ¼ cup cilantro, chopped 1 tbsp avocado or canola oil 1 tbsp rice vinegar 1 tbsp fresh squeezed lime juice 1 tsp agave syrup or honey 1+½ tsp bapak’s sambal oelek (add more if you like heat!) salt to taste

Preparation:

1. In a medium mixing bowl, combine the pineapple, tomato, cucumber, shallot and cilantro.

2. In a small mixing bowl, whisk together oil, rice vinegar, lime juice, agave syrup and sambal oelek until well blended.

3. Combine the dressing to the pineapple and mix well, ensuring the dressing is properly incorporated. Season with salt to taste.

[petojofood]

Oui, Chef!

This May, Chef Anthony was invited to join the London chapter of Les Marmitons to lead an evening of Indonesian cookery at Fanshawe College’s cooking lab. Each month Les Marmitons invites local chefs to create a menu for the group to prepare and enjoy, it’s up to the visiting chef to simply provide the recipes and guidance, then join the group for the meal and provide a little appraisal of each course’s execution. We knew this would be a great opportunity to highlight Indonesian cooking and showcase our detailed and guest-focused approach service design to a new group of potential clients.

 As soon as Anthony was invited, we began brainstorming dishes and menu ideas. We knew we wanted to highlight popular Indonesian dishes like Soto Ayam and Mie Goreng but we also needed to ensure they could be executed within the tight timeframe and by cooks with varying kitchen skills. Pulling a little inspiration from Kimi’s recent visit to Nusa in Jakarta for the menu structure, we developed the following menu:

Amuse-Bouche Spicy Coconut Beef Meatball

1st Course - Hors D’Oeuvres Spicy Corn Fritters with Balado Sauce

2nd Course - Soup Soto Ayam (Chicken Soup)

3rd Course - Noodles Mie Goreng with Crispy Fried Duck Egg

4th Course - Main Chicken and Shrimp Satays with Nasi Lemak, Atjar Tjampoer and Peanut Sauce

5th Course - Dessert Pandan Coconut Panna Cotta

As we do with every event project, once the menu was established we created a detailed service plan including a detailed description of each course and list of the tools, equipment, tableware, glassware, and serving dishes required. We arranged a site visit with Chef Patrick Hersey at Fanshawe College. The visit allowed us to visualize and run through the event’s planned denouement both in the kitchen and dining room. We made adjustments and edits to the plan as we conducted the walk through. Ultimately the visit helped minimize any issues or roadblocks that inevitably present themselves on event day and Chef Hersey’s advice and insight allowed us to refine our service strategy.

Right after our site visit, we re-strategized our evening’s program by imagining the event’s activities from the perspective of those participating. We adjusted the timing, determined in advance how many group members would be required for each course, organized the ingredients in boxes by course and updated the recipes to include a list of the kitchen tools and equipment needed. By making these small changes the event would stay on time and allow the group members to spend their time doing what they wanted to do the most: cook!

During dinner, we were provided the opportunity to talk about our business, how we are differentiating ourselves from the competition, and what value we bring to our clients’ events. As new entrepreneurs, talking about these three elements can be difficult. You know what makes you great but being able to effectively communicate it to your clients or potential clients is crucial in earning sales. Take any chance you are given to practice your ‘elevator pitch’!

In the end, the evening went off without a hitch. All our preparation and planning gave us a lot of confidence and allowed us to focus on getting to know group members, instead of putting out any fires. We had a blast cooking with Les Marmitons and talking about their favourite foods and cuisines. It’s so nice to spend time with people who are not only passionate about eating food, but learning about new ingredients, flavours, skills and methods. We were so energized by everyone’s enthusiasm and good spirits.

Many thanks to the organizers and members of Les Marmitons, Chef Hersey and the hospitality staff and students (pictured below) at Fanshawe College, and Chef Dave Lamers at Abruzzi Ristorante.