13 Bizarre Foods and Drinks in Bali

Lawar is the traditional salad mix that mostly accompanies any kind of rice dish in Bali, be it nasi babi guling or nasi campur mixed rice. There are 2 types of lawar, based on the ingredients. Lawar putih (white lawar) is less bizarre and comprises shredded coconut, young jackfruit slices, string beans and spices.

On the other side of the spectrum is lawar merah (red lawar) which has red, raw sliced meat and pig’s blood tossed in. Dare to try the latter? It’s commonly found at any warung or local restaurant serving babi guling roast pork.

Rujak is a traditional fruit salad with a twist – it’s extremely spicy thanks to the added chillies. Foreigners are often bewildered at why locals love their sweet-tasting fruits served like so. Different versions include local tropical fruits such as young mangos, starfruit, young papaya, jicama, and so on, often sliced with a serrated knife, then doused in a dressing of liquefied shrimp paste, salt and chillies.

You may come across the ‘dry’ version throughout Southeast Asian countries, with only shrimp paste and salt. In Bali, they often order theirs with kuah pindang tuna broth added!

Bulung is a treat that's commonly known among the coastal Balinese communities, particularly around the island’s south. Seaweed – or bulung in the local tongue – comes in 2 varieties: the common stringy carrageenan seaweed and the bulbous boni type.

Salads for both options are served in the same manner, with the same kuah pindang chilli and tuna broth as rujak spiced fruit salad, and topped with grilled and grated coconut and fried nuts.

Urutan is a common Balinese rice dish accompaniment that's basically Bali's version of blood sausages. Some Europeans and Americans may be accustomed to sausage skins filled with blood and cooked or dried and mixed with a filler until they congeal.

Bali’s urutan is another by-product of babi guling and, in its raw form, the looks will certainly lower your appetite. But when sliced, fried, and served, it’s truly tasty and well worth a try.

Keluak is a fruit that's indispensable in several Southeast Asian dishes. Raw and ripe keluak fruit and its seeds contain hydrogen cyanide – highly toxic if consumed uncooked.

When they are processed through boiling or roasted in hot ash, neutralising the harmful chemicals, keluak gives off a wonderful flavour and aroma to soups, such as rawon veal or beef stews.

Kakul are snails widely found in Bali's rice fields and are a valuable source of protein for agrarian communities on the island. The favoured types are the darker to black ones, as they have a tastier and more delightful texture compared to the yellow types.

The snails are gathered from the mud, shells cracked open, then washed. They are then boiled before cooked into soups, salads or prepared on skewers to be grilled as satays, together with a blend of Balinese spices.

Lindung or freshwater eel is easily found in rice fields in Bali and are a popular source of protein among rural Balinese communities.

Catching eels using strings and hooks is a favourite pastime among Balinese kids in the countryside, and they take their fresh catches home for their mothers to prepare and cook, together with an aromatic blend of garlic and galangal. The eels are also usually dried before being fried with a batter into a crispy snack.

The Balinese make herbal drinks from various types of leaves and fruits, much like jamu from the neighbouring island of Java. They refer to any liquid mixture or traditionally-prepared herbal tonic as loloh. Often, loloh is taken to maintain general good health and the ingredients are known for their medical benefits.

Some of the most commonly used are tibah or morinda fruit, hibiscus flower, don kayumanis or leaves of the star gooseberry tree, with other herbs and spices such as salt, roast shallots, ginger and turmeric to taste.

In some rural areas of Bali, kids dig under wilted banana trunks to find these ugly, thumb-sized larvae that locals call ancruk. They consider these a high-protein snack. After being thoroughly washed and cleaned, these gummy morsels are then roasted or fried with spices to taste.

Usually, entrails are thrown out in western cooking but usus ayam or chicken intestines are saved for a popular deep-fried Indonesian delicacy. You can find these sold at most local restaurants in Bali.

Thoroughly washed then basted in turmeric (a natural disinfectant), and then sometimes rolled in tapioca flour batter, the short or flat-cut intestines are then thrown into hot oil until crisp. They look more appealing when cooked, and actually taste great too. There are also skewered versions, boiled then prepared in the manner of satays, as well.