Unless you happen to dwell or grow up on the islands of Papua, the Maluccas, or Borneo, you will certainly hold Sago palm tree starch and the accompanying meal as a brilliant culinary novelty.
In Brunei Darussalam, the sago is a local staple and is known as Ambuyat. After searching out a traditional location to eat Ambuyat in Bandar Seri Begawan, I joyously ordered the combination meal from a cheerful family serving out of a food court eatery.
As the smiling waiter emerged from the kitchen with Ambuyat in hand, an overwhelming feeling of happiness swept over my being and I knew I was ready to have another great cuisine experience in the far-off and unique Brunei.
Here is a short video of how I managed to eat Ambuyat:
The transparent glue paste (ambuyat) is eaten with a utensil that is a double pronged bamboo stick (Candas), resembling a pair of amateur chopsticks where the two sticks automatically spring back together. The sticks are twirled into the ambuyat to create a bite size peice and dipped into the sauce.
Along with the sago paste, the meal deal came with a fish based soup (Ikan Rebus), a green leaf boiled vegetable (Sayur Bayam), and the craziest tasting sauce in the world (Cacah Binjai). The cacah binjai sauce is made from the binjai fruit which resembles a mango but has been neglected throughout much of world except in parts of Borneo and is still thriving in Brunei. The sauce was one of the more intense flavors that I have ever come across in my life. Try to imagine this; cream of fermented mushroom soup blended with a super shrimp paste, mixed with pickled sour ginger, and doused with a dash of vodka, just enough for a sharp bite. I was left speachless at the mercy of the powerful cacah binjai and loved every bite of super pungent excitement.
Much like a durian buffet, an ambuyat feast in Brunei is an imperative move for a gourmet guru.
[smartads]
-Migration Mark
Looks interesting…sort of like a translucent Poi. Liking the shirt!
I hope you’re not too hungry when you’re trying t eat this. It looks like a lot of effort! Definitely worth a try. I’m curious about the taste.
Your eyes were hilarious when you had the sour stuff. They went very wide:) It looks like a fun dish to eat.
@Paulo – actually translucent poi is a pretty accurate texture and flavor!
@Corinne – Ha, yah, It takes a bit of time to get started eating it, but then the paste is extremely filling. I could barely move afer eating that entire bowl with a friend!
@Dave and Deb – Yah, it really is one of the more interesting dishes I’ve ever had!
I have definitely never heard of this dish before. And is fermented sour cream supposed to be a good thing???
The thing that you need to know on how to eat Ambuyat is that, you don’t need to chew it, instead you swallow it!
@Earl: hehe, as long as they consider it a delicacy, eating is surely a good thing!
@Nayen: That is very true. I think you just need to salivate it slightly until it slides down!