 The term 'lilit' in Balinese and in Indonesian means "to wrap". The wider surface allows the minced meat to adhere. | |
| Course | Main course or appetizer |
|---|---|
| Place of origin | Indonesia |
| Region or state | Bali and Nationwide in Indonesia, also popular inSoutheast Asia |
| Serving temperature | Hot |
| Main ingredients | Minced meat (pork, chicken, fish or beef) spiced and wrapped around bamboo or lemongrass stick, and grilled over charcoal. |
Sate lilit (Aksara Bali:ᬲᬢᬾᬮᬶᬮᬶᬢ᭄) is asatay variant inIndonesia, originating fromBalinese cuisine.[1] This satay is made from mincedpork,fish,chicken,beef, or eventurtle meat, which is then mixed with gratedcoconut, thickcoconut milk, lemon juice,shallots, and pepper. The spiced minced meat is wound aroundbamboo,sugar cane orlemongrass sticks, it is then grilled on charcoal. Unlike skewers of other satay recipes which is made narrow and sharp, the bamboo skewer of sate lilit is flat and wide. This wider surface allowed the minced meat to stick and settle. The termlilit inBalinese andIndonesian means "to wrap around", which corresponds to its making method to wrapping around instead of skewering the meat.
As aHindu majority island, the Balinese authentic version prefer pork and fish over other meat,[1] and beef is originally seldom consumed inBali. However, to cater to larger consumer groups that do not consume pork, such as the IndonesianMuslim majority, in Balinese restaurants outside of Bali, sate lilit often uses chicken or beef instead. In Balinese fishing towns, such as the village of Kusamba, which faces the Nusa Penida Strait, sate lilit made from minced fish is favoured.[2]
Two of the favorite satay variants in Bali are sate lilit, andsate ikan (fish satay). Although there are sate lilit recipes made with minced fish,sate ikan uses a chunk of fish meat instead. The authentic Balinese sate lilit and sate ikan are rich inbumbu, a mixture of spices and herbs. In Bali, almost every dish is flavored withbumbu megenep — a mix of spices and herbs ranging from lime leaves, to coconut milk, garlic, shallots, blue galangal, coriander, lesser galangal, turmeric and chili pepper.[3]
