Serabi

Serabi,surabi,orsrabiis a traditionalBali–Javasnack, similar to apancake, made of arice flour-based batter withcoconut milk or coconut creamand shreddedcoconutas anemulsifier. Most traditionalserabitastes sweet, as these pancake-like desserts are usually eaten withkinca, a golden-browncoconut sugarsyrup in the Sundanese culinary tradition.
However, another savoury version also existed that uses fermentedoncomtoppings. Different provinces in Indonesia have their ownserabirecipes corresponding to local tastes.
The history ofserabiis unknown, but these traditional snacks are commonly served as an offering in Javanese folk religion rituals as a symbol of gratitude towards God or local deities of Java. This cultural tradition, still in practice, is calledSerabhienamong the Pandalungan village community (theMadureseof Javanese descent) inBondowoso(eastern Java), calledSerabi Kocoramong the Javanese community inYogyakarta(southern Java),and called theSerabi Likuranamong the Javanese community inPemalang(central Java).
Originating inJava,the popularity ofserabihas spread to neighbouring islands, especiallyBali, (srabi) in Balinese. This spread was due to Javanese migration, notably during theMajapahitera (14th–16th century) when western coastal Balinese adopted the food as an 'offering snack for the gods' in their localBalinese Hindurituals. During the 17th century, when the Dutch colonized Java (and other Indonesian regions in general),serabiand alsodadar gulung(rolled coconut pancake) became colloquially known as theJavaans pannenkoek(lit.'Javanese pancake' inDutch) due to its shape, which resembles thepannenkoek(Dutch pancake). However, theSuriname Javanesecommunity in South America still uses the termJavaans pannenkoekto refer toserabi,dadar gulung, and similar traditional Javanese pancake-like snacks.
The most basic traditionalserabionly employsbattermade from rice flour, coconut milk, and coconut sugar, cooked on a small earthenware frying pan on charcoal fire. Sometimespandan leafjuice is added into this batter mixture to add aroma and a greenish color. During the cooking process, sometimes toppings are added to the batter.
Today, a large variants ofserabitoppings are used, from a simple sprinkle ofsugar, grated coconut flesh, coarsely groundpeanuts, to slices ofbananaorjackfruit, chocolatesprinkles, blackglutinous rice, andoncom.Newer recipes use gratedcheddar cheese,corned beef, shredded chicken, slices of freshstrawberryorsausage, or evenstrawberry ice cream. Thesauce(or more preciselysyrup) to accompany serabi also varies, from the traditional sweetkinca(golden coconut sugar syrup) sometimes with coconut milk, to modern recipes using chocolate, strawberry, orduriansyrup, or evenmayonnaiseorcream cheesefor a savoury Western twist.
Both the cities ofBandungandSoloare famous for their versions ofserabi. Bandungsurabiis drier and firmer with a pancake-like consistency, well known for a rich variety of toppings and recently developed fusion recipes. Theserabifrom Solo, however, is more traditional and only half-cooked resulting in a thin, crispy crust but a watery center with rich coconut milk taste. A famousserabivariant from Solo is calledserabi notosuman.
InAmbarawa,serabiis served with a sweet coconut milk soup and is known asserabi ngampin.
InSemarang, a dish calledbubur serabiinvolves abubur sumsum(Javanese pudding) with some small serabi doused with coconut milk and liquid brown sugar. It is served in a bowl made from banana leaves.