Experience the Wonders of NTB: Dodol Rumput Laut

If we mention the name of Lombok, then our minds would imply the traditional foods. Ayam taliwang, pelecing kangkung, beberuk, and so forth. In addition to these heavy foods, can also be found in Lombok a typical snack Dodol rumput laut. Dodol rumput laut is an icon food souvenirs from the island of Lombok. Dodol a chewy texture, a bit tough on the teeth, and sweet and sour on the tongue. It feels different kinds of fruits and vegetables. Like the flavor of soursop, watermelon, jackfruit, squash, tomatoes, and others.

Raw material consists only of seaweed and processed into seaweed flour and sugar mixed fruits that are still fresh. These foods contain fiber and carbohydrates that are suitable for dessert after lunch, dinner, or when there is a party. There are also candied seaweed that feels like jelly, but even harder with a variety of colors such as yellow, green, and red. But it was almost as sweet and chewy on the tongue for all colors.

Different dodol and candied seaweed is its shape. Dodol elongated box-shaped almost entirely by hand thumb. While candied seaweed round, triangular and hibiscus leaves. A variety of packaging ranging from bamboo baskets, jars of mica, and paper boxes. Price lunkhead in a paper box from Rp 10,000 to Rp 15,000 per box weighing about 200 grams.

The most unique packaging of the material bamboo is set up in the box with various flavors. It is suitable for souvenirs at the office because of the unique packaging and the price per package of between Rp 75,000 to Rp 150,000. Another souvenir from Lombok food is like the ting-ting cashews, salted egg is placed in a unique round bamboo basket, Sumbawa honey, cashew nuts, crackers cow leather, candied fruit and dried.

To make this seaweed product lunkhead, must follow several steps. The stages will be outlined as follows:

A. Washing and Cleaning
Seaweed washed with fresh water until clean. Dirt such as sand, rocks, mud and other types of seaweed removed. Once clean, soaking and bleaching done.

B. Soaking and bleaching
Soaking is done so that the seaweed becomes soft, so the process of making dodol will be running properly. The trick seaweed soaked in pure water as much as 20 times the weight of seaweed for 3 days. After the bleaching is done by soaking in a chlorine solution of 0.25% or 5% solution of calcium oxide with stirring, after 4-6 hours, seaweed washed again for 3 hours to remove the smell of chlorine. Seaweed that has been clean and pale dried for 2 days, until this stage of seaweed can be saved first if not immediately treated. After soaking and bleaching done to softening.

C. softdning
To further facilitate the manufacture of lunkhead, the cell wall needs to be broken down by plus H2SO4 for 15 minutes. The amount of H2SO4 depending on the type of seaweed, Gracilaria is 5-10%. Gelidium 15% and Hypnea 25%. If there is no sulfuric acid, can be used acetic acid, citric acid, fruit acids or acid leaves. Because sulfuric acid is dangerous, it is necessary to wash with a seaweed soaked in water for 15 minutes and then drained. After that, the seaweed is cooked until done.

D. concoction
Cooked seaweed in the water as much as 40 times the weight of seaweed. After boiling (90-100 C), we add 0.5% acetic acid to obtain pH 6-7. If> 7, the pH was lowered by the addition of vinegar and if <6, was added NaOH. PH probe can be carried out using pH paper. Heating is carried out about 45 minutes but it can also for 2-4 hours depending on how stirring. After the cooking process depending on the desired final shape lunkhead, namely in the form of bars, sheets or flour. After that, enter the processing lunkhead. E. Processing Dodol 1. Pressing and printing The results of the cooking and then filtered with calico cloth and pressed. Accommodated in the discharge vessel and neutralized by adding soda water so the pH to 7 to 7.5. When the pH is reached, the fluid is then cooked again with stirring. After boiling, the result is poured into molds, approximately 6 hours lunkhead's cold and frozen. Pressing the pulp can be used again by adding water as much as 75% of the amount of water initially, then the residue was heated and filtered. Discharge can be used as a mixture in the process, so that ultimately there is no residue that can be used again. These residues can be used as fodder. 2. refrigeration Liquids that have been frozen in a refrigerated cool room temperature - 20 C for 4-5 days. Cooling is done so that compaction actually occurs perfectly so that the products have good quality. 3. drying for the drying process, which has been cooled lunkhead removed from the mold. The results obtained are lunkhead bars. When cooled lunkhead-shaped sheets, bars lunkhead cut 0.5 cm thick. As the cutting tool can be used fine steel wire, rod or sheet lunkhead then dried. 4. packing Lunkhead who really dry put in a plastic box with a weight of 200 grams each. Materials used to make paper lunkhead of a kind of seaweed Grasilaria sp. In the process of manufacture, seaweed is washed thoroughly with fresh water, then soaked in lime water. After 20 minutes, dried in the sun wearing of gauze pads. Long drying can be only one day, but it can also up to 3 days, depending on the intensity of the sun. The principle of seaweed to dry completely. From the description above, we certainly can not wait to come to Lombok and buying good lunkhead seaweed used as a souvenir as well as his own consumption. People who come and buy this lunkhead always wanted to come back to buy it because of good taste and quality. Typical lunkhead in Lombok is different from the lunkhead seaweed elsewhere. Although the way of making the same, but this lunkhead Lombok typically do not use preservatives that are safe for health. With low glucose content, lunkhead is also safe for people who suffer from diabete disease. Besides that, the seaweed products are made also in the form of gelatin. Besides a lot of flavor, the texture of soft gelatin makes the audience more addictive and do not want to stop to eat. Therefore, do not waste your chance for a trip to Lombok and enjoy a variety of culinary, culinary delights and typically very well take home a souvenir of his trademark lunkhead seaweed and other typical foods.