One day in early December, when the sun beat down and the air of Jakarta filled with nonsense. I took off from the train and walking down on the railway platform. The green checkmark flashing lightly when I’m tapping my single-trip card into an exit gate. I don’t know why, but I feel excited every time I see that green checkmark flashing. It feels like I’ve completed a big mission… call me delusional, but I’ve conquered my fear.
I took a taxi from Sudirman station into one of the luxury shopping centres in Jakarta business district. I arrived by taxi as the day drifted into an afternoon, it just a mere 12 minutes from train station.
So here I am now, standing outside BAM! Tapas-Sake Bar. I came for “Chocolate Discoveries” class held by Pipiltin Cocoa in conjunction with BAM! Tapas-Sake Bar Jakarta. A waitstaff pointed toward the bar as I asked where the class held.
Chocolate Discoveries with Pipiltin Cocoa at BAM!
BAM! is conveniently sited on the 3rd floor of Plaza Indonesia. This modern Spanish-Japanese restaurant is an ideal place to unwind for a moment from the bustling city of Jakarta. Situated on the front left of the restaurant, the bar is appropriately geared for the guests who want to watch the chef prepare the meal.
Inside the restaurant, a handful of Chocolate Discovery participants gathers in a bar restaurant. Tissa Aunilla as a founder of Pipiltin Cocoa lead the class, she gave a short insight into Indonesian chocolate and the difference between compound and couverture chocolate.
“You can find the difference between compound and couverture chocolate by how the chocolate melts when it’s in your mouth,” says Tissa Aunila. Couverture chocolate will immediately melt once you put it into your mouth while compound chocolate you will have to chew it.
Pipiltin Cocoa
Pipiltin Cocoa is a bean to bar chocolate factory based in Jakarta. They use selected good quality cocoa bean from several regions in Indonesia. In this class, we trained our palate through a blind tasting session. After tasting 4 types of Pipiltin Cocoa pure chocolate bars, we identified the chocolate and filled the paper with our answers. Here’s the list of chocolate we tasted that day;
Pidie Jaya Aceh- short period drying process & humid climate helps the beans to have tobacco and spices aftertaste. A good choice for high intense chocolaty taste.
Tanazozo Flores- the combination of multi-crop and dry soil with a blend of sand and limestone gives its own unique character to the taste. As a result, the chocolate gives medium intense chocolate with orange-like acidity & coffee aftertaste.
Tabanan Bali- traditional fermentation process enables the complex fruity and berry-like flavour vividly exposed during the first chew. The sensation of caramel like and medium intense chocolate is revealing and slowly guides to finish.
Chocolate Inspiration Food
After the blind tasting session participants watching in anticipation as Chef Arturo begins to prepare the dishes. First up on the Chocolate Discoveries menu is Beef Tongue, Salad, Figs with Pipiltin Cocoa’s Flores Cacao Nibs. Soft and tender slow-cooked beef tongue paired beautifully with mixed salad, and pickles nutmeg.
Proof of Arturo’s refreshingly unpretentious approach to cooking was in the manner he cooks and the ingredients that he used. He wants the best ingredients in his kitchen but he’s not afraid to explore the local source.
As we enjoyed our Beef Tongue, Chef Arturo was busy with his Pacojet machine. For the dessert, it was Chocolate Tabanan Bali, Pear and Yuzu. These two dishes really showed how creativity, good quality ingredients, and cross-cultural influence can provide a winning taste.
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