Food from Palembang "Pempek"

Pempek, mpek-mpek or empek-empek is a delicacy from Palembang made of fish and tapioca. Pempek is served with yellow noodles and a dark, rich sweet and sour sauce called cuka or cuko (lit. vinegar) and sprinkled with ebi (dried shrimp) powder. Kuah Cuko is produced by adding brown sugar, chili pepper, garlic, vinegar, and salt to boiling water.
Pempek Kapal Selam and Kriting in Kuah Cuko.

There are many varieties of pempek. One of the most famous[citation needed] types is the kapal selam (Indonesian: "submarine"), which is made from a chicken egg wrapped within the pempek dough and then deep-fried. Scientists[citation needed] say that the pempek kapal selam, being high in vitamin, protein, mineral, and carbohydrate content, is the most nutritious variety. Other varieties include pempek telur kecil (lit. small egg pempek), pempek keriting (lit. curly pempek), pempek pistel (lit. pistol pempek), pempek kulit ikan (lit. fish-skin pempek), pempek adaan, pempek lenjer, and pempek tahu (lit. tofu pempek).

According to legend, around 1617 there was an old Chinese Man who lived near Musi river. He noticed an abundance of fish caught by the local fishermen. The indigenous people, however did not know how to cook the fish properly. During that period, most of the indigenous people simply fried their fish instead of adding in other ingredients to make new dishes. The old Chinese Man mixed in some tapioca and other spices, which he then sold around the village on his bicycle. The people referred to this old man as 'pek-apek, where apek is a Chinese slang word for an old man. The food is known today as empek-empek or pempek.

As a local staple, pempek can be commonly found on every street in Palembang, although the most famous outlets[citation needed] can be found on Jalan Slamet Riyadi. Numerous pempek sellers and producers in Palembang use a cheaper combination of fish, which has a strong scent. The best pempek are made of belido fish and are usually more expensive.[citation needed]

Pempek can also be found in other regions, especially in major cities in Indonesia. But, the taste of pempek found in other regions is usually different to pempek from Palembang, because the ingredients differ. The same ingredients, like fish and flour are scarce or difficult to find in other regions, causing the taste difference. Sometimes pempek in Bangka Island are made from mackerel (tenggiri), while in Jakarta or other cities they could be made from gurami fish.