Layers of Tradition: The Enduring Legacy of Martabak in Indonesian Cuisine
A 1921 film about Merapi showcases a market scene in a town in Central Java. The film depicts people selling a variety of items: Javanese vendors offering birds and umbrellas, Indians peddling jewelry, and street vendors selling lemonade and krupuk (crackers). Additionally, one seller is seen preparing a type of pancake — martabak.
The cook poured a dough mixture into a pan, and cooked it. After the pancake became brown, the cook folded it in half and flipped it. This method is still used today in the preparation of what is known as martabak manis.
Martabak had existed since colonial times.
Martabak was mentioned in a book by Moehamad Moessa in 1863, Tjarita Abdurahman Djeng Abdoerahim, as a food taken with honey and coffee. In Soendaneesch-Hollandsch woordenboek by Geerdink published in 1875, martabak was described as a kind of flour paste, an Arabic pastry.
In the 1930 Soendanese dictionary, Martabak was defined:
MARTABAK (Arabic, from ‘moetabbak’, meaning consisting of layers), a pastry made from a stack of thin pancakes, between each pair of which something (cheese, sugar, etc.) is placed.
It appears the two types of martabak as currently used, is also being used since colonial time: martabak manis and martabak telor.
Martabak manis is the sweet pancake as we saw in the film abaout Merapi. It was usually sprinkled with sugar, condensed milk, cheese or chocolate. In Malaysia, it is called Apam Balik. In some parts of Indonesia (Makassar and Bangka) it is called Terang Bulan or full moon (due to its shape). There is an unverified claim that the pancake came from Hokkien Ban Jian Kuih.
martabak manis is more popular among women. They are those thick, fluffy omelets, smeared with condensed milk and jelly, enough to give a normal set of teeth raging toothache (De nieuwsgier 04–07–1951).
Martabak telor or egg martabak is derived from Arabic cuisine. It is called Murtabak in Malaysia, which involves pan-fried bread with eggs filled with vegetables or meat. Curiously it also blends with the Indian roti canai, and in Indonesia, it used to be sold by Indian and called Martabak India. The current Martabak is an Indian tradition.
The martabak telor is a hearty omelette with meat and vegetable filling, indeed a heavenly dish, nice and hot from the griddle, spicy and fragrant (De nieuwsgier 04–07–1951).
Martabak may have evolved over time, but this glimpse into the past invites us to appreciate how food serves as a bridge between generations, carrying the flavours and stories of a culture through the ages.