I don't know who invented meatball, but this food is very popular among Indonesian. Meatball, made of chopped meat which made into a ball, as big as a ping pong ball. Of course to enrich the flavor some spices are added iwth the meat dough. Then it is boiled, or steamed i'm not quite sure with the meat broth. To serve, noodle is put in a bowl, then 5-6 meatball go with the noodle and then extra soup (from the meat broth). Fried shallot is added too with sliced onion leaves. Oh no..just writing about it made me drooling already..yummy
Meatball brings me a lot of memories, from my childhood to my womanhood.. When i was a child, whenever i went to my grandparent's house, my grandparents always spoiled me by buying me and my sister meatball. When we took a nap, my grandpa would bought two bowls of meatball, which was the best meatball at that time, and put them on the dining table. Later he will woke us up at about 4 p.m maybe half an hour after he bought and told us tyo have our meatball. I still remember that the seller name is Pak Ndut (The fat man). Somehow i can still remember the taste.It's nice.
(Silvana)
When i was in elementary school until junior high, my family always spend our dining time in Bakso Pak Man or Bakso Remaja in my hometown Mojokerto. I couldn't remember well bakso Pak Man. What i remember was at that time the seller didn't have any electricity in his foodstall, so he used traditional lamp powered by kerosene. Bakso Remaja was my favorite. The seller sold es campur too. Es campur is mix fruit, sliced bread, and other ingredients served with chocolate milk and coconut milk with ice topping). What i remember very well from Bakso Remaja is i used to eat two bowls of meatball at once with my mother. When i got the second rank in my junior high, my mother conratulated me by buying me two bowls of meatball instead of one. And i could finish them haha.. I really miss her a lot. I remember her many times i eat meatball. The memories are irreplaceable.
When i was in college, bakso Sayang accross SMAN 2 Surabaya was my favorite. A friend took me there and it was the best meatball i'd eaten at that time. Unfortunately i don't know where the seller moved due to the food stalls resettlement program done by the local municipality. The last time i ate was maybe in 2005.
And now in my adulthood i ate meatball anywhere. To me meatball is a simple food but tasteful. Every seller has its specialty. To name some in Surabaya I've tried Bakso Sayang (reviewed), Bakso Tanjung Anom (near SMPN 4), Bakso Rasa Sayang (Jl. Ciliwung), Bakso Kotak (Yani Golf), Bakso Kalidami, Bakso Kota Cak Man, Bakso Pak Djo (Petra Manyar), and almost all bakso in my neighborhood. The ones mentioned are popular. You can just asked people and most people know where the sellers are. Some suit my taste, some don't. Some are pricey and some are at reasonable price. Dare to try?
