Version from South Sulawesi, Indonesia
Kapurung — South Sulawesi, Indonesia
Kapurung is a South Sulawesi soup built on chewy sago dumplings served in a sour, spicy vegetable broth with fish or chicken.
- 20 min
- Prep
- 30 min
- Cook
- 4
- Servings
- Medium
- Difficulty
Kapurung is a sago-based soup reported particularly from Luwu Regency and Palopo in South Sulawesi, also found among Bugis communities in Tawau, Malaysia, and in Makassar.
It is eaten across South Sulawesi and was carried by Bugis migrants to parts of Malaysia; it usually serves as a substantial one-bowl meal.
To prepare it, sago flour is scalded with boiling water and stirred vigorously until it forms a translucent, chewy mass, which is shaped into small lumps. The lumps are eaten by scooping them up together with the broth and vegetables in a single spoonful, rather than chewed on their own. A broth is built separately from fish or chicken with tamarind, chili, tomato and vegetables such as corn, long beans, eggplant and spinach. The sago lumps are added to the broth along with crushed roasted peanuts and a squeeze of lime before serving.
The sago's chewy, slightly springy texture is the dish's defining element, setting it apart from clear or rice-based soups of the wider region; the exact vegetable mix and the choice between fish and chicken vary by household and by what is locally available.
Preparation
Pour the boiling water gradually into the sago flour, stirring constantly until it turns into a translucent, chewy mass.
Shape the sago mass into small lumps using two spoons or wet hands, then set aside.
Bring the water or broth to a boil and add the fish or chicken.
Stir in the strained tamarind water, chilies and tomatoes.
Add the corn, long beans and eggplant, and simmer until the vegetables are tender.
Stir in the spinach and cook briefly until wilted.
Add the sago lumps to the broth and warm them through.
Ladle into bowls, scatter with crushed peanuts and finish with lime juice.
