The Fascinating Story of the Indonesian Rijsttafel

This colonial-era culinary experience did not originate where you think

Lithograph after an original work by Rappard, The Rice Table. Photo Tropenmuseum, part of the National Museum of World Cultures

The fascinating thing about the Indonesian rijsttafel is that it isn’t Indonesian at all: it is a Dutch invention.

Indonesian food is involved, of course, but the construct is a product of colonial Holland, which ruled Indonesia — calling it the Dutch East Indies — for more than 350 years.

Because yes, initially the Dutch colonists avoided the sweet and pungent local dishes, preferring to import their own fruit trees and bushes and seeds and even livestock.

This was initially a male-only duty station of plantation managers and government administrators whose families stayed back home. Over time the men grew accustomed to the foods prepared by the single ladies who cared for their culinary — and other matters.

But then something happened that would change food (not to mention world) history: the Suez Canal opened.

Once unable to undertake the lengthy journey and face the dangers of an unknown land, families began heading for the colonies and wives joined their husbands, bringing along their native foods and…