There are many Javanese specialties that need to be recognized one by one and even preserved and used as daily food, one of which is a traditional food called tiwul. Many Javanese today may not know tiwul, because of the rapid development of contemporary food and many cultural influences from outside. But what is the history of this food called tiwul?
Tiwul is a traditional Indonesian food that used to be a staple substitute for rice, as reported by Wikipedia. Tiwul is made from cassava, which is cassava that has been dried and steamed. There are still many people from the Wonosobo, Gunungkidul, Wonogiri, Pacitan and Blitar areas who currently consume tiwul even though it is no longer a staple food.
It is not known exactly when tiwul was made, but tiwul was the staple food of most Javanese people during the Japanese colonial period. At that time, proper food ingredients such as rice rice were very difficult to find and could not be bought, in the end the people looked for other food ingredients to replace rice.
Because the easiest garden product to plant and harvest without requiring special care is cassava, various cassava-based food preparations have emerged, including tiwul. Cassava was not only very cheap and easy to obtain at that time, but also stored for a very long time and was filling. Even some foods made from cassava that have been dried, dried and moldy are called gatots. Therefore, cassava became the only main food ingredient at that time.
Cassava has lower calories than rice but has more fiber, so it will fill you up for a long time. Currently there are still many who sell cassava flour or tiwul flour on the market, you can also use tapioca flour if you want to make it.
So, that’s the history of tiwul. Tiwul is more savory if you add grated coconut, can be processed by adding a little salt if you want it to be tasty, or adding sugar if you want it to be a sweet snack.
Source : wikipedia