Traditional Papua Tuna Dish Sought After by Tourists

14 March 2023 03:14

When visiting Jayapura in Papua, one culinary experience not to be missed is the local tuna dishes. Tuna grilled with coconut oil and a good coating of Papua's traditional herbs and spices will be an unforgettable experience.

Grilled tuna breast is a must-try culinary experience, when visiting Jayapura, Papua. The fresh tuna, covered in Papua's signature spices is then grilled with coconut oil.

The aroma of the tuna combined with the coconut oil and spices are really inviting. After grilling, the tuna is then served with four different variations of sambal, a traditional Indonesian chili paste. It's served with manggo sambal, tomato-based sambal, hand-grind sambal and rica sambal.

The 4 different types of sambal really adds a certain umami factor to the tuna dish. A portion of grilled tuna at this local restaurant goes for Rp40 thousand. Meanwhile a portion of tuna jaw will set you back around 50-120 thousand per portion depending on the size of the tuna jaw selected.

The tuna dish is not only popular with the locals, but it's now increasingly sought after by tourists visiting Jayapura.