Murdijati Gardjito Dedicated to Researching the Cuisines of ‘Nusantara’

KOMPAS/FERGANATA INDRA RIATMOKO

Murdijati Gardjito

For decades, Murdijati Gardjito, 81, has been dedicated to researching Indonesia’s culinary traditions. She has written more than 70 books, mostly about the cuisines of Nusantara (Indonesian archipelago). At her advanced age, Murdijati is still enthusiastic about sharing her knowledge to promote traditional Indonesian foods.

Murdijati has been teaching since 1966 at the Faculty of Agricultural Engineering (FTP) of Gadjah Mada University (UGM) in Yogyakarta. In 2007, she was named Professor of Food Science and Engineering of FTP UGM. Besides teaching, Murdijati has also been a diligent researcher and author.

Murdijati has long been researching traditional foods since the UGM Center for Traditional Food Studies (PKMT) opened in 1996. That year, the government requested six higher education institutes, including UGM, to establish research centers on traditional foods.

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“At the time, the government noticed that Indonesia’s food system had to be strengthened. One element to fortify our food system is traditional foods,” Murdijati said when visited at her residence in Yogyakarta on Friday (14/4/2023).

According to Murdijati, literature about Indonesian dishes was still very rare at the time. Even most of the textbooks used at FTP UGM were filled with foreign cuisines, especially from developed countries.

The situation prompted Murdijati and several other lecturers at FTP UGM to research Indonesian traditional foods, primarily focusing on the cultural aspects as requested by the government.

“UGM at the time was asked to direct the research on culture. It was intended to deeply root the development of traditional foods,” said Murdijati, who was the head of the PKMT UGM in 2003-2007.

KOMPAS/FERGANATA INDRA RIATMOKO

A number of books by culinary expert Murdijati Gardjito at the author's residence in the Kemetiran area, Yogyakarta, Friday (14/4/2023).

With her activities at PKMT UGM, she later received frequent invitations from government institutions as a speaker or reference source in relation to regional traditional foods. One day, the Tuban regency administration in East Java asked her to research that region’s traditional foods.

To facilitate the study, Murdijati asked the Tuban administration to organize a culinary festival featuring the various traditional dishes of Tuban. She then wrote a book, Pesona Tuban: Irama Nikmatnya Masakan (Tuban’s charm: The rhythm of delicious cuisine, 2004), documenting the different dishes in the regency.

“It was the first book I wrote,” she said.

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Murdijati received a growing number of similar requests. From Lamongan regency, she wrote a book in 2007 called Makanan Khas Nusantara Kabupaten Lamongan (The Nusantara food of Lamongan regency).

Murdijati continued to write books about the traditional cuisines of several regions, including Citarasa dan Keragaman Tradisi Kuliner Banten (The Flavor and Variety of Benten’s Culinary Tradition, 2010), Menu Favorit Para Raja: Potret Kekayaan Kuliner Yogyakarta “Kersanan Ndalem” (The king’s favorite dishes: Portrait of the culinary wealth of Yogyakarta’s “royal palate”, 2010), and Serba-serbi Tumpeng: Tumpeng dalam Kehidupan Masyarakat Jawa(Variety of tumpeng: Yellow rice cones in the life of Javanese people, 2010). She also penned many books with other authors.

Mountains of documents

From 2003, Murdijati started gathering data on Nusantara foods with the assistance of several parties. One of the methods used to collect data was to distribute questionnaires to UGM students, asking them for information on the cuisines and dishes in their hometowns. In exchange, they were given free meal vouchers for a restaurant close to the university.

Murdijati also gathered data from various government institutions and cultural organizations. “I have collected cookbooks written by well-known people,” she revealed.

KOMPAS/HARIS FIRDAUS

Professor of Food Science and Technology at Gadjah Mada University (UGM) Murdijati Gardjito spoke at the launch of three books about Indonesian snacks, Thursday (30/3/2023), at the UGM Faculty of Agricultural Technology campus, Sleman Regency, Special Region of Yogyakarta..

The data collection lasted until 2012 and amassed a great number of documents. Murdijati even said the documents reached a height of 169 centimeters. “The documents are taller than my body,” she added.

With the huge quantity of documents accumulated, Murdijati was confused about how to compile the information systematically. Fortunately, some students helped her make a computer program to sort the data.

She said the web-based software had taken up to two years to develop because sorting the data took a long time. After the program was ready, she began to group the foods by region. Each region had a particular culinary characteristic.

“I have divided Indonesia into 34 culinary regions,” Murdijati said.

The documents are taller than my body.

According to her grouping, there are 11 culinary regions in Java, nine culinary regions in Sumatra, six in Sulawesi, three in Kalimantan, and one culinary region eacj in Bali, West Nusa Tenggara, East Nusa Tenggara, Papua and Maluku.

The results of her research was complied in the book, Profil Struktur, Bumbu, dan Bahan dalam Kuliner Indonesia (Profile of structures, seasonings and ingredients in Indonesian cuisine, 2017). Murdijati views the book as an important milestone in research on Indonesian cuisines, as it presents a systematic classification of the diverse dishes found in Nusantara. Later, Murdijati turned out two volumes on Indonesian gastronomy, so she is often referred to as the pioneer of Indonesian gastronomy.

She carried on with her scholarly pursuits by publishing the 15-book series, Pusaka Cita Rasa Indonesia (Legacy of Indonesian flavors). In the series, she groups dishes into different types, such as main courses, complete meals, and beverages, as well as complementary and auxiliary foods. All 15 books were written between 2014 and 2019. However, not all volumes have been published, with some volumes still waiting to be printed. Among the Pusaka Cita Rasa Indonesia series that have been published are three books about Nusantara snacks.

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Pusaka Cita Rasa Indonesia is practically Murdijati’s magnum opus, as the series represents her decades-long research in a comprehensive manner. Meanwhile, writing the books was not easy because Murdijati has had a visual impairment since 2015. But with the help of several assistants, she managed to finish the great work.

Now at the age of 80, Murdijati still speaks at in various forums and provides guidance to both students and researchers. She wants to continue sharing her knowledge so that the people will develop greater love for Indonesian foods.

Murdijati Gardjito

Born:Yogyakarta, 21 March 1942

Education: Doctoral degree at Gadjah Mada University (class of 1999)

Occupation:

- Professor (retired), Faculty of Agricultural Engineering, Gadjah Mada University

- Author and researcher of Indonesian traditional foods

Awards, including:

- Model Woman II Award 2021 from the Foodbank of Indonesia (2021)

- Gadjah Mada University Award (2019)

- Lifetime Achievement Award, Ubud Food Festival (2019)

- Certificate of Merit from the Government of the Republic of Indonesia as a researcher, conserver and developer of Indonesian culinary arts (2013)

- Certificate of Merit from the Governor of Yogyakarta for achievements and services in conserving traditional foods (2011)

This article was translated by Aris Prawira.