Ayana chef I Made Juliartha instructs on the finer points of national treasure. [Photo by Judith huang/Shanghai Star]

Stirring up color and crunch

Nothing beats a thoroughly enjoyable culinary experience on an island holiday. You can eat, or you can cook, as Judith Huang tries to do.

On the Indonesian island of Bali, the food is complex, spicy, and very colorful. From rich red chilli pastes to fragrant peanut sauces, from crunchy prawn cract.kers to deliciously moist cakes, it is multiple tastes and textures with every bite.

This feast for the senses can be taken home after you board your flights back, if you learn how to.

At Ayana Resort and Spa's Padi restaurant, a local chef will teach you how to recreate some of the delectable dishes at home.

Few would dispute that Gado-Gado is one of the best-loved national dishes of Indonesia. As such, Balinese chef I Made Juliartha taught us how to make the country's signature tossed vegetable salad with peanut dressing.

In a thatched pavilion facing the ocean, the colorful ingredients are laid out in little wooden bowls on the table. The sea breeze is refreshing, and we are welcomed with a special fruit juice served in the husks of young coconuts. Juliartha gives us each an apron and chef's hat as well as a notepad and a copy of the recipes.

The ingredients for the Gado-Gado gleam in their little bowls.