Spicy encounter

Sweet. Salty. Hot as fire. Whatever your taste, Indonesia's cuisine offers an array of flavors to explore. Mike Peters chows down for a savory buffet.

Often when a country observes a big political anniversary, the focus is heavy with speeches and deal signings and other formalities. Indonesia, a land of more than 13,000 islands and 300-plus ethnic cultures, is marking its 65th anniversary of diplomatic relations with China by feasting for several days in Beijing.

Diverse geography and centuries of sea trading have produced a world of good eating, says Indonesian chef Budiyana Ramelan, who leads a team of chefs from the Kempinski Jakarta that's cooking up the ongoing Indonesia Food Festival in China's capital. "It's not all hot spicy," he says. "In Java, much of our food is sweet. In Sumatra, it's famously hot. Other Indonesian dishes are salty, or some combination with different layers of taste.