A Taste of Home in Bali: How One Spice Bridges Cultures and Comfort

June 30, 2025

Sometimes it’s the smallest things that taste the most like home… Keens Curry Powder – bright yellow, with that unmistakeable scent – showed up in my suitcase on my last trip back to Australia (Thanks Mum!). It’s not exactly traditional curry, and definitely not what you’d find in a Balinese or Indonesian dish… but it is the flavour of childhood dinners, curried sausages, or those creamy chicken dishes from the ‘throw-it-in-the-pot-and-hope-for-the-best’ nights back in Australia. Living here in Bali, our spice rack has grown to include sambal, lemongrass, turmeric, galangal, and more – the flavours are different, vibrant, and full of depth. But sometimes, a sprinkle of Keens in a dish brings that warm sense of familiarity – a hug in a bowl, if you will. It’s not about choosing one or the other. It’s about finding that balance between embracing the new and holding on to the comforting flavours that remind you of where you came from. And tonight? Tonight was a Keens curry kind of night. #TasteOfHome #BaliWithKids #FamilyMealsInBali #AussieInBali #BaliFamilyFinds #KeensCurryMagic #ComfortFoodAbroad

Sometimes, it’s the smallest things—the scent of a familiar spice, a childhood recipe remembered—that root you to home, no matter how far you’ve travelled. For us, living in Bali with our young family, that little spark of nostalgia comes in a bright yellow tin: Keens Curry Powder. It’s not particularly exotic. It’s not Balinese. But the moment that warm, heady aroma hits the pan, I’m transported back to family dinners in Australia—curried sausages bubbling on the stove, creamy chicken curry over soft rice, the sort of meals born more out of love than recipes. That Keens punch? It’s pure comfort. Since moving to Bali, our kitchen has evolved. Sambal now accompanies most meals, lime leaves and galangal have earned a permanent spot in the fridge, and fresh turmeric stains more chopping boards than I can count. These flavours are bold, beautiful, and woven deep into the culture here. We adore them. But every so often, when a homesick hour hits or we just need something cozy and uncomplicated, we reach for that tin. A teaspoon here, a sprinkling there—suddenly our Balinese paradise becomes just a bit more like home. Tonight was one of those nights. As the sun dipped into the rice paddies, the kitchen filled with the scent of Keens, and our family sat down to a dish that was both somewhere new and somewhere familiar. It’s not about choosing between the spices of Indonesia and the tastes of Australia—it’s about creating a home that bridges the two. #TasteOfHome #BaliWithKids #FamilyMealsInBali #AussieInBali #BaliFamilyFinds #KeensCurryMagic #ComfortFoodAbroad

#TasteOfHome#BaliWithKids#FamilyMealsInBali#AussieInBali#BaliFamilyFinds#KeensCurryMagic#ComfortFoodAbroad