Babi Guling: Bali's Famous Spit-Roasted Suckling Pig (2026)
Discover Babi Guling, Bali's iconic spit-roasted suckling pig stuffed with base genep spices. A home-style recipe with ingredients, method and serving tips.
MyGlob Editorial June 12, 2026 4 min read
Babi Guling, also called guling celeng, is arguably the most famous dish on Bali. A whole young pig is rubbed and stuffed with a powerful spice paste, then slowly turned over an open fire (guling means to roll or rotate) until the skin blisters into glassy crackling and the meat underneath becomes tender and perfumed with turmeric, lemongrass and chilli. For centuries it was a sacred ceremonial dish, prepared for temple festivals and major celebrations.
Ingredients
- 2 to 2.5 kg piece of pork belly with skin on (or boned shoulder with skin)
- Salt for the skin and a little oil
- 10 shallots
- 8 cloves garlic
- 8 large red chillies, plus bird's eye chillies to taste
- 4 cm fresh turmeric
- 5 cm galangal
- 4 cm ginger
- 4 candlenuts
- 2 stalks lemongrass, finely sliced
- 1 tablespoon coriander seeds, toasted and ground
- 1 teaspoon black peppercorns, ground
- 1 teaspoon shrimp paste (terasi), toasted
- 4 kaffir lime leaves, finely shredded
- 1.5 teaspoons salt and 1 tablespoon palm sugar
- 3 tablespoons coconut oil for frying the paste
- Blend all the paste ingredients except the oil into a coarse paste, then fry it in the coconut oil over medium-low heat for 12 minutes until fragrant and darkened. Cool.
- Score the pork skin in fine lines without cutting into the meat. Pat the skin completely dry; dryness is the secret to crackling.
- Turn the pork meat-side up and rub the cooled spice paste thickly all over the flesh, working it into any folds. Keep the paste off the skin.
- Roll or fold the joint so the skin is on the outside, secure with kitchen string, and rub the skin with salt and a little oil. Ideally leave uncovered in the fridge overnight so the skin dries further and the meat marinates.
- Roast at 160 C for around 2.5 to 3 hours until the meat is tender, then increase the heat to 220 C for 20 to 30 minutes to crisp and puff the crackling. Watch it so it does not burn.
- Rest for 15 minutes, then carve into slices, keeping shards of crackling with each portion.
Method
- 1Today it is also everyday street and warung food, served as babi guling rice plates piled with crispy skin, juicy pork, spicy lawar, sausage and crackling. Roasting a whole pig at home is impractical for most cooks, so this recipe adapts the same flavours to a generous joint of pork belly or shoulder roasted in the oven, giving you authentic taste and proper crackling without a spit.
- 2Serves 6:
- 3For the base genep spice paste:
- 4Crackling depends on dry skin and a final blast of high heat. Drying the salted skin in the fridge overnight makes a noticeable difference, and if any patches stay soft you can finish them briefly under a hot grill.
- 5Do not skimp on the spice paste. The bold quantity of turmeric, chilli and aromatics is what gives babi guling its signature flavour, so be generous when rubbing it into the meat.
- 6Serve it the Balinese way as a rice plate: steamed rice topped with sliced pork, plenty of crackling, lawar (a mix of vegetables, grated coconut and spices), and a fiery sambal. The contrast of crisp skin, tender meat and fresh, spicy sides is the whole point.
- 7If you visit Bali, eating babi guling at a famous specialist in Ubud or Gianyar is a rite of passage, often served from late morning until it sells out. Tasting it at the source is the best way to understand what you are aiming for at home.
Babi Guling is a whole suckling pig stuffed with Balinese spices like turmeric, lemongrass, garlic and chili, then slow-roasted on a spit until the skin turns crackling-crisp. It is one of Bali's most famous dishes, served as a plate with rice, lawar, vegetables and crispy skin, and is best tried at a dedicated warung.
- Cuisine
- Balinese / Indonesian
- Main Ingredient
- Suckling pig (pork)
- Cooking Method
- Spit-roasted over fire
- Best For
- Lunch at a warung
- Where
- Ubud and Gianyar, Bali
- Dietary
- Not halal / not vegetarian
- A whole suckling pig stuffed with Balinese spice paste and spit-roasted
- Prized for its crackling-crisp skin and fragrant, juicy meat
- Served as a plate with rice, lawar, vegetables and sometimes blood sausage
- Originally a ceremonial dish, now an everyday Balinese specialty
- Best eaten at dedicated warungs, especially around Ubud and Gianyar