Indonesian cuisine is a collection of various regional culinary traditions that formed in the archipelagic nation of Indonesia. There are a wide variety of recipes and cuisines in part because Indonesia is composed of approximately 6,000 populated islands of the total 17,508 in the world's largest archipelago, with more than 1,300 ethnic groups.
Malay cuisine is the traditional food of the ethnic Malays of Southeast Asia, residing in modern-day Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, Brunei, Southern Thailand and the Philippines as well as Cocos Islands, Christmas Island, Sri Lanka and South Africa.
Rendang is a Minangkabau dish. It is a rich meat dish that has been slow cooked and braised in a coconut milk and seasoned with a herb and spice mixture over a period of several hours until the liquids evaporate, and the meat turns dark brown and tender, becoming caramelized and infused with rich flavours.
Singaporean cuisine is derived from several ethnic groups in Singapore and has developed through centuries of political, economic, and social changes in the cosmopolitan city-state.
Filipino cuisine is composed of the cuisines of more than a hundred distinct ethnolinguistic groups found throughout the Philippine archipelago. A majority of mainstream Filipino dishes that compose Filipino cuisine are from the food traditions of various ethnolinguistic groups and tribes of the archipelago, including the Ilocano, Pangasinan, Kapampangan, Tagalog, Bicolano, Visayan, Chavacano and Maranao ethnolinguistic groups. The dishes associated with these groups evolved over the centuries from a largely indigenous base shared with maritime Southeast Asia with varied influences from Chinese, Spanish and American cuisines, in line with the major waves of influence that had enriched the cultures of the archipelago and adapted using indigenous ingredients to meet local preferences.
Motabbaq is a stuffed pancake or pan-fried bread which is commonly found in the Arabian Peninsula, South Asia and Southeast Asia, notably in Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei, Southern Thailand and Bangladesh. Depending on the location, the name and ingredients can significantly vary. The name mutabbaq in Arabic means "folded". It is a popular street food in Yemen, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Singapore.
Chinese Indonesian cuisine is characterized by the mixture of Chinese with local Indonesian style. Chinese Indonesians, mostly descendant of Han ethnic Hokkien and Hakka speakers, brought their legacy of Chinese cuisine, and modified some of the dishes with the addition of Indonesian ingredients, such as kecap manis, palm sugar, peanut sauce, chili, santan and local spices to form a hybrid Chinese-Indonesian cuisine. Some of the dishes and cakes share the same style as in Malaysia and Singapore, known as Nyonya cuisine by the Peranakan.
Peranakan cuisine or Nyonya cuisine comes from the Peranakans, descendants of early Chinese migrants who settled in Penang, Malacca, Singapore and Indonesia, inter-marrying with local Malays. In Baba Malay, a female Peranakan is known as a nonya, and a male Peranakan is known as a baba. The cuisine combines Chinese, Malay, Javanese, South Indian, and other influences.
Javanese cuisine is the cuisine of Javanese people, a major ethnic group in Indonesia, more precisely the province of Central Java, Yogyakarta and East Java.
Padang dish or Minangkabau dish is the cuisine of the Minangkabau people of West Sumatra, Indonesia. It is among the most popular cuisines in Maritime Southeast Asia. It is known across Indonesia as Masakan Padang after Padang, the capital city of Western Sumatra province. It is served in restaurants mostly owned by perantauan (migrating) Minangkabau people in Indonesian cities. Padang food is ubiquitous in Indonesian cities and is popular in neighboring Malaysia and Singapore.
Malaysian Indian cuisine, or the cooking of the ethnic Indian communities in Malaysia, consists of adaptations of authentic dishes from India, as well as original creations inspired by the diverse food culture of Malaysia. Because the vast majority of Malaysia's Indian community are of South Indian descent, and are mostly ethnic Tamils who are descendants of immigrants from a historical region which consists of the modern Indian state of Tamil Nadu and Sri Lanka's Northern Province, much of Malaysian Indian cuisine is predominantly South Indian inspired in character and taste. A typical Malaysian Indian dish is likely to be redolent with curry leaves, whole and powdered spice, and contains fresh coconut in various forms. Ghee is still widely used for cooking, although vegetable oils and refined palm oils are now commonplace in home kitchens. Before a meal it is customary to wash hands as cutlery is often not used while eating, with the exception of a serving spoon for each respective dish.
Nasi kapau is a Minangkabau steamed rice topped with various choices of dishes originated from Nagari Kapau, Bukittinggi, a tourism and culinary hotspot town in West Sumatra, Indonesia. It is often describes as Minang version of nasi ramas or nasi campur.
Nasi padang, sometimes referred to as Padang rice, is a Minangkabau dish of steamed rice served with various choices of pre-cooked dishes originating from West Sumatra, Indonesia. It is named after the city of Padang, capital of the West Sumatra province. A miniature banquet of meats, fish, vegetables, and spicy sambals eaten with plain white rice, it is Sumatra's most famous export and the Minangkabau people's primary contribution to Indonesian cuisine.
Betawi cuisine is rich, diverse and eclectic, in part because the Betawi people that create them were composed from numbers of regional immigrants that came from various places in the Indonesian archipelago, as well as Chinese, Indian, Arab, and European traders, visitors and immigrants that were attracted to the port city of Batavia since centuries ago.
Sambal is an Indonesian chilli sauce or paste, typically made from a mixture of a variety of chilli peppers with secondary ingredients such as shrimp paste, garlic, ginger, shallot, scallion, palm sugar, and lime juice. Sambal is an Indonesian loanword of Javanese origin. It originated from the culinary traditions of Indonesia and is also an integral part of the cuisines of Singapore, Malaysia, Brunei, and Sri Lanka. It has also spread through overseas Indonesian populations to the Netherlands and Suriname.
Balado is a type of hot and spicy bumbu found in Minang cuisine of West Sumatra, Indonesia. It has since spread through the rest of Indonesia and also Malaysia especially in Negeri Sembilan. Balado sauce is made by stir frying ground red hot chili pepper with other spices including garlic, shallot, tomato and kaffir lime in coconut or palm oil.
Palembangese cuisine is the cuisine of the Palembangese people of the city of Palembang in the South Sumatra province of Indonesia. It is the second most well-known cuisine from Sumatra after Padang.
Indian Indonesian cuisine is characterized by the mixture of Indian cuisine with local Indonesian-style. This cuisine consists of adaptations of authentic dishes from India, as well as original creations inspired by the diverse food culture of Indonesia. Indian influence can be observed in Indonesia as early as the 4th century. Following the spread of Islam to Indonesia and trading, Muslim Indian as well as Arab influences made their way into Indonesian cuisine. Examples include Indian biryani, murtabak, curry and paratha that influenced Acehnese, Minangkabau, Malay, Palembangese, Betawi and Javanese cuisine.
Indonesian noodles are a significant aspect of Indonesian cuisine which is itself very diverse. Indonesian cuisine recognizes many types of noodles, with each region of the country often developing its own distinct recipes.
