Indonesian cuisine is a collection of various regional culinary traditions that formed 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 300 ethnic groups calling Indonesia home. Many regional cuisines exist, often based upon indigenous culture with some foreign influences. Indonesia has around 5,350 traditional recipes, with 30 of them considered the most important. Indonesia's cuisine may include rice, noodle and soup dishes in modest local eateries to street-side snacks and top-dollar plates.
Rijsttafel, a Dutch word that literally translates to "rice table", is an Indonesian elaborate meal adapted by the Dutch following the hidang presentation of nasi Padang from the Padang region of West Sumatra. It consists of many side dishes served in small portions, accompanied by rice prepared in several different ways. Popular side dishes include egg rolls, sambals, satay, fish, fruit, vegetables, pickles, and nuts. In most areas where it is served, such as the Netherlands, and other areas of heavy Dutch influence, it is known under its Dutch name.
Tahu goreng or Tauhu goreng is a dish of fried tofu commonly found in Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore.
Nasi uduk is an Indonesian Betawi style steamed rice cooked in coconut milk dish, originally from Jakarta, that can be widely found across the country.
Chinese Indonesian cuisine is characterized by the mixture of Chinese with local Indonesian style. Chinese Indonesians 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 which are known as the Nonya cuisine by the Peranakan.
Lontong is an Indonesian dish made of compressed rice cake in the form of a cylinder wrapped inside a banana leaf, commonly found in Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore. Rice is rolled inside a banana leaf and boiled, then cut into small cakes as a staple food replacement of steamed rice. The texture is similar to those of ketupat, with the difference being that the ketupat container is made from weaved janur fronds, while lontong uses banana leaf instead.
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. Though the cuisine of Sumatra is known for its spiciness with notable Indian and Arabic influences, Javanese cuisine is more indigenously developed and noted for its simplicity. Some of Javanese dishes demonstrate foreign influences, most notably Chinese.
Sundanese cuisine is the cuisine of the Sundanese people of West Java, Indonesia. It is one of the most popular foods in Indonesia. Sundanese food is characterised by its freshness; the famous lalab eaten with sambal and also karedok demonstrate the Sundanese fondness for fresh raw vegetables. Unlike the rich and spicy taste, infused with coconut milk and curry of Minangkabau cuisine, the Sundanese cuisine displays the simple and clear taste; ranged from savoury salty, fresh sourness, mild sweetness, to hot and spicy.
Semur is an Indonesian type of meat stew, that is braised in thick brown gravy commonly found in Indonesian cuisine. The main ingredient used in semur gravy is sweet soy sauce, shallots, onions, garlic, ginger, candlenut, nutmeg and cloves, sometimes pepper, coriander, cumin and cinnamon might be added.
Lontong Cap Go Meh is a Peranakan Chinese Indonesian take on traditional Indonesian dishes, more precisely Javanese cuisine. It is lontong rice cake served with richly-flavoured dishes which includes opor ayam chicken in coconut milk, sayur lodeh vegetables soup, hot and spicy liver, hard boiled pindang egg, koya powder made of soy and dried shrimp or beef floss, pickles, chili paste and prawn cracker. Lontong cap go meh usually consumed by Chinese Indonesian community during Cap go meh celebration.
Nasi ambeng or Nasi ambang is a fragrant rice dish that consists of - but is not limited to - steamed white rice, chicken curry or chicken stewed in soy sauce, beef or chicken rendang, sambal goreng urap, bergedel, and serunding.
Krechek or krecek or sambal goreng krechek is a traditional Javanese cattle skin spicy stew dish from Yogyakarta, Central Java, Indonesia. Traditionally it is made from the soft inner skin of cattle, however the most common recipe today uses readily available rambak or krupuk kulit.
PecelLele or Pecak lele is a Indonesian deep fried Clarias catfish dish originating from Lamongan, East Java, Indonesia. It consists of catfish served with traditional sambal chili paste, often served with fried tempeh and/or tofu and steamed rice. It is a popular Javanese dish widely distributed in Indonesian cities, especially in Java. However, it is often associated with Lamongan town, west of Surabaya in East Java, as majority of pecel lele seller hailed from this town. Often served in a street-side humble tent warung in Indonesian cities, pecel lele can be considered as an affordable food for everybody. Today, due to migrations of Javanese people to neighboring countries, pecel lele can also be found in Singapore and Malaysia.
Betawi cuisine is rich, diverse and eclectic, in part because the Betawi people that create them were composed from numbers of regional immigrants that coming from various places in the 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.
Ketupat, kupat or tipat is a type of dumpling made from rice packed inside a diamond-shaped container of woven palm leaf pouch, originating in Indonesia. It is commonly found in Indonesia, Brunei, Malaysia, and Singapore. It is commonly described as "packed rice", although there are other types of similar packed rices such as lontong and bakchang.
Soto is a traditional Indonesian soup mainly composed of broth, meat, and vegetables. Many traditional soups are called soto, whereas foreign and Western influenced soups are called sop.
Nasi campur refers to an Indonesian dish of a scoop of nasi putih accompanied by small portions of a number of other dishes, which includes meats, vegetables, peanuts, eggs, and fried-shrimp krupuk. Depending on origin, a nasi campur vendor might serve several side dishes, including vegetables, fish, and meats. It is a staple meal from Indonesia and popular in the Netherlands through its colonial ties with Indonesia.
Rojak or Rujak is a traditional fruit and vegetable salad dish, commonly found in Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore. Other than referring to this fruit salad dish, the term rojak also means "mixture" or "eclectic mix" in colloquial Malay.
Gado-gado, also known as Lotek, is an Indonesian salad of slightly boiled, blanched or steamed vegetables and hard-boiled eggs, boiled potato, fried tofu and tempeh, and lontong, served with a peanut sauce dressing. In 2018, gado-gado is promoted as one of 5 national dishes of Indonesia.
Tauge goreng is an Indonesian savoury vegetarian dish made of stir-fried tauge with slices of tofu, ketupat or lontong rice cake and yellow noodles, served in a spicy oncom-based sauce. Tauge goreng is a specialty of Jakarta and Bogor city, West Java, Indonesia. It is usually sold as street food using pikulan or gerobak (cart) by street vendors. It is a popular street food in Indonesia, especially in Jakarta, and Greater Jakarta areas, including Bogor, Depok, Tangerang and Bekasi.
