Indonesian Cuisine

Indonesia consists of thousands of islands of which, 6000 are populated by 250 ethnic groups. Cuisine of Indonesia reflects the variety created by these people. There is no single Indonesian cuisine, but a diversity of regional ones. Indonesia's indigenous techniques and ingredients merge with influences from India, the Middle East, China and Europe, and then there are the New World products brought by Spanish and Portuguese traders long before the Dutch colonized the islands. Sumatran cuisine, for example, often shows Middle Eastern and Indian influences, featuring curried meat and vegetables, while Javanese cuisine is rather more indigenous. The cuisines of Eastern Indonesia are similar to Polynesian and Melanesian cuisine. Elements of Chinese cuisine can be seen in Indonesian cuisine. Rice is their main staple dish and is present in all meals. Nasi Goreng is Indonesia’s national dish. Some popular dishes are Gado Gado, Sate and Soto, which are also considered ubiquitous and Indonesia’s national dishes. Meat, fish and vegetables are condiments designed to flavour the staple. Sauces such as fiery sambals lend added character. Westerners, accustomed to eating much larger portions of meat and fish, find much of Indonesian food scorching hot. Warungs or food stalls offer the tastiest and cheapest food but not necessarily the most hygienic.

 

 

Some Popular Dishes

 

Gado Gado

This is a classic Indonesian vegetable salad with peanut sauce. It has many regional variations. Basically though, it is composed of cooked and raw vegetables, tossed with peanut sauce. It is an excellent addition to a buffet breakfast or rijsttafel ( rice table ). Though it is a salad, it can be easily eaten as a complete meal.

 

Nasi Goreng

Nasi Goreng literally means fried rice. Indonesia's national dish knows no social barriers. It can be enjoyed in its simplest manifestation from a tin plate at a roadside warung, or food stall, eaten on porcelain in fancy restaurants, or constructed at the ubiquitous buffet tables of Jakarta dinner parties. This Indonesian fried rice has been popular in and outside of the country. Indonesians like to fit all sorts of flavours and textures in one biteful. That is what sets the fried rice apart from other version found in the region. The condiments are fried shallots, fried rice / prawn crackers, shredded chicken meat and fresh vegetables such as lettuce, sliced cucumber, sliced tomatoes. The flavour is enriched by shrimp paste, chilli, garlic and shallots.

 

Kerupuk

There are around 30 different types of recipes for kerupuk or krupuk in Indonesia alone. Sidoarjo in East Java and Garut in West Java are big producers of krupuk, and many recipes originate there. They are large crackers, counterparts of chips or crisps in western cuisine.To achieve maximum crunchiness, most of this pre-packed raw krupuk udang must be sun-dried first before being deep fried at home. To cook krupuk, a wok and plenty of very hot cooking oil is needed. Raw krupuk is quite small, hard, and darker in colour than cooked one. The smaller size cracker ,known with its diminutive name kripik, can be savoury or sweet. It is often made from various dried fruits, tubers, vegetables, and fish.

 

Sate

Sate or Satay may have originated in Java or Sumatra but is available almost anywhere in Indonesia. Sate is a dish of marinated, skewered and grilled meats, served with a sauce. Satays, in particular, are a staple in Indonesian cuisine, served everywhere from street carts to fine dining establishments, as well as in homes and at public gatherings. As a result, many variations have been developed throughout the Indonesian Archipelago. The satay variants in Indonesia usually named after the region its originated, the meats, parts or ingredients its uses, also might named after the process or method of cooking.

 

Soto

Soto, sroto, tauto or coto is a common dish to be found in various regional variations of Indonesian cuisine. It is a traditional soup mainly composed of broth, meat and vegetables. There is no clear definition what makes a soto, but normally all traditional soups are called soto, while western/foreign influenced soups are called sop. It might be considered Indonesia's national dish, served as it is from Sumatra to Papua and in enough variations to fill an entire cookbook. Soto is omnipresent in Indonesia, available in many an open-air eatery and on seemingly every other street corner.

 

Tempe

Tempe is a traditional soy product originally from Indonesia. It is made by a natural culturing and controlled fermentation process that binds soybeans into a cake form, similar to a vegetarian burger patty. Tempe is a major traditional soy food and the only one that did not originate in China or Japan. It is especially popular in Java where it is a staple source of protein.

 

 

 

In Indonesia, food is eaten with the fingers or with a spoon and fork. When eating with the fingers, Indonesians use their right hand only. The left hand is used for less hygienic matters. They always leave some food on the plate or drink in the glass to indicate that they have had enough. Pork is hardly eaten because most Indonesians are Muslims, their religion prohibits eating pork. Food varies from island to island, chicken and fish in Java; beef in Sumatra; duck and pork in Bali (where most of the Hindus live) and seafood in South Sulawesi. Padang food from West Sumatra is hot and spicy. A favourite is beef rendang. The typical nasi padang meal consists of many small dishes that are brought in by waiters who can carry up to eight plates on each arm. When the table is set, a plate of hot white rice is served. You choose from this selection of dishes and would not be charged for the dishes that were not touched. You only pay for the dishes that you have eaten. Famous Balinese dishes include bebek betutu and babi guling. Indonesian desserts are often made from glutinous rice flour, palm sugar and coconut milk. Some favourites are kueh lapis, bubur hitam and es campur. They are also made with regional fruits such as mangoes, mangosteens, jackfruit, rambutan and durian.