TEMPO.CO, Jakarta – Indonesian local foods have captivated the hearts of many visitors for their diversified taste. As the saying goes, the way to someone’s heart is through their stomach. The Indonesian archipelago stuns foreigners with a variety of culture-rich cuisines.
This article explores the top 10 Indonesian local foods that will leave the diners in awe, according to Indonesia Travel, Holidify, and Chef’s Pencil :
1. Satay
Satay, or “Sate,” is one of the must-try Indonesian local foods that can be found almost in every restaurant in the country. This dish is similar to a BBQ skewer, which may be more common in other nations. Three to four cube-shaped marinated meat pieces are grilled using a bamboo skewer on a charcoal open fire. The meat skewers served are usually varied, ranging from chicken, lamb, and beef.
Sate from Indonesia becomes distinctive to the rest of Southeast Asia (SEA) countries from its sauces. There are multiple types of sate sauces in Indonesia, with two common ones, such as peanut sauce and a mix of soy sauce and other spice ingredients.
2. Soto
Soto is one of the most favored Indonesian local foods by locals. The dish is considered a hearty meal and can fit any occasion. There are a number of soto variants in Indonesia, depending on which region. Some of the most famous soto include soto betawi, soto lamongan, and soto kudus.
This delish cuisine is a soup bowl with thick broth that is rich in spice. A bowl of soto commonly contains shredded chicken or diced meat, noodles, green onion, vermicelli, and eggs.
3. Nasi Goreng
Nasi goreng, or fried rice, is perhaps the most tried Indonesian local food by foreigners due to its availability in every restaurant’s menus. Nasi goreng translates literally to fried rice in Bahasa Indonesia.
As the name suggests, the meal is processed by frying the rice along with other ingredients. Some of the most popular Nasi Goreng fillings are eggs, shredded chicken, sausages, and meatballs.
4. Gudeg
Gudeg is a distinctive meal originated from Yogyakarta. This delish meal takes a lot of time to process. The jackfruit stew is boiled with coconut milk, local spices, and palm sugar for hours until the broth becomes creamy. Other fillings of the stew include chicken and hard-boiled eggs. Gudeg is best served when hot, accompanied with a plate of rice.
5. Rendang
CNN’s World’s 50 Best Foods list named West Sumatra’s delicious beef dish, Rendang, the Best Food of 2011. Rendang is ranked first once more in the most recent list, which was released on July 12, 2017.
Rendang is a spicy slow-cooked meat dish that is often found in a local restaurant or food stall called Rumah Makan Padang (Padang Diner). This Indonesian local food will render the diners speechless with its remarkable taste.
While some people consider Rendang to have similarity with Curry, this flavorful dish does not actually have enough soup.
6. Gado-gado
Gado-gado is a go-to Indonesian local food for vegetarians, serving a variety of vegetables like bean sprouts, spinach, corn, string beans, and green beans. Additionally, there will be boiled potatoes, fried tofu, raw cucumber, and hard-boiled eggs on the plate of gado-gado. The veggie dish is served with peanut sauce as the topping, making it harder to resist.
7. Pempek
Known for its remarkable taste of cuko sauce, pempek is a savory dish favored by seafood lovers. This Indonesian local food consists of fish meat and is processed to appear similar to fish cakes.
The dish is served with cuko that has the perfect mixture of sour, spicy, and sweet. Foreigners and locals can find Pempek in every region of Indonesia.
8. Bakso
Bakso, which translates to meatball, is a common Indonesian local food served with bee hoon or other noodle variants. The meat used in bakso is varied from beef, pork, and chicken. Even so, foreigners will mostly visit bakery stalls that serve beef meat. Most Indonesians consider bakso as a snack in between meals.
9. Nasi Uduk
Nasi uduk is a famous Indonesian local food mostly served for breakfast. It has a distinctive flavor compared to the usual rice since the dish is processed with a number of spices. Foreigners can find many food stalls on the side road of Jakarta serving nasi uduk with other toppings such as sunny-side-up eggs, shredded chicken, and sambal.
10. Nasi Padang
Nasi padang is a popular dish originating from West Sumatra, Indonesia. There are plenty of Rumah Makan Padang serving this flavorful dish. As a part of Indonesian local foods, nasi padang has multiple side dishes to complete the plate, which include chicken menus, beef menus, and fish menus.
11. Sambal
Sambal is an Indonesian chili sauce or paste, typically made from a mixture of a variety of chili peppers with secondary ingredients such as shrimp paste, garlic, ginger, shallot, scallion, palm sugar, and lime juice.
Sambal is an essential compartment in every Indonesian local food. Most Indonesians, if not all, can’t live without sambal. Some are enjoying their meal with only sambal as the topping of the rice. Sambal is a processed sauce type that includes spice ingredients like chillies, turmeric, shrimp paste, sugar, shallots, and salt.
12. Martabak
Martabak is the SEA equivalent of crepes and pancakes, but far thicker, where the thick wheat meets chocolate or cheese as the fillings. There is also a savory martabak to enjoy that is made with eggs and minced meat. Martabak stalls usually open during the evening until late at night.
These Indonesian local foods can be found in almost every restaurant in Jakarta. When visiting, try these dishes from small food stalls instead of restaurants to taste the authentic flavor.
Editor’s Choice: Indonesia Ranks 6th Among Countries With Best Cuisine; TasteAtlas 2023
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