Indonesian Recipes with Sweet, Spicy and Savoury Notes
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Sambal & rice

Indonesian Recipes with Sweet, Spicy and Savoury Notes

Sweet, salty, sour and spicy notes meet in richly seasoned Indonesian food. Try well-known dishes such as nasi goreng, gado-gado, satay and soto, with guidance on the sauces and aromatics that define them.

Recipes

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1-20 of 20 recipes

Open banana leaf with Indonesian Pepes Ikan, mackerel, spice paste, tomatoes and basil
1 hr 45 min Indonesian

Pepes Ikan in banana leaves

For Pepes Ikan, mackerel is steamed with an aromatic paste of shallots, chilli, turmeric, ginger and kemirine nuts in the banana leaf and grilled briefly.

Javan Opor Ayam with chicken parts in yellow coconut milk sauce, lime leaves and toasted bayots
1 hr 20 min Indonesian

Opor Ayam in coconut milk

Opor Ayam is a mild Javanese chicken dish in coconut milk with kemirin nuts, coriander, lemongrass, galangal and makrut lime leaves.

Open banana leaf with Balinese Ayam Betutu, spicy paste, lime and steamed rice
6 hr 45 min Indonesian

Ayam Betutu from Bali

Ayam Betutu is Balinese chicken with a strong spice paste of shallots, chilli, turmeric, ginger, galangal, lemongrass and kemirin nuts.

Crispy fried Martabak Telur with beef and spring onions cut into small squares
3 hr 30 min Indonesian

Martabak Telur with beef

Martabak Telur is a crispy-fried Indonesian dough package with a juicy filling of eggs, seasoned beef chops and many spring onions.

Sate Padang with grilled beef skewers, thick yellow spice sauce, rice cake and roasting mallots
2 hr 25 min Indonesian

Sate Padang with spicy sauce

Sate Padang consists of seasoned, pre-cooked beef, which is grilled briefly over large heat and served with a thick yellow sauce of broth and rice flour.

Ketoprak from Jakarta with tofu, rice noodles, sprouts, cucumber, rice cake and peanut sauce
50 min Indonesian

Ketoprak from Jakarta

Ketoprak combines rice noodles, fried tofu, mung bean sprouts, cucumber and rice cake with a freshly stirred peanut sauce and kecap manis.

Cut-up Pempek Palembang with dark cuco sauce, cucumber cubes and rice noodles
2 hr 5 min Indonesian

Pempek Palembang with Cuko

Pempek are springy fish chicks from Palembang, which are formed with tapioca starch, poached, golden brown fried and served with sweet-acid cuco sauce.

Indonesian Gudeg with brown stewed young jackfruit, eggs, coconut sauce and steamed rice
3 hr 25 min Indonesian

Gudeg with young Jackfruit

Gudeg from Yogyakarta stews young jackfruit slowly with coconut milk, palm sugar, kemirine nuts, galangal and Indonesian bay leaf leaves.

Black Indonesian Rawon beef soup with mung bean sprouts, egg, lime and onions
2 hr 40 min Indonesian

Rawon – black beef soup

Rawon is an East Javanese beef soup with black keluak, lemongrass, galangal, kaffirlimette leaves and roasted spice paste.

Sambal Udang with shrimp in red chilli sauce, lime and rice
35 min Indonesian

Sambal Udang

Sambal Udang combines shrimps with a sharp sambal sauce made of shallots, garlic, chilli, tomato, kecap manis and lime. Shrimps cook only briefly.

Tempeh Goreng with crispy tempeh, sambal, cucumber and rice
40 min Indonesian

Tempeh Goreng

Tempeh Goreng is crispy fried Tempeh, previously marinated with garlic, coriander, turmeric and salt. It should remain golden brown outside, nutty inside.

Ayam Goreng with golden brown chicken, sambal, cucumber and rice
1 hr 10 min Indonesian

Ayam Goreng

Ayam Goreng is first pre-cooked in a spice broth with turmeric, coriander, garlic, galangal and lemongrass and then fried crispy.

Bakso soup with beef balls, noodles, Pak Choi, spring onions and sambal
1 hr Indonesian

Bakso

Bakso is an Indonesian meatball soup with elastic beef balls, clear broth, noodles, Pak Choi, spring onions and sambal.

Soto Ayam with chicken, glass noodles, egg, sprouts, onions and lime
1 hr 10 min Indonesian

Soto Ayam

Soto Ayam is an Indonesian chicken soup with turmeric, lemongrass, makrut lime leaves, glass noodles, egg, sprouts and lime.

Rendang with tender beef, dark coconut sauce, rice and herbs
3 hr 30 min Indonesian

Rendang

Rendang is a slowly stewed beef dish with coconut milk, lemon grass, galangal, chilli and spice paste. The sauce reduces until dark and concentrated.

Gado-Gado with vegetables, potatoes, egg, tofu, cucumber and peanut sauce
45 min Indonesian

Gado-Gado

Gado-Gado is an Indonesian vegetable dish with potatoes, beans, sprouts, cucumber, egg, tofu or tempeh and warm peanut sauce.

Satay Ayam chicken skewers with peanut sauce, cucumber and lime
1 hr 15 min Indonesian

Satay Ayam

Satay Ayam are Indonesian chicken skewers with spicy marinade and creamy peanut sauce. Chicken club meat remains particularly juicy on grill or pan.

Mie Goreng with fried noodles, vegetables, egg, kecap manis and spring onions
35 min Indonesian

Mie Goreng

Mie Goreng are Indonesian fried noodles with vegetables, egg, kecap manis, soy sauce and sambal. The noodles are pre-cooked and then fried briefly in the wok.

Nasi Goreng with fried rice, kecap manis, fried egg, cucumber and onions
30 min Indonesian

Nasi Goreng

Nasi Goreng succeeds best with chilled rice from the previous day, kecap manis, sambal, egg and briefly fried vegetables. The rice should remain loose and not dampen in the wok.

Guide

Indonesian recipes sweet, spicy and fresh tune

Indonesian cuisine likes to work with rice, sambal, kecap manis, coconut, peanut, lime and fried components. Many dishes are particularly good when sweetness, heat and acidity are thought of at the same time.

Fried rice, satay, soto or gado gado need different textures: something warm, something crisp, a sauce and fresh herbs or cucumber to balance.

Set the aroma correctly

  • Prepare rice: For fried rice dishes, chilled rice is usually better than fresh.
  • Dosage Sambal: Sharpen up gradually.
  • Add freshness: Cucumber, lime, herbs or sprouts give lightness.

So Indonesian recipes remain strong, but not heavy.

Important ingredients of Indonesian cuisine

Kecap Manis is a thick, sweet soy sauce and not directly interchangeable with light soy sauce. If it is missing, soy sauce can be approximated with little brown sugar. Sambal brings chilli, acidity, garlic or fermented aromas depending on the variety and should be dosed gradually.

Tempeh, tofu, eggs, chicken or shrimp are commonly used with Rice dishes Peanut sauce fits Satay and Gado-Gado, but should be set with warm water, lime or tamarind so that it remains pourable.

Prepare Indonesian Components

  • Rice: Cook early and allow to cool completely for Nasi Goreng.
  • Sauces: Store sambal and peanut sauce separately and dose only when serving.
  • Crispy: Store onions, Krupuk or peanuts dry and lastly complement.

Thus, the individual textures are preserved and everyone can adjust sweetness and heat at the table.

FAQ

Frequently asked questions about Indonesian Recipes recipes

Kecap Manis is a thick, sweet Indonesian soy sauce. It flavours Nasi Goreng and marinades among others. Normal soy sauce is saltier and thinner and therefore no direct one-to-one replacement.

This is very different. Sambal can be served separately or gradually stirred. So dishes remain aromatic, while everyone can adjust the heat themselves.

steamed rice fits with curries, satay, rendang, sambal dishes and vegetables. Cucumbers, sprouts, lime, herbs or a fresh salad set a good counterpole to strong sauces.