Discover the Intense Tastes of Indonesia

Indonesian food is bright and vibrant, just like the local culture. Even if you’ve never before tasted Indonesian cuisine, you’ll never forget it as long as you live. These are our recommendations for the best dishes to taste when you visit Indonesia.

Nasi Goreng

Every Asian country has a famed fried rice dish and for Indonesia, this is it. What sets it apart from the fried rice you find in other places is the unusual blend of Indonesian spices. Give it a try and you’ll be impressed.

Rendang

Rendang is a dry curry and quite popular. It’s meat, usually beef, cooked in coconut milk and spices. Once it is rendered dry, it has a distinctive texture and taste that is absolutely unforgettable.

Soto Betawi

This soup is among the best of the soto (meaning soup) you’ll find in Indonesia. It is made with either beef or beef offal along with cow milk. It’s very unique and definitely worth a try.

Ketoprak

You will absolutely eat your vegetables when you come into contact with ketoprak. It’s a traditional dish consisting of deep-fried tofu, bean sprouts, eggs, and onions topped with an amazing peanut sauce that you will crave forevermore.

Sate

There is so much to love about sate! It’s skewered strips of chicken that get grilled to seared charcoal-infused perfection. They’re served with peanut sauce, which you might recognize from your favorite Thai restaurant. While indeed similar, the seasonings between the two countries are distinctive enough. Besides, you can’t go wrong with flame-grilled meat.

Gudeg

This traditional stew has some unusual ingredients but give it a try or you’ll miss out on something spectacular. Young jack fruit is cooked up with palm sugar and coconut milk along with garlic, meat and loads of other spices. See? It sounds bizarre, but it’s truly a dish full of sublime contrasts.

Bakso

Every country seems to have meatballs, and Indonesia is no exception. However, the meatballs here are exceptional indeed. You’ll find these balls of deliciousness swimming in beef broth along with noodles, rice vermicelli, tofu, eggs, and vegetables.

Nasi Kuning

It’s a famed Indonesian breakfast of yellow rice simmered in coconut milk with turmeric. Indonesians often enjoy it along with an omelette, shreds of fresh coconut, and fried anchovies with peanuts.

Gado-gado

Sometimes called “lotek” this salad of boiled vegetables with peanut sauce is a great way to eat more vegetables. Plus vegetarians will be happy with it too since many of the other dishes also feature some meats within them. But even if you like meat, you will enjoy eating this salad.