Our Guide to Indonesian Food

Indonesia is a startlingly diverse country and its cuisine is no different, we thought we’d put together a guide to our absolute favourites.

Gado gado

Gado gado literally means ‘mix mix’ in Indonesian and is the perfect name for this delicious salad. Made up of a mixture of different vegetables, boiled egg and potatoes with spicy peanut sauce, this dish is great for sharing with the table, although you may prefer to have it as a main all to yourself!

Gado gado appears on menus across the whole of Indonesia, with each area serving up their own version of the dish. Different seasonal veggies and ingredients are used, making it slightly different wherever and whenever you go!

Side note: Best served coated with peanut sauce and topped with soybean cakes (also known as tempeh) and crispy crackers!

Urab sayur

This traditional Indonesian salad is usually served as a side salad, you will often find it served with nasi campur – an assortment of dishes served with rice.

Made up of steamed vegetables (including long green beans, spinach and bean sprouts) and tossed with fresh grated coconut and a tasty chilli, shallot, garlic and lime dressing, this is a healthy, yet flavoursome dish!

Pepes

Pepes is a traditional cooking method using banana leaf to wrap the food. The main ingredient is mixed with a variety of spices and herbs, including chilli, turmeric, tamarind and lemongrass. All the ingredients are then wrapped up in the banana leaf and steamed or grilled on charcoal.

Probably most commonly used to prepare fish (pepes ikan), this technique is also used for chicken (pepes ayam) and vegetable mix.

Side note: as tempting as it may be, the banana leaf is not edible!

Pisang goreng

One for dessert or just for a sweet snack after a busy day exploring, these banana fritters are simple, yet delicious! Whether you’re eating in local warungs or at your hotel, you will come across pisang goreng on many menus.

Best served with ice cream and drizzled with honey, you will find it hard to fight the temptation to order a second round!