The Most Popular Indonesian Food - Part 1

Indonesia is an archipelago country with its diverse ethnic groups living harmoniously with each other. Located in Southeast Asia, Indonesia is flanked by 2 oceans, the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It consists of over seventeen thousand islands, including some largest islands such as Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, Borneo, and Papua. With a population of more than 300 million people, Indonesia has many cultures, customs, ethnicities, religions, and even traditional foods. Each and every region has its own signature dish and some of them are very renowned all over the world.

Sitting and eating together is the thing that many Indonesian families have been doing for a long time. Nothing beats a warm ambience while enjoying some of your favourite dishes with your beloved ones. Various Indonesian dishes have gone international, name it rendang, satay, and many more. This time Jagojalan will take you to know more about the most famous Indonesian cuisines and some of them are considered Indonesian's national dishes. Are you ready? Let's check them out!

Psst...there will be part 2!

RENDANG

As the World's Most Delicious Food according to CNN, Rendang is a Minang dish originating from West Sumatra, Indonesia that has spread all over Indonesia to the South-East Asian countries such as Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei and the Philippines. Rendang is not actually a name for a dish. It's basically a philosophical term that refers to a special process, which makes beef tender, dry, and flavorful. The complex cooking process gives rendang a very unique and delicious taste. It is slow-cooked and braised in coconut milk seasoned with a herb and spice mixture until the extract evaporates and the meat turns dark brown and tender, becoming caramelized and infused with rich flavours.

Originally, Rendang was only served on special occasions or traditional ceremonies such as wedding feasts, Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha. In the past, Rendang was considered a sacred dish. People in Minangkabau believe that cooking rendang teaches three important values: patience, discretion, and perseverance. Now rendang is not only served on special occasions but as a part of an everyday meal as well.

Rendang is usually made from beef but now you can use other meat too. Some of them are chicken, fish, egg, squid, shrimp. Even some Chinese descendants adapted rendang using pork. Whatever meat you use, make sure you're following the right steps like this one. Rendang takes a long time to cook, about 7 to 8 hours, but the patience's worth the result. Enjoy the tasty rendang with a plate of warm rice, it tastes perfect! Follow this recipe for making delicious rendang!

SATE

Sate (English: Satay) is one of the Indonesian National dishes that has been popular all over the world. Many foreigners and even President Barack Obama like this dish. Satay is practically juicy slices of marinated meat on thin bamboo skewers grilled to perfection on charcoal open fire dressed with peanut sauce and sweet soy sauce then served with lontong, a type of rice cake. Satay is believed to have originated in Javanese cuisine but has sprung up to almost anywhere in Indonesia. However, most South-East Asian countries claim satay as their own.

Satay may consist of diced or sliced chicken, goat, mutton, beef, pork, fish, other meats, or even tofu. The bamboo skewers are often used, while the rustic style of preparations employs skewers from the midrib of the coconut palm frond. Across this colourful archipelago and its diverse ethnic groups, most cultures have invented satay their own by creating different variations of this crowd-pleasing dish. Where they differ is the spices used, their complementing sauces and even the way it is skewered. Some of the most popular types of satay in Indonesia are Chicken Satay, Lamb Satay, Padang Satay, and the hype Taichan Satay. If you'd like to make satay at your home, you can check this recipe.

NASI GORENG

Indonesian Fried Rice or Nasi Goreng is one of the popular dishes in Indonesia. It's basically a rice dish cooked with pieces of meat and vegetables. It is also popular among several Southeast Asian countries such as Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei, and Thailand. However, Nasi Goreng from Indonesia is distinguished from other Asian fried rice preparations by its distinct smoky aroma and caramelised yet savoury and sweet undertones of flavour. In addition, there is no single defined recipe for Nasi Goreng for its composition and preparation varies greatly from house to house in all regions where the dish is endemic.

While you can find Nasi Goreng in almost every corner of the Indonesian streets, it's quite enjoyable from time to time. Sold in a street food cart, Nasi Goreng makes an easy affordable meal. They usually provide eggs, vegetables, chicken as the toppings. The rice is stirred fried with margarine or cooking oil, seasoned with chilli paste, crushed garlic paste, and other condiments, then mixed with sweet soy sauce which makes its unique Indonesian touch. Interested in making your own Nasi Goreng? Follow this recipe!

SOTO

Soto is a traditional Indonesian soup mainly composed of broth, meat, and vegetables. The most commonly used meats are beef and chicken but some use pork or mutton. Soto is sometimes considered one of Indonesia's national dishes as it's served from Sumatra to Papua, in a wide range of variations. You can find many street food eateries as well fine dining restaurants that serve Soto. Chicken Soto is the Indonesian equivalent of chicken soup. Since it is always served warm with a tender texture, it is considered Indonesian comfort food.

Various regions in Indonesia have their own special Soto with different compositions, such as Soto Madura, Soto Kediri, Soto Pemalang, Soto Lamongan, Soto Jepara, Soto Semarang, Soto Kudus, Soto Betawi, Soto Padang, Soto Bandung, Soto Soto. Sokaraja, Banjar Soto, Medan Soto, and Makassar Coto. The meats that are most commonly used are chicken and beef, but there are also variations with offal, mutton, and water buffalo meat. Soto is usually served with some complimentary dishes like stewed eggs, rice noodles, crackers, fried shallots, sweet soy sauce, bean sprouts, and lime juice. You can cook your own Soto at home following this recipe.

MARTABAK

Martabak is one of the most famous dishes in Indonesia. You can find it being sold anywhere in food carts, roadside stalls, or even in restaurants. People usually have it during dinner, as the sellers start to open when the night falls. There are two types of Martabak. The sweet one or Indonesian usually call it "Martabak Manis" and the savoury one or "Martabak Telur" which is literally translated as "Egg Martabak" because it contains eggs (usually chicken eggs or duck eggs).

The sweet Martabak is made from a pancake batter-like mixture poured into iron skillets until it forms bubbles as slowly heats up. Once ready, it is filled with any sweet toppings you can think of. Name it layers of butter, chocolate sprinkles, grated cheese, peanuts and sesame sprinkles, a drizzle of sweetened condensed milk. Following the latest trend, you can add Nutella, Ovomaltine, or Toblerone chocolate as toppings and you can also choose 2 types of doughs such as Red Velvet or the Black Forest.

As for the savoury kind, it's made with thin and stretchy wheat dough stuffed with chicken or duck eggs, minced chicken or beef, shallots, and coriander then fried until brown. The texture is crispy outside and juicy inside. Some said that the savoury martabak was originated from the Middle East. The name "Mutabbaq" in Arabic means "folded".

Usually, the Martabak vendors serve those two kinds of Martabak. So don't worry for those who'd like to taste those two kinds, you can just drive to any Martabak carts and buy them. In addition, Martabak is usually served in a quite large portion. Having a sudden Martabak craving? Jagojalan has made a list of the best Martabak vendors in Jakarta for you.

That's the first part of the most popular Indonesian food. Which one is your favourite? Wanna know the others? Please subscribe and stay tuned for part 2 of the most popular Indonesian food.