^by that I want a report made out of 1000 words
Pepesan
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(fish in banana leafs)
Ikan Bumbu Bali
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(mackerel in a spicy Balinese sauce)
Ikan kuah Asem
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(Fish in a sour broth)
Ikan kuah santan kemangi
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(fish in a coconut lemon basil broth)
Pindang ikan patin
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(Shark soup)
How about the common and simple Indonesian dish...., Nasi Goreng (fried rice). Yes I know almost the whole Asia have their version of fried rice. From Chinese fried rice, Japanese Chahan, to Thai and Vietnam fried rice. Yet in Indonesia it has gain special status, some might consider it our national dish, next to satay and soto. Indonesian fried rice is differ to other Asian fried rice by generous amount of kecap manis (sweet soy sauce), and somewhat more spicier and flavourful than other Asian fried rice. There are rich variants found across archipelago.
[B]Nasi goreng[/B], literally meaning "fried rice" in Indonesian, can refer simply to fried pre-cooked rice, a meal including stir fried rice in small amount of cooking oil or margarine, typically spiced with kecap manis (sweet soy sauce), shallot, garlic, tamarind and chilli and accompanied with other ingredients, particularly egg, chicken and prawns. There is also another kind of nasi goreng which is made with ikan asin (salted dried fish) which is also popular across Indonesia.Nasi goreng has been called the national dish of Indonesia, though there are many other contenders. There are many Indonesian cuisines but few national dishes. Indonesia's national dish knows no social barriers. It can be enjoyed in its simplest manifestation from a tin plate at a roadside warung, travelling night hawker's cart; eaten on porcelain in restaurants, or constructed at the buffet tables of Jakarta dinner parties. In 2011 an online poll by 35,000 people held by CNN International chose Nasi Goreng as the number two of their 'World’s 50 Most Delicious Foods' list after rendang.
Nasi goreng can be found almost anywhere in Indonesia. Nasi goreng is traditionally served at home for breakfast and it is traditionally made out of leftover rice from the night before. Besides ingredients like shallot, tomato, pepper and chili, the rice is fried with scraps of chicken or beef; usually leftovers from yesterday dishes. It probably has become Indonesia's comfort food, since almost all of Indonesian kids always having their moms cooking nasi goreng for breakfast...
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Mi madre Nasi Goreng Sosis...
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My mother's prawn Nasi Goreng... simply delicious...
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My fave variant: Nasi Goreng Pete Kambing, Nasi Goreng with pete or petai (green stinky beans) and mutton (goat meat). Also accompanied with fried egg, pickles with fresh slices tomato and cucumber, cabbages, fried shallots, chilli, and emping crackers. Whatchout, ur urine will smell funny afterwards.... 
While most of Indonesian households served it for breakfast, nasi goreng is also a popular choices for late night supper served by street vendors, in warungs and also by travelling night hawkers that frequenting Indonesian residential area on their wheeled cart.
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A nasi goreng vendor cooking nasi goreng in his gerobak (cart). Nasi Goreng travelling vendor often patroling residential area during night time, providing fast supper for hungry locals. Next to nasi goreng, mi goreng, mi rebus and kwetiau goreng are also available. How much does it cost? its about Rp 8000 or less than a dollar for an instant hot food in a cold night...
Common humble nasi goreng sold by travelling cart usually look like this:
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While Nasi Goreng in restaurants or hotel might look fancier..
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Nasi Goreng Sosis breakfast in Savoy Homann Bidakara Hotel, Bandung.
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Nasi Goreng hotel breakfast in Solo, Central Java.
Today, it also can be found in convenience stores...
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7-Eleven microwaved Nasi Goreng with Teh Botol served in 7-Eleven convenience store in Jakarta, Indonesia. It has less almost non exist kecap manis, so it is more closer to Japanese Chahan... although practical and modern, not really could beat traditional nasi goreng sold from traveling cart, or your mom's nasi goreng...
^ nasgor instan gak enaaak, mau muntah
I don't like nasi goreng with meat/mutton. shredded chicken is OK lah
but the best is vegetarian: NASGOR PETE!!! or nasgor ikan asin and the udang (shrimp) is a must have in every kind of nasi goreng.
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my auntie makes the best nasi goreng petai
Great report MrC, You really keep your promise to Sumpit....
Fascinating for us Indonesian to learn what foreign people think about our food... spicy yes..? hope you like it. Usually Japanese and whites can't handle Indonesian "normal" degree of spiciness; while Arabs, Korean, Chinese, Indian and other Southeast Asians usually can handle it. Yet Indonesian cuisine is diverse, there are tons of regional variations, from Padang food, Javanese, Sundanese, Manado, Balinese, to Chinese-Indonesian etc. Indonesian restaurant abroad although strifed to be as authentic as possible, usually toned town the degree of spiciness a lil bit or more.
In the degree ascended from soft-subtle to flavourful spiciness, I think the stages are:
Common western food - Italian - Japanese - Chinese - Korean - Vietnamese - Cambodian - Thai - Malaysian - Indonesian - Indian
(never tried Filipino food before, so not sure where to put it). If your tongue already adapted to Indonesian food (like mine), you can't help to perceive that Vietnamese, Cambodian, and Thai are rather... erh... bland... While Japanese, Chinese, and Korean are belong to other category (different cooking tradition, ingredients and spices), so they can't be compared perfectly with Southeast Asian cuisines. On the other hand Indian spices is too much for me....
My fave is Japanese, Indonesian, Thai, and Chinese
Btw, Lumpia is also known in Philippines as Lumpiyang, all derived from Fujian-Chinese spring roll. I bet your filipino bro in law love it.
Maybe next time you should try Sayur Asem (tamarind vegetable soup).
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My late father told me his Japanese friend had this soup almost everyday, he love it. He said if Japanese have Misoshiru, Thai have Tom Yum Goong, Indonesia definitely should proclaimed Sayur asem as national soup.
FOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOD SPY!
1. Ayam pedis
The chef browns chicken thighs in a mixture of onions, candlenuts, gula jawa, tamarind, chicken stock—and ketchup. “I kind of cheated on that one,” Van Den Winkel says. To get a balance of spicy, sweet, and sour, he also uses lemongrass, sambal, and lime leaf.
2. Atjar campur
A pickled coleslaw, made with carrots, cabbage, onions, and lime leaf.
3. Sambal goreng buncis
These crunchy beans are accented with coconut milk, tamarind, and red chilies.
4. Kentang kering
Curried matchstick potato chips.
5. Nasi goreng
This dish doesn’t usually appear at a traditional rijsttafel: It’s made the next morning from whatever’s left over. But “everyone associates it with Indonesian food,” the chef says, so he makes his with carrots, onions, cabbage, and spices.
6. Sambal daging
Van Den Winkel cooks lean pork shoulder in a paste of ginger, galangal, onions, sambal, and trassi for nearly two hours, until it comes apart in shreds.
7. Bawang goreng
Garlicky fried shallots.
8. Sambal oelek
A spicy red-chili paste that’s massively popular in Indonesia, where there are over 300 varieties of the condiment.
9. Serungdeng
Crispy shaved coconut.
10. Rujak manis
A spicy and crunchy apple, pear, and cucumber chutney.
11. Sambal goreng acar ketimun
Pickled cucumbers.
12. Rendang Padang
Van Den Winkel’s version of this dish (typically served during special occasions) is native to the city of Padang and made from chunks of beef shoulder, stewed with coconut, cloves, spices, tamarind, and galangal.
13. Telor masak kecap
Eggs are cooked until nearly hard-boiled, then mixed with a paste of candlenuts, terasi, galangal, kecap manis, and tomatoes. Left for 12 hours, it develops a thin, flavourful crust.
14. Babi kecap
Rich chunks of pork belly are marinated in star anise, cardamom, onion powder, and sambal for two days, then slow-roasted. Before dinner, they’re fried and served with pickled bean sprouts. “They’ll pickle anything in Indonesia,” he says. “It creates that contrast you need with rich dishes like pork belly.”
15. Sate ikan asam manis bandeng
These swordfish skewers, a typical Indonesian street-vendor snack, are marinated in tamarind, kecap manis, sambal oelek, terasi, and galangal, then grilled and topped with raw scallions and fried shallots for texture.
16. Krupuk udang
Shrimp chips.
17. White rice
At a typical rijsttafel, everyone gets a cone of white rice for sopping up the different curries.
18. Kari Udang
This shrimp curry takes Van Den Winkel hours to make. “That’s a tricky dish, because you’ve got to stir the bumbu every five minutes, or else it’s gonna burn,” he says.
19. Sate ayam
These chicken skewers are marinated for two days in kecap manis, tamarind, lemon juice, and spices, then grilled and topped with a sweet peanut sauce.
20. Gado gado
“There are 1,001 varieties of gado gado,” says Van Den Winkel. “It’s basically just a salad.” His version features cucumbers, cabbage, bean sprouts, and green beans, served with a peanut sauce.
21. Rempeh
The spicy beef meatballs are made with oily ground candlenuts, rolled in coconut flakes, then fried and topped with a sweet coconut-milk sauce.
22. Sayur kembang kol
This cauliflower dish, made with green chilies, garlic, onions, coriander, and gula jawa, sits in a coconut broth accented with daun salam, an Indonesian bay leaf.
GLOSSARY
Kecap manis: Sweet soy sauce
Sambal oelek: Chili sauce
Terasi: Shrimp paste
Galangal: A plant similar to ginger
Gula djawa: A brown palm sugar
Bambu: A paste made of ground spices that serves as the base of most Indonesian curries
Katjang: A sweet, rich peanut sauce
Candlenut: Similar to a macadamia nut, and used to thicken sauces
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