Condiment
Kecap manis
Kecap manis
Also called sweet soy sauce, ketjap manis, Indonesian sweet soy
Indonesian soy sauce thickened and sweetened with palm sugar until it pours like syrup.
Origin
Java, Indonesia.
Flavour
Molasses-sweet, salty, a little smoky. Much sweeter than Chinese dark soy.
How it is made
Fermented soy sauce is simmered with palm sugar, often with star anise and garlic, until it reduces to a glaze.
How to use it
Add late to fried rice and noodles so it caramelises without burning. Brush onto satay. Mix with chilli as a table sauce.
Storage
Pantry, lid on. Keeps for a year.
Recipes using it
Nasi goreng
Indonesian fried rice stained with kecap manis, seasoned with shrimp paste and chilli, and finished with a fried egg.
EasyMedium heat
Mie goreng
Mi goreng
Indonesian fried egg noodles with sweet soy, garlic, chilli, greens and a tangle of egg, cooked fast in a very hot wok.
EasyMedium heat
Sate ayam
Indonesian chicken satay: kecap manis-marinated thigh grilled on skewers and served with a rough, sweet-hot peanut sauce.
Easy
Gado-gado
Indonesian salad of blanched vegetables, boiled egg, fried tofu and tempeh under a thick peanut dressing.
Easy
Bakso
Indonesian bouncy beef meatballs in a clear garlic broth with noodles, greens, fried shallots and sweet soy.
Medium
Tempeh orek
Orek tempe
Javanese sweet-soy fried tempeh: crisp strips glazed with kecap manis, palm sugar, chilli and bay leaf.
Very easy
Char kway teow
炒粿条
Flat rice noodles fried hard in lard with dark soy, egg, prawns, bean sprouts and chives, the Singapore-Malaysia hawker classic.
Medium
