These are all the foods we ate in Bali. We even got the chance to cook some of these! Like many Asian cultures, rice is served with most meals – even breakfast. Sambal is also served on the side of most meals and have varying degrees of spice levels, so just try not to learn that the hard way like I did!
1. Bakso
Meatball, made from a meat paste and then boiled in broth. This was probably my favorite thing I ate in Indonesia because I love meatballs and soup. But since it was from a warung and we went later in the day, it seemed a bit questionable, especially with flies flying around the noodles. We took the risk, and it was worth the reward
2. Babi Guling
Translated, this means ‘turning pig’ and it is just that – roasted pig. The meat is juicy, and the skin is crispy. It’s typically served with lawar, which is a mixture of green beans, beaten eggs, kaffir lime leaves, palm sugar, coconut, and fried shallots
3. Rijjstafel
This was actually something I learned about when visiting Amsterdam a few years back. Rijjstafel translates to ‘rice table’ in Dutch. Although it has Dutch origins, the food is Indonesian, and because of colonionalism, that’s how the concept came about. It’s an elaborate meal of rice and a lot of side dishes served in small portions, as many as 40 different types! The Dutch wanted to try a wide array of dishes in a single sitting, or impress any guests they had. You won’t really find this in Indonesia, except maybe at restaurants more geared towards tourists
4. Nasi Campur
This is the modern day version of the rijjstafel, which you can find here. It translates to mixed rice so you have a side of rice served with various small portions of meats and vegetables, all on one plate (as opposed to the rice table, where the dishes were all separate). This is a good dish to have if you are the type (like me) who wants to try a little bit of everything
5. Mie Goreng
Stir-fried noodles, usually with chicken, shrimp, or beef. This seems like a popular breakfast item since we saw it a lot at the breakfast buffets at hotels. Generally, it’s popular in Asian countries to to eat noodles or rice for breakfast
6. Nasi Goreng
Fried rice made using kecap manis and shrimp paste, typically topped with a fried egg. This is another staple here and it won’t be hard to find
7. Kecap Manis
Sweet soy sauce. This is darker, sweeter, and more syrupy than your regular soy sauce and you’ll find it everywhere in Indonesia for marinating or seasoning
8. Sambal
Chili sauce paste made with a variation of chili peppers, garlic, lime, ginger, shallot, shrimp paste, scallion, palm sugar. Every restaurant/warung had their own variation of it, but all of it was delicious
9. Ayam
This just means chicken, which seems to be the more popular meat choice in Bali. You’ll find ayam goreng, or fried chicken everywhere, which is usually served with a side of rice and vegetables
10. Soto Ayam
Chicken soup with chicken, noodles, boiled egg, and veggies. The yellow color comes from turmeric. Shrimp chips are a popular topping option
11. Bubur Ayam
Chicken congee with shredded chicken, topped with hard boiled eggs, scallion, and crispy shallots. Sambal is on the side in case you want to make it spicy. This is usually eaten for breakfast. The one I had was at the resort we were staying at in Ubud and it was probably another one of the best dishes I ate in Bali, just because it was so comforting and so flavorful. This version was also topped with some diced green beans, which gave it a little green boost and added that extra crunch
12. Sate (Satay)
Seasoned meat that is skewered and grilled, and served with a sauce
13. Rendang
A coconut curry that usually uses beef, which is simmered/braised in the curry
14. Klepon Cake
Sweet rice cake balls made with palm sugar, and rolled in shredded coconut
15. Cendol
Sweet drink made with coconut milk, and palm sugar syrup, with green rice flour jelly. The version I had also had azuki beans in it and they were selling them at the jetty while we were waiting for our boat ride back from Nusa Penida to Nusa Dua. It seems popular amongst locals as a way to cool off, or just a treat after a long day
16. Salak (Snake Fruit)
This is a fruit native to Java in Indonesia. It has a brown, scaly skin that you need to peel off. The actual fruit looks like cloves of garlic, but it tastes like a cross between apples and lychee. There were a few in our hotel room but we had no idea what they were until we joined the cooking class and they showed us how to eat it
17. Mcdonald’s
They have fried chicken here! It’s served with rice, of course. I didn’t try it because we had just eaten lunch but I couldn’t help myself to some of their McShaker Fries. The season was some furikake-esque green seasoning, that had a lot of umami
If you have more time or a larger stomach to eat more Indonesian foods, I found Migrationology’s list to be pretty extensive.
Which ones have you tried?
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