{"id":109746,"title":"Kecap Manis – Indonesian Sweet Soy Sauce","modified":"2025-10-29T16:00:09+01:00","plain":"There\u2019s a good reason why Kecap Manis is Indonesia\u2019s most popular condiment: not only is it delicious, it\u2019s so incredibly versatile you\u2019ll want to add it to almost everything!\n\n\n\nNo meal in Indonesia is complete without ketjap manis, the country\u2019s most popular condiment!\n\n\n\nIt\u2019s not just the most popular condiment, it\u2019s also the most widely used condiment in Indonesia. In fact, over 90% of all soy sauce produced in Indonesia goes into making kecap manis.\n\n\n\nWhat is kecap manis?\n\n\n\nAlso known as ketjap manis, this is a thick, dark, molasses-like sauce made from palm sugar and soy sauce, with aromatic spices added for extra flavor. The word manis means \u201csweet\u201d in Malay\/Indonesian, so it\u2019s often called \u201csweet soy sauce.\u201d\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nThe method for making it is very similar to a balsamic vinegar reduction, where the ingredients are slowly simmered until the sauce thickens to a syrupy consistency.\n\n\n\nTraditionally, palm or coconut sugar is used, which gives the sauce deep notes of caramel and toffee.\n\n\n\nKecap manis has been popular in Indonesia for\u2026 well, a very, very long time. Interestingly, it\u2019s also hugely popular in the Netherlands due to Dutch colonial influence in Indonesia from the late 16th century until 1945.\n\n\n\nA bit of history...\n\n\n\nI recently read an article about the history of kecap manis in Indonesia. While most Indonesians today buy their kecap manis bottled at the store, that wasn\u2019t always the case.\n\n\n\nIn the past, it wasn\u2019t available in bottles from huge manufacturers. Instead, families made a living by producing it themselves and selling it at local markets.\n\n\n\nThe city of Majalengka alone once had 300 different local vendors, each making their own version of kecap manis with unique flavor twists.\n\n\n\nBut then Heinz and Unilever took over two of the brands, ABC and Bango, and local producers just couldn\u2019t compete with their advertising power.\n\n\n\nAs a result, many family businesses that had been making kecap manis for generations were forced to close. Another effect is that the huge variety of kecap manis sauces has shrunk to just a handful of bottled brands, with most of the unique local variations lost.\n\n\n\nWell, we\u2019ll stick with homemade kecap manis. Not only is it free from unwanted additives and preservatives found in bottled versions, but it also tastes SO much better! Plus, it\u2019s super easy to make, so there\u2019s really no excuse not to make your own.\n\n\n\nWith Indonesia\u2019s tradition of a wide range of flavors, feel free to experiment by adding ingredients like black peppercorns, chilies, coriander seeds, lemongrass, and kaffir lime, lime, or curry leaves.\n\n\n\nHow do you use kecap manis?\n\n\n\nThis sauce is wonderfully versatile!\n\n\n\nIt\u2019s a key ingredient in Indonesia\u2019s national dish, nasi goreng (fried rice), as well as mie goreng (fried noodles). It\u2019s also commonly used in satays.\n\n\n\nA delicious mie goreng\n\n\n\nTry adding it to Asian-style salad dressings, peanut sauces, brush it lightly over grilled corn on the cob, grilled chicken, pork, beef, fish, and seafood\u2026 really, the only limit is your imagination!\n\n\n\nIn short: kecap manis works wonders in rice and noodle dishes and is just as fantastic in stir-fries or used in marinades, glazes, soups, barbecue sauces, or as a dipping sauce. If that\u2019s not a dream condiment, I don\u2019t know what is.\n\n\n\nHow do you make homemade kecap manis?\n\n\n\nPut all the ingredients in a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Lower the heat to medium-low and simmer uncovered, stirring often, until the sugar dissolves and the sauce starts to thicken, about 10 to 15 minutes.\n\n\n\nNote: The sauce will continue to thicken as it cools, so be careful not to overcook it.\n\n\n\nTurn off the heat, cover, and let it cool completely with the spices, garlic, and ginger still in the sauce so they can keep releasing their flavors.\n\n\n\nOnce cooled, strain and discard the aromatics, pour the sauce into an airtight jar, and store it in the fridge. Homemade kecap manis will keep for several weeks.\n\n\n\nKecap manis ingredients\n\n\n\nStar anise: Adds a distinctive and classic flavor to the sauce\n\n\n\nLight soy sauce: Classic salty soy sauce you can now find in just about every supermarket. There\u2019s really no excuse not to get some!\n\n\n\n\n\n\tKecap Manis - Indonesian Sweet Soy Sauce\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\n\t\t232 ml light soy sauce275 g palm or coconut sugar (or brown sugar)1 tablespoon molasses or honey3 garlic cloves1 knob of peeled ginger (2 cm)2 star anise2 cloves\t\n\t\n\t\tCombine all ingredients in a saucepan and bring to a boil.Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer (uncovered) for 10-15 minutes.Turn off the heat, cover, and let cool, allowing the aromatics to infuse.Once cooled, strain out and discard the aromatics, then pour into an airtight jar.\t\n\t\n\t\tThe sauce will continue to thicken as it cools, so take care not to overcook it.\n\t\n\t\n\t\tSauceindon\u00e9sienne","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/109746","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=109746"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/109746\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":110119,"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/109746\/revisions\/110119"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3350"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=109746"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=109746"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=109746"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}