In the last few years, Indonesian cuisine has risen to prominence. The more popular ones, like chicken satay and beef rendang, have made their way to tables around the world, in either fancy restaurants or cozy household settings. Many of humble ingredients like tofu and tempeh have been adopted and used in ways that are completely different (and maybe even weird for some), like salad, curry, or even cake.
When I moved abroad for the first time, I found the western food culture was so interestingly different compared to what I was accustomed to. And that made me wonder, what do foreigners think when they’re first introduced to Indonesian cuisines and the food culture? So I thought I’d write something about this, as I remember it from living for more than 20 years in Indonesia.
