What to do, how to use kecap manis?

[porker]

I saw Indonesian sweet soy for the first time the other day. I was going to buy it, but was at a loss for its use. Besides a simple condiment, or perhaps seasoning rice, is there any dish that really uses this? Tnx.

[cleopatra999]

I love this stuff, I use it in almost all of my stir frys now. I love how it helps to caramelize the ingredients. Throw in at the beginning of cooking rather than at the end and allow it to cook and reduce.

Also integral part of thai basil stirfry or pad kra pow for me.

As mentioned below, great for nasi goreng too.

[roro808]

Beside tofu salad, I also use it a lot as a condiment with some spunk...

kecap manis + regular soya sauce (or fish sauce)
chopped FRESH hot chili pepper
chopped shallot
pinch of garlic
squeeze of lime or lemon

Use for dipping all kinds of roast/steam/fried meats. Also good for dipping fresh cucumber.

[butzy]

Babi Ketjap is a great idea. Easy and delisious.
I normally use kecap manis in a marinade (lemon juice, ginger, chili paste, garlic and kecap manis) or for sate saus.
Also in dipping sauces, with spring rolls etc etc
Check this link as well for loads of good indonesian recipes www.asiancook.eu/indonesian/

[PoppiYYZ]

Awesome link butzy.

Made the sauce from the Babi Kluyuk recipe and combined it with stir fried Pork Tenderloin, Peppers, and Onions. Served over rice with fresh torn basil and a dollop of Sambal Oelek. May not be authentic, but it was great use of my new bottle of ABC brand Ketjap (or Kecap) Manis !

[Chocolatechipkt]

I love this link! Thanks!

[doyangado2]

Mix together kecap manis, lime juice, minced shallots and use it as marinade. If you wish add hot pepper flakes or fresh chopped hot pepper.

[valadelphia]

I tried to approximate kecap manis for this black pepper tofu recipe from Plenty:
http://www.epicurious.com/articlesgui...

I must paste my review below because I think adjusting the recipe to taste is mandatory.
This is great--IF you make your own adjustments. For example, I assumed the butter was a typo and used 1 tbsp. I used one onion (what I had on hand) instead of shallots. I pan-fried the tofu (that one is a no-brainer). The sweet soy sauce at my local Asian market contained preservatives I try to avoid, so I mixed soy sauce with brown sugar (lots of recipes for make-your-own kecap manis online), and I added molasses to replicate the dark soy sauce. I omitted the other sugar. I used ONE small hot green pepper, and I just ground an amount of black pepper that I found appropriate. Despite all of the modifications required, this is a unique and tasty, and was one of my more successful tofu dishes.

[Caitlin McGrath]

I think the amount of butter called for in that recipe is insane, but it's not a typo. I have the original UK edition of Plenty, and it calls for 150g butter, which converts to just over 10 1/2 tablespoons.

[porker]

Thanks, folks! I'll pick up a bottle and experiment.

[Joebob]

Let us know what it does for you.

[porker]

harryx2's fried rice sounds good. I sometimes make rice similar to this (I like to cook the scrambled egg in the microwave, chop, and add to rice near end) and the sweet soy sounds like it'll add another dimension (sweet) to go along with the spicy and salty.
This added dimension seems to be a theme.
I'll let you know!

[roro808]

The consistency of this weet soya sauce is somewhat like molasses. It can be used in many marinades that call for soy sauce and sugar. The prominent use of kecap manis in Indonesia is as the main sauce ingredient in making tofu salad.
1/2 c kecap manis
garlic
fresh
chilli pepper or chili sauce (e.g. shiraca)
chopped parsley
lime juice (or vinegar)
chopped peanuts or chunky peanut butter

Whirl all ingredients - pour over pan fried firm tofu, blanched bean sprout and chopped green onion.

You find this yummy salad all over the streets of Indonesia, especially Jakarta. Unfortunately, I do not measure my recipe -- it's all to taste :)

Another way is to mix it with chopped fresh chilli and shallot, squeeze lime or lemon juice for toppings for roast meat, chicken, or fried fish. One can get addicted to the taste....

[scubadoo97]

Yes like a cross between molasses and soy sauce. Use to do a killer grilled salmon with it in the marinade. It can burn so you have to be careful. Mmmmm... Time to revive that dish

[Joebob]

I just added 1/2 T plus 1/2 T black vinegar to my laksa gravy to punch it up.

[Harters]

As waver's post, upthread, it's invaluable in Indonesian dishes. But it often finds it's way into other east asian dishes, where I'm wanting just a little sweetnessin amongst the other flavours.

Google will find you many recipe ideas.

[Jeri L]

Once I bought a bottle I found I use it a lot. I put some in most stir fry sauces, particularly ones that have some heat.

[harryharry]

Indonesian Fried Rice- Scramble and egg and fry it in the wok - set aside - add meat if desired, scallions, rice, peas (i love these in fried rice) - add rice and fry over high heat -
add a mixture of kecap manis, sambal olek, oyster sauce and a little sesame ( I think - I'm writing this from memory) - add to the rice mixture, combine well - add the egg back - it's addictive!

[waver]

When I was growing up my friend's mom always made a braised pork dish called babi ketjap (or kecap) for large parties and served it with steamed rice and vinegary cucumbers. Yum.
Also important for making peanut sauce taste "right" to folks accustomed to Dutch Indonesian cooking.

[Veggo]

I first experienced it as a sauce for roasted chicken on the Gabrielle catamaran from St. Maarten to Saba, loved it. I brought back 6 bottles in my dive bag, 2 broke. Good stuff, don't err as I did.