List of Indonesian snacks facts for kids

A yummy mix of Indonesian kue basah snacks, often called jajan pasar (market buys), found in a traditional market in Yogyakarta.

Indonesian snacks are super popular and come in all sorts of shapes, sizes, and flavors! In Indonesia, these tasty treats are called kudapan, makanan kecil (which means "small food"), or makanan ringan (meaning "light food"). You can find them sweet or savory. Snacks are a huge part of Indonesian cuisine, which is known for being very diverse. Many traditional snacks are called kue. These are often steamed or fried and made with rice flour and coconut sugar. Plus, there are crispy crackers like krupuk and kripik chips, which are always a favorite!

Crispy Crackers and Chips
Delicious Fritters
Tasty Dumplings
Savory Snacks to Try
Tofu-Based Delights
Kue Basah: Traditional Wet Cakes
Kue Kering: Cookies and Biscuits
Breads, Pastries, and Cakes
Liquid Snacks, Porridges, and Drinks
Seeds, Beans, and Peanuts
Images for kids
See also

Crispy Crackers and Chips

Indonesia loves its crunchy snacks! These are often deep-fried and made from different ingredients, giving them unique tastes and textures.

Name	Where it's popular	What it is
Amplang	Java and Kalimantan	A savory fish cracker made from fish like wahoo.
Emping	All over Indonesia	Crackers made from flattened Belinjo seeds.
Intip	Java	A large, thick cracker made from crispy, leftover rice stuck to the bottom of a pot. It's seasoned with salt.
Kemplang	Malay and Palembangese	A savory fish cracker, similar to amplang, also made from fish like wahoo.
Keripik	All over Indonesia	Traditional chips or crisps. They are bite-sized and can be savory or sweet.
Keripik pisang	All over Indonesia	Delicious crispy banana chips.
Kerupuk	All over Indonesia	Deep-fried crisps, usually made from tapioca flour. They can have prawn, fish, or garlic flavors and come in many shapes and colors.
Kerupuk udang	All over Indonesia	A popular deep-fried snack made from starch and prawn.
Rempeyek	All over Indonesia, especially Java	A savory Javanese cracker. It's deep-fried and made from flour with other ingredients like peanuts, coated in a crispy batter.
Rengginang	All over Indonesia	A thick rice cracker made from sticky rice and spices. It's flat and round.

Delicious Fritters

Fritters, or gorengan, are super popular street food snacks in Indonesia. They are usually deep-fried and can be made from vegetables, fruits, or even tofu.

Name	Where it's popular	What it is
Bakwan	All over Indonesia	A traditional fritter with vegetables like bean sprouts, cabbage, and carrots, all mixed in batter and deep-fried.
Cakwe	Java	A long, golden-brown, deep-fried dough strip. It's often eaten for breakfast with chicken porridge.
Cimol	Bandung, West Java	Small, round, fried snacks made from tapioca flour. They come from Bandung and are often served with peanut sauce or chili sauce.
Cireng	West Java	A small, fried snack made from tapioca batter.
Jemput-jemput	Malay	A traditional Malay fritter made from flour. It's usually round and varies in size.
Mendoan	Central Java	Deep-fried tempeh that's lightly cooked, so it stays a bit soft.
Perkedel	All over Indonesia	Made from mashed potatoes, sometimes with minced meat, corn, or tofu. The most common type is potato.
Perkedel jagung	All over Indonesia	Delicious corn fritters.
Pisang cokelat	Java	A sweet snack made of banana slices with melted chocolate, wrapped in thin pastry, and deep-fried.
Pisang goreng	All over Indonesia	A classic snack: battered and deep-fried banana or plantain.

Tasty Dumplings

Indonesian dumplings come in many forms, often filled with savory ingredients and steamed or fried.

Name	Where it's popular	What it is
Arem-arem	Java	Similar to lontong (rice cake), but it's flavored with coconut milk and filled with cooked ground meat, tofu, or tempeh.
Bakcang	Chinese Indonesian	A rice cake filled with meats, sometimes beans, mushrooms, and salty egg, wrapped in bamboo leaves.
Cilok	Bandung, West Java	Ball-shaped dumplings made from tapioca starch. The name means "poked tapioca" because you often poke them with a stick. Served with peanut sauce or chili.
Jalangkote	Makassarese	A fried pastry shaped like an empanada, filled with vegetables, potatoes, and eggs. It's eaten with a spicy, sweet, and sour sauce.
Lemper	Java	A traditional rice cake made from glutinous rice and usually filled with chicken.
Otak-otak	All over Indonesia	Made from fish paste (like Spanish mackerel), spiced, wrapped in banana leaves, then grilled. Served with peanut sauce.
Pastel	All over Indonesia	A fried flour dumpling filled with vegetables and meat.
Semar mendem	Java	A snack similar to lemper, made of glutinous rice filled with seasoned shredded chicken. Instead of a banana leaf, it's wrapped in a thin omelette, so the whole thing is edible!

Savory Snacks to Try

These savory snacks are perfect for a quick bite and come with a variety of flavors, from pickled to fried.

Name	Where it's popular	What it is
Asinan	Java	A pickled vegetable or fruit dish, often brined or vinegared.
Bakso bakar	All over Indonesia	Grilled meatballs on skewers, just like satay.
Bakso goreng	Java	Fried meatballs with a firm texture, usually eaten as a snack on their own.
Batagor	West Java	This name means "fried tofu and meatballs." It's a deep-fried version of siomay (fish dumplings).
Bitterballen	All over Indonesia	A round, meat-based snack, very similar to kroket (croquette).
Kerak telor	Jakarta	An omelette made from chicken or duck egg, mixed with sticky rice and spices. It's served with coconut flakes.
Kroket	All over Indonesia	A type of croquette made from mashed potato filled with minced chicken.
Lumpia	All over Indonesia	A spring roll with a thin, crepe-like pastry skin filled with savory or sweet ingredients. It can be deep-fried or fresh.
Lumpia semarang	Semarang, Central Java	A special spring roll from Semarang, filled with cooked bamboo shoots and chicken or prawn. It's eaten with a sweet dipping sauce.
Martabak	All over Indonesia	Indonesia's version of Murtabak, often filled with beef and scallions, or sweet fillings like peanut and chocolate.
Ngo hiang	Chinese Indonesian	A deep-fried dish with vegetables, meat, or shrimp, seasoned with five-spice powder and wrapped in a thin egg crepe.
Risoles	All over Indonesia	Fried rolls coated in breadcrumbs, usually filled with vegetables and meat.
Samosa	All over Indonesia	A fried or baked snack with a savory filling, like spiced potatoes, onions, or peas.
Seblak	Bandung, West Java	A savory and spicy dish made from wet crackers cooked with scrambled egg, vegetables, and sometimes chicken or seafood. It's stir-fried with spicy sauces.
Siomay	Sundanese and Chinese Indonesian	A light meal similar to Chinese Dim Sum. It's often made from mackerel fish meat and served with peanut sauce.

Tofu-Based Delights

Tofu is a versatile ingredient in Indonesian snacks, offering many delicious and healthy options.

Name	Where it's popular	What it is
Kembang tahu	Chinese Indonesian	Soft tofu served in a warm, sweet ginger soup.
Tahu aci	Tegal, Central Java	A snack made from tofu and flour, popular in Tegal.
Tahu goreng	All over Indonesia	Simply deep-fried tofu.
Tahu gejrot	Cirebon, West Java	Deep-fried tofu served with a special sauce made from coconut sugar, sweet soy sauce, chili, garlic, and shallots.
Tahu isi	All over Indonesia	Deep-fried tofu filled with vegetables like bean sprouts and carrots, sometimes with a little minced meat.
Tahu sumedang	Sumedang, West Java	Deep-fried tofu, often served with sweet soy sauce and chili.
Tahu telur	Surabaya, East Java	Deep-fried tofu and egg, served with vegetables, peanuts, and soy sauce.
Tauge goreng	Bogor, West Java	A savory vegetarian dish of stir-fried bean sprouts with tofu, rice cake, and noodles, served in a spicy sauce.

Kue Basah: Traditional Wet Cakes

Kue basah means "wet cakes" and refers to a variety of soft, often moist, traditional Indonesian cakes and sweets.

Name	Where it's popular	What it is
Agar-agar	All over Indonesia	Puddings and jellies, often flavored with fruits.
Apem	All over Indonesia, with Indian influence	A steamed dough made of rice flour, coconut milk, yeast, and palm sugar. Usually served with grated coconut.
Bakpia	All over Indonesia, especially Java	A popular pastry similar to a mooncake, filled with sweet bean paste.
Bika ambon	Medan, North Sumatra	A cake made with tapioca flour, eggs, sugar, yeast, and coconut milk. The yeast makes it spongy. It comes in flavors like pandan, banana, durian, cheese, and chocolate.
Clorot	All over Indonesia, especially Java	Sticky dough of glutinous rice flour sweetened with coconut sugar, steamed in a cone-shaped young coconut leaf.
Dadar gulung	Javanese, now all over Indonesia	A green-colored pancake made of rice flour, filled with grated coconut and palm sugar. The green color comes from pandan leaves.
Dodol	Java	Small, sticky sweets made from rice flour and coconut sugar. They are molded and colored, often with fruit flavors like durian.
Klepon	All over Indonesia	Boiled rice cakes, stuffed with coconut sugar, and rolled in fresh grated coconut. They are flavored with pandan leaf juice.
Kue cubit	All over Indonesia	This small cake is called kue cubit (pinch cake) because of its tiny size.
Kue cucur	All over Indonesia	A pancake made of fried rice flour batter and coconut sugar.
Kue lapis	All over Indonesia	A traditional snack of colorful, layered, soft rice flour pudding.
Kue pukis	All over Indonesia	A cake made from eggs, sugar, flour, yeast, and coconut milk. It's baked in a special half-moon mold and is similar to waffles.
Kue putu	All over Indonesia	Similar to klepon, but cylindrical in shape.
Mochi	All over Indonesia	Rice flour-based cake filled with peanut paste, sometimes sprinkled with sesame seeds.
Nagasari	All over Indonesia	Steamed rice cake wrapped in banana leaves and stuffed with banana.
Onde-onde	All over Indonesia	Glutinous rice cake balls, filled with sweet green bean paste, rolled in sesame seeds, and then fried.
Poffertjes	All over Indonesia	Similar to kue cubit, these cakes have a light and spongy texture.
Kue talam	All over Indonesia	A two-layered coconut milk soft cake made of rice flour, coconut milk, and sugar, often with pandan or palm sugar.
Wingko	Semarang, Central Java	A sweet baked coconut cake, similar to bibingka.

Kue Kering: Cookies and Biscuits

Kue kering means "dry cakes" and refers to a variety of Indonesian cookies and biscuits, often enjoyed during holidays.

Name	Where it's popular	What it is
Kaasstengels	All over Indonesia	Made from flour, eggs, margarine, and grated cheese. These rectangular cakes are popular during holidays like Eid ul-Fitr and Christmas.
Kembang goyang	Betawi and Javanese	Made of rice flour, eggs, sugar, salt, and coconut milk. The dough is fried using a special flower-shaped mold.
Kue putri salju	All over Indonesia	A crescent-shaped cookie coated with powdered sugar, making it look like it's covered in snow.
Kue satu	Java	A white traditional cookie made with sweet mung bean powder. It crumbles easily when you bite it.
Lidah kucing	All over Indonesia	A thin, cat tongue-shaped cookie or biscuit. It's a popular snack during holidays.
Nastar	All over Indonesia	A round cookie, about 2 cm in diameter, filled with pineapple jam. It's often decorated with a small clove or raisin on top.
Sale pisang	Java	Bananas that are thinly sliced and sun-dried. They can be eaten as is or fried first.
Semprong	All over Indonesia	A wafer snack made by cooking egg batter between two hot iron molds, similar to a waffle.
Speculaas	All over Indonesia	A thin, very crunchy, caramelized, and slightly browned cookie, originally from Dutch cuisine.

Breads, Pastries, and Cakes

Indonesia has a wide range of breads, pastries, and cakes, many showing influences from different cultures.

Name	Where it's popular	What it is
Bakpau	All over Indonesia	A type of steamed bun, very common in Indonesia. It's filled with chocolate, strawberry, cheese, mung bean, minced beef, or chicken.
Bollen	Bandung	Layered pastry filled with sweet things like banana, cheese, and durian.
Bolu kukus	All over Indonesia	A steamed sponge cake.
Bolu pandan	All over Indonesia	A light, fluffy, green-colored sponge cake flavored with pandan leaves.
Donat kentang	All over Indonesia	A ring-shaped fritter made from flour and mashed potatoes, often coated in powdered sugar.
Karipap	Malay	A dumpling snack usually filled with chicken and potato with a dry curry inside.
Klappertaart	Manado, North Sulawesi	A coconut tart or custard from Dutch-Indonesian origins. It's made from flour, sugar, milk, butter, coconut flesh, and juice, topped with raisins.
Kue soes	All over Indonesia	A baked pastry filled with soft, moist cream made from milk, sugar, and flour.
Panada	Manado, North Sulawesi	Fried bread filled with spicy tuna.
Roti bakar	All over Indonesia	Toast served with jam, chocolate, or cheese. It's a common street food.
Roti gambang	Jakarta and Semarang, Central Java	A rectangular brown bread with sesame seeds, flavored with cinnamon and palm sugar.
Roti jala	Malay and Minangkabau	A pretty dish that looks like a lace doily because of how it's made. Often served with goat curry.
Terang bulan	All over Indonesia	Originally a Chinese snack, now often called murtabak. It's a thick, sweet pancake.

Liquid Snacks, Porridges, and Drinks

Beyond solid snacks, Indonesia offers many delicious liquid treats, from sweet porridges to refreshing drinks.

Name	Where it's popular	What it is
Bubur kacang hijau	All over Indonesia	Green bean porridge, sweetened with sugar and served with thick coconut milk.
Bubur ketan hitam	All over Indonesia	Black glutinous rice porridge, sweetened with sugar and served with thick coconut milk.
Bubur sumsum	All over Indonesia	White porridge made from rice flour, eaten with brown sugar sauce.
Cincau	All over Indonesia	A jelly-like dessert with a mild, slightly bitter taste. It's served chilled with fruit or in drinks.
Cendol	All over Indonesia	A sweet jelly drink with green rice flour jelly (colored by pandan leaf), mixed with coconut milk, shaved ice, and palm sugar.
Es doger	Bandung, West Java	A cold and sweet coconut ice dessert with syrup and various fillings.
Es campur	All over Indonesia	Shaved ice with coconut pieces, various fruits (like jackfruit), grass jelly, syrup, and condensed milk.
Es teler	All over Indonesia	A mix of avocado, young coconut, jackfruit, and shaved ice with sweet condensed milk.

Seeds, Beans, and Peanuts

Many Indonesian snacks feature seeds, beans, and peanuts, often prepared in simple yet delicious ways.

Name	Where it's popular	What it is
Beton or biji nangka rebus	Java and Sumatra	Boiled jackfruit seeds seasoned with salt.
Jagung goreng	All over Indonesia, especially East Nusa Tenggara	Crispy deep-fried corn kernels, eaten like fried peanuts.
Kacang disko or kacang Bali	Bali	Deep-fried peanuts coated with crispy batter and seasoned with sugar and salt. A popular snack with drinks.
Kacang goreng or kacang bawang	All over Indonesia	Deep-fried peanuts with garlic.
Kacang mede or kacang mete	All over Indonesia	Delicious deep-fried cashew nuts.
Kuaci	All over Indonesia	Baked plant seeds, usually sunflower or pumpkin seeds.
Pilus, kacang pilus, kacang sukro or kacang atom	All over Indonesia	Pilus are deep-fried tapioca balls, while kacang pilus or kacang sukro are peanuts coated with tapioca.

Images for kids

Ampo (snack).jpg

Ampo, a unique snack made from pure clay.
Keripik teripang, chips made from dried sea cucumber.
Kerupuk kulit babi, pork skin crackers.
Kerupuk kulit sapi, cow or buffalo skin crackers.
Kerupuk ikan, deep fried fish crackers.
Cakwe from Solo, a long deep-fried dough strip.
Combro, a Sundanese fritter made from grated cassava with oncom and chili filling.
Perkedel Tahu.jpg

Perkedel tahu, a Dutch-Indonesian food based on tofu.
Pisang molen, banana wrapped in thin pastry dough before frying.
Chai kue, a traditional steamed dumpling filled with yam, taro, or chives.
Nyonya chang, a type of zongzi filled with minced pork and candied winter melon.
Lepet, sticky rice dumpling mixed with peanuts and cooked with coconut milk.
Pai ti, a thin and crispy pastry tart shell filled with spicy vegetables and prawns.
Pangsit basah, wonton served in gravy with noodles.
Pangsit goreng, fried wonton filled with chicken or shrimp.
Pastel, a fried flour dumpling filled with vegetables and meat.
Bakmi, boiled noodles often mixed with fat and served.
Bakso bakar.jpg

Bakso bakar, grilled and skewered meatballs.
Bakso goreng.jpg

Bakso goreng, fried meatballs with a hard texture.
Belalang goreng.jpg

Belalang goreng, fried grasshopper.
Be urutan.jpg

Be urutan, a Balinese traditional pork sausage.
Burgo, a folded rice pancake served in a savory coconut milk soup.
Laksa, a spicy noodle soup with various types.
Laksan.jpg

Laksan, a dish made from sago and fish, served with coconut milk sauce.
Lumpia basah, unfried spring roll served with sweet tauco sauce.
Maamoul.jpg

Maamoul, a filled pastry or cookie made with dates or nuts.
Makaroni schotel, a macaroni casserole with cheese, potato, and meat.
Martabak aceh.jpg

Martabak aceh, a type of Indonesian martabak shaped like roti canai.
Martabak kubang, a Minangkabau-style Indonesian martabak.
Martabak mi.jpg

Martabak mi, noodles mixed with eggs and fried.
Ngo hiang, a deep-fried dish with vegetables and meat or shrimp.
Orak-arik tempe, dry tempeh with a sweet taste from sweet soy sauce.
Pastel tutup.jpg

Pastel tutup, a type of shepherd's pie with chicken and vegetables.
Popiah, a spring roll with Chinese origin, similar to lumpia.
Sosis solo, Javanese sausages made from beef or chicken coated in egg.
Sotong pangkong.jpg

Sotong pangkong, dried squid burned using charcoal.
Sumpia, smaller and drier lumpia with beef or prawn floss filling.
Tahu aci.JPG

Tahu aci, a snack made from tofu and flour from Tegal.
Tahu campur 2.jpg

Tahu campur, sliced fried tofu, rice cakes, and more, served in beef stew.
Tahu gunting, deep-fried tofu cut with scissors, served with peanut and chili sauce.
Tahu tauco.jpg

Tahu tauco, tofu in tauco sauce.
Tahu tek.jpg

Tahu tek, deep-fried tofu with vegetables and peanut sauce.
Agar-agar, puddings and jellies.
Bagea, a sago cake with a hard consistency.
Bahulu, a Malay traditional cake with a soft texture.
Bakpia pathok, a small baked pastry filled with sweet mung bean paste.
Bibingka, a cake made with rice flour, sugar, and coconut milk.
Brem (solid snack), made from fermented tape.
Dodol, rice flour-based glutinous sweets.
Geplak, sweets made from sugar and grated coconut.
Idlis Detached From Cooker.JPG

Idli kukus, an Indian-based savory rice cake.
Kue bugis, a traditional soft glutinous rice flour cake filled with sweet grated coconuts.
Kue kacang tanah.jpg

Kue kacang tanah, a pastry made from peanuts in various forms.
Kue keranjang, a food made from glutinous rice, served during Chinese New Year.
Kue kochi, a cake dumpling made from glutinous rice flour and coconut fillings.
Kue ku, a Chinese pastry with soft glutinous rice flour skin and a sweet filling.
Kue putu mangkok.JPG

Kue putu mangkok, a round, traditional steamed rice flour snack filled with palm sugar.
Kue rangi, a traditional snack made of grated coconut and starch-based batter.
Madumongso, a snack made from fermented black sticky rice.
Makmur, a traditional Malay pastry made from butter, ghee, and flour.
Mochi, rice flour-based cake filled with peanuts paste.
Pai susu.jpg

Pai susu, a type of custard tart from Bali.
Pastel de nata, an egg tart pastry from Portuguese cuisine.
Puding sagu.jpg

Puding sagu, a sweet pudding made by boiling sago with water or milk.
Putu mayang, made from starch or rice flour shaped like noodles, served with coconut milk.
Timphan, a steamed banana dumpling from Aceh.
Kue gapit, a waffle-cracker snack grilled between iron molds.
Kue kaak, a small circular biscuit from Arab-Indonesian culture.
Kue semprit, a cookie made of wheat flour, corn flour, and margarine.
Kukis jagung, a cookie prepared with corn products.
Ladyfinger, a dry, egg-based, sweet sponge biscuit.
Speculaas, a thin, crunchy, caramelized cookie from Dutch cuisine.
Stroopwafel, a wafer cookie with two thin layers joined by a caramel filling.
Untir-untir, a fried dough twist with a shiny, golden, crispy look.
Bolu beras, a rice muffin from Portuguese cuisine.
Donat jawa, a Javanese-style ring-shaped fritter made from cassava.
Klappertaart, a coconut tart or custard from Manado.
Kue bulan, Indonesian traditional mooncake.
Kue busa or schuimpje, a sweet pastry made of beaten eggs and sugar.
Oliebol, fried dumpling bread or cake filled with raisins or apple.
Roti john, a Malay omelette sandwich.
Roti tisu, a thinner version of roti canai, as thin as tissue.
Terang bulan mini, a smaller version of terang bulan.
Bubur cha cha, a traditional dessert with sago, sweet potatoes, and coconut milk.
Dadiah, traditional West Sumatran water buffalo milk yogurt.
Dali ni Horbo.jpg

Dali ni horbo, a cheese-like dish from North Sumatra.
Dangke.jpg

Dangke, a traditional cheese made from buffalo or cow milk.