This Indonesian Soy Sauce Is My Pantry Hero. You'll Love It Too.

My dad made dinner every night. Filets of salmon or pork chops, accompanied by broccoli florets he steamed in the microwave or a pot of rice he cooked on the stove. He piled mounds of rice on my plate, and topped it with drizzles of a thick brown liquid from a white jar with a green lid labeled "Ketjap Medja No. 1" until the rice turned a caramel brown hue. This is Indonesian, or sweet, soy sauce, and if your pantry is stocked with every other type of soy sauce, you need to add this one to your collection.

This Indonesian condiment is known as ketjap medja only in the Netherlands. After decades of colonization the Dutch brought it back to their home and gave it a new name. My dad is half Indonesian, half Dutch, so that's the version he's more familiar with. But in Indonesia, sweet soy sauce is called kecap manis.

What is kecap manis?

Whether you call it by its name of origin or the Dutch version, the delicious outcome is the same. Like a thick syrup, kecap manis paints not just rice, but coats cubed pork (a wok dish called babi kecap) with a palm sugar-inflected sweetness. That sweetness balances out the briny pungency of another common ingredient in Indonesian cooking: terasi, or shrimp paste. However, the flavors are much more complex than the word "sweet" lets on.

Like other types of soy sauce, the foundation of kecap manis is fermented soy, which means it has the familiar pungency of, say, shoyu (the Japanese soy sauce you see everywhere, often in Kikkoman bottles). However, I think kecap manis has a much more elaborate flavor profile than other soy sauces. When it's made at home, kecap manis is flavored with spices that have a lot of personality — bright and peppery galangal, plus the intense smoke and tang from star anise and garlic. And while it might be fun to experiment with making it at home, it's just as good right off the shelf; the two most widely available brands are ABC and Bango.

How to use kecap manis

These layers of flavor create a condiment that is versatile enough to use at nearly every meal, and yet for some reason it remains the underdog of the soy sauce canon — at least in kitchens in most of Western world. Perhaps that very sweetness, and its molasses-like texture, makes it seem inaccessible. However, once you start using it, you'll realize there's nothing intimidating about it at all. Here are five ways to incorporate my favorite condiment into your cooking.

Start with noodles

Kecap manis is the signature ingredient in mei goreng — stir fried noodles, tossed with cabbage, bean sprouts, strips of egg omelet, and sometimes chicken and prawns. You can see how kecap manis could easily dress a simple ramen dish, topped with chopped scallions and a fried egg, or could be tossed into soba noodles.

Use it with tofu

Another easy way to use kecap manis is on tofu: Stir fry tofu with mushrooms or broccoli and either drizzle the soy sauce on top, or use it as a dipping sauce.

Dip with it

As a dipping sauce, kecap manis is undefeated. It compliments spears of chicken sate, edamame, and roasted sweet potato spears. Blend it with peanut sauce to accompany Indonesian gado gado — a vegetable and egg salad that is usually composed of cucumbers, tofu, green beans, and tomato, though it's highly customizable — and it becomes an all-purpose condiment.

Make marinades with it

Kecap manis is also a distinguished marinade. Ayam kecap, succulent pieces of chicken soaked in red chilies, zesty tamarind paste, garlic, and kecap manis, is one dish that is easily recreated by any home cook. In the summer, skewered meat marinated in kecap manis (sate manis or the version made with pork, sate babi as it's known in Indonesia) should have a place alongside burgers and sweet corn on the grill.

You needn't be limited by traditional Indonesian dishes. The combination of sweet soy sauce, garlic, ginger — and one optional ingredient I highly recommend, lime juice — will impart juicy saltiness and sweetness to steak and pork, too.

And of course, with rice

Childhood habits are hard to kick, I suppose, because my favorite way to use kecap manis is still on rice — specifically, nasi goreng. Indonesian fried rice is my comfort food of choice, and it gets almost all its depth of flavor — and its signature earthy brown color — from a few generous tablespoons of kecap manis. Cooked quickly and easily on the stove top, tossed with scallions and sliced bird's eye chili peppers, and served with sliced cucumber or an egg, nasi goreng can be eaten on its own. However, if you're headed to a potluck, bring it as a side dish for salad, noodles, or roasted vegetables.

No matter what your tastes, you will find a use for kecap manis. It's even delicious drizzled on toast topped with sliced tomatoes or on black bean burgers. Unexpectedly easy to incorporate into recipes you already regularly use, there's no complicated secret for how to use Indonesian soy sauce. Kecap manis is the hard-working condiment that enhances grilled meat, vegetables, and rice — and every home cook should be using it.