Ketoprak: Jakarta's Street Food of Tofu, Rice Cakes, and Peanut Sauce

Jakarta has strong opinions about its street food. Ketoprak is consistently at the top of Jakartan lists as the quintessential local comfort food — the peanut sauce dish that belongs to the city the way gado-gado belongs to Java more broadly and pecel belongs to East Java.

The differences between ketoprak, gado-gado, and pecel are a beloved topic of argument among Indonesians. Ketoprak is the most Jakarta-specific version: lighter on vegetables, heavier on the starchier components (lontong rice cake and glass noodles), and with a peanut sauce that uses shrimp paste in a specific way.

The Components

Lontong (compressed rice cake): Cooked rice packed into a banana leaf cylinder, compressed by the wrapping, and boiled until dense and cohesive. When the leaf is removed, the rice has set into a log that can be sliced. The slices hold their shape under saucing, providing a chewy, neutral starch base that soaks up the peanut sauce differently than loose rice.

Tahu goreng (fried tofu): Firm tofu, sliced into rectangles, fried until golden and firm with a slightly chewy exterior. The fried exterior provides textural contrast with the soft interior and grips the peanut sauce better than unfried tofu.

Bihun or soun (glass noodles or vermicelli): Thin rice noodles or mung bean noodles, cooked and cooled. Their transparent quality and soft texture add a noodle element without competing with the rice cake.

Bean sprouts: Fresh bean sprouts, sometimes blanched briefly, sometimes raw. The crunch is important.

Telur rebus (hard-boiled egg): Sliced in half, arranged on top. Provides protein and a different textural point.

Ketimun (cucumber): Sliced, adds freshness.

Kerupuk (crackers): Shrimp crackers or rice crackers, served alongside. The crunch contrast with the soft sauced components is expected.

The Peanut Sauce

Ketoprak's peanut sauce is distinct from gado-gado sauce in several ways:

• Thinner consistency: Ketoprak sauce is poured generously; gado-gado sauce tends to be thicker and used more sparingly
• More prominent shrimp paste (terasi/belacan): The roasted shrimp paste note is stronger in ketoprak
• Kecap manis (sweet soy sauce): Added directly into the sauce for sweetness and color; also drizzled over the finished plate
• Lime: More lime juice for brightness than in some regional variations

The sauce base: fried peanuts (skin on, fried until deep golden) ground with garlic, shrimp paste, palm sugar, and tamarind. Thinned with water to the right consistency. Adjusted with lime juice and salt.

The key technique is using quality, fresh-ground peanuts (not peanut butter) and roasting the shrimp paste briefly over flame before incorporating it to mellow and develop its flavor.

Assembly

Ketoprak is assembled to order at street stalls. The cook lays out the lontong, tofu, noodles, bean sprouts, cucumber, and egg on a plate or banana leaf. The peanut sauce is ground fresh (many traditional stalls still use a mortar) and poured over. A drizzle of kecap manis follows. Sambal (chili paste) is offered separately for those who want heat. Kerupuk crackers are placed alongside, not over the sauced components — they stay crispy that way.

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Recipe: Ketoprak (Serves 4)

Peanut sauce:

• 200g roasted peanuts (skin on, or skinless)
• 4 cloves garlic
• 1 teaspoon roasted terasi (shrimp paste)
• 2 tablespoons palm sugar or brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons tamarind paste dissolved in 3 tablespoons water
• 1 tablespoon kecap manis
• Juice of 1 lime
• Salt to taste
• Water to thin (approximately 1/2–3/4 cup)

Pound or blend peanuts, garlic, and shrimp paste. Add sugar, tamarind liquid, kecap manis. Pound/blend to a paste. Add water gradually to reach a thick but pourable sauce. Season with lime and salt.

Components:

• 400g lontong (store-bought or make: pack cooked rice into plastic wrap logs, boil 2 hours, refrigerate to firm), sliced into 1.5-inch cubes
• 300g firm tofu, sliced and fried in oil until golden
• 200g glass noodles or rice vermicelli, cooked and cooled
• 200g bean sprouts, blanched 30 seconds
• 2 hard-boiled eggs, halved
• 1 cucumber, sliced
• Kecap manis for drizzling
• Sambal for serving
• Kerupuk crackers

Assembly: Arrange lontong, tofu, noodles, bean sprouts, egg, and cucumber on plates. Pour peanut sauce generously over. Drizzle kecap manis. Serve sambal and crackers on the side.