Gado-Gado

Name: Gado-Gado
Prep time: 25 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 40 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: Indonesian
Ingredients: 200g green cabbage, cut into 3cm pieces; 200g bean sprouts; 200g long beans or green beans, cut into 5cm pieces; 2 medium potatoes, boiled, peeled, and sliced; 200g firm tofu, cut into cubes and fried until golden; 200g tempeh, sliced and fried until crisp; 4 hard-boiled eggs, peeled and quartered; 1 medium cucumber, sliced; For the peanut sauce: 200g roasted unsalted peanuts, 3 cloves garlic, 4 bird's eye chillies, 2 tbsp kecap manis (sweet soy sauce), 1 tbsp tamarind paste, 1 tbsp palm sugar or brown sugar, 200ml warm water, 1/2 tsp salt; Prawn crackers (kerupuk) for serving; Lontong (compressed rice cakes) for serving, optional

Gado-Gado (GAH-doh GAH-doh)

Gado Gado

⏱ Prep Time 30 min

📈 Difficulty Easy

👥 Servings

🔥 Calories 384 kcal

A hearty salad of blanched vegetables, tofu, tempeh, and hard-boiled eggs drenched in a rich, spicy peanut sauce. Indonesia's beloved vegetarian feast.

Nutrition & Info

Protein 14.0g

Carbs 28.0g

Fat 24.0g

Protein Carbs Fat

Dietary

dairy-free

Allergen Warnings

⚠ eggs ⚠ gluten ⚠ nuts ⚠ shellfish ⚠ soy

Equipment Needed

steamer or pot mortar and pestle or blender

Presentation Guide

Vessel: large plate

Garnishes: peanut sauce, fried shallots, prawn crackers

Accompaniments: lontong (rice cake)

Ingredients

200g green cabbage, cut into 3cm pieces
200g bean sprouts
200g long beans or green beans, cut into 5cm pieces
2 medium potatoes, boiled, peeled, and sliced
200g firm tofu, cut into cubes and fried until golden
200g tempeh, sliced and fried until crisp
4 hard-boiled eggs, peeled and quartered
1 medium cucumber, sliced
For the peanut sauce: 200g roasted unsalted peanuts, 3 cloves garlic, 4 bird's eye chillies, 2 tbsp kecap manis (sweet soy sauce), 1 tbsp tamarind paste, 1 tbsp palm sugar or brown sugar, 200ml warm water, 1/2 tsp salt
Prawn crackers (kerupuk) for serving
Lontong (compressed rice cakes) for serving, optional

Instructions

1
Prepare the vegetables by blanching the cabbage, bean sprouts, and long beans separately in a large pot of boiling salted water for two to three minutes each until just tender but still crisp, then plunge immediately into ice water to stop cooking.
2
Fry the tofu cubes in hot oil until golden and crisp on all sides, about four minutes, then fry the tempeh slices until deep brown and crunchy, about three minutes per side. Drain both on paper towels.
3
Make the peanut sauce by grinding the roasted peanuts in a food processor until coarsely ground, then adding the garlic, chillies, tamarind paste, palm sugar, and salt, processing until you have a textured paste.
4
Transfer the peanut paste to a saucepan, add the kecap manis and warm water, and cook over low heat for five minutes, stirring constantly, until the sauce is smooth, thick, and heated through. Adjust consistency with more water if needed.
5
Drain the blanched vegetables thoroughly and arrange them on a large serving platter in sections: cabbage, bean sprouts, and long beans grouped separately alongside the sliced boiled potatoes and cucumber slices.
6
Place the fried tofu cubes and crispy tempeh slices on the platter alongside the vegetables, then arrange the hard-boiled egg quarters around the edges as a garnish, creating an attractive, colourful display.
7
Pour the warm peanut sauce generously over the entire platter, or serve it in a separate bowl for diners to add as much as they prefer, ensuring every component gets coated in the rich, spicy, sweet sauce.
8
Serve the gado gado immediately with prawn crackers for scooping and optional lontong rice cakes on the side, presenting this beloved Indonesian vegetarian feast as a complete, satisfying, and nutritionally balanced meal.

💡

Did You Know?

Gado-gado literally means 'mix-mix' and every region of Indonesia has its own unique version.

Chef's Notes

Equipment Tips

steamer or pot
mortar and pestle or blender

Garnishing

peanut sauce, fried shallots, prawn crackers

Accompaniments

lontong (rice cake)

The Story Behind Gado-Gado

### The Story

Gado-gado, meaning "mix-mix" in Indonesian, is a vibrant salad of blanched and raw vegetables, fried tofu, tempeh, hard-boiled eggs, and lontong (compressed rice cake), all drenched in a rich, spiced peanut sauce. The dish originated in the Betawi (native Jakartan) culinary tradition, emerging from the street food culture of colonial-era Batavia (now Jakarta) in the 19th century. Peanuts, introduced from the Americas via Portuguese and Spanish traders in the 16th century, became a cornerstone of Javanese and Betawi cooking, and gado-gado represents perhaps their finest expression. Street vendors carrying their ingredients in baskets on shoulder poles became iconic figures of Jakartan street life.

### On the Calendar

Gado-gado is eaten year-round as a lunch or light meal. It has no specific ceremonial association but is a daily fixture at warungs and food stalls across Java and beyond.

### Then & Now

The peanut sauce is the soul of gado-gado -- it must balance sweetness (from kecap manis), heat (from chilies), acidity (from tamarind or lime), and richness (from ground roasted peanuts). Traditional preparation involves grinding the sauce fresh with a mortar and pestle. The vegetable selection varies by season and region but typically includes blanched bean sprouts, long beans, spinach, cabbage, cucumber, and boiled potatoes. Each vendor has their own sauce recipe, fiercely guarded and passed down through generations.

### Legacy

Gado-gado is Indonesia's most famous salad, a dish that transforms humble vegetables into something extraordinary through the alchemy of its peanut sauce.

🕐 Traditionally enjoyed lunch or light meal, year-round 📜 Origins: Colonial-era Batavia (19th century)

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