Kecap Manis (Indonesian Sweet Soy Sauce)

Kecap manis is a thick, sweet Indonesian soy sauce flavoured with palm sugar, giving it a syrupy texture and rich caramel-like sweetness alongside its salty, savoury base. It's the backbone of dishes like nasi goreng, mie goreng and satay marinades, and is often used as a table condiment or glaze.

Ingredients

Kecap manis is made by fermenting soybeans and wheat into a soy sauce base, then sweetening it heavily with palm sugar (gula jawa) along with garlic, star anise and other spices. The sugar is cooked into the sauce until it becomes dark, glossy and syrup-like, which sets it apart from the thinner, saltier soy sauces used elsewhere in Asia.

Nutritional Facts

Because of its added palm sugar, kecap manis is higher in carbohydrates and calories than regular soy sauce, with a tablespoon containing around 15-20 grams of sugar. It's still relatively high in sodium, though the sweetness balances the saltiness, so it's typically used in smaller amounts as a flavouring or glaze rather than a straight seasoning.