Indonesian vocabulary
Indonesian food
91 curated food words at A1 / A2 / B1 levels. Every entry includes pronunciation and an example sentence, with usage notes where they help.
- nasi, rice (cooked)
- air, water
- kopi, coffee
- teh, tea
- ayam, chicken
- ikan, fish
- sayur, vegetable
- buah, fruit
- roti, bread
- telur, egg
- susu, milk
- gula, sugar
- garam, salt
- pedas, spicy
- manis, sweet
- enak, delicious
- bakso, meatball soup
- sate, satay
- mie, noodles
- goreng, fried
- bakar, grilled
- rebus, boiled
- pisang, banana
- mangga, mango
- jeruk, orange
- apel, apple
- semangka, watermelon
- nanas, pineapple
- kelapa, coconut
- pepaya, papaya
- daging, meat
- sarapan, breakfast
- makan siang, lunch
- makan malam, dinner
- sambal, chili sauce
- kecap, soy sauce
- saus, sauce
- minyak, oil
- mentega, butter
- keju, cheese
- es krim, ice cream
- kue, cake
- warung, small food stall
- pedas sedikit, a little spicy
- lezat, tasty
- minuman, drink
- makanan, food
- cemilan, snack
- rasa, taste
- asin, salty
- asam, sour
- pahit, bitter
- gurih, savory
- segar, fresh
- hangat, warm
- menu, menu
- porsi, portion
- garpu dan sendok, fork and spoon
- makan di sini, eat here
- bawa pulang, take away
- es teh, iced tea
- tidak pedas, not spicy
- bumbu, spices
- nasi putih, white rice (steamed)
- nasi uduk, nasi uduk (coconut rice)
- nasi kuning, nasi kuning (yellow turmeric rice)
- mie goreng, fried noodles
- mie kuah, noodle soup
- soto, soto (Indonesian soup)
- rendang, rendang (slow-cooked spicy beef)
- gado-gado, gado-gado (vegetable salad with peanut sauce)
- pisang goreng, fried banana
- tempe, tempeh
- kerupuk, kerupuk (prawn crackers)
- kecap manis, sweet soy sauce
- lada, pepper (spice)
- cabai, chili pepper
- bawang merah, shallot (red onion)
- bawang putih, garlic
- tomat, tomato
- kentang, potato
- wortel, carrot
- bayam, spinach
- jagung, corn
- udang, shrimp / prawn
- cumi-cumi, squid
- kepiting, crab
- santan, coconut milk
- bubur, porridge (rice)
- ketupat, ketupat (rice cake in woven palm)
- es, ice
Food in context
Reading a word inside something you can nearly follow is what makes it stick. These stories use the vocabulary above:
- Pesan Makanan Lewat Aplikasi, Ordering Food Through an App
- Sarapan untuk Dua Orang, Breakfast for Two
- Makan Siang di Kantor, Lunch at the Office
- Sambal Terlalu Pedas, The Sambal Is Too Spicy
- Kopi Panas, Teh Dingin, Hot Coffee, Cold Tea
- Sarapan di Pinggir Jalan, Breakfast by the Roadside