Soto Betawi
From Jakarta
Jakarta's signature soup—creamy coconut-and-milk broth with beef, offal, and fresh tomato.
Key ingredients
- •Daging sapi
- •Jeroan sapi (paru, babat)
- •Santan
- •Susu
- •Tomat
- •Kayu manis
- •Cengkeh
- •Daun salam
- •Serai
- •Bawang goreng
- •Emping melinjo
Origin
Soto Betawi grew up in the Betawi community of Jakarta in the early 20th century, blending Chinese, Arab, and European influences typical of the capital. The use of milk—relatively modern in Indonesian cooking—is what sets it apart from coconut-only sotos elsewhere in the country.
Flavor Profile
The broth is creamy and savory with a faint sweetness from diced tomato, layered with shallot, garlic, lemongrass, and lime leaf. Topped with crispy emping, fried shallot, and a squeeze of lime.
How It's Served
Hot, with rice or compressed lontong, alongside cucumber-chili pickles and emping (melinjo) crackers.
The GeoKepo Team
The GeoKepo team is a group of writers and researchers passionate about Indonesian geography. We are dedicated to making the archipelago easier to understand and explore, and every article is researched in depth to keep it accurate and useful.
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