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Table 1 Indonesian food culture mapping

From: Indonesian food culture mapping: a starter contribution to promote Indonesian culinary tourism

Characteristics

Western part of Indonesia

Central part of Indonesia

Eastern part of Indonesia

Natural environment: geographical position, temperature, landscapes

Sumatera

Tropic, hot, humid, many volcanoes, fertile, green, lush, many paddy fields.

Kalimantan

▪ Tropic, hot, humid.

▪ A lot of rainforests

▪ Swampy coastlines

▪ Many big and long rivers

East Nusa Tenggara

Hot and drier

Java

Sulawesi

Maluku

▪ Contains of hundreds of small islands

▪ Hot and humid but fertile for spices to grow (known as Spices Islands).

Bali

West Papua

▪ Hot and drier, but some parts of the regions have snowy mountains.

▪ A lot of rainforests and swampy coastline.

▪ Many rivers and lakes

West Nusa Tenggara (Lombok)

Tropic, hot, humid, fertile and green although in some parts are drier.

  

Socio-cultural: Major ethnic groups, religion

Sumatera

▪ Acehnese, Bataknese, Padangnese, more Chinese groups in North Sumatera.

▪ The majority are Muslims, except Bataknese are mainly Christian.

Kalimantan

▪ Dayak, Banjar, and Chinese

▪ The majority are Muslims

East Nusa Tenggara

▪ Timorese

▪ The majority are Christian and Catholic

Java

▪ Javanese, Sundanese, Madurese.

▪ The majority are Muslims.

Sulawesi

▪ Minahasan, Bugis, Torajan

▪ The majority are Muslims except for Minahasan, the majority are Christian.

Maluku

▪ Ambonese

▪ The majority are Christian and Catholic

Bali

▪ Balinese

▪ The majority are Hindus.

West Papua

▪ Some indigenous ethnic groups are still practising a very traditional ways of live.

▪ The majority are Christian and Catholic

West Nusa Tenggara (Lombok)

▪ Sasak ethnic group.

▪ Half are Hindus and the rest are Muslims.

Food: Staple food, spices/herbs, main ingredients, flavours

Sumatera

▪ The influence of Middle East and Indian culture are strong in the regions.

▪ The cuisines have a very strong flavour (spicy, sour, thick that comes from heavy usage of coconut milk in cooking the dishes).

▪ Rice is the staple food.

▪ Beef, chicken as meats used in the dishes, along with vegetables.

▪ For Chinese and some Christian Bataknese, pork is eaten.

Kalimantan

▪ Rice is the staple food.

▪ Freshwater fish is abundant.

East Nusa Tenggara

▪ Corn and cassava is the staple food

Java

▪ Rice is the staple food. Maduranese eat corn as their main food.

▪ Beef, chicken as meats used in the dishes along with vegetables.

▪ Foods are sweeter in Central Java and the opposites in East Java.

Sulawesi

▪ Rice is the staple food.

▪ North Sulawesi cuisine has a very strong and spicy flavour; also some dishes contain extremely unfamiliar ingredients.

▪ Freshwater fish and seafood are abundant.

▪ Known as the best seafood produce in Indonesia.

Maluku

▪ Corn and cassava is the staple food, some eat papeda as the main food.

▪ Seafood is the main ingredients of the foods.

▪ Land of spices and fresh herbs

Bali

▪ Rice is the staple food.

▪ Pork is common in Balinese cuisine.

▪ Many Balinese dishes are spicy.

West Papua

▪ Corn and cassava is the staple food, some eat papeda as the main food.

▪ Seafood is the main ingredients of the foods.

West Nusa Tenggara (Lombok)

▪ Rice is the staple food.

▪ The signature flavour of Lombok cuisine is spicy.