Kecap manis [pronounced: ketchup MAH-nees] is an Indonesian sweet soy sauce and ubiquitous ingredient in Indonesian cooking especially Java. You may see two other different spellings beside kecap; kicap and ketjap. Kicap is used by the Malaysian while ketjap is used by the Dutch. Actually, ketjap was an Indonesian spelling back before 1972 when the Indonesian used the old spelling.
Kecap manis is made from fermented black bean or soybean, flavoured with shallot, garlic, star anise, galangal, Indonesia bay leaves (salam leaves), lemon grass, kaffir lime leaves and sweetened with coconut or palm sugar.
Each kecap manis producer has its own secret recipe. Through my searching, some recipes call for lemongrass and kaffir lime leaves, some don’t. You may be interested with a lovely post of sijeleng on how to make traditional kecap manis in Kediri, East Java.
A word kecap, allegedly taken from the language or the Amoy dialect kôechiap tsiap. Amoy (Xiamen) is a Hokkien dialect which originally comes from Southern Fujian province (in Southeast China), in the area centered around the city of Xiamen. It is highly similar to Taiwanese, and is widely known as Hokkien in Southeast Asia.
I literally have influenced bulé husband with kecap manis. He said that kecap manis is one of his happy sauces. In Winnipeg, kecap manis of ABC brand is sold at most Asian markets and any Superstores (large Canadian grocery chains). As an Indonesian, I love Bango brand more than ABC, but bango was not widely sold in Winnipeg. I sometimes got the Bango brand from Vancouver or whenever my husband went down to Minneapolis, US.
Since the mixture has been added with coconut/palm sugar, kecap manis does not require a refrigeration to store it. Keep it in your cupboard. The sugar itself is a natural preservative.
Guess what? In early 2010, there was a new Asian store (it is a branch from Alberta) open, Lucky. It carries my fave kecap manis. Now, I can get Bango in Winnipeg. Honestly, I was dancing in the store when I saw it for the first time. OMG, I feel ashamed whenever I remember it!!!
Another thing that I’d like to share, Bango brand is GLUTEN FREE*. For you who have problem with gluten or celiac disease, this brand is good for you. By saying much good things about Bango, I want to make it clear, I don’t get paid from Unilever Indonesia which produces this kecap manis. I just write what I like about.
Ooo there is another use. The Indonesians love to mix kecap manis and lime for a cough remedy.
* bulé is a slang term for Caucasian in bahasa Indonesia.
Recipes with Kecap Manis:
- Sate Pentul – Minced Beef Sate
- Mie Ayam Jamur – Chicken Mushroom Noodle
- Fried Bihun (Rice Vermicelli)
- Bistek Lidah Asap – Smoked Ox tongue Bistik
- Javanese Fried Bihun Topped with Salmon Teriyaki
- Lumpia Semarang – Semarang Style Spring Rolls
- Cumi Bakar Kecap – BBQ Squids with Kecap Manis
- Sate Cumi Kecap – Squids Sate
- Semur Lidah – Indonesian Braised Ox Tongue
- Stir Fry Fiddleheads
- Grilled Grouper with Candlenuts and Coriander
- Sambal Kecap for Mendoan Tempe
- Sambal Kecap Petis for Grilled Fish
- Stir Fry Tempe and Onion
- Semur Ikan Bawal – Braised Pomfret
- Javanese Roasted Salmon
An Indonesian born who lives on the Prairie land of Canada. Indonesia Eats is a memoir of her homeland. 
Indonesia Eats is written and photographed by Pepy Nasution; an Indonesian-born Winnipeg (Canada)-based food photographer.
The sambal kecap recipe sounds great…I love the spice in it.
The sambal kecap recipe sounds great…I love the spice in it.
Just wondering how is it gluten free? I thought kecap manis was made from soy beans?
I'll have to keep an eye out for this brand. I usually use ABC because that's what I see more commonly.
I love this kicap manis. I love it in frying noodles.
Well, I just learned soy sauce together with lime can be used for healing cough. Thanks.
OMG I love kecap manis! I add it to everything, really. I don't think I've seen this brand before, I always use ABC.
@karen: sambal kecap is my all the time fave if I don't feel eating anything.
@Wandering Chopsticks: Yes… kecap manis is made from soy beans, but many brands add wheat flour to thicken their kecap manis.
@MaryMoh: me too
@TasteHongkong: that is an old remedy in Indonesia
@Pigpigscorner: Outside Indonesa, this brand is not as popular as ABC. Even in North America, not all stores have them.
Thanks for sharing the best brand of kicap manis. I don't usually pay attention when I buy this, I have been using ABC brand. I will look for Bango brand next time I go to Asian store.
Yeah, I haven't seen Bango brand here too, so I used ABC brand.
lovely looking sauce
It's one ingredient I use almost everyday in my cooking! Long live Kecap Manis!
we use the ABC brand kicap manis because that's the only brand that we recognized in the stores. But I will keep an eye out for this Banjo brand. Not sure if they have it here in Kuching.
Yeah it is a must in Indonesian cooking, especially this brand. It was owned by a small local company and then bought out by Unilever.
Very informative post, Pepy!
I usually see the ABC brand around.
oh Kecap Manis! it's so perfect with even the simplest dish ever, warm white rice and half cooked sunny side up eggs! YUM!!
I've heard of this but never really knew what it was. Thanks for the info and congrats on now being able to get your favorite brand. I've definitely experienced that some feeling of elation about many Chinese foods I thought I'd never find locally.
Beautiful and glossy kecap manis.
Love your first pic. How did you take it?
Yep, to me, Bango brand is the best:)
A cough remedy! Who knew! That's so interesting. And thanks for telling us the differences between brands. When I see them all on a shelf, I'm always perplexed as to which one to buy.
Yup! Me and my Javanese hubby love kecap Bango so much. I think the sweetness level is enough and I don't find the slightly sour taste like other brands do. I posted so many recipe using kecap manis too.