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Rujak (
Indonesian Indonesian is anything of, from, or related to Indonesia, an archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. It may refer to: * Indonesians, citizens of Indonesia ** Native Indonesians, diverse groups of local inhabitants of the archipelago ** Indonesian ...
spelling) or Rojak (
Malay Malay may refer to: Languages * Malay language or Bahasa Melayu, a major Austronesian language spoken in Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei and Singapore ** History of the Malay language, the Malay language from the 4th to the 14th century ** Indonesi ...
spelling) is a salad dish of Javanese origin, commonly found in Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore. The most popular variant in all three countries is a salad composed of a mixture of sliced fruit and vegetables served with a spicy
palm sugar Palm sugar is a sweetener derived from any variety of palm tree. Palm sugar is sometimes qualified by the type of palm, as in coconut palm sugar. While sugars from different palms may have slightly different compositions, all are processed s ...
dressing. It is often described as tangy and spicy fruit salad due to its sweet, hot and spicy dressing made from ground
chilli Chili or chilli may refer to: Food * Chili pepper, the spicy fruit of plants in the genus ''Capsicum''; sometimes spelled "chilli" in the UK and "chile" in the southwestern US * Chili powder, the dried, pulverized fruit of one or more varieties ...
, palm sugar and peanuts. There is a diverse variety of preparations, especially in
Indonesian cuisine Indonesian cuisine is a collection of various regional culinary traditions that formed the archipelagic nation of Indonesia. There are a wide variety of recipes and cuisines in part because Indonesia is composed of approximately 6,000 popula ...
, and rujak is widely available throughout Indonesia. While the most common variant is primarily composed of fruits and vegetables, its sweet and tangy dressing is often made with prawn paste. Some recipes may contain seafood or meat components, especially in Malaysia and Singapore where a notable variant shows influence from Indian Muslim cuisine.


Etymology

Rujak is one of the oldest dishes and the earliest historically identified food of ancient Java. The word "rujak" came from the word ''rurujak'' in ancient Javanese Taji inscription (901 CE) from the era of Mataram Kingdom in Central Java. The dish was later introduced to other regions and neighboring countries by the Javanese diaspora, as well as Indian descents who had lived in Java. In Malaysia and Singapore, it is spelled as "rojak".


Cultural significance

In Indonesia, particularly among the Javanese, the sweet, spicy and sour tastes of rojak is popular among pregnant women; this craving for unripe
mango A mango is an edible stone fruit produced by the tropical tree ''Mangifera indica''. It is believed to have originated in the region between northwestern Myanmar, Bangladesh, and northeastern India. ''M. indica'' has been cultivated in South a ...
and other sour-tasting fruits is known as "ngidham" or "nyidham" in Javanese. In Javanese culture, rujak is an essential part of the traditional prenatal ceremony called ''
Naloni Mitoni {{unreferenced, date=February 2010 Naloni Mitoni is a Javanese prenatal ceremony held during the seventh month (tujuh bulan in Indonesia) of a woman's first pregnancy. The mother-to-be is wrapped in seven layers of batik and doused with water, to ...
'' or ''tujuh bulanan'' (literally: seventh month), and is meant to wish the mother-to-be a safe, smooth and successful
labour Labour or labor may refer to: * Childbirth, the delivery of a baby * Labour (human activity), or work ** Manual labour, physical work ** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer ** Organized labour and the labour ...
. Special fruit rujak is made for this occasion, and later served to the mother-to-be and her guests, primarily her female friends. The recipe of rujak for this ceremony is similar to typical Indonesian fruit rujak, with the exceptions that the fruits are roughly shredded instead of thinly sliced, and that ''jeruk bali'' ( pomelo/pink
grapefruit The grapefruit (''Citrus'' × ''paradisi'') is a subtropical citrus tree known for its relatively large, sour to semi-sweet, somewhat bitter fruit. The interior flesh is segmented and varies in color from pale yellow to dark pink. Grapefruit is ...
) is an essential ingredient. It is believed that if the rujak overall tastes sweet, the unborn would be a girl, and if it is spicy, the unborn baby is a boy. Mangarabar, or rujak making, is a special event for the inhabitants of the
Batak Batak is a collective term used to identify a number of closely related Austronesian ethnic groups predominantly found in North Sumatra, Indonesia, who speak Batak languages. The term is used to include the Karo, Pakpak, Simalungun, Toba, ...
Mandailing region in Tapanuli,
North Sumatra North Sumatra ( id, Sumatra Utara) is a province of Indonesia located on the northern part of the island of Sumatra. Its capital and largest city is Medan. North Sumatra is Indonesia's fourth most populous province after West Java, East Java and ...
, Indonesia after the harvest. Normally the whole village will be involved in making and consuming the rujak. In Malaysia and Singapore, "rojak" is also used as a colloquial expression for an eclectic mix, in particular as a word describing the multi-ethnic character of Malaysian and Singaporean society.


Indonesian rujak


Rujak Buah (fruit rujak)

In Indonesia, ''Rujak buah'' is also known as ''rujak manis'' (sweet rujak). The typical Indonesian fruit rujak consists of slices of assorted tropical fruits such as ''
jambu air ''Syzygium samarangense'' is a species of flowering plant in the family Myrtaceae, native to an area that includes the Greater Sunda Islands, Malay Peninsula, and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, but introduced in prehistoric times to a wider a ...
'' (water apple), pineapple, unripe
mango A mango is an edible stone fruit produced by the tropical tree ''Mangifera indica''. It is believed to have originated in the region between northwestern Myanmar, Bangladesh, and northeastern India. ''M. indica'' has been cultivated in South a ...
es, ''bengkoang'' ( jicama),
cucumber Cucumber (''Cucumis sativus'') is a widely-cultivated Vine#Horticultural climbing plants, creeping vine plant in the Cucurbitaceae family that bears usually cylindrical Fruit, fruits, which are used as culinary vegetables.
, kedondong and raw red ''ubi jalar'' (
sweet potato The sweet potato or sweetpotato (''Ipomoea batatas'') is a dicotyledonous plant that belongs to the Convolvulus, bindweed or morning glory family (biology), family, Convolvulaceae. Its large, starchy, sweet-tasting tuberous roots are used as a r ...
). Sometimes
Malang Malang (; ) is a landlocked List of regencies and cities of Indonesia, city in the Indonesian Provinces of Indonesia, province of East Java. It has a history dating back to the age of Singhasari, Singhasari Kingdom. It is the second most popul ...
variants of green apple, belimbing (
starfruit Carambola, also known as star fruit, is the fruit of '' Averrhoa carambola'', a species of tree native to tropical Southeast Asia. The mildly poisonous fruit is commonly consumed in parts of Brazil, Southeast Asia, South Asia, the South Pacif ...
) and jeruk Bali ( pomelo) are added. The sweet and spicy-hot bumbu rujak dressing is made of water, ''gula jawa'' (
palm sugar Palm sugar is a sweetener derived from any variety of palm tree. Palm sugar is sometimes qualified by the type of palm, as in coconut palm sugar. While sugars from different palms may have slightly different compositions, all are processed s ...
), ''asem jawa'' ( tamarind), crushed peanuts, ''terasi'' ( prawn paste), salt, bird's eye chilli and red
chilli Chili or chilli may refer to: Food * Chili pepper, the spicy fruit of plants in the genus ''Capsicum''; sometimes spelled "chilli" in the UK and "chile" in the southwestern US * Chili powder, the dried, pulverized fruit of one or more varieties ...
. All of the fruits are cut to bite-size pieces, and put in the dish. The ''bumbu rujak'' or thick sweet spicy rujak dressing is poured on the fruit slices. An addition of ''sambal garam'' powder (a simple mixture of salt and ground red chilli) is put on side as the alternative for those who prefer a salty taste for their rujak. The Javanese people call this kind of rujak as ''lotis''.


Rujak Cuka

Rujak cuka literally means "vinegar rujak". It is a speciality of
Sundanese cuisine Sundanese cuisine is the cuisine of the Sundanese people of Western Java, and Banten, Indonesia. It is one of the most popular foods in Indonesia. Sundanese food is characterised by its freshness; the famous lalab eaten with sambal and also k ...
of West Java, noted for its sour freshness. It is made of shredded fruits such as pineapple and unripe mango, and vegetables such as jícama, cabbage, bean sprouts and cucumber. It is quite similar to ''
asinan ''Asinan'' is a pickled (through brined or vinegared) vegetable or fruit dish, commonly found in Indonesia. ''Asin'', Indonesian for "salty", is the process of preserving the ingredients by soaking them in a solution of salty water. ''Asinan'' ...
'' due to its sour and spicy dressing, since both dishes contain vinegar, palm sugar and chilli.


Rujak Tumbuk (Rujak Bēbēk)

This is another variant of Indonesian fruit rujak which comes from West Java. The ingredients are almost the same as typical Indonesian fruit rujak, with the exception that all the ingredients are being ground or mashed together (''tumbuk'' or ''bēbēk'' in Indonesian) in a wooden mortar. The fruits being ground are young/green ''pisang batu'' (a species of plantain), raw red yam, jicama, Java apple, ''kedondong'' and young unripe mango. The dressing is not poured on the fruit, but mashed together with all the ingredients. The dressing contains ''terasi'' prawn paste, palm sugar, salt and birds-eye chilli. Traditionally, rujak tumbuk is served in individual smaller portions on banana leaf plates called ''pincuk''. However today, it is also commonly served in plastic cups.


Rujak Serut

This literally means "shredded rujak", and is another variant of Indonesian fruit rujak. As with rujak tumbuk, the ingredients are similar to Indonesian fruit rujak, with the exceptions that the fruits are not cut into bite-sized pieces, but shredded into a roughly grated consistency.


Rujak u' Groeh

A delicacy from
Aceh Aceh ( ), officially the Aceh Province ( ace, Nanggroë Acèh; id, Provinsi Aceh) is the westernmost province of Indonesia. It is located on the northernmost of Sumatra island, with Banda Aceh being its capital and largest city. Granted a s ...
province, this rujak consists of very young and tender coconut meat, young (green) papaya, bird's eye chilli, sugar,
palm sugar Palm sugar is a sweetener derived from any variety of palm tree. Palm sugar is sometimes qualified by the type of palm, as in coconut palm sugar. While sugars from different palms may have slightly different compositions, all are processed s ...
, ice, salt and a dash of lime. This rujak is best eaten cold.


Rujak Pengantin

"Pengantin" means "bride-and-groom pair" in Indonesian. This rujak is reminiscent of Indonesia's colonial cuisine. It contains slices of boiled eggs, potatoes, fried tofu, pineapple, carrot, bean sprouts, pickles, chilli, lettuce, cabbage, cucumber,
emping Emping (also known as arifin) are a type of Indonesian chips, a bite-size snack kripik cracker, made of ''melinjo'' or ''belinjo'' (''Gnetum gnemon'') nuts (which are seeds). Emping crackers have a slightly bitter taste. Emping snacks are availa ...
crackers, roasted peanuts, peanut sauce and little vinegar. In some variants, the peanut sauce is mixed with mayonnaise. It is somewhat like Central Javanese gado-gado.


Rujak Kuah Pindang

Rujak is a popular street food in
Bali Bali () is a province of Indonesia and the westernmost of the Lesser Sunda Islands. East of Java and west of Lombok, the province includes the island of Bali and a few smaller neighbouring islands, notably Nusa Penida, Nusa Lembongan, and Nu ...
. A Balinese variation of the Indonesian fruit rujak, but instead of the normal rujak dressing, the fruits are soaked in a spiced fish broth. The broth consists of terasi ( fermented prawn paste), salt, bird's eye chilli, red
chilli Chili or chilli may refer to: Food * Chili pepper, the spicy fruit of plants in the genus ''Capsicum''; sometimes spelled "chilli" in the UK and "chile" in the southwestern US * Chili powder, the dried, pulverized fruit of one or more varieties ...
and pindang fish broth.


Rujak Cingur

''Cingur'' (pronounced ''"ching-ur"'') literally means "mouth" in Javanese. This variant of rujak originates from
Surabaya Surabaya ( jv, ꦱꦸꦫꦧꦪ or jv, ꦯꦹꦫꦨꦪ; ; ) is the capital city of the Provinces of Indonesia, Indonesian province of East Java and the List of Indonesian cities by population, second-largest city in Indonesia, after Jakarta. L ...
. This speciality rujak from East Java has a "meaty" taste. It contains slices of cooked buffalo or cow lips, '' bangkuang,'' unripe
mango A mango is an edible stone fruit produced by the tropical tree ''Mangifera indica''. It is believed to have originated in the region between northwestern Myanmar, Bangladesh, and northeastern India. ''M. indica'' has been cultivated in South a ...
, pineapple,
cucumber Cucumber (''Cucumis sativus'') is a widely-cultivated Vine#Horticultural climbing plants, creeping vine plant in the Cucurbitaceae family that bears usually cylindrical Fruit, fruits, which are used as culinary vegetables.
, '' kangkung'', lontong ( rice cake), tofu and tempe, all served in a black sauce made from ''petis'' (black fermented prawn paste, related to terasi) and crushed peanuts. It is topped with a sprinkle of fried shallots and kerupuk (Indonesian prawn crackers).


Rujak Petis

This is another variant of rujak from
Surabaya Surabaya ( jv, ꦱꦸꦫꦧꦪ or jv, ꦯꦹꦫꦨꦪ; ; ) is the capital city of the Provinces of Indonesia, Indonesian province of East Java and the List of Indonesian cities by population, second-largest city in Indonesia, after Jakarta. L ...
. It contains slices of ''bangkuang'', unripe
mango A mango is an edible stone fruit produced by the tropical tree ''Mangifera indica''. It is believed to have originated in the region between northwestern Myanmar, Bangladesh, and northeastern India. ''M. indica'' has been cultivated in South a ...
,
cucumber Cucumber (''Cucumis sativus'') is a widely-cultivated Vine#Horticultural climbing plants, creeping vine plant in the Cucurbitaceae family that bears usually cylindrical Fruit, fruits, which are used as culinary vegetables.
, ''kangkung'' (water spinach), '' kedondong'', tofu and soybean sprouts all served in a black sauce made from
petis Shrimp paste or prawn sauce is a fermented condiment commonly used in Southeast Asian and Southern Chinese cuisines. It is primarily made from finely crushed shrimp or krill mixed with salt, and then fermented for several weeks. They are eith ...
(sticky black fermented prawn paste, related to terasi), fried shallots, salt,
palm sugar Palm sugar is a sweetener derived from any variety of palm tree. Palm sugar is sometimes qualified by the type of palm, as in coconut palm sugar. While sugars from different palms may have slightly different compositions, all are processed s ...
, unripe banana and crushed peanuts. Traditionally it is served on a banana leaf; today it is more commonly served on plates.


Rujak Tolet

Similar to fruit rujak, and also from
Surabaya Surabaya ( jv, ꦱꦸꦫꦧꦪ or jv, ꦯꦹꦫꦨꦪ; ; ) is the capital city of the Provinces of Indonesia, Indonesian province of East Java and the List of Indonesian cities by population, second-largest city in Indonesia, after Jakarta. L ...
. Aside from unripe fruits the rojak also includes fried tofu, fried garlic and optionally beef tendons. The sauce is petis-based mixed with palm sugar, slices of raw bird's eye chilli and sweet soy sauce.


Rujak Juhi

''Juhi'' means salted
cuttlefish Cuttlefish or cuttles are marine molluscs of the order Sepiida. They belong to the class Cephalopoda which also includes squid, octopuses, and nautiluses. Cuttlefish have a unique internal shell, the cuttlebone, which is used for control of ...
in Indonesian; this rujak contains fried ''tau kwa'' tofu, fried boiled potatoes, fried shredded salted cuttlefish, cucumber, noodles, lettuce, cabbages, peanut sauce, vinegar, chilli and fried garlic. This dish was originated from the
Chinese community The Chinese people or simply Chinese, are people or ethnic groups identified with China, usually through ethnicity, nationality, citizenship, or other affiliation. Chinese people are known as Zhongguoren () or as Huaren () by speakers of s ...
in Batavia (now
Jakarta Jakarta (; , bew, Jakarte), officially the Special Capital Region of Jakarta ( id, Daerah Khusus Ibukota Jakarta) is the capital and largest city of Indonesia. Lying on the northwest coast of Java, the world's most populous island, Jakarta ...
) and now has become a Betawi dish closely related with ''
Asinan ''Asinan'' is a pickled (through brined or vinegared) vegetable or fruit dish, commonly found in Indonesia. ''Asin'', Indonesian for "salty", is the process of preserving the ingredients by soaking them in a solution of salty water. ''Asinan'' ...
Betawi''.


Rujak Shanghai

Named after "Bioscoop Shanghay" (a cinema named after Shanghai, China's most populated city) In Batavia Kota area, this dish was created by Indonesia's Chinese community. This variant of rujak can be found in Indonesian Chinatowns in cities such as Glodok in Jakarta. Rujak Shanghai contains seafood, like Rujak Juhi. Boiled sliced ''gurita'' (octopus) and edible jellyfish are served with '' kangkung'', and served with thick red sweet and sour sauce, mixed with pineapple juice, and toasted crushed peanuts. Usually chilli sauce and pickled '' bengkoang'' are served as condiments.


Rujak Soto

A delicacy from Banyuwangi, East Java, it is a unique blend between beef soto and rujak cingur. A local speciality in which the vegetables (water spinach and bean sprouts) rujak served with ''lontong'' rice cake in petis sauce poured with soto soup. It was created in 1975 by Usni Solihin.


Rujak Es Krim

The speciality dessert from Yogyakarta. Fruit rujak mixed with ice cream made from coconut milk. It is also served with sambal.


Rujak Mie

Rujak mie is a dish from
Palembang Palembang () is the capital city of the Indonesian province of South Sumatra. The city proper covers on both banks of the Musi River on the eastern lowland of southern Sumatra. It had a population of 1,668,848 at the 2020 Census. Palembang ...
. The dish consists of noodles, tofu, slices of pempek, cucumber, lettuce, and ''cuko'' (sweet spicy broth).


Malaysian and Singaporean rojak


Rojak Buah (fruit rojak)

In Malaysia and Singapore, fruit rojak typically consists of cucumber, pineapple, jícama, bean sprouts, ''taupok'' (puffy, deep-fried tofu) and youtiao (cut-up Chinese-style fritters). Unripe
mango A mango is an edible stone fruit produced by the tropical tree ''Mangifera indica''. It is believed to have originated in the region between northwestern Myanmar, Bangladesh, and northeastern India. ''M. indica'' has been cultivated in South a ...
es and green apples are less commonly used. The dressing is made of water, belacan, sugar, chilli and lime juice. Ingredients vary among vendors, with some adding prawn paste (''hae ko'' in Hokkien), tamarind or black bean paste to the mix. The ingredients are cut into bite-sized portions and tossed in a bowl with the dressing, and topped with crushed peanuts and a dash of ground or sliced
torch ginger ''Etlingera elatior'' (also known as torch ginger, ginger flower, red ginger lily, torch lily, wild ginger, ''combrang, bunga kantan'', Philippine wax flower, ගොඩ ඕලු (goda olu), ගොඩ නෙලුම් (goda nelum), සිද් ...
bud (''bunga kantan'' in Malay). A popular variant found in
Penang Penang ( ms, Pulau Pinang, is a Malaysian state located on the northwest coast of Peninsular Malaysia, by the Malacca Strait. It has two parts: Penang Island, where the capital city, George Town, is located, and Seberang Perai on the Malay ...
, Malaysia is Rojak Penang, which adds
jambu air ''Syzygium samarangense'' is a species of flowering plant in the family Myrtaceae, native to an area that includes the Greater Sunda Islands, Malay Peninsula, and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, but introduced in prehistoric times to a wider a ...
, guava, squid fritters and honey to the mixture, and emphasizes the use of tart fruits such as unripe mangoes and green apples, while bean sprouts and fried tofu puffs are usually omitted. The sauce or dressing for the rojak tends to be very thick, with an almost toffee-like consistency.


Rojak India

In Malaysia, mamak rojak (also known as Indian rojak or Pasembur) is associated with Mamak stalls, which are Muslim
Malaysian Indian Malaysian Indians or Indian Malaysians are Malaysian citizens of Indian or South Asian ancestry. Today, they form the third-largest group in Malaysia after the Malays and the Chinese. Most are descendants of those who migrated from India durin ...
food stalls where ''rojak mamak'' is a popular dish. It contains fried dough fritters, tofu, boiled potatoes, prawn fritters, hard boiled eggs, bean sprouts, cuttlefish and cucumber mixed with a sweet thick, spicy peanut sauce. In the northwestern states of Peninsular Malaysia such as Penang, and Kedah, it is always called pasembur, while in Kuala Lumpur it is called ''rojak mamak''. In Singapore, Indian rojak consists of an assortment of potatoes, hard-boiled eggs, tofu and prawn fritters, often colorfully dyed. Customers typically select their favorite items from a display, after which they are heated up in a wok, chopped up, and served with a sweet and spicy peanut and chilli sauce on the side for dipping.


Rojak Bandung

A Singaporean dish known as ''
Rojak Bandung Rujak ( Indonesian spelling) or Rojak ( Malay spelling) is a salad dish of Javanese origin, commonly found in Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore. The most popular variant in all three countries is a salad composed of a mixture of sliced fruit an ...
'' contains cuttlefish, ''kangkung'', cucumber, tofu, peanuts, chilli and sauce. Rojak Bandung has no relation to the Indonesian city of
Bandung Bandung ( su, ᮘᮔ᮪ᮓᮥᮀ, Bandung, ; ) is the capital city of the Indonesian province of West Java. It has a population of 2,452,943 within its city limits according to the official estimates as at mid 2021, making it the fourth most ...
; in the Malay language, the term ''bandung'' means "pairs".


See also

* * * * * * * * * *


References


External links


Rujak Buah, Indonesian fruit rujak recipe



Images of Indonesian Fruit Salad: Rujak in Pinterest
{{Salads Vegetable dishes of Indonesia Street food in Indonesia Malaysian cuisine Singaporean cuisine Malay cuisine Indian diaspora in Singapore Salads Vegetable dishes Fruit dishes