Indonesia Eats: Brunch Time at Soto Ayam Pak Man, Semarang
Soto Ayam is a unique local food of Semarang, a city in Java Island, Indonesia. Okay if I directly translate the words "soto ayam", it means clear-based chicken soup in English. If you have plan to visit Semarang, you can include this restaurant in your culinary itinerary.
At every soto ayam restaurants in Semarang, you will find the side dishes offered on the table. These, for your information, is not free and you'll be charged by how many items you consume. I know, I also wish this food is provided free of charge like Korean side dish. Hahaha. Oh right, if you don't know the name of this side dish, this is called fried "Tempeh", it's made from fermented soy bean. Once tempeh is fried, it taste crunchy and salty. Yum!
Another side dish which always appear at soto ayam restaurant is the satay. As you can see, there is all kind of satays (re: skewers) from the cockles satay to the intestine satay. I'm not really a fan of the intestine satay but I quite like the cockles.
Finally, the main star of the restaurant has arrived, the Soto Ayam. As you can see, the soup is made from the chicken stock and it's served on top of beehoon (re: white noodle) or rice. A lot of spices were added to make the flavor kicks in. Generally, a good soto ayam should have the savoury taste with an added zest (usually from the addition of lemon/ lime).
If you have not tried this local Semarang dish before, you should try it because so far, I can say that Semarang really has the best Soto Ayam in Java Island. Not sure about other islands because I haven't been to all islands in Indonesia yet. Hehe.