How to order vegan in Indonesian
You can eat plant-based almost anywhere in Bali if you know about ten words. Most warungs already cook half their menu without meat. The trick is saying what you want clearly, and knowing the two ingredients that sneak in when you think you're safe.
The one sentence that does most of the work
Say this and you've covered the basics:
"Saya makan vegan. Tanpa daging, tanpa telur, tanpa susu."
That means: I eat vegan. No meat, no egg, no milk. Slow down on the three tanpa (without) and count them off on your fingers. Warung owners get it straight away, because plenty of Balinese already eat this way on holy days.
The ten words to memorise
- Tanpa
- Without. Your most important word. Tanpa daging, tanpa telur, and so on.
- Daging
- Meat. Covers beef, pork and the general idea of flesh.
- Ayam
- Chicken. Worth naming on its own, because some cooks don't file chicken under "daging".
- Ikan
- Fish. Same logic. Say it out loud so it's clear.
- Telur
- Egg. Hides in fried rice and on top of a lot of dishes.
- Susu
- Milk. Comes up mostly with coffee and smoothies.
- Sayur
- Vegetables. "Sayur saja" means just vegetables, please.
- Tahu / Tempe
- Tofu and tempeh. Two words that turn a warung into your friend. Ask for them by name.
- Nasi
- Rice. The base of almost everything. "Nasi putih" is plain white rice.
- Pedas
- Spicy. "Tidak pedas" if you want it mild, "pedas sedikit" for a little heat.
The two things that sneak in
Two ingredients catch people out more than any others.
- Terasi (shrimp paste). It lives inside a lot of sambal and stir-fries, and it's invisible once it's cooked. Ask "ada terasi?" (is there shrimp paste?) before you assume a sambal is safe.
- Egg in your nasi goreng. Fried rice usually arrives with egg through it and another one on top. Say "tanpa telur" when you order, not after.
Kecap manis, the sweet soy sauce on everything, is vegan. So is most sambal that's made fresh that morning without terasi. When in doubt, point at the tofu and tempeh and smile. It works.
Three more sentences worth having
"Ada menu vegan?" Do you have a vegan menu? Plenty of cafes in Canggu and Ubud do.
"Pakai minyak apa?" What oil do you use? Almost always palm or coconut oil, both plant-based, but nice to know.
"Enak sekali, terima kasih." Really delicious, thank you. Say it and mean it. It comes back to you in extra tempeh next time.