Pempek Palembang – chewy and savory fish cakes from Palembang! A batter of mackerel fish and sago flour that's fried and served with a sweet, sour, and spicy cuko sauce. This legendary Sumatran street food is beloved all across Indonesia.
🧂 Ingredients
🍽️ Servings: 6
Adjust the servings and the ingredient amounts & nutrition below update automatically.
- 300 g Pempek: ground mackerel fish
- 200 g sago flour/tapioca starch
- 150 ml ice water
- 2 clove garlic, minced
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp sugar
- 3 Kapal selam filling: eggs
- 200 g Cuko sauce: grated palm sugar
- 500 ml water
- 6 pieces bird's eye chilies
- 3 clove garlic
- 2 tbsp vinegar
- 1 tbsp toasted dried shrimp
- 1 tsp salt
- To serve: cucumber, diced
- yellow noodles, boiled
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👩🍳 Instructions
- 1 Pempek: Mix the ground fish with garlic, salt, and sugar.
- 2 Pour in the ice water little by little while kneading.
- 3 Add the sago flour gradually, kneading until the dough is smooth and can be shaped.
- 4 Shape into 'lenjer': roll into long oval logs.
- 5 Shape into 'kapal selam' (submarine): flatten the dough, fill with raw egg, and seal the edges tightly.
- 6 Boil all the pempek in boiling water until they float, then remove and drain.
- 7 Cuko sauce: Boil the water and palm sugar until the sugar dissolves.
- 8 Blend the chilies and garlic, then add to the boiling liquid.
- 9 Add the vinegar, dried shrimp, and salt, cook for 10 minutes, then strain.
- 10 When ready to eat: fry the pempek until golden brown.
- 11 Cut into pieces and arrange in a bowl.
- 12 Add the yellow noodles and cucumber.
- 13 Pour the cuko sauce over the top.
💡 Tips
• Fresh mackerel makes the pempek much chewier and more delicious
• The water must be truly ICE cold so the dough doesn't turn out mushy
• A good cuko sauce needs a balance of sour, sweet, and spicy flavors
📊 Nutrition Facts / serving
420
Calories (kcal)
24 g
Protein
16 g
Fat
48 g
Carbs
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