Sayur asem is a traditional sour soup. It is a tamarind-based soup with a lot of different vegetables inside. The vegetables are corns, jack fruits, long beans, peanuts, chayotes, and melinjos.

This home cook dish can be found in Jakarta and Bandung areas. It is a part of Indonesian daily diet as a lunch or dinner menu. Fried fish or chicken, salted fish, and sambals are common accompanying dishes.