RECIPE

Base Jukut: The Light Balinese Spice Paste for Vegetables and Soups

Base jukut is the gentle Balinese spice paste used to season vegetable dishes and soups. Lighter than its meaty cousins, it brings fragrant, soulful flavour to greens. Here is how to make it.

MyGlob Editorial June 7, 2026 1 min read
Base Jukut: The Light Balinese Spice Paste for Vegetables and Soups

In Balinese, jukut means vegetables, and base jukut is the spice paste created specifically to season them. Every great Balinese vegetable dish, from a humble bowl of jukut ares (banana-stem soup) to a plate of blanched greens, leans on a well-made base. This one is lighter and brighter than the rich pastes built for pork or beef, designed to flatter delicate vegetables rather than overpower them, while still delivering that unmistakable Balinese aromatic depth.

Ingredients

  • 6 shallots, peeled
  • 4 cloves garlic, peeled
  • 3 to 4 large red chillies, plus bird's eye chillies to taste
  • 2 cm fresh turmeric, peeled (or 1/2 tsp ground)
  • 3 cm galangal (laos), peeled
  • 2 cm fresh ginger, peeled
  • 2 candlenuts (kemiri), toasted
  • 1 lemongrass stalk, white part bruised
  • 2 salam leaves (Indonesian bay), optional
  • 1/2 tsp coriander seeds, toasted and ground
  • 1/2 tsp shrimp paste (terasi), toasted (omit for vegetarian)
  • 1 tsp salt, or to taste
  • 1/2 tsp palm sugar (optional)
  • 2 tbsp coconut oil
  • Pound or blend the shallots, garlic, chillies, turmeric, galangal, ginger and candlenuts into a smooth, fragrant paste.
  • Heat the coconut oil in a pan over medium heat. Add the paste along with the bruised lemongrass and salam leaves.
  • Fry gently, stirring often, until the paste smells fragrant and the raw onion sharpness has cooked off, about 5 to 8 minutes.
  • Stir in the ground coriander and crumbled shrimp paste, then season with salt and a little palm sugar. Cook another couple of minutes until the oil just starts to separate.
  • To make a soup, add stock or water now and bring to a simmer before adding your vegetables. To dress boiled or stir-fried greens, simply toss the warm base through the cooked vegetables.

Method

  1. 1The Balinese kitchen is organised around its bases, the foundational spice pastes that give the island's food its signature complexity. Base jukut sits in this family alongside base genep, the all-purpose paste, but it is tuned for everyday vegetable cooking: shallots, garlic, a little turmeric and galangal, gentle heat and a savoury whisper of shrimp paste. It is the difference between plain boiled greens and a bowl of vegetables that tastes deeply, comfortingly Balinese.
  2. 2Base jukut is a fragrant wet spice paste of fresh aromatics, lightly fried and then simmered into vegetable dishes and broths. Compared with the pastes used for grilled meats, it is milder and uses less of the heavy, sweet elements, keeping the focus on clean, herbal freshness. It often goes into soupy preparations, where it is bloomed in oil and then loosened with stock or water before the vegetables are added.
  3. 3Typical uses include sayur dishes, jukut ares, jukut undis (black bean soup) and simple stir-fried or boiled greens dressed with the paste. Because vegetables cook quickly, the base is usually cooked first so its flavours are fully developed before the greens go in for just a short simmer.
  4. 4Keep it lighter than meat bases. The whole point of base jukut is to support vegetables, not bury them, so go easy on the palm sugar and shrimp paste. A subtle savoury background lets the freshness of the greens come through.
  5. 5Cook the paste before adding vegetables. Vegetables only need a brief simmer, so develop the base fully first. This way the flavours are mature by the time the quick-cooking greens go in, and they stay vibrant and crisp-tender rather than overcooked.
  6. 6Make it vegetarian easily. Simply leave out the shrimp paste and add a pinch of salt or a little soy to keep the savoury depth. Stored under oil, the base keeps for several days in the fridge and freezes well in portions.
  7. 7Use base jukut as the starting point for any Balinese vegetable dish. Bloom it in oil, add water or stock and simmer water spinach (kangkung), long beans, banana stem, jackfruit or mixed greens for a soupy sayur. Toss it through blanched vegetables for a quick urap-style side, stir it into bean soups like jukut undis, or use it as the base for a simple vegetable curry. It is the everyday workhorse paste that makes Balinese home cooking taste authentic and alive.
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Quick Answer

Base Jukut is a light, fresh Balinese spice paste used mainly for vegetables and soups. It typically blends shallots, garlic, chili, turmeric, ginger and lemongrass into a milder base than the master paste Basa Gede. It adds gentle aroma to greens, jukut (vegetable) dishes and broths.

Key Facts
Dish type
Balinese spice paste (bumbu)
Best for
Vegetables and soups
Key ingredients
Shallots, garlic, chili, turmeric, ginger, lemongrass
Compared to
Lighter than Basa Gede
Origin
Bali, Indonesia
Key Takeaways
  • Base Jukut is a lighter Balinese spice paste used mainly for vegetable dishes and soups.
  • It is milder than the rich master paste Basa Gede.
  • Typical ingredients include shallots, garlic, chili, turmeric, ginger and lemongrass.
  • The word jukut refers to vegetables in Balinese, reflecting the paste's purpose.
  • It keeps vegetable dishes fresh and aromatic without overpowering them.
Frequently Asked Questions
Base Jukut is a light Balinese spice paste made for cooking vegetables and soups, milder than richer pastes like Basa Gede.