Bakso or baso (Jawi: باقسو) is an Indonesian meatball,[2] or a meat paste made from beef surimi.

[4] Today, various types of ready-to-cook bakso are also available as frozen foods sold in supermarkets in Indonesia.

Bakso is commonly made from finely ground beef with a small quantity of tapioca flour and salt.

[4] Unlike other meatball recipes, bakso has a consistent firm, dense, homogeneous texture due to the polymerization of myosin in the beef surimi.

[5] Traditionally the beef surimi paste or dough is made into balls by hand and boiled in hot water.

Bakso is usually served in a bowl of beef broth, with yellow noodles, bihun (rice vermicelli), salted vegetables, tofu, egg (wrapped within bakso), Chinese broccoli, bean sprout, siomay or steamed meat dumpling, and crisp wonton, sprinkled with fried shallots and celery.

Also in Indonesian, the term bola daging often refers to the Western or European style of meatballs, which is different in texture and elasticity compared to bakso.

[10] Indonesia has developed numerous bakso variants, usually differing in shape, size, texture, ingredients, and fillings.

Bakso came to international attention when United States President Barack Obama remembered it as one of his favourite foods from his childhood in Indonesia, and mentioned it in his speech.

[32] In the Philippines, meatballs are called almondigas or bola-bola, and are usually served in a misua noodle soup with toasted garlic, squash, and pork cracklings.

The country's Directorate of Consumer Protection warns of the risk of liver cancer caused by high consumption over 5–10 years.