It has become a food that represents practicality, simplicity, and travel since the dish is often found along the train journey across Java.

Some modern recipes will add carrots (sliced) into the mix, or replace white cabbages with red ones to spice up the color.

The sauce is made of roasted (or fried) peanuts, tamarind (asam jawa), coconut sugar, and other spices.

[10] The difference usually lies in the thickness level of the sauce, and the taste profiles (spicy, sweet, or savoury).

The name "lothek" is derived from "luthik", a wooden spatula used to scoop the peanut sauce from a cowek (grinding bowl).

One of them is pecel mie kenyol from Batang, the noodle made from cassava with a chewy texture.