NASI LEMAK

(MALAYSIAN COCONUT RICE W/ ALL THE FIXINGS)

“ WHEN YOU’RE MISSING HOME- YOU BRING HOME TO YOU. THIS IS ONE OF MY ABSOLUTE FAV DISH GROWING UP! I HOPE YOU ENJOY IT AS MUCH AS I DO!”

Prep time: 1hr , 30 mins.

There are many steps to the dish but the end result is worth the time !

All you need:

Coconut rice:

3 cups basmati rice, 3 cups of coconut milk ( not cream ),

1 cup of water, 2 sliced ginger, 1 tsp salt ( adjust if you need more),

2 pandan leaves knotted ( screwpine leaf) *not shown in the picture below* .

Ikan bilis sambal & Ikan bilis goreng ( anchovies sambal & stir fry anchovies):

10- 15 dry chili ( i use a mix between Kashmiri and regular) you can add more if you like it spicy,

2 packets of dry anchovies ( small ) or 2 cups, 1/2 cup shallots or red onion, vegetable oil,

9 garlic cloves, 1/4 tsp turmeric, 1tsp salt, 1/2 tsp brown sugar, 1/2 lime. 1/4 peanuts

Ayam goreng berempah ( spice fried chicken) * you can also use any protein you prefer*

1lb chicken ( or more its up to you), 1/4 tsp turmeric, 3 cloves,

1tsp fennel seed, 1 tsp pepper, 1 tsp coriander, pinched of dry curry leaves,

1 cinnamon stick, 1 tsp salt, 2 tsp Kashmiri chili powder ( 5 Kashmiri chili roasted in the pan and grind to smooth powder), cilantro or curry leaves (handful),

ginger/garlic paste ( 3 tbs), 1/2 lime, vegetable oil, bunch of cilantro / curry leaves.

DIRECTIONS:

Step 1: Fried chicken (marinate)

1. Blend the spices together . Make sure to grind the dry Kashmiri chili separately

2. Make the ginger/garlic paste - take 2 bulbs garlic 3 pieces of ginger and grind them into a fine paste ( you can store this in the freezer for up to 4 months). If you don’t have a spice grinder or a food processor you can use mortar and pestle/blender as well.

3. Add all the ingredients to the chicken and marinate overnight ( this step will make the chicken soft and juicy ).

Step 2: Coconut rice

1. Add the jasmine rice to the pot, and rinse 4 times until the cloudy water turns clear.

2. Drain the clear water. Then add the coconut milk, water, ginger and salt to the rice and give it a good stir. Add the knotted pandan leaf to the rice before cooking.

3. Bring the rice to boil on high heat till it bubbles, then turn the heat on medium and cook for 20 mins until the water evaporates and rice is cooked through. * you can also cook the rice in the rice cooker *

Step 3: Anchovies sambal

1. For the sambal, blend all the spices together until it becomes a paste. Please use 4 garlic and 1/4 shallots here, and keep the rest for the stir fry anchovies.

2. After blending the spices. We are going to add oil to the pan just enough to cover the anchovies not more than1 inch. Fry the dry anchovies till golden brown and keep aside to cool. * this will be enough for the sambal and stir fry*

3. While the anchovy is cooling, add the blended paste to the pan with 3 tsb of vegetable oil on medium heat. Cook till the paste separates from the oil and gives out a nice fragrant smell . Turn the heat low, then add 1/2 squeeze lime, sugar and salt to balance the flavors. Give it a good stir.

4. Turn the heat off, and let it cool for 5 mins. After cool, toss in the anchovies until everything is coated with the sambal sauce

Stir fry anchovies

1. With the remaining garlic and shallots left, add to the pan with 3 tbs of oil, fry till golden brown and take it out.

2. Then we are going to roast the peanuts in the pan with1 tbs of oil, till it changes color to a slight brown .

3. Now to the pan, we add the anchovies we fried earlier, together with the shallots, garlic and 1/2 tsp of salt and toss, till everything is mixed well and taste for salt. Add more if needed.

Step 4 : Fried chicken

1. When frying chicken, I often use a big pot, so that the oil doesn’t splash everywhere and it keeps the moisture of the chicken as well.

2. On high heat, add vegetable oil to the pot just enough for a deep fry. Wait for the oil to heat up before adding the chicken.

3. I would normally add a bunch of curry leaves to the pot while frying. But I opted for cilantro here, as it was easy to find and is fragrant while frying.

4. Add the chicken to the pot with a couple of cilantro leaves. Just be careful when adding cilantro or curry leaves, cause the oil will start to splatter everywhere. I would have the lid to my pot ready. As I add the chicken and cilantro, I immediately add the lid on it, so it doesn’t splatter and it locks in the moisture for the chicken .

5. Fry till it’s crispy and take it out with the cilantro and keep aside to cool..

Plate:

1. To top the recipe off, boil 2 eggs at 6mins and sliced cucumbers and keep aside.

2. Add the coconut rice to the plate with the anchovy sambal, stir fried anchovies on the side .Followed by the fried chicken , cucumber slices and egg. It’s ready to serve !!.