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Malaysian Nasi Lemak
Possibly the greatest dish ever created by Malaysians, nasi
lemak is one of the most versatile meals that can befound in
Malaysia. This simple meal can be found almost everywhere, be it in
the heart of any Malaysian city or inthe remotest areas of the
country. It has become such a favourite amongst Malaysian that
there are some whoeat it at least once everyday!
The ingredients and the cooking process involved in creating
this tasty meal is simple. Nasi lemak is rice cookedin coconut
milk. Screwpine leaves, locally known as pandan leaves, are first
washed and later added into thecooking pot to give the rice its
signature fragrance. The rice is usually eaten together with
anchovies fried tillgolden brown, crispy cucumber slices, roasted
peanuts, half boiled egg and chilli paste known as sambal.
Throughout the years, the recipe has been adopted by many people
in Malaysia and improvised to suit theirtastebuds. Certain cooks
have found that including slices of ginger into the rice helps
improve the taste of therice. Realizing that the rice goes well
with almost anything, many traders add simple things to the list
ofcondiments and side dishes to go along with the rice. Chinese
traders usually offer chicken curry, chickensausages, luncheon meat
and even stir-fried water convolvulus as side dishes, to be added
on as pleased. Asspicy dishes are not the norm for most Chinese
folks, the zing in the chilli paste from Chinese traders is
toneddown, often with a tinge of sweetness in it. Other budding
entrepreneurs, in an effort to make their product morenoticeable,
have chosen to add green artificial colouring to the rice.
The varied taste of nasi lemak also exists amongst Malay
traders. The varying amount of coconut milk usedwhen steaming the
rice makes a world of difference. Too little of the coconut milk
and the rice ends up tastingwatered down. Put in too much and the
smell of the oil from the milk overpowers the rice. Another
importantfactor that greatly enhances the taste of this dish is the
chilli paste that goes with it. That too varies with theindividual
traders as some make it really spicy compared to others. While the
Chinese traders sell nasi lemakwith sausages and curry chicken, the
Malay traders have introduced their own crispy fried chicken or
springchicken as an accompaniment to the dish.
There is one item that is commonly used in packaging nasi lemak,
and that is the banana leaf. Banana leavesare not only ecologically
friendly, but also lend an aromatic fragrance to rice wrapped
within it. In the olden days,farmers working in the fields would
normally eat banana leaf wrapped rice with for lunch.
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INGREDIENTS for Coconut Rice:
2 cups rice, preferably basmati rice 2 cups water 2pandan leaves
[screwpine leaves], tied into a knot [optional]
3 shallots onion, finely chopped 10 tsp thick coconut milk 1
slice ginger
sugar and salt to taste
Ingredients for Sambal Ikan Bilis:
1 cup dried Ikan Bilis [Dried Anchovies] 1 large red onion,
sliced cup peanut or vegetable oil 3 tsp tamarind pulp with cup hot
water to make tamarind paste
4 tbsp or to taste, chili paste 6 shallots 1 tsp belacan, also
spelt belachan or blacan [dried shrimp paste] 4 cloves garlic
1 large onion, sliced into rounds
[ Items in red to be ground or blended ]
Garnishing :
4 hard boiled eggs, cut into quarters
1 cup ofikan bilis, fried until crispy 1 cup of peanuts, fried
or roasted 1 seedless cucumber, peeled and sliced
To Prepare Coconut Rice:
Wash rice several time until water runs quite clear In a pot,
add rice, coconut milk, water [use correct amounts of water
according to type of rice] Add shallots, ginger andpandan leaves
[optional] Bring to boil, lower heat, simmer 10-12 mins uncovered
until the water has been absorbed into the level of
the rice
Loosen rice grains with a wooden ladle
Cover with a tight-fitting lid, steam rice on very low heat,
about 10-12 mins When rice is done, gently fluff rice with fork
NOTE: You can use a rice cooker to cook the rice
To Prepare Sambal Ikan Bilis:
Using a mortar & pestle or blender, grind chili paste,
shallots, belacan and garlic into a paste To a wok or saucepan, add
peanut or vegetable oil, heat on high until oil temperature is
350F, fry ikan bilis
until crispy Remove, drain well on paper towels Remove all but 2
tbsp of oil, saut ground paste for 1-2 mins Add red onions,
tamarind paste, sugar, salt to taste Cook until gravy thickens [to
a dark reddish brown]
http://www.malaysianfood.net/orderikanbilis.htmhttp://www.malaysianfood.net/orderikanbilis.htmhttp://www.malaysianfood.net/orderikanbilis.htm
