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Nasi Lemak Recipe (Malaysian Coconut Milk Rice with Anchovies Sambal)
January 9th, 2007Recipes, Malaysian Recipes, Recipes142 Comments
As a self-proclaimed Malaysian home cook, it’s a shame that it took me so long to prepare nasi lemak, the de facto national dish of Malaysia. In my opinion, a truly remarkable nasi lemak is not to be taken lightly; it should fulfill a few requisites: quality, texture, flavors, and, of course, the right ingredients. This past weekend, I finally found the time and dedication to make this legendary dish…
The difference between a good nasi lemak and an exceptionally marvelous nasi lemak lies in the use of pandan leaves/screwpine leaves. Possessing highly fragrant floral smell, these leaves are used abundantly in Malaysian cuisine to infuse rice dishes or desserts with the signature aroma; a nasi lemak will not be a true nasi lemak without their presence. The other main ingredient of nasi lemak is dried anchovies, or known locally by ikan bilis. These little salted fish are used in the sambal.
As sambal is of the essence when making nasi lemak, I was extremely zealous when preparing it. I shun away from electrical appliances. Nasi lemak deserves better, it deserves to be prepared the traditional way, that is, with mortar and pestle.
I gathered all the ingredients for my rempah (spice paste), patiently and gracefully pounded away just like any traditional Malaysian home cooks do. This very exercise brought back a flood of memories. As a child, I loved observing my grandmother, my mother, and my aunt when they prepared their rempah with batu giling (a flat surfaced granite grinding stone); I would always volunteer to help them with the chore as it was pure fun playing real life masak-masak (cooking). As I reminisced back those childhood days in my family’s kitchen, I came to realize that it was probably the beginning of my life-long passion for cooking.
(Click Page 2 for the Nasi Lemak Recipe)
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Nasi Lemak was one of the first Malaysian things I learned to make. But I want to try this recipe now. It is a little different than the one I used and have been thinking about making it again for the last few weeks.
Thank you!
What type of rice do you use? Also, could it be cooked in a rice cooker?
You can use a rice cooker. Makes it super easy.
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How many people does this serve? Am thinking of making it for our student flat dinner party in Birmingham XD!
This serves about 3-4 people as a meal.
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What kind of chilli do you use?
Can I prepare the sambal ikan bilis in advance, say one day? If yes, how do I store it? Inside the fridge or at room temperature? Thank you
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Hi, I was wondering why my sambal is dark-ish in color instead of red. I used dried chilies as the recipe. I thought of substituting with fresh chilies to get the beautiful red color. The recipe didn’t say soak the chilies, but should I have? Thanks
Like you, I didn’t perfect my technique for Nasi Lemak until late in life – it is definitely not a breeze in the wind making this beguiling dish. I discovered from my last trip to Malaysia last year that adding some slices of galangal, Lengkuas, adds a subtle dimension to the dish, in addition to the Daun Pandan. I cook my rice in two stages to avoid gumminess in the final product; 3/4 cooked with water and the rest 1/4 with the salted coconut cream. I must say that it came out the best ever in all the years of cooking the dish. Thanks for sharing.
I was wondering if I can use tamarind paste instead of the juice
Will be in Irvine next week, can you help for me to buy a pandan plant home to S.C. ? Thanks.
Sorry I am in Penang now.