Best 5 Nasi Lemak Recipes

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Nasi lemak is an iconic Southeast Asian dish consisting of fragrant rice cooked in coconut milk and pandan leaves, typically served with a variety of side dishes, condiments, and aromatic herbs. Originating from Malaysia, this dish has become a staple food in many countries across the region, including Singapore, Indonesia, and Brunei. In Malaysia alone, there are various regional variations of nasi lemak, each with its unique flavors and ingredients. This article presents three popular nasi lemak recipes: the classic Malaysian nasi lemak, the spicy nasi lemak sambal sotong, and the vegetarian nasi lemak with tempeh.

1. **Malaysian Nasi Lemak:** This recipe showcases the traditional Malaysian nasi lemak with all the classic accompaniments. It includes fragrant rice cooked in coconut milk and pandan leaves, served with crispy anchovies, roasted peanuts, hard-boiled eggs, and a spicy sambal.

2. **Nasi Lemak Sambal Sotong:** This recipe takes the classic nasi lemak to a whole new level with the addition of sambal sotong, a spicy squid dish. The squid is cooked in a flavorful sambal sauce made with chili peppers, tomatoes, and aromatic spices, then served on top of the nasi lemak.

3. **Vegetarian Nasi Lemak with Tempeh:** This recipe caters to vegetarians and vegans by replacing the traditional protein sources with tempeh, a fermented soybean patty. The tempeh is marinated in a blend of spices and herbs, then grilled or pan-fried until crispy and flavorful. It is served on top of the nasi lemak with a variety of vegetables and a spicy sambal.

Let's cook with our recipes!

MALAYSIAN NASI LEMAK



Malaysian Nasi Lemak image

Delicious Malaysian coconut rice, served with anchovy hot chile sauce, fried anchovies, fried peanut, sliced cucumber or tomato and hard-boiled egg. If you do not have tamarind juice, substitute with same amount of lemon juice.

Provided by Tuty Jek

Categories     World Cuisine Recipes     Asian     Malaysian

Time 1h

Yield 8

Number Of Ingredients 21

2 cups coconut milk
2 cups water
¼ teaspoon ground ginger
1 (1/2 inch) piece fresh ginger, peeled and thinly sliced
salt to taste
1 whole bay leaf
2 cups long grain rice, rinsed and drained
4 eggs
1 cucumber
1 cup oil for frying
1 cup raw peanuts
1 (4 ounce) package white anchovies, washed
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 medium onion, sliced
3 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
3 shallots, thinly sliced
2 teaspoons chile paste
1 (4 ounce) package white anchovies, washed
salt to taste
3 tablespoons white sugar
¼ cup tamarind juice

Steps:

  • In a medium saucepan over medium heat, stir together coconut milk, water, ground ginger, ginger root, salt, bay leaf, and rice. Cover, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer for 20 to 30 minutes, or until done.
  • Place eggs in a saucepan, and cover with cold water. Bring water to a boil, and immediately remove from heat. Cover, and let eggs stand in hot water for 10 to 12 minutes. Remove eggs from hot water, cool, peel and slice in half. Slice cucumber.
  • Meanwhile, in a large skillet or wok, heat 1 cup vegetable oil over medium-high heat. Stir in peanuts and cook briefly, until lightly browned. Remove peanuts with a slotted spoon and place on paper towels to soak up excess grease. Return skillet to stove. Stir in the contents of one package anchovies; cook briefly, turning, until crisp. Remove with a slotted spoon and place on paper towels. Discard oil. Wipe out skillet.
  • Heat 2 tablespoons oil in the skillet. Stir in the onion, garlic, and shallots; cook until fragrant, about 1 or 2 minutes. Mix in the chile paste, and cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. If the chile paste is too dry, add a small amount of water. Stir in remaining anchovies; cook for 5 minutes. Stir in salt, sugar, and tamarind juice; simmer until sauce is thick, about 5 minutes.
  • Serve the onion and garlic sauce over the warm rice, and top with peanuts, fried anchovies, cucumbers, and eggs.

Nutrition Facts : Calories 578.3 calories, Carbohydrate 57.4 g, Cholesterol 127.5 mg, Fat 31.9 g, Fiber 3.4 g, Protein 19.5 g, SaturatedFat 14 g, Sodium 230.4 mg, Sugar 7.7 g

MALAY STYLE COCONUT RICE (NASI LEMAK)



Malay Style Coconut Rice (Nasi Lemak) image

Normally we eat NASI LEMAK for breakfast or dinner. To make it more tasty, wrap it in banana leaf for 15 min (while it still hot)

Provided by ida ku zaifah

Categories     One Dish Meal

Time 50m

Yield 4-5 serving(s)

Number Of Ingredients 10

2 cups uncooked rice, washed
1 cup thick coconut milk, from 1 coconut
2 cups water
2 screwpine leaves, knotted
2 cm fresh ginger, sliced
3 onions, sliced
1 cinnamon stick
1 star anise
salt
sugar

Steps:

  • Mix all ingredients in rice cooker and cook till rice is cooked and dry. Stand for 10 min before fluffing up and leave it for another 10 minute.
  • Serve hot with SAMBAL, sliced cucumber, fried peanuts and hard boiled egg.

Nutrition Facts : Calories 527.7, Fat 13.7, SaturatedFat 11.8, Sodium 42.8, Carbohydrate 91.9, Fiber 4.2, Sugar 8.1, Protein 9.2

NASI LEMAK WITH SAMBAL CHICKEN



Nasi Lemak With Sambal Chicken image

Make and share this Nasi Lemak With Sambal Chicken recipe from Food.com.

Provided by i_luv_maeda

Categories     Malaysian

Time 40m

Yield 2-4 Plates, 2-4 serving(s)

Number Of Ingredients 13

1 cup coconut milk
2 pandan leaves (knot )
1/4 ginger (Sliced )
1 teaspoon salt
3 cups uncooked rice
1/2 chicken
8 dried red chilies
3 cups water
2 cloves onions
2 garlic
1/4 ginger
1/2 cup oil
1 pinch salt

Steps:

  • For the rice :.
  • Mix all the ingredients , and leave to cook for 10 minutes .
  • For the chicken :.
  • Cut and remove the seeds from the dried red chili , soak in boiling water for 5 minutes .
  • Drain the water , and blend it with 1 cup of water ; get chilli paste .
  • Chop the chicken into smaller pieces .
  • Dice the onion , ginger and garlic .
  • Saute the garlic and ginger in a pan , under low heat for 2 minutes .
  • Add the chili paste into the pan , and mix until fragrant ; around 3 minutes .
  • Add the water in the pan and cook for 5 minutes , until it thickens .
  • Add the chicken , and the salt , and cook for another 2 minutes .
  • Lastly , serve .

Nutrition Facts : Calories 2521, Fat 118.2, SaturatedFat 40.8, Cholesterol 172.5, Sodium 1515, Carbohydrate 291.2, Fiber 12.8, Sugar 23.9, Protein 74.3

NASI LEMAK



Nasi Lemak image

It's way too easy to fall in love with the Malaysian dish Nasi Lemak, a coconutty rice bowl topped with crispy-crunchy crumbles of teeny little fried anchovies dressed in a sweet-spicy sambal.

Provided by Kopitiam, NYC

Categories     Bon Appétit     Dinner     Malaysia     Anchovy     Chile Pepper     Tamarind     Peanut     Rice     Coconut     Cucumber     Pescatarian     Dairy Free     Tree Nut Free     Egg

Yield 4 servings

Number Of Ingredients 18

Sambal Ikan Bilis:
3½ oz. dried paper lantern chiles, dried bird chiles, or dried chiles de árbol
2 cups vegetable oil
½ cup red-skin Spanish peanuts
2½ cups small dried anchovies
2 medium shallots, halved
3 garlic cloves
2 Holland chiles, stems removed, halved lengthwise
4½ tsp. sugar
1½ tsp. tamarind concentrate
Rice and assembly:
2 cups jasmine rice
1 tsp. kosher salt
3 pandan leaves (optional)
½ cup light unsweetened coconut milk
4 large eggs
½ English hothouse cucumber, cut in half lengthwise, thinly sliced crosswise
Soy sauce (for serving)

Steps:

  • Sambal Ikan Bilis:
  • Chop paper lantern chiles into ½" pieces, discarding most of the seeds that fall out. Place in a small bowl and pour in boiling water to cover. Let sit 30 minutes to soften, then drain.
  • Meanwhile, bring oil and peanuts to a gentle simmer in a small saucepan over medium heat; cook, adjusting heat as needed, until peanuts are golden brown, 6-8 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer nuts to paper towels to drain; set aside for serving. Immediately add anchovies to oil and cook until golden brown and crisp, about 2 minutes. Transfer to fresh paper towels; let cool. Set ¼ cup oil aside.
  • Pulse shallots, garlic, and ¼ cup fried anchovies (save remaining anchovies for serving) in a food processor until a smooth paste forms. Transfer to a medium bowl. Add paper lantern and Holland chiles to food processor (no need to clean) and pulse until very smooth and no visible pieces of dried chile remain. Transfer chile purée to a small bowl.
  • Heat reserved oil in a medium skillet over medium-high until shimmering. Add shallot mixture and cook, stirring, until slightly darkened in color and fragrant, about 2 minutes. Mix in chile purée and cook, stirring often, until it starts to stick to bottom of skillet, about 3 minutes. Reduce heat to low. Add sugar, tamarind concentrate, and ¼ cup water and cook, stirring often, until sambal is much darker in color and thickened, 25-35 minutes.
  • Do Ahead: Sambal ikan bilis can be made 1 week ahead. Let cool; cover and chill.
  • Rice and assembly:
  • Place rice in a medium saucepan and pour in cold water to cover; swirl with your hands to rinse away some of the starch. Drain and repeat process 2 more times. Water should be just slightly cloudy at this point. Place rinsed rice back into saucepan and cover with 2½ cups cold water; stir in salt. Gather pandan leaves (if using) together and tie into a knot; add to pan. Bring rice to a simmer over medium-high heat. Cover pan and reduce heat to low; cook 18 minutes. Remove lid and stir in coconut milk. Cover, remove from heat, and let sit 5 minutes.
  • Meanwhile, bring a small saucepan of water to a boil. Carefully lower eggs into water. Cook 10 minutes, then transfer to a bowl of ice water and let cool. Peel eggs and cut in half lengthwise.
  • Combine sambal ikan bilis, reserved fried peanuts, and reserved fried anchovies in a medium bowl and toss to evenly coat. Scoop a generous ½ cup sambal mixture into a 12-oz. bowl. Top with 1½ cups rice and pack into bowl with a rubber spatula to compress. The bowl should be filled to the rim. Place a slightly larger bowl upside down over bowl of rice. Invert so larger bowl is now on the bottom; lift off smaller bowl. You should have a dome of rice and anchovy mixture nestled in the center of the larger bowl. Arrange 8 cucumber slices around rice dome, overlapping slightly to make a semicircle. Add 2 egg halves to side of rice with no cucumber slices; season yolks lightly with soy sauce. Repeat with remaining rice, sambal mixture, cucumbers, and eggs to make 3 more bowls.

NASI LEMAK



Nasi Lemak image

This is a Malaysian traditional dish to eat for breakfast, lunch, or dinner.

Provided by suresh

Categories     World Cuisine Recipes     Asian     Malaysian

Time 45m

Yield 4

Number Of Ingredients 13

1 cup fresh coconut milk
1 cup uncooked white rice
½ cup water
1 slice ginger
2 pandan leaves, or more to taste
1 pinch salt
4 fresh red chile peppers
1 tablespoon vegetable oil, or as needed
1 large onion, chopped
½ cup anchovy fillets, or more to taste
½ cup finely chopped peanuts, or more to taste
4 hard-boiled eggs, halved lengthwise
1 cucumber, peeled and sliced

Steps:

  • Combine coconut milk, rice, water, ginger, pandan leaves, and rice in a rice cooker and stir a few times. Cover and cook according to manufacturer's directions until rice is tender and water has been absorbed, about 15 minutes.
  • Put chile peppers in a blender or food processor and grind into a paste.
  • Heat oil in a pan over medium heat. Add onion and cook until fragrant, about 3 minutes. Add ground chile peppers and cook until incorporated, about 2 minutes more.
  • Heat another pan over medium heat. Add anchovies and peanuts and roast until golden brown, about 5 minutes.
  • Divide cooked rice into 4 individual serving bowls in a rounded shape. Add 2 tablespoons of spicy paste, a pinch of anchovy-peanut mixture, 2 hard-boiled egg halves, and a portion of sliced cucumber to each bowl.

Nutrition Facts : Calories 594.9 calories, Carbohydrate 52.4 g, Cholesterol 236.1 mg, Fat 33.2 g, Fiber 4.3 g, Protein 24.8 g, SaturatedFat 14.9 g, Sodium 1306.2 mg, Sugar 6.2 g

Tips:

  • Use high-quality ingredients, especially for the coconut milk and rice. Good quality ingredients will result in a more flavorful and aromatic nasi lemak.
  • Cook the rice according to the package instructions. If you are using a rice cooker, use the "cook" or "white rice" setting.
  • When cooking the rice, add a pandan leaf or two to the pot. This will give the rice a fragrant aroma.
  • Once the rice is cooked, fluff it with a fork before serving.
  • To make the sambal, use a variety of chili peppers to create a complex flavor. Some popular choices include red chili peppers, bird's eye chili peppers, and serrano peppers.
  • When making the sambal, be sure to fry the shallots and garlic until they are fragrant and golden brown. This will help to develop the flavor of the sambal.
  • To assemble the nasi lemak, place a scoop of rice on a plate. Top with sambal, fried anchovies, peanuts, and hard-boiled egg. Serve with cucumber slices and additional sambal on the side.

Conclusion:

Nasi lemak is a delicious and versatile dish that can be enjoyed for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. It is a popular dish in Malaysia, Singapore, and Indonesia, and is also enjoyed in other parts of the world. With its fragrant rice, spicy sambal, and variety of toppings, nasi lemak is a truly unique and memorable dish.

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