Nasi Lemak

Malaysia | Prep: 30 min | Cook: 30 min | Total: 1 hr | Serves: 4

About Nasi Lemak

Nasi Lemak is Malaysia's national dish, a plate so beloved it transcends meal times — eaten for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and late at night from roadside stalls. At its heart is rice cooked in coconut milk and pandan until each grain is fluffy and fragrant, served with a fiery sambal paste, crispy dried anchovies, a halved boiled egg, fresh cucumber, and roasted peanuts. Together, the components create a perfect balance of rich, spicy, crunchy, cool, and savoury in every bite.

Ingredients

For the coconut rice:

• 2 cups jasmine rice, rinsed and soaked 30 minutes

• 400ml coconut milk

• 250ml water

• 2 pandan leaves, tied in a knot

• 1 tsp salt

For the sambal:

• 15 dried chilies, soaked and seeds removed

• 8 shallots, 4 cloves garlic, 1 tsp shrimp paste (belacan) toasted

• 4 tbsp neutral oil

• 100g dried anchovies (ikan bilis), roughly chopped

• 2 tbsp tamarind paste mixed with 4 tbsp water

• 2 tsp sugar, salt to taste

For serving:

• 100g dried anchovies, deep-fried until crispy

• 4 eggs, hard-boiled and halved

• 1 cucumber, sliced

• 100g roasted peanuts

Directions

1. Cook the Rice: Combine rinsed rice, coconut milk, water, pandan leaves, and salt. Bring to a boil, then reduce to lowest heat, cover, and cook for 18 minutes. Rest covered for 10 minutes. Fluff and discard pandan leaves.

2. Make the Sambal Base: Blend soaked dried chilies, shallots, garlic, and toasted belacan into a smooth paste.

3. Fry the Sambal: Heat oil in a wok over medium heat. Fry the blended paste, stirring constantly, for 8–10 minutes until the oil separates and the paste darkens to a deep red.

4. Add Anchovies and Season: Add roughly chopped dried anchovies. Stir in tamarind water, sugar, and salt. Cook 3–4 minutes until thick and fragrant.

5. Crisp the Serving Anchovies: Deep-fry the second batch of dried anchovies at 180°C for 2–3 minutes until golden and crispy.

6. Assemble: Mound rice in the centre of each plate. Arrange halved eggs, cucumber slices, crispy anchovies, and roasted peanuts around it. Add a generous spoonful of sambal to the side.

Cooking Tips

• The Pandan Leaves: Pandan gives nasi lemak its distinctive floral fragrance. Fresh or frozen, available at Asian grocery stores.

• Sambal Ahead: The sambal keeps refrigerated for up to two weeks. Make a large batch and store it.

• Rice-to-Liquid Ratio: Coconut milk is richer than water, so use slightly less total liquid than you would for plain rice.

Nutrition Facts (per serving, based on 4 servings)

• Calories: ~610 kcal

• Total Fat: 28g

• Saturated Fat: 16g

• Cholesterol: 195mg

• Sodium: 820mg

• Total Carbohydrates: 68g

• Dietary Fiber: 4g

• Sugars: 6g

• Protein: 22g