This is a meal in itself, a plate of ordinary Nasi Putih topped with generous spoonfuls of various side dishes. The secret is of course to get the right combination if side dishes. A popular selection in Indonesia is:
Dendeng Ragi
Sayur Lodeh
Gudeg in Java, or, in Sumatra, Rendang
Kering Tempe
Kelia Ayam
Sambal Bajak
Krupuk-prawn crackers
You can of course make up your own Nasi Rames. And if you feel heitant about ordering a variety of dishes in a restaurant, just say: ‘Nasi Rames, please.’
People’s appetites for rice very greatly, but I shall assume that four people will get through 2 cupfuls of rice (uncooked measure) at a meal. Measure and wash 2 cups of rice and put into a saucepan with 2.5 cups of cold water. With rice cooked in tihs way, we never add salt. Bring the rice to the boil, stirring once or twice to keep the grains from sticking to the side of the pan. You can cover the pan if you like, to keep the heat in, but as soon as the rice starts to boil take the lid off. Turn down the heat and keep the water simmering and bubbling gently. The rice grains will absorbs the water, awelling up and softening as they do so, until there is no liquid left in the pan. The rice should now be damp, slippery and puffy, but each grain will still have a hard core. Put of 3 or 4 cm of water in the rice steamer and heat this while the rice is still bubbling in the saucepan. Tip the rice into the basket, put the lid on the steamer, and steam the rice for to minutes. The rice should now be quite soft and ready to eat; if you rub a grain of it beetween your finger and thumb, you should find no hard core. The rice will, of course, be slightly moist, but each grain should be quite separate from the others, even though they will tend to cling together. If the rice is ready before you are, turn off heat and tilt the lid of the steamer to let escape; the rice will not suffer if water drips down into it, but it must come to table hot.
Prepare the rice as before, but add only 1 cup of water for 1 cup of rice, Remember that, when cooking rice in this way, we do not use salt. Use the thickest possible saucepan; if you cook on gas and have fairly thin pans, you will have to turn the gas right down low in the last stage of cooking. Bring the rice to the boil anf lei it bubble, without a lid, until all the water is absorbed. Stir once, and turn the heat low. Cover the pan tightly, if necessary using greaseproof paper or aluminium foil to make the lid as nearly airtight as possible. Leave on this low heat, undisturbed, for 10 minutes. The rice will then be ready.
Method 1: with santen (coconut milk)
2 cups long-grain rice
2 cups santen
1 tsp turmeric
a pinch of salt
1 salam leaf or bay-leaf
1 clove
Soak the rice in cold water for 1 hour. Wash and drain it, and put in a saucepan with the santen has been soaked up by the rice. Stir this rice, take out the salam leaf and the clove, then steam the rice for 10 minute. (If you do not use a streamer, cover the pan very tightly after you have stirred the rice and turn the heat down as long as possible; cook on this low heat for another 10 minute). Serve hot. (more…)
This is a different kind of rice altogether from that used for Nasi Putih; when raw, the grains on do not slide over each other smoothly but in slightly sticky jerks, and when cooked they stick to each other anf make a soft mass. Most Chinese foodshops sell glutinous rice. It is cooked in precisely the same way as Nasi Uduk, but is even richer and heavier. Therefore, only small helpings are taken, and this rice is not served with an elaborate range of side dishes. It goes very well with certain dishes, however, especially the very dry ones, and above all with Rendang.
This dish, by itself, or with a dish of vegetables, makes an excellent family meal. It is very good for Sunday lunch, or for a small dinner party. It goes well with other dishes-for example, with any kind of sate-if you are entertaining of a large scale.
2 cups rice
1 roasting chicken-1.5 kg (3.5 lb) is sample
4 shallots
3 cloves garlic
2 tsp ground coriander
1/2 tsp cumin
A pinch of ground laos (galingale)
A pinch of podered, or a stalk of fresh, lemon-grass
A small stick of cinnamon
A pinch of grates nutmeg
2 cloves
Salt
Vegetable oil (for deep frying)
(more…)
The name Nasi Goreng means simply ‘fried rice’, and it is really a collective description of an indefinite number of slightly differing dishes. You can vary the trimmings and garnishes to suit your taste; but even the most elaborate Nasi Goreng is quick to make. It is a particularly good luncheon dish. To make plain Nasi Goreng for four or six people, you need.
2 cups long-grain rice
4 shallots or 1 small onion
2 red chillis or 1/2 tsp shilli
Powder and 1 tsp paprika
2 tbs vegetable oil or clarified
Butter or park fat
Salt
1 tsp sweet soya sauce
1 tsp tomato ketchup
(more…)
This is a meal in itself, a plate of ordinary Nasi Putih topped with generous spoonfuls of various side dishes. The secret is of course to get the right combination if side dishes. A popular selection in Indonesia is:
