Takeout Tuesday: Nasi Goreng (Fried Rice)
One of my favorite restaurants in D.C. is Nooshi on 19th Street. It has a cross section of Pan-Asian dishes, and Nasi Goreng, Indonesian Fried Rice is one of their many star dishes. I have played around with different pastes and recipies, and this one works for me. The trick is to use day old rice, not the freshly steamed stuff. It just comes out better.
Ingredients:
-2 cups/500 grams cooked white jasmine rice
-3 Tablespoons vegetable oil
-1 -1-1/2 cups/150 grams of mixed vegetables (I use frozen peas, snowpeas, bell pepper, chopped cherry tomato and carrot)
-1 large green onion/scallion chopped
-1 shallot or 1/2 small onion
-1 egg per serving
-lemon wedges for garnish
Protein
-1 cup/140 grams of cooked chicken, shrimp or tofu. (If starting from raw, marinate in a a pinch of garlic powder, salt + pepper, pinch of sugar and 1 teaspoon sesame oil)
Sauce
-1 Tablespoon tomato paste
-1 teaspoon shrimp paste (belacan) (yes, it has a very strong smell, a little goes a long way)
-1 Tablespoon sweet soy sauce (Kecep Manis or Healthy Boy works)
-1 Tablespoon sesame oil
-pinch of garlic powder (you can add more if you like)
-pinch of chili powder (you can also chop up a fresh chili if you like)
Directions
Start with the sauce. Mix all the ingredients together and let it sit in a bowl. Taste it, and see if you want to adjust to more sweet, savory or salty.
If starting with a raw protein, marinate and set aside. Chop all of the other ingredients and have ready to roll. This recipe comes together pretty quickly. Again, have all the other ingredients chopped and ready to go :) Also, have a large bowl because you will cook and then remove from heat, and then add it all together in the end.
In a large skillet or a wok heat a tablespoon of vegetable oil and cook the protein on medium high heat (if it is already cooked skip this step). Once cooked, set aside in the large collection bowl. Next, add one tablespoon of vegtable oil and cook the shallot/onion until it softens, this takes about 3-5 minutes. Add the vegetables + chopped scallion/green onion and cook for another 3-5 minutes. Remove and add to the bowl with the protien.
Now the rice! Add another table spoon of oil and throw in the rice and once it is heated through, add the sauce mix and let it coat the rice evenly. Add everything from the bowl and toss the rice until everything is coated. Give it a taste and see if you want to adjust seasonings before serving.
Last stop: a sunny side egg served on top and lemon wedges for garnish. Enjoy!