Nasi Lemak

Malaysian

Nasi Lemak

Print or share this recipe

Nasi Lemak is Malaysian home cooking, eaten at breakfast, lunch, and dinner. On the plate it is the dish at the centre. Below is what usually sits beside it, what it does and does not contain, and what else to cook once you have made it.

40 min Medium Gluten free Dairy free Pescatarian

Ingredients

Serves
4

The quantities follow this count.

How to cook it

  1. Rinse the rice, then combine it with the coconut milk, 1.25 cups water, bay leaves, and 1/2 tsp salt in a pot.

  2. Bring to a boil, then cover and cook on low until the liquid is absorbed, about 15 minutes; rest and fluff.

  3. Meanwhile, fry the anchovies in 1 tbsp oil until crisp, about 3 minutes, then drain.

  4. Blend the red chilies, shallots, garlic, and shrimp paste into a paste and fry it in the remaining oil until dark and fragrant, about 8 minutes.

  5. Stir the tamarind paste, brown sugar, and remaining salt into the sambal and simmer 3 minutes.

  6. Boil the eggs 9 minutes, cool, and peel.

  7. Divide the coconut rice among plates with the halved eggs, fried anchovies, roasted peanuts, sliced cucumber, and a spoonful of sambal.

Watch how to cook Nasi Lemak

Someone making it start to finish, so you can see what the steps look like.

Serve it with

A Malaysian dinner is a plate rather than a single dish. These are the courses that normally sit beside Nasi Lemak, read from the same composition Dinejot builds a real meal from.

Safe at your table

Dinejot tracks ten allergens and tags every one of them by hand, so the absences below are as deliberate as the presences. Nasi Lemak carries shellfish, eggs, fish, and coconut. It is free of the remaining 6 allergens on that list.

Every tracked allergen in Nasi Lemak
Allergen In this dish Cook this instead
Peanuts No
Tree nuts No
Dairy No
Gluten No
Shellfish Yes Asam Pedas Ikan (Malaysian Spicy Sour Fish Stew)
Eggs Yes Asam Pedas Ikan (Malaysian Spicy Sour Fish Stew)
Soy No
Fish Yes Ayam Goreng Berempah (Malaysian Spiced Fried Chicken)
Sesame No
Coconut Yes Asam Pedas Ikan (Malaysian Spicy Sour Fish Stew)

These tags are set by a person rather than inferred from an ingredient list, and they describe the recipe as written here. Read the labels on whatever you actually buy.

What it brings to the plate

Estimated, per serving

Calories
700 kcal
Protein
23 g
Carbs
86 g
Fat
29 g
Fiber
4 g
Sugar
6 g
Sodium
760 mg
Saturated fat
14 g

Estimated values. Actual nutrition varies with ingredients, brands, and how you cook.

When to cook it

Nasi Lemak takes about 40 minutes from a cold stove to the table, and the cooking itself is a fair bit of work. It is eaten at breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Nothing in the calendar rules it out, so it is a year round dish.

Cooked this? Show everyone.

Comments

Sign in to leave a note for the next cook.

No comments yet. Be the first to share your thoughts.

Cook this with your whole family

Dinejot plans breakfast, lunch and dinner as whole plates, built around the cooking you call home and filtered for the allergies at your table.

Meal suggestions support your goals. They are not medical advice. Please ask your doctor about your family's health needs.

Keep this in your kitchen

Sign in and the dishes you save are kept with your account, so tonight's recipe is already there on your phone when you are standing at the hob.

By continuing you agree to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.