Nasi goreng is the famous Indonesian fried rice, and one of the most popular dish of this country. Often served by street vendors, it is actually a very simple dish to make at home. It has unique smoky, umami, sweet and savory flavors. It's one of the most fragrant fried rice there is, thus it's popularity.
Indonesian dishes are known to be super bold and flavourful, and it definitely shows in our fried rice too! This rice dish is delicious to eat on it's own, with a side a sliced cucumbers and a fried egg on top. We also love to eat it with kerupuk, which are Indonesian crackers. IYKYK 😋
What is Nasi Goreng
Nasi goreng is an Indonesian national dish and one of the best fried rice out there! Compared to Chinese fried rice, it's much more fragrant, thanks to the shrimp paste and kecap manis. This latter ingredient also gives it this golden brown color. It has a subtle smoky flavor, and is delicisouly sweet yet flavorful at the same time. It's such a simple dish, but definitely one of our favorite comfort food. Alvin, being Indonesian, will crave this rice dish quite often, and this recipe satisfies his craving every time (Thanks to himself, because he made this recipe 😝). Nasi goreng is an Indonesian dish, but can also often be found in Malaysia and Singapore. There's a lot of variation of this dish, but we love the Indonesian version (Are we biaised? probably.)
Inspiration behind the dish
When Alvin was living in Indonesia, they would always serve the fried rice in a particular way in the restaurants. They'd put the rice in the middle, with some fried egg on top, and they would put additional sides around the rice like shrimp crackers (krupuk) and veggies. As a kid, he found it super fun to eat! And that's what we're trying to recreate today! Bringing in those exotic, tropical flavours from Indonesia in your home!
More related recipes:
- Indonesian Chicken Satay with Spicy Peanut Sauce
- Chicken Laksa
- Flat Rice noodles with Egg Grace Sauce (Kwetiau Siram)
Why we love this recipe
This fried dish will be ready in under 25 minutes, is cooked in one pan, and packs so much flavor. We pair it with a fried egg, fresh sliced cucumber and kerupuk (Indonesian cracker). It's also a very versatile recipe, and any protein or vegetable can easily be added, but note that traditionally, this dish is very simple and doesn't call for many toppings. This recipe calls for specialized ingredients, such as terasi and kecap manis, but they're definitely worth it and once you become familiar with them, they quickly become household staples.
Tip to make the best Nasi Goreng
- Terasi is one of the main flavoring agent in this fried rice, which is essentially an Indonesian shrimp paste. It has a very pungent smell and gives an incredible umami flavor and cannot be replaced by any other ingredient. Terasi can be found at your specialized South East Asian supermarket, in a jar or individual packets. Alternatively, you can buy it online here. We love this brand!
- Kecap manis is the STAR of the show in this dish. Kecap manis is a sweet soy sauce, made by reducing dark soy sauce with spices and palm sugar, which gives it it's nice sweet note. Contrary to normal soy sauce, kacap manis has a syrup-like consistency. We use this brand.
- Nasi goreng traditionally uses long-grain rice. We like to use jasmine rice.
- Using leftover rice will elevate your fried rice and we highly suggest not overlooking this step. It will give your dish a nicer texture, and avoid to cook a mushy mess. If you do not have leftover rice, make sure to use completely cooled down rice.
- Skip the chilies if you can't handle the spice.
Ingredients
- Garlic and shallot
- Shrimp paste
- Fish sauce
- Kecap manis (Indonesian sweet soy sauce)
- Chili sauce to add a level of spicy flavor. We used sambal terasi, which is an Indonesian spicy shrimp chili sauce, but any will do!
- Red or green chilies if you like your food extra spicy.
- Oil for cooking.
- Eggs that we will fry for that authentic nasi goreng experience.
- Cooked white rice, preferably a day old. We used jasmine white rice.
- Salt and pepper to taste.
- Green onions for toppings.
- Sliced cucumber to serve as a side.
- Shrimp crackers are optional, but highly recommended! You can find them at your local Asian supermarket, or online.
Instructions
Prep the shrimp paste. In a food processor, combine the garlic, shallots, and shrimp paste to form a paste. Transfer paste into a small bowl and set aside.
Prep the sauces. In a small bowl, combine the Indonesian sweet soy sauce, fish sauce, and chili sauce.
Cook the eggs. In a pan, heat 1 tbsp of oil over medium high heat and fry the eggs sunny side up, until the edges are brown and crispy. Remove from heat and set aside.
Fry the shrimp crackers. To make the shrimp crackers, deep-fry the crackers in 350 degree Fahrenheit oil until they are completely bloomed and crispy. Drain off excess oil and set aside
Cook your paste and sauce. In a pan or a wok, heat oil over medium high heat. Cook the garlic-shallot-shrimp paste until aromatic and garlic and shallots are tender. Add in the chopped chillies and cook for about 20 seconds. Add in the white rice and stir well. Pour in the sweet soy sauce mixture and mix until well combined and the rice is evenly coloured. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Cook your fried rice and serve. Put the heat on high and continue to stir until the fried rice is dry. Remove from heat and place on a plate. Place fried eggs on top of the rice and serve with shrimp crackers. Garnish with green onions and some cucumbers on the side.
Indonesian Fried Rice (Nasi Goreng)
Ingredients
- 3 cloves garlic
- 1/2 shallot minced
- 1 tsp shrimp paste
- 1 tbsp fish sauce
- 1 1/2 tbsp Indonesian sweet soy sauce
- 1 tsp chili sauce of your choice
- 1 1/2 tbsp chopped red or green chilies optional
- 3 tbsp oil
- 2 whole eggs
- 4 cups cooked white rice
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 2 tbsp green onions chopped
- Shrimp crackers optional
- Sliced cucumbers optional
Instructions
- In a food processor, combine the garlic, shallots, and shrimp paste to form a paste. Transfer paste into a small bowl and set aside.
- In a small bowl, combine the Indonesian sweet soy sauce, fish sauce, and chili sauce.
- In a pan, heat 1 tbsp of oil over medium high heat and fry the eggs sunny side up, until the edges are brown and crispy. Remove from heat and set aside.
- To make the shrimp crackers, deep-fry the crackers in 350 degree Fahrenheit oil until they are completely bloomed and crispy. Drain off excess oil and set aside
- In a pan or a wok, heat oil over medium high heat. Cook the garlic-shallot-shrimp paste until aromatic and garlic and shallots are tender. Add in the chopped chillies and cook for about 20 seconds. Add in the white rice and stir well. Pour in the sweet soy sauce mixture and mix until well combined and the rice is evenly coloured. Add salt and pepper to taste.
- Put the heat on high and continue to stir until the fried rice is dry. Remove from heat and place on a plate. Place fried eggs on top of the rice and serve with shrimp crackers. Garnish with green onions and some cucumbers on the side.
Hello!
This sounds very good.
My only problem is, is that I am allergic to chilis, and peppers.
Do you have any suggestions?
You can add Kerupuk Crispy when eating Nasi Goreng, it's so delicious...