All time Malaysian favourite “Nasi Lemak”.
If hibiscus becomes the national flower of Malaysia, nasi lemak becomes the national food of Malaysia. As a Malaysian who grew up in Malaysia, nasi lemak has become a staple dish eaten every morning. Usually, it is eaten with a cup of teh tarik. Traditionally, nasi lemak is wrapped in banana leaves. The name nasi lemak is derived from the taste of the rice itself which is fatty and creamy. Nasi lemak is not like ordinary rice that is grown using ordinary water, but it is grown using coconut milk. Traditionally, nasi lemak is cooked over medium heat or using a steaming technique and it needs to be monitored to prevent the coconut milk from becoming hot. Now, it is cooked using an electric rice cooker.
The history of nasi lemak began when the Malay community settled on the coast. The community wants to maximize the use of materials that are in the area such as coconut milk from the fruit, spinach that grows wild, and fish caught in the sea. The use of banana leaves as packaging is said to make it easier for farmers to bring supplies when going out to work.
Based on other sources, there is a pair of mothers and children named Mak Kuntum and Seri who lived during the Melaka sultanate. Mak Kuntum's husband died as a result of the war that took place in the Straits of Melaka. Therefore, Mak Kuntum had to take a massage wage to support her family. Every early morning, Mak Kuntum would go out to find customers, and her son Seri had to stay alone at home to do housework such as cooking, cleaning the house, and so on. It is said that one day, Seri got tired of rice and side dishes cooked using the same method. Therefore, Seri has come up with other ideas so that the cooked rice has a variation in terms of taste. At first, Seri had put some galangal into the rice he cooked. then, he added pandan leaves to serve the rice again so that it can arouse his appetite and his mother.
When Mak Kuntum returned home at noon, Seri served the rice she had cooked to her mother. His mother was shocked by the rice served by her son because she had never seen such rice in her life. His mother had asked Seri, "Are you cooking this, Seri?" Seri replied: "Nasi le! Mak!" Seri had replied repeatedly to his mother. His mother asked Seri repeatedly, but the same answer was given by him: "Nasi le mak!", "Nasi le mak!", "Nasi le mak!". Since that event, the rice has been known as nasi lemak.
Nasi Lemak is commonly famous and so called in the Malay Peninsula and the east coast of Sumatra. Meanwhile in Jakarta, a dish similar to Nasi Lemak is known as nasi uduk, while in Central Java by the name segaliwet or nasi liwet. While in Aceh, a dish similar to Nasi Lemak is called nasi gurih.
Ingredients and Condiments.
Nasi lemak usually been eaten with variety kind of condiments such as Sambal, fried anchovies, cucumber, fried or boiled egg and fried chicken. When all of this items being mixed and being placed together in our mouth the eater will fell explosion of delicious flavour in their mouth. The combination of aromatic and coconut flavour rice and Spicy taste of sambal together with the texture of other condiments, this dish will easily make anybody fallen in love with the taste. But to ensure that Nasi Lemak has the an outstanding and delicious taste, the chef must know the good recipe and preparation technique to make the perfect Nasi Lemak. What make Nasi Lemak have their own aroma and flavour for the rice is the uses of ginger, lemongrass and pandan leaves. For the seasoning, just a bit of salt and chicken stock to enhance the flavour. To make it have more tasty taste, a bit of oil should be added. Believe me with the use of oil it will make a huge different to the Nasi Lemak texture and taste.
As for the Sambal, it should be cooked with low heat for a long time. This to ensure all the spice that been added to the sambal can be cooked perfectly. Sambal also play very important role to make the perfect Nasi Lemak. There are rumour that said if you mess the Sambal, you are done. That’s show how important the good sambal for Nasi lemak dish in Malaysia. For the other condiments like ground nut and fried anchovies must also being cooked to perfection. The texture for both of this condiment must be light and crispy. the crispy texture of the fried anchovies help to add the texture in Nasi lemak which will increase the appetite of the consumer. Do not forget the fresh cucumber to make the Nasi lemak become more delicious.
Basic knowledge and cooking tips.
There are many people that still didn’t know how to produce or make the perfect Nasi lemak. As a person that sell nasi lemak as for main income, I like to share basic information and tips to make nasi lemak. This to ensure all the reader can enjoy to make nasi lemak at their place. Okay first of all the use of coconut milk. Coconut milk is very important ingredient to make nasi lemak. This ingredients is a must! If you didn’t use the coconut milk, then your nasi lemak is fake. It also important to choose the fresh coconut milk to ensure the coconut flavour can being taste in every single bite of nasi lemak. Number 2, the use of oil. Believe me, the use of oil in nasi lemak will help to boost the flavour. You can try make a comparison to the nasi lemak recipe that use oil and the one that didn’t use the oil. You will get the different.
Number 3, the amount of water. Please accurately measure the amount of water that being used to cook nasi lemak. this to avoid our nasi lemak become porridge. Remember the basic measure for cooking rice which 100 gram rice is equal to 125 gram of water. We didn’t want nasi lemak to become too wet or dry. Beside that, make sure to perfectly cook the sambal. It is to important to make sure all the ingredients are cooked before serve it together as nasi lemak. If not, there will be high chance to get a disease like stomach-ache and diarrhea. I believe nobody want to being ill just because they ate nasi lemak. Lastly, make sure the anchovies and ground nut being cooked perfectly. Avoid to overcook this ingredients since it will become so hard and scorched if didn’t being handle properly.
The Best Time to Eat Nasi Lemak
In Malaysia, no other dish is as well-known as nasi lemak. It is traditionally served with anchovies, cucumbers, peanuts, and hard-boiled eggs and is made from rice cooked in coconut milk. The recipe is completed with the addition of sambal, a hot chilli paste. Despite its origins as a breakfast food, it quickly outgrew its initial role and evolved into the Malaysian national cuisine, which may be had at any time throughout the day. Since the 1980s, when this farmer's dinner turned into a dish that is widely sold by Malaysian street sellers, nasi lemak's popularity has steadily grown.
Image source: taufulou.com
Nasi Lemak is Considered as Healthy Food
Although the name of nasi lemak considered as fatty food, the demand is increasing because the taste and deliciousness makes it really worth eating. But, in surprising twist, According to The Straits Times (2016), Nasi Lemak has been nominated as one of the 10 healthy international breakfast by Time Magazine. Nasi lemak was ranked ninth on the list of "10 Healthy International Breakfasts" published by Time Magazine.
Image source: The Straits Times
While the rice cooked in coconut milk and topped with roasted peanuts, cucumbers, hard boiled eggs, fried anchovies, and spicy sambal sauce is a fat-containing dish, it is also believed to be 'balanced' with other vital nutrients. "Yes, there's a little more fat than you should have (eat less rice to cut it down), but it's balanced up with plenty of manganese, protein, and carbs. Also, the chili in the sambal also improves the metabolism (depending on which nutritionist you talk to)." According to the article published by Time Magazine
Nasi Lemak Variations
Nasi lemak is a Malaysian dish that has several variations due to the fact that it is produced by chefs from all ethnicities in Malaysia. The original nasi lemak in Malaysia is perhaps a traditional breakfast in Southern and Central Peninsular Malaysia, and it is thought to be of Malay origin. However, due to its widespread popularity, the meal has been recognized as a national food of Malaysia. There is a lot of variation of nasi lemak. Firstly, traditional Malaysian version. This authentic version of nasi lemak usually come with sambal, ikan bilis (anchovies), peanuts and boiled egg. This is the most traditional version. Nasi lemak stalls can be found serving them with fried egg, sambal kerang (cockles), a local favorite, sambal squids, sambal fish, chicken or chicken/beef rendang, squid fritters or even fried chicken or fish.
Authentic traditional nasi lemak
Image source: asianinspiration.com
Although nasi lemak is widely available at Malaysian stalls and restaurants, non-halal variants with pork can be found in places like Melaka, Penang, Perak, and sections of Kuala Lumpur. This variation of nasi lemak is Malaysian Chinese variation. Pork and wild boar curry, sambal, and rendang are all popular dishes among Malaysian Chinese hawkers. It's provided in a range of pig dishes such as luncheon meat, pork belly, Taiwan pork sausage, braised pork, and grilled pork chop in most non-halal restaurants. Other than that, Indian ethnic in Malaysia also make a variation of nasi lemak, which is Malaysian Indian variation. This type of nasi lemak is similar to the authentic one, but it usually serves with curry, such as chicken curry, fish curry or lamb curry and Indian type of rendang that are usually made from mutton because majority of Malaysian Indians are Hindus and thus, they cannot consume beef because of their religion beliefs.
For the final words, nasi lemak is more often eaten at breakfast, but now, this dish is also a daily dish eaten during lunch or dinner. Although it is said that this dish is a traditional Malay cuisine, it is now a favorite food of all Malaysians of all races. Apart from that, nasi lemak is not just popular among Malaysian peoples, many tourists who visit our country have tried it and been fascinated by its flavors and deliciousness. Thus, make it nasi lemak a delightful Malaysian traditional dish that is well-known around the world. So, as a Malaysian we must be proud of our national dish which is nasi lemak.
Japanese youtuber, KAZ in KL enjoying Nasi Lemak at Bumbung Nasi Lemak PJ SS2,
HTC 583 Group assignment
Group members:
1. Muhammad Syazani Bin Ahmad (2021149361)
2. Mohamad Alif Akmal Bin Yusoff (2021766765)
3. Al- Imran Bin Nor Azha (2021123939)
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