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Nasi Lemak Recipe
4.6 from 162 votes

Nasi Lemak Recipe

Nasi Lemak is a Malaysian dish consisting of fragrant coconut milk steamed rice served alongside fried anchovies, sambal, boiled eggs, roasted peanuts, cucumber, and often fish or other accompaniments. The rice is cooked with pandan leaves and coconut milk for aromatic richness, while the fried anchovies add a crunchy, salty contrast. A spicy sambal paste completes this layered dish.

Prep Time
30 mins
Cook Time
30 mins
Total Time
1 hr
Servings: 4 people
Calories: 338 kcal
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Malaysian

Ingredients

Coconut Milk Steamed Rice
  • 2 cups rice
  • 1 ½ cups water cut down to 1 1⁄4  cups if using ¾ cup coconut milk
  • ½  cup coconut milk use  ¾  cup for creamier rice
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 3 pandan leaves tie them into a knot
Spice Paste
  • 4 shallot peeled
  • 1 clove garlic peeled
  • 8 dried red chili seeded, medium length
  • 1 teaspoon belacan prawn paste
Tamarind Water
  • 1 cup water
  • tamarind pulp size of a small ping pong ball
  • salt to taste
  • 2 tablespoons sugar or more to taste
Fried Anchovies
  • 1 cup ikan bilis dried anchovies, peeled, small dried anchovies
  • 2 cups neutral cooking oil for frying, generic cooking oil
  • 1 red onion peeled, sliced into rings
Other ingredients
  • 3 small fish sardines or mackerel, cut into halves
  • 2 egg cut into halves, hard boiled
  • 1 cup peanuts roasted
  • 1 cucumber cut into slices and then quartered, small

Instructions

    Cup of Yum
  1. Coconut Rice. Rinse the rice with running tap water, repeating the process a few times until the water turns clear. Drain the water completely. Add 1 ½ cups of water to the washed rice, followed by the coconut milk and a pinch of salt. Add the pandan leaves into the rice and cook your rice. Discard the pandan leaves after rice is cooked.
  2. Spice Paste. Pound the shallots, garlic, dried chilies, and prawn paste with a mortar and pestle. Alternatively, you can grind them with a food processor.
  3. Tamarind Water. Soak the tamarind pulp in water for 15 minutes. Constantly squeeze the tamarind to extract its flavor into the water. Drain the pulp and save the tamarind juice.
  4. Fried Anchovies. Rinse the dried anchovies with tap water a few times and let them drain. Heat 2 cups of oil in a pan, fry the anchovies until they've become light brown and crispy. Remove from oil with a strainer and drain on a paper towel-lined plate. You can serve them as is, or add them into sambal to make sambal anchovies.
  5. Sambal Ikan Bilis (Sambal Anchovies). On medium to low heat, heat 2 tablespoons of frying oil in a pan. Stir-fry the spice paste until fragrant, turning reddish in color. Add the onion rings and fried anchovies, stirring well. Pour in the tamarind juice, salt, and sugar. Simmer on low heat until the sauce thickens. Set it aside.
  6. Fried Fish. Clean the small fish and season them with salt. Deep fry with the remaining frying oil.
  7. Assembling Nasi Lemak. To serve, scope out a small bowl of rice and place onto the center of a plate. Arrange the fried fish, hard boiled egg, roasted peanuts, and cucumber around the rice. Add 2 spoons of the sambal on top of the rice. Serve immediately.

Notes

  • If using a rice cooker, ensure it is compatible with coconut milk; some models may be damaged by oily ingredients.
  • Adjust coconut milk amount to 3/4 cup for creamier rice and reduce water accordingly.
  • Roasted peanuts with skin are traditional, but salted peanuts can be substituted if unavailable.
  • Serve fried anchovies and sambal separately or combined with onion rings as preferred.
  • Traditionally served wrapped in banana leaf, which imparts aroma when warm; frozen banana leaves can be found in Asian stores.

Nutrition Information

Serving 4people Calories 338kcal (17%) Carbohydrates 88g (29%) Protein 16g (32%) Fat 25g (38%) Saturated Fat 19g (95%) Cholesterol 121mg (40%) Sodium 293mg (12%) Fiber 3g (12%) Sugar 7g (14%)

Nutrition Facts

Serving: 4 people

Amount Per Serving

Calories 338

% Daily Value*

Serving 4people
Calories 338kcal 17%
Carbohydrates 88g 29%
Protein 16g 32%
Fat 25g 38%
Saturated Fat 19g 95%
Cholesterol 121mg 40%
Sodium 293mg 12%
Fiber 3g 12%
Sugar 7g 14%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.