ramyaramesh3007This dish consists of fluffy coconut rice with side dishes like spiced fried tofu, sambal beans, sambal chili, roasted peanuts and cucumber. It’s a flavour bomb!
Nasi Lemak, native to Malaysia was something I grew up eating as a Singaporean all my life. Nasi Lemak, also known as coconut rice, is cooked in coconut milk as well as fragrant spices. This recipe aims to be as authentic as possible, but meat-free and vegan!
The secret to the aromatic rice is definitely the addition of extra ingredients, like pandan leaves and lemongrass. These spices are used often in southeast asian cuisine but is particularly important to boost the flavour of the coconut rice.
You can be pretty versatile with the side dishes but I made spiced tofu from spices, lemongrass, ginger and coconut milk. The sambal was store bought and I used it to season the sambal beans as well!
What Do I Need For This Recipe?
Here are some essentials you need:
Coconut Rice
Long grain basmati rice to make a fluffy and fragrant coconut rice. It’s important to season your rice with fresh herbs and spices but this is very easy to make. You can make this in an instant pot, rice cooker, on the stove or a pressure cooker. I made mine in a pressure cooker.
Before anything, remember to wash the rice 2-3 times and drain water completely. This helps to get rid of the extra starch so that your rice does not end up sticky. Make sure you drain the water as much as possible.
Instant Pot
If you’re using 1 cup rice, use 1/2 cup of coconut cream and 1 cup of water.
Rice Cooker
Same for a rice cooker – If you’re using 1 cup rice, use 1/2 cup of coconut cream and 1 cup of water.
On the Stove
If you’re using 1 cup rice, use 1/2 cup of coconut cream and 1.5 cups of water.
Pressure Cooker
If you’re using 1 cup rice, use 1/2 cup of coconut cream and 3/4 cup of water.
Tofu/Tempeh
For the sides, you can use tofu or tempeh. The spices here are very important – it’s a must to have lemongrass, ginger, powdered aromatics and coconut cream. It really brings ties the flavours together. So make sure you have these:
- lemongrass (most importantly, the stalks)
- ginger paste or galangal
- coriander, cumin, chili powder, turmeric
- corn starch (for extra crisp when frying)
- coconut cream
Sambal
A crucial component that binds and spices up the whole dish, it’s important to choose a good quality sambal paste! I used a sambal chili paste from a home business based in Singapore(gifted, but not an affiliate) and it’s one of my personal favourites now. You can find them here.
I also used them to season some long beans to make a stir fry.
Is this dish gluten free?
Yes, absolutely! Every component of this dish is 100% gluten free. A real treat indeed!
Vegan Nasi Lemak
Ingredients
Coconut Rice
- 1 cup basmati rice
- 1/2 cup coconut cream
- 3/4 cup water
- 1 lemongrass stalk
- 2 pandan leaves
- salt
Spiced Fried Tofu
- 450 g extra firm tofu
- 2 stalks lemongrass ends
- 2 tsp ginger paste
- 1 tsp coriander seeds
- 1 tsp cumin (seeds/powered)
- 1 tsp fennel powder
- 1 tsp chili powder
- 1 tsp curry powder
- 1/4 tsp turmeric
- 2 tsp corn starch
- 1/4 cup coconut cream
Toppings
- 4 tbsp sambal
- long beans
- roasted peanuts
- cucumber
Instructions
- Rinse your rice a few times to get rid of the starchiness. Drain and keep aside.
- Cook your rice in your preferred method – for pressure cooker, add your rice, coconut cream, water, salt and mix well. Smash the stalk of a lemongrass. Add lemongrass, pandan leaves and close the cooker.
- Wait for the steam to be released, lower the flame and leave it for 15 minutes. Switch off and let the rice cook more in the steam.
- Slice your tofu into cubes. Slice the lemongrass until the hint of purple in the cross section disappears. Blend the ingredients needed for the coating using a high speed blender. Coat the tofu cubes evenly.
- Heat some oil in a frying pan. Fry on all sides until the tofu becomes crispy.
- Cut up your long beans. Add some oil, sambal paste, salt and ginger to another pan.
- Add the long beans, and fry until it's half cooked – so it retains its crunchiness.
- Open up your cooker and mix rice well. Serve with fried tofu, sambal beans, sambal, cucumber and peanuts.