Here’s fragrant and delicious Malay dish that’s quick and easy to make. This is one of the all-time best rice dishes I’ve had, and it goes with a variety of other SE Asian foods. Leftovers make for part of a great SE Asian-style breakfast when paired with eggs.
There are a few different versions of this dish, but they’re all fairly similar.
What you’ll need:
- 2 cups jasmine rice, washed to get out the excess starch, and drained
- 1 cup coconut milk or coconut cream
- 1-1.5t ground turmeric
- 0.5t salt
- 1” piece of ginger, peeled and bruised
- 1 stalk of lemongrass, outer layers removed, ends cut off, smashed and tied into a knot
- 3-5 lime leaves (fresh or frozen)—if you can’t find lime leaves, add a few drops of lime juice to the water. It’s not the same as lime leaves, but it still adds a little complexity to the flavor.
What to do:
Stir all the ingredients into a 2-quart saucepan, along with 1.5 cups of water.
Bring it to a boil over high heat, then tightly cover the pan with a lid and turn the heat to low. Let it cook undisturbed for about 15 minutes, until all of the liquid is absorbed. Try to resist checking for doneness too many times, as each time you remove the cover, you’re letting heat and steam escape.
When the liquid has been absorbed, fluff the rice and remove the ginger, lemongrass and lime leaves before serving.
The rice cone that I made for the photos is an approximation of an Indonesian rice cone, though they often have a smaller circumference and are taller.
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