NASI GORENG (INDONESIAN FRIED RICE)

Nasi Goreng (Indonesian fried rice) made with whole-wheat brown rice, chicken and bacon and home-made ketjap manis (this version a sweet and spicy soya sauce). Especially for Tammy who has just returned from Bali without eating it there!!! Firstly make the ketjap manis so that the meat/chicken/fish/seafood can marinate before frying.

Ketjap manis (Indonesian sweet soya sauce)
1 cup soya sauce
1 ½ cups *palm/coconut sugar OR soft brown treacle sugar (*it has a ich caramel/butterscotch flavour, less sweet than brown sugar)
1 tablespoon molasses (leave out if you do not have it on hand)
3 cloves garlic, peeled and cut in half
6 cm piece of fresh ginger root, peeled and cut into 4 pieces
2 whole star anise
2 whole cloves
10 peppercorns
½ teaspoon dried smoked chilli flakes OR a small chilli chopped up if you like the heat

Put everything into a small pot and bring to the boil while stirring. Reduce the heat to medium-low and stir frequently until sugar dissolved. Simmer uncovered for 10 – 15 minutes until it starts thickening. Allow to cool with spices still in. Remove the spices and pour into airtight jar and keep in fridge for up to a month.

Note:
Makes approximately one cup of ketjap manis.
Also ideal to marinate chicken pieces before grilling.
Take care: the sugar in marinade can char quickly.

Nasi Goreng (Indonesian fried rice)
6 cups of cooked basmati or brown rice, cooked and completely cooled (can even be made the day before and kept in fridge overnight)
250 g chicken fillet, pork or bacon cut into thin strips (you can use any boneless meat or seafood) {for a vegetarian version only use vegetables}
2 onions, chopped
1 tablespoon white sesame seeds
oil for frying
4 cloves garlic, grated or crushed
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon coriander
1 teaspoon paprika (if you prefer it hot, use chilli powder)
1 teaspoon laos powder (this is ground Greater Galangal root, also, called Java root. Has a tart citrus flavour with traces of ginger and cardamom)
½ teaspoon mustard powder
1 teaspoon turmeric
1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
4 cups of chopped vegetables (carrot, celery, cabbage, peppers, marrow etc.)
ketjap manis to marinate the meat
sambal ulek (fresh chilli paste) to serve

Marinate the chicken in about three tablespoons of ketjap manis for an hour. Heat a wok or large pan and add the oil. Add the chicken, bacon and sesame seeds and stir fry over high heat for a few minutes until just cooked through. Remove from the wok with a slotted spoon, put into a plate and keep aside.
Add a bit more oil if necessary and fry the vegetables quickly and remove.
Add a bit of oil and all the spices and fry for a few seconds before adding the rice (at room temperature) and stir well to distribute the spices and heat the rice while frying it.
Add the vegetables, chicken and bacon and stir while heating.
Serve immediately with chopped spring onions and fresh coriander leaves, extra ketjap manis, sambal ulek and traditionally topped with a soft fried egg or egg omelette cut into thin strips.

Recipe and photographs: Elsabie Templeton