Nasi goreng is Indonesia’s national dish. It's made with cold leftover rice, seasoned with sweet soy sauce (kecap manis) and whatever leftovers and spices the cook has on hand. It's often topped with a fried egg and served for breakfast. This simple version makes for a quick and easy weekday meal.
Chile peppers have become quite the rage recently, with folks competing for the hottest chile peppers, and the spiciest hot sauces. But did you know that the word chile refers to capsicums in general, and not specifically just the hot ones? A sweet bell pepper would be considered a chile based on this classification.
This Indonesian-Style Fried Rice, or Nasi Goreng, is very easy to make and features a reasonable number of ingredients. Jasmine rice is authentic for this dish, but you can also use brown jasmine rice.
Red Thai bird's-eye chiles are SUPER spicy. They're 50,000 to 100,000 Scoville heat units compared to a jalapeno which is 3,500 to 10,000 SHU. Be very gentle when handling them.
I actually used only 1 chile for my fried rice, and I removed the seeds as well, and I found the spiciness to be perfect for my family. There is definite heat, but it's not overwhelming.
The Nasi Goreng was a huge success. It is very easy to make, especially if you own a wok. I prepped my ingredients in the morning and stir-fried this delicious rice dish in preparation for a Saturday brunch, which is perfect considering the runny fried egg on top.
Everything came together quickly, and yielded flavors my entire family (even the most skeptical critics) enjoyed.
Other recipes you may like
- Arroz Chaufa (Peruvian Fried Rice)
- Chinese Spicy Vegetable Fried Rice
- Authentic Thai Pineapple Fried Rice
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Nasi Goreng (Indonesian Fried Rice)
Ingredients
- 2 cups cold cooked rice
- 2 tablespoons oil
- 8 ounces deveined peeled shrimp chopped
- 1 onion finely chopped
- 8 ounces ground pork
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 1 to 2 red Thai bird’s-eye chiles minced
- 3 tablespoons kecap manis
- 1 tablespoon fish sauce
- 4 fried eggs
- Fried Shrimp Chips optional (see notes)
- Sriracha sauce optional
Instructions
- In a wok or large skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add shrimp and cook, stirring, until pink and opaque throughout, about 1 minute. Using a slotted spoon, transfer to a plate.
- Add onion and pork to wok and cook, stirring, until pork is no longer pink and onion is softened, about 5 minutes. Reduce heat to medium. Add garlic, and bird’s-eye chile(s) to taste and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Add rice, kecap manis and fish sauce and cook, stirring and breaking up any clumps with a wooden spoon, until rice is heated through. Return shrimp to pan and toss well to combine.
- Spoon rice mixture onto 4 warm serving plates and top each with 1 of the fried eggs. Serve with shrimp chips (if using). Pass sriracha sauce (if using) at the table.
Notes
- It is more authentic to use jasmine rice in this dish, but I prefer brown rice.
- If you don’t have kecap manis, mix together 1 ½ tablespoons (22 mL) each soy sauce and pure maple syrup to use in place of it.
- Make sure you save any leftovers, because they reheat well for lunch the next day.
- Look for ready-to-cook shrimp chips at Asian markets. They are a tasty snack or accompaniment to fried rice, and they just need a quick fry to make them crispy and delicious.
Nutrition
*All nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered estimates. Actual nutritional content will vary with brands used, measuring methods, portion sizes and more.*
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