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Sunday 13 October 2019

Nasi Goreng

Nasi Goreng
  • Vegetable oil - 3 tbsp
  • 2 chicken breasts, cut into large chunks
  • 2 x 250g microwaveable pouches basmati rice
  • 2 eggs, beaten
  • 2 tbsp kecap manis
  • 1 tbsp fish sauce
  • Juice of 1 lime
Nasi Goreng Paste
  • 2 shallots, chopped
  • 1 stick of lemongrass, finely chopped
  • Thumb sized piece of ginger, cut into matchsticks
  • 2 cloves of garlic, minced
  • 2 tsp tomato purée
  • 1 Birdseye chilli, sliced 
  • 1 tbsp brown sugar
To Serve
  • 2 spring onions, finely sliced
  • Crispy fried shallots (finely slice a shallot and shallow fry in oil until crispy)
  • 4 fried eggs
  • Sambal or sriracha hot sauce
  • 1 red chilli, finely sliced
Method:
Firstly make the paste by placing all the ingredients into a food processor with 2 tbsp of cold water and blend until you have a smooth paste.
Heat 2 tbsp of the vegetable oil in a wok or large deep frying pan until the oil is hot.  Add the chicken chunks and cook until browned all over, remove and set aside, once cooled, shred the chicken.
Reduce the heat under the wok, add the remaining tbsp of oil and the paste and cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Turn up the heat under the wok, add the cooked rice and cook for 3 minutes.  Make a well in the centre of the rice and add the beaten egg, once this has cooked, chop up and mix through the rice mixture.
Add the fish sauce, lime juice, kecap manis and the chicken, season and cook for 5 minutes until hot and cooked through. 
Plate up the Nasi Goreng and top with a fried egg, crispy shallots, chilli slices, spring onions and sambal or sriracha sauce.

This is my version of Nasi Goreng which is a traditional Indonesian breakfast dish, however it is quite substantial and can be eaten any time of the day.  I haven’t included shrimp paste which is generally used as I find the taste too strong but you can add a teaspoon to the paste mixture if you wish. 
Kecap Manis is an Indonesian sauce, often found in the Asian aisle of your supermarket - you can use soy sauce and brown sugar as an alternative.  
I have also cut down on the amount of chilli, you can obviously adjust accordingly.  

This is a great tasting dish, you can add shrimp or pork as well, depending on your tastes, pimp up the chilli and you will guarantee to clear and winter sniffles!



Sunday 6 October 2019

Thai Basil Beef - Pad Gra Prow

Thai Basil Beef - Pad Gra Prow
  • 2 tablespoons oil
  • 380g bavette steak, sliced thinly against the grain and mixed with 1 teaspoon oil and 2 teaspoons cornstarch
  • 5 cloves garlic (chopped)
  • ½ of a red bell pepper (sliced thinly)
  • 1 small onion (thinly sliced)
  • 2 teaspoons soy sauce
  • 1 teaspoon dark soy sauce
  • 1 teaspoon oyster sauce
  • 1 tablespoon fish sauce
  • ½ teaspoon sugar
  • 1 cup thai basil leaves 
  • Coriander (to garnish)
  • 1 green chilli, thinly sliced 
  • Thumbnail sized piece of fresh ginger cut into matchstick strips


Heat your wok over high heat, add the oil and then brown the steak, remove and set aside.

Add the garlic, red pepper, ginger and chilli to the wok and stir-fry for about 30 seconds. Add the onions and stir-fry until browned.  Return the beef back to the wok and add the soy sauce, dark soy sauce, oyster sauce, fish sauce, and sugar. Stir-fry for another few seconds, and then fold in the Thai basil until it’s just wilted. Serve with jasmine rice, and garnish with coriander.

This is my version of Pad Gra Prow, yet again another quick and easy recipe, packed with flavour and it also packs a punch with the chilli, you can omit the chilli or reduce the amount used to suit your tastebuds.  Using this cut of steak is perfect as it is very tender, don’t over cook it though as that’s when it turns chewy.  A massive hit in our household and I can’t wait to make it again.