Vegetarian Nasi Goreng - Indonesian Fried Rice

Nasi Goreng is a quick and spicy Indonesian Fried Rice easily made with leftover rice and a few vegetables for a healthy quick bite! Add meat, chicken or seafood along with cooked eggs for a non vegetarian version.

During days when you have just no time to slave over a hot stove to make dinner or lunch, quick fried rice is my go-to dish. Most of the times, my favorite is Pulao in a Jiffy or even Mushroom Fried Rice.

Nasi goreng means “fried rice” in Indonesia and sometimes is called the “National Dish of Indonesia”. It is normally served during breakfast with a fried egg on top and this versatile and fiery quick rice has been on my to-do list for a long time. Although I have never been to Indonesia, the flavors of that country as well as Malaysia or even Singapore and of course China have always fascinated me.

One of my close friends used to live in Malaysia and she used to always talk about Nasi Goreng ; she was a pure vegetarian, so her version was without any eggs, meat, shrimp paste etc. which the traditional nasi goreng has.  Every time she mentioned that being on her menu for the day, I meant to ask her for the recipe, but never got around to it.

Unfortunately, I lost her suddenly last year and her recipe will always be inaccessible to me! My version of this amazing Indonesian fried rice is dedicated to her.

After scouting around for an authentic recipe, I gave up. There are so many variations; mostly with egg, shrimp etc. My husband being a pure vegetarian, I decided to make my version with lots of fresh vegetables and a spicy sambal oelek bottle (Red chilli paste) that I had bought on my recent trip to USA.

If you do not have that, you can use any sweet hot chilli sauce or even soak some dry red chillies in hot water for some time and then blend it with salt and a bit vinegar to make the fiery paste needed for this fried rice.

I always have a bottle of my chili-garlic sauce in my refrigerator which I would have loved to use, but being just back, decided to make do with the sambal oelek instead.

Soy sauce is added but with a sweet touch. So, in went some jaggery or brown sugar in the sauce and for the sour element, stirred in some tamarind extract. Personally, I would have loved to have a crunchy topping of peanuts, but I had none in my pantry; next time maybe!

Traditionally and ideally, you need cold, cooked long grain rice with each grain separate. So leftover rice is best for making this fried rice; my lunch was going to be nasi goreng with carrot and coriander soup(will post recipe soon). So I made a fresh batch of Basmati rice and spread it out in a pan to cool.

With the healthy crunch of fresh green beans, cabbage and carrots, colorful, flavorful Nasi goreng was ready in a jiffy; ready in 20 minutes!

Do try my version of this simple but vibrant and flavorful Indonesian fried rice and let me know in the comment box below or post a picture of your dish on my Facebook page.

Other rice dishes you may like:

Satvik Tomato Pulao

Lemon Rice (south Indian Style)

Quick Mexican Rice

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Vegetarian Nasi Goreng – Indonesian Fried Rice

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Serving Size: 2

Nasi Goreng is a quick and spicy Indonesian Fried Rice easily made with leftover rice and a few vegetables for a healthy quick bite!

Ingredients

• ½ cup basmati rice
• 2 to 3 cups water
• 2 tablespoons oil
• ½ onion sliced
• 2 to 3 cloves of garlic, chopped or sliced
• ½ cup green beans, chopped
• ½ cup chopped carrots
• ½ cup sliced cabbage
• 2 to 3 tsp red chilli paste
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon brown sugar or jaggery
• ½ tsp tamarind extract
• Salt to taste
• Pepper powder
• Coriander leaves
Serving suggestion:
• Slices of cucumber and tomatoes
• Roasted peanuts
• Fried Shallots

Instructions

1. Boil rice in water until just cooked, drain, rinse and spread on a plate to cool. Prepare rice at least a few hours ahead or the day before and refrigerate until ready to use. You can even use leftover rice to make Nasi Goreng.
2. Add jaggery or brown sugar to soy sauce and keep aside.
3. If using tamarind extract, soak a small marble-sized piece of tamarind in some water for a few minutes and extract about 2 to 3 tablespoons tamarind extract. Keep aside.
4. Heat oil in a deep saucepan or work on medium high heat; once the oil is hot, add the onions and garlic and sauté until the onions are translucent.
5. Stir in the carrots and green beans and sauté for a few minutes until the beans are slightly cooked.
6. Tip in the cabbage and mix well; fry for a minute on medium high.
7. Once the vegetables are slightly cooked (do not overcook), add the sambal oelek/red chilli paste/chili garlic paste/red chilli sauce along with soy sauce-sugar mixture and tamarind extract/tamarind paste and continue to stir for about a minute or two.
8. Add rice and pepper powder along with salt to taste and mix well. Once the rice is heated through and all the flavors are well incorporated, do a taste test and adjust the seasonings like salt, pepper, tamarind or chili paste.
9. Stir fry well and remove from heat.
10. Garnish with freshly chopped coriander leaves or chopped green onions and serve hot with a side of cucumber and tomato slices. If needed, you can sprinkle roasted peanuts for a crunchy topping.
11. Enjoy!!

Notes

It tastes even better the next day when the rice has absorbed all the flavors of soy, chilli sauce and tamarind!

You can use any vegetable you have; that is the versatility of this dish.

Do not overcook the vegetables, you need them tender crisp!

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How to make Nasi Goreng with step-by-step method:

• Boil rice in water until just cooked, drain, rinse and spread on a plate to cool. Prepare rice at least a few hours ahead or the day before and refrigerate until ready to use. You can even use leftover rice to make Nasi Goreng.
• Add jaggery or brown sugar to soy sauce and keep aside.
• If using tamarind extract, soak a small marble-sized piece of tamarind in some water for a few minutes and extract about 2 to 3 tablespoons tamarind extract. Keep aside.
• Heat oil in a deep saucepan or work on medium high heat; once the oil is hot, add the onions and garlic and sauté until the onions are translucent.

• Stir in the carrots and green beans and sauté for a few minutes until the beans are slightly cooked.

• Tip in the cabbage and mix well; fry for a minute on medium high.

• Once the vegetables are slightly cooked (do not overcook), add the sambal oelek/red chilli paste/chili garlic paste/red chilli sauce along with soy sauce-sugar mixture and tamarind extract/tamarind paste and continue to stir for about a minute or two.

• Add rice and pepper powder along with salt to taste and mix well. Once the rice is heated through and all the flavors are well incorporated, do a taste test and adjust the seasonings like salt, pepper, tamarind or chili paste.
• Stir fry well and remove from heat.

• Garnish with freshly chopped coriander leaves or chopped green onions and serve hot with a side of cucumber and tomato slices. For extra crunch and flavor you can sprinkle roasted peanuts for a crunchy topping.

• Enjoy!!

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