Nasi Kuning, food for the heart or medicine?

 In the old days I was always plagued with chicken-soup with rice, bone dry crackers and weak “taste to nothing” tea when I was sick. Or worse boiled rice, boiled with chicken broth that flown over the rice. Ow my, not going to bother you with it. Well you know, I have not been up to par, having colds and infections in my air ways and inflammations in the shoulders.

A friend in the UK when he learned I have been sick for months, pointed me out to the great medicinal value of Turmeric ( Kunjit, Yellow root, Kurkuma )
So I started searching for recipe’s that use Turmeric, and get the best benefits for health while eating something great. Now I stumbled on Nasi Kuning that originates from Indonesia and the Moluccas, a vibrant yellow rice dish that is eaten with celebrations and parties, which is great for health. The yellow stands for happiness and luck and resembles the colour gold. And for health, there is also Lemon-grass used in it, which is also used to help getting rid of a cough and nasal congestion. It is not as difficult as Nasi Goreng, but has amazing taste, creamy sweet with a zesty like citrus tone. Better than bland chicken-soup he.

What you need is:

300 gram Pandang rice or Basmati rice
Lemon-grass ( Sereh ) 1 stalk, 3-4 leaves or rather petioles from it 6 inch long
5 mm of Galangal root ( use Ginger if you really can't get Galangal )
2-4 cm of Turmeric root ( Kunjit, yellowroot )
1 chicken stock cube
2 tea spoons of concentrated coconut cream ( Santan ) or a tin of coconut cream or milk
2 Salam leaves, Daun salaam, or Indonesian bay leaf, or 1/2 a bay leaf.
ground pepper as that enhances the medicinal properties for Kurkuma

With this rice you put in the herbs if possible fresh and take all out when it is ready. If you have to use powder you can leave it, but hey it is best to get it fresh, and it will not cost you a lot.

Take 3-4 layers (petioles) of lemongrass and give them a good bash without breaking.

Take 5 mm of skinned galangal root in 2-3 slices.

Take 2-4 cm of Turmeric and grate it on a fine grater.

Everything gets a nice yellow colour, including the hands.

Put all in a pan with 2 chicken stock cubes, 2 teaspoons of coconut butter ( concentrated coconut crème ) or a small tin of coconut cream.

300 grams pandang rice and 2 Salam leaves.
If you can’t get salam leaves you can use ½ a bay leaf.

Add water until it is 25 mm above the rice, and get it to a modest boil. When boiling, lower the heat after 10 minutes to a slow simmer, and leave it for another 10-15 minutes.
Times can differ if you have other rice, so check the package of the rice.
The rice is ready when it is lovely soft and creamy, and just a bit sticky.
Take the herbs out when ready, and form nice bowls just simply using a cup or a small kitchen bowl.

Here you have the result, presented with stir fried vegetables and Satéh Ajam ( Chicken Satay )

Enjoy !

Yours sincerely,

Bart J. Meijer

Sambal Ulek (sambal oelek NL) fast recipe, and a load of joy!

In my previous post about Sambal (Indonesian pepperpaste) its background and history, I gave a few recipes. Now, I got loads of questions about it, and was even asked to make recipes for other sauce makers. Now, I would love to, but till waiting for a job offer. . . hihi.

Well I think I will please my good readers though, if I can give you a fast recipe, so you can try the first and most important Sambal there is.
Now from my Indonesian friends I got to hear, I need to try to make Sambal with a traditional mortar, as it tastes better and different. Now I can relate to that, as I can smell and taste the difference between hand cut and machine chopped onion, the same with pressed garlic and cut garlic.
So, for sambal you need a coarse mortar, not a smooth one, to be able to grind the chillies a bit.

So you need:
A mortar and pestle
5-10 mild to medium hot chillies (50 grams) Lombok or Rawit
1 clove of Garlic
1 tablespoon of Olive oil, or Peanut oil
1 tablespoon of Lemon juice
1 good pinch of salt

Clean the chillies taking the seeds out, to make it easier, slice and cut them fairly fine.
Clean, slice and cut the garlic.

Now you can use a normal mortar and pestle like this

But I use a Indonesian Lesung, where you rather rub the ingredients fine, not bash them

So, salt, oil, and garlic, chilli and a good splash of lemon juice in the mortar

Give it a good rub, and while you do it, you will notice the smell change to a balanced herbs like freshness.

Enjoy !

Yours sincerely,

Bart J. Meijer

Recipe: Sateh Babi and Sateh Ajam with Sateh sauce (peanut sauce)

Sateh is an Indonesian grilled meat dish on a bamboo stick, often served with a hot peanut sauce. It is a fast and lovely dish, can be grilled barbecued or pan-fried. The meat is marinated in a matter of half an hour, but could be left overnight in the marinade. As simple as it is, there is a total harmony in this dish, the smell is amazing and it will make you look like a first class cook!

So lets get started.

You need 500 grams of pork fillet, leave the fatty bits.
or 500 grams of chicken fillet.
Ginger (Jahe) powder or fresh ginger.
Coriander (Ketumbar) seeds or powder.
Cumin (Jinten) seeds or powder.
A knife point of Cinnamon (Korintje).
Sambal Ulek ( or fresh pepper paste with a bit of lemon and vinegar).
Garlic
Salt
peanut oil or sunflower oil
Soy sauce
bamboo skewers

For the sauce you need:
Peanut butter
Soy sauce
Sweet chilli sauce
Milk

Cut the pork or the chicken fillet in cubes about an inch thick ( 2,5 cm ) Put the Bamboo Skewers in water, so they won't stick to the meat.

Make a Bumbu (herbs paste or marinade) grinding 1 clove of garlic, 1 chilli Lombok( red medium chilli annuum) or 3 Rawitt, 2 cm (just a little less than an Inch) of Ginger root together with 1 teaspooon course seasalt, adding slowly 1 teaspoon ground coriander seeds, 1 teaspoon of ground cumin seeds, a tiny knife point of cinnamon, the oil, a few drops of lemon juice, a tablespoon of oil and a tablespoon of soy sauce.

If you have powder and sambal or Sriracha only:
Cut the garlic very fine, put it on the meat, add 1-2 teaspoons of Sambal Ulek or Sriracha sauce, 2 teaspoons of ground ginger root, together with 1 teaspoon normal seasalt, 1 teaspoon ground coriander seeds, 1 teaspoon of ground cumin seeds, a tiny knife point of cinnamon, a tablespoon of oil and a tablespoon of soy sauce.

Mix the meat and the herbs and all, and leave it rest for at least 20 minutes.

Put the meat on the water soaked bamboo skewers, leaving the end to be able to turn them on the grill, in the pan or on the BBQ.

Make the Sateh Sauce:
Put 1 cup of milk (250 ml)2 tablespoons of soy sauce, 3 tablespoons of sweet chilli sauce, 4 tablespoons of peanut butter in a pan.
Stir with a whisk when warming it to an almost boil. You will feel it getting thicker when warming up and should get to an almost syrup like consistency. Remember it should not boil! If it gets too thick add a bit of milk, if it gets too thin add a little peanut butter.
Keep it warm, but don't boil.

Grill, pan fry or BBQ the meat, turning it around. This will take you about 5 minutes, max 7.

Serve it with the sauce on top, not hiding all the meat!

Enjoy!

Yours sincerely,

Bart J. Meijer ( and the wife !