Nasi minyak, or rice cooked with ghee, is a flavoursome rice dish popular during weddings and special occasions. Cooked with spices and a healthy dose of clarified butter, more commonly known as ghee, it is surprisingly easy to make.

The ingredients can be easily found in supermarkets, making this a must-cook if you live abroad and are missing a taste of home.

The taste and scent of this delicious rice will add a little something special to your meal. Pair it with spiced fried chicken, dalca, and mint sambal for an amazing combination.

Ingredients

• 3 cups basmati rice
• 1 tbsp coarse salt

Aromatics:

• 5 shallots, sliced thin
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped fine
• 2cm ginger, chopped into small pieces

To fry:

• 5 tbsp ghee
• 3 pandan leaves, knotted
• 2 sticks cinnamon, 4cm each
• 3 star anise
• 1 tsp cardamom
• 1 tsp cloves

To cook:

• 3 tbsp yoghurt
• 3 stalks Chinese parsley, roughly cut
• 1 cup evaporated milk
• 2 cups chicken stock
• 1 cup water
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp sugar
• 2 tbsp ghee
• 1 tbsp fried shallot

Method

• Rinse and drain the rice until the water runs clear. Soak the washed rice in salt water for one hour.
• Prepare and mix the aromatic ingredients together.
• On a high flame, heat and melt the ghee in a large wok.
• Once the ghee is ready for frying, about 190°C, add the knotted pandan, cinnamon, cardamom, cloves and star anise. Add the aromatic mixture and fry until the tips begin to caramelise.
• Add the drained rice and stir to coat thoroughly. Continue to stir and coat until the rice slightly browns and smells nutty. This should take about 5 minutes.
• Transfer the rice and all ingredients from the wok into a rice cooker. Now add the yoghurt and stir through.
• Next, add the Chinese parsley followed by the evaporated milk, chicken stock and water. Add salt, sugar, ghee and stir to mix.
• Cook as normal in the rice cooker.
• Once cooked, transfer the rice to a serving dish, removing all large pieces including pandan leaves and cinnamon sticks.
• Garnish with fried shallots and serve hot.

Tips

• The better the quality of your basmati rice, the better your nasi minyak.
• Try removing the star anise, cloves and cardamom from the cooked rice before serving. They add a lot of flavour and fragrance but are bitter when bitten.
• Use the same cup size for your rice and liquid ingredients.

This article first appeared in butterkicap.com, a food and culture platform and community that enables anyone to experience Malaysia through stories of its people, food and places. 

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