Well, good news. You don’t have to cross out these dishes from your diet. In fact, depriving yourself may just backfire when you start to crave for some of your favourite foods. Plus, many ingredients in our local delights are actually nutritious. Just be sure to swap the less good-for-you ingredients with better ones. And one of the safest way to indulge and still reap the benefits, is to make your own. So, if you’re looking for a healthy local recipe, here’s my very own take on Nasi Lemak that is equally as yummy and even more nutritious.
Coconut Rice
Ingredients
- 2 cups multi-grain rice
- 4 cups water
- 1” ginger, sliced
- Pandan leaves
- Pinch of salt
- 3 tablespoons coconut oil
Method:
- In a rice cooker, place all ingredients and set to cook.
Chilli Sauce
Ingredients
- 4 red chillies
- 4 dried chillies
- 10 shallots
- 1 clove garlic
- ½” ginger
- ½ cup water
- 2 tablespoons coconut oil
- 1 tablespoon tamarind paste
- 1-2 tablespoons palm sugar
- 1 tablespoon lime juice
Method:
- In a blender, blend chillies with shallots, garlic, ginger and water.
- Fry mixture in a pan with coconut oil until the oil separates or the chilli mixture gets slightly crispy. Add in sugar.
- Add water and leave to simmer. Keep adding water until you get the right consistency and spiciness. After 30-45 minutes, add in lime juice and tamarind water.
- Cook until the sambal turns slightly dark red.
Tempeh
Ingredients
- 2 blocks tempeh, cubed
- Coconut oil
- Salt
Tempeh Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 cup fresh coconut milk
- ¼ cup cashew butter
- 1 tablespoon yellow curry powder
- ½ cup water
- 3 cloves garlic
- Juice from 1 lime
- Salt
Method:
- Season the tempeh and bake in oven for 20-25 minutes at 180C.
- For the sauce, add all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth and creamy.
- Once the tempeh is baked, pour the sauce over and mix well.
Kangkung
Ingredients
- Kangkung, washed
Method:
- Place kangkung fingers in the rice cooker for a few minutes.
- Once cooked, serve with pine nuts and cucumber.
Give this recipe a try and you’d be surprised at how delicious healthy food can taste. Want more local recipes? Check out another one of my healthy takes on the all-time popular Char Kuey Teow.
P.S. Are you familiar with the history of Nasi Lemak? Find out where it all started here.
