Nasi Goreng

If you thought fried rice couldn't get any better let me introduce you to Nasi Goreng! And we have for you a simple, incredibly delicious and aromatic recipe that you'll absolutely love. This vegan version of an all-time classic will make you want to overload on rice any day. 

Nasi Goreng has to be one of the most popular dishes from Indonesian and Malayan cuisines. It literally translates to fried rice, but don't be deceived, this is not your typical fried rice. The cooking method is pretty much the same as any other fried rice dish. But what makes this one so special is the incredible and unique flavours of southeast of Asian cuisine. 

Asian cuisine, in general, is among my favourites because of the great variety of flavours, ingredients, and dishes you can find. Somehow, they find a way to utilise the local resources in all sorts of creative ways to make delicious meals. And Nasi Goreng is the perfect example!

The ingredients are easy to find at your local store. We are just using a bunch of veggies, rice, and some spices. I always like to add colour and variety whenever I can so you will find a few different veggies in this recipe. 

You can get a bit creative when adding veggies to your Nasi Goreng. For example, I added sprouts to bump up the nutrients. I grow my own sprouts so I always have some handy. And since the more you let them grow the more bitter they become I try to utilise them as soon as they start sprouting. 

The spices are also super pantry-friendly. Most likely, you already have everything in your kitchen. The only one you might need to get is the sambal oelek which is a chilli sauce made with red peppers, salt, and vinegar. It can be quite spicy if you are not used to eating spicy food so always be a bit careful when adding it to your meals and to your Nasi Goreng. 

Sambal oelek is easy to find in the Asian food isle at the super market. But if for any reason you don't have access to it you can always use Sriracha sauce as well. It's less spicy, a bit more garlic-y and it lacks the vinegar taste that makes this dish stand out so much. So try to make it your last resource. 

Once you have all the ingredients you will only need 30 minutes to have this amazing rice dish sizzling and ready. As a final touch I like adding saitan so it feels more like a main dish rather than a side.

One of the great things about this recipe is that you can easily make it gluten-free. Instead of soy sauce use Tamari sauce. And you can replace the saitan for any other gluten-free fake meat you can get your hands on. You can even throw in a few chunks of extra firm tofu and it would be a great protein addition as well.