close-up of surinamese nasi goreng rice with peas served on a white plate
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Surinamese Nasi Goreng

Surinamese Nasi Goreng is a traditional Surinamese recipe for a classic dish of rice and chicken with Indonesian flavours. The full recipe is presented here and I hope you enjoy this classic Surinamese version of: Surinamese Nasi Goreng.

prep time

20 minutes

cook time

60 minutes

Total Time:

80 minutes

Serves:

4

Rating: 4.5 star rating

Tags : Spice RecipesChicken RecipesSuriname Recipes

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This an Indonesian/Malaysian dish in origin, but has become an indispensable part of Surinamese culinary traditions.

Ingredients:

500g uncooked rice
1 Maggi stock cube
1 tbsp kecap manis (sweet soy sauce)
1 garlic clove, peeled and smashed

For the Chicken:
500g chicken breast fillets
1 garlic clove
1 thumb-sized piece ginger
1 tbsp kecap manis (sweet soy sauce)
1 Maggi cube
1 sprig flat-leaf parsley
1 1/2 tbsp butter
250ml water (more or less as needed)

For Frying the Nasi Goreng:
3 tsp vegetable oil
1 onion, finely chopped
1 tsp. Surinamese shrimp paste (Trassie Trafasie)
2 garlic cloves garlic, crushed
1 tsp ginger, peeled and finely chopped
1/2 tsp kencur (sand ginger) powder
1 stalk lemon grass, bruised
1 tsp galangal (laos), finely chopped (optional but recommended)
salt to taste
2 tbsp kecap manis (sweet soy sauce)
3 tbsp kecap asin (soy sauce)
1 tbsp tomato purée
1 generous handful of celery leaves, finely chopped
150g frozen peas
50g lap cheong (dried Chinese sausage), finely chopped
1 tbsp brown sugar mixed with 1/2 tsp Chinese five spice powder
generous pinch of freshly-ground white pepper

To accompany:
5 eggs, beaten and fried into an omelet and cut into strips
fried plantains
pickles

Method:

Prepare the rice as instructed on the packet but include the stock cube, kecap manis, garlic and ginger for extra flavour (note you want to use a recipe where the rice absorbs all the liquid). When the rice is done, remove and discard the garlic. Allow to cool then refrigerate it overnight so the rice dries out a bit and it becomes easier to handle.

For the Chicken — add all the ingredients (except water) to a heavy-based pan (this needs to be large enough to hold the chicken). Pour in enough water so that the chicken is just covered. Bring the water to a boil, reduce the heat to medium and continue cooking until the chicken is tender (about 40 minutes).

When cooked, remove the chicken from the pan, setting it aside to cool. Once cooled pull the chicken with two forks to get thin strips of shredded chicken.

Boil down the leftover chicken stock until the liquid starts to thicken, add the pulled chicken strips and mix until all the moisture is absorbed.

To fry the nasi. Place a wok or heavy frying pan over high heat. Once hot add oil and use to fry the onion for about 5 minutes, or until it starts to turn translucent. Now stir in the shrimp paste and press it to break down and stir with the onions. Add the garlic and finely-chopped ginger and stir fry for about 2 minutes. Add the bruised lemongrass and stir-fry for 2 minutes more.

Now add the shredded chicken and stir fry with the remaining ingredients for about 5 minutes, or until heated through.

Add the galangal and kencur and stir fry to blend with the chicken before adding the rice and peas. Stir fry to mix then add the lap cheong, kekap asin and kecap manis, tomato purée and brown sugar and stir. Continue stir-frying until all the ingredients are thoroughly combined and the chicken has developed a nice light reddish-brown colour.

Remove and discard the big pieces of lemongrass. Finish by seasoning with white pepper to taste.

Turn into a warmed serving dish, sprinkle with finely-chopped celery leaves and serve accompanied by the side dishes of your choosing.