Nasi Lemak

Nothing like good ole comfort food as an accompaniment to a glorious weekend at home. Similarly, nothing I enjoy more than being able to serve up some hearty and good old fashioned Nasi Lemak in the name of gastronomical pleasure.

It's all in the sambal and the fragrance of the rice, they say. So wise, and so true.

While it can be quite a challenge to control the spiciness of the chillies, it now is looking like I may have just perfected the taste of my sambal! I have to admit that I'm also ecstatically elated of being able to use the freshly grown pandan leaves right from our own very balcony for the rice. It is such a cool concept to be able to grow your own herbs for immediate usage as and when you need it, I tell you.

I like my Nasi Lemak to be decadent by adding more sides dish such as fried fish, fried chicken (I have to add chicken because of Silver Bullet's resistance to seafood), fried omelet, boiled quail eggs, as well as fried ikan bilis (anchovies). With the coconut rice and yummy sambal in tow, I assure you that it could not have been a more satisfying meal!

Ingredients for Rice:

• 3 cupful of rice (preferably long grained)
• 2 shallots
• half an inch ginger
• 6-8 pieces fenugreek seeds (biji halba)
• 1 tspn salt or to taste
• 300ml coconut milk
• some pandan leaves (knotted)
• 1 bay leaf (optional)

Method:
Pound shallots, ginger and fenugreek seeds until mushed. Wash rice until clean then drain. Put rice, pounded ingredients (shallots, ginger, fenugreek) and salt in a rice cooker. Pour coconut milk over the rice. (The level of the coconut milk should be 2cm above the level of the rice.) Add in pandan and bay leaves into the cooker. Cook rice until dry then use a wooden ladle to loosen the grains.

Ahhhh.....!And that's all the comforting yummy love you'll ever need in your tummy.