NASI KUNING
INDONESIA
When nasi kuning is served at special occasions, it is pressed into a cone and inverted on the plate and as such it is called tumpeng. The cone of yellow rice is served surrounded with a selection of vegetable, meat, and/or fish dishes as well as the obligatory crackers. Nasi kuning is not only reserved for special meals. I have had it for breakfast in Ambon, in the living room of a street vendor who had set up her stall on her porch—there are many places like hers in Indonesia with vendors cooking their specialty in their kitchen, then setting up their stall on their porch and selling the food from there. Customers either take the food away wrapped in paper lined with banana leaf to insulate it or they eat it in the vendor’s living room off plastic plates. Some rooms are converted into mini restaurants with tables or counters along the wall and chairs, while others are left exactly as when the family uses them with customers sitting on the cook’s sofas and using the coffee tables to rest their plates on—it’s a wonderful way to eat and communicate with the other diners. I found Indonesian people to be among the most charming and gentle people I have met on my travels and it was never a problem talking with anyone, provided they spoke English, that is; or if I happened to be with someone who could translate, which fortunately was most of the time. Serve with either of the fish curries (Indonesian Fish Head Curry and Indonesian Fish Curry).
SERVES 4 TO 6
2½ cups (500 g) Thai jasmine rice
1 cup (250 ml) coconut cream
½ inch (1 cm) fresh turmeric, grated on the fine side of a grater
2 teaspoons ground coriander
1 teaspoon lemon juice
Sea salt
1. Rinse the rice under cold water. Drain and put in a medium pot.
2. Mix together the coconut cream, turmeric, and coriander in a large mixing bowl, then add to the rice. Add the lemon juice and 1½ cups (375 ml) water. Season with salt to taste and bring to a boil over medium heat.
3. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 10 to 15 minutes, or until the rice is tender and the liquid fully absorbed. Serve hot.