Nasi Kerabu Kelantan

We were very grateful when a Malaysian couple offered a help when we first arrived here. To repay their kindness, I decided to make Nasi Kerabu and I got this recipe from my aunt. Nasi Kerabu is a traditional dish in Kelantan and I’m really impressed when Johorians also love Nasi Kerabu like we do. They also eat budu. What a surprise!

Ingredients for sautéed chili paste of Nasi Kerabu:

3 large red onions

2 cloves of garlic

2 tbs chilli powder, or to taste

½ inch of ginger

½ cup coconut milk, or to taste

1 tbs tamarind paste, or to taste

1 tbs lemongrass, or to taste

Salt and sugar, about 1 tbs or to taste

1 cup of oil

Method

Blend the red onions, garlic, some chilli powder and ginger together until smooth. Sauté the mixture in a wok with a lot of oil to make it a wet paste on medium low heat. Add in 1 tbs of salt and some sugar. As you cook and the oil is absorbed, add more oil to keep it wet.

Continue to cook for about 30 minutes until the paste turns to dark red or brown. Add in coconut milk and tamarind paste. Let it cook for another 10 minutes. It’s important to have a taste of your paste because the taste always varies. Make it delicious yaa!  

Ingredients for toasted ground coconut (kerisik):

1 mackerel fish, stew with some salt

2 cups of grated coconut

½ large red onion

1 tsp lemongrass, or to taste

Salt and sugar, to taste

Method

Add in the grated coconut into a wok on a medium low heat. Stir it continuously until it becomes aromatic and turns to brown. Ground it by using a pestle and mortar until it’s oily.

Stew the fish with some salt. Remove the bones.

Ground the onion and 1 tsp of lemongrass. Add some salt and sugar, have a taste. Add in the grounded coconut and the fish, one at a time while crushing it. Stir and have a taste. Remember, we want it to taste sweet.

Ingredients for grilled mutton/grilled chicken/grilled beef:

500 g mutton

½ inch ginger

3 cloves of garlic

¼ red onion

1 tbs oyster sauce

1 tbs honey, or to taste

A pinch of salt

Method

Crush the onion, garlic, and some ginger by using a mortar and pestle. Add in some honey, oyster sauce and a pinch of salt. Have a taste. Marinate the mutton with the mixture and keep it in a fridge for 1 day.

Grill the marinated mutton in a pan on a medium low heat until it is cooked.