Nasi Kandar

How to Make Nasi Kandar

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1. Cook the rice with the water in a covered pan for 15 minutes. Rest for 10 minutes.

   Mark done Start 15 min timer

2. Heat the oil, cook the shallots, garlic and ginger for 5 minutes. Add the curry powder paste, star anise and cinnamon and cook for 3 minutes.

   Mark done Start 5 min timer

3. Add the chicken and tomatoes, cook for 3 minutes. Add the coconut milk, water, tamarind, salt and sugar and simmer for 25 minutes.

   Mark done Start 3 min timer

4. Add the okra for the last 8 minutes of cooking.

   Mark done

5. Serve the rice with the chicken, okra and boiled eggs, and pour the curry sauce generously over everything.

   Mark done

Related guide: Choosing rice.

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Small Things That Help

• Make the sauce slightly thin so it runs into the rice.
• Add a second vegetable curry if you have time.
• Serve with papadams and sambal.

Ingredient Swaps

• If coconut is a problem, a cooking cream (dairy or plant-based) can stand in for the coconut milk in a sauce; the dish will lose the coconut flavour and taste noticeably different.
• If you only have ground ginger, a quarter-teaspoon for each tablespoon of fresh is the ratio usually given; it tastes warmer and less bright than the fresh root.
• An eighth of a teaspoon of garlic powder per clove is the stand-in usually given when you are out of fresh garlic; it will not brown the same way, and it burns easily, so add it with the liquid.

What to Serve with Nasi Kandar

• Papadams
• Sambal
• Pickled vegetables
• Teh tarik

Keeping and Reheating

Keeps in the fridge for 3 days. Reheat the curry and cook the rice fresh.

What's in a Serving

Per serving, an approximate calculation from the ingredient list. Treat it as a rough guide: weights that include bone are counted as if all of it were eaten, so the figures run high. How the figures are worked out.