Nasi Kerabu ( Rice Salad )

Nasi Kerabu literally means "rice salad". Kelantan has a variety of Nasi Kerabu. Nasi kerabu biasa (normal) or nasi kerabu putih (white) which comes with its own sambal tumis (a special coconut milk based gravy with local herbs and spices, with a hint of chillies) or Nasi kerabu Hitam (black) though the actual color is blue (after the rice is soaked and cooked with a local flower although some people use artificial equivalents) and nasi kerabu kuning (yellow) which use tumeric in the preparation of the rice. Nasi Kerabu Hitan and Kuning does not require a sambal tumis, instead, it has a watery chilly sauce which makes it slightly hotter. The “kerabu” (salad) could be any vegetables or edible leaves though the more or less standard version will have daun kesum, taugeh (bean sprout), thinly cut; long green beans, bunga kantan, cucumber (connoisseurs will insist “seeded”), and daun kadok. Apart from that it is also served with fried breaded fish, keropok keping, salted egg, "solok lada" (fish fillet and coconut-stuffed chillis), and pickled garlic (local gherkins)

Ingredients

5 tenggiri steaks
1kg rice

Ulam to cook with rice:
2 turmeric leaves
2 torch ginger leaves
2 stalks daun kesum
2 cekur leaves
2 na dam leaves
2 daun kentut
2 daun kudu
2 stalks curry leaves
2cm fresh turmeric
2 stalks lemon grass
(You can omit or add the ulam listed subject to availability)
2 pandanus leaves
3 kaffir lime leaves
2 tablespoon palm sugar

Garnishing:
1 cucumber, pared and julienned
1 onion, finely sliced
15 stalks of polygonum leaves, finely cut
10 long beans, finely sliced
1 bunga kantan, finely cut
3 stalks of lemongrass, finely sliced

Fried grated coconut:
1/2 a coconut, finely grated
8 shallots, finely sliced
2cm ginger, sliced
Palm sugar and salt to taste

Sambal Belacan:
15 chillies
5 shallots
3 cloves of garlic
Budu
4 bird’s eye chilli
Lime juice, to taste
Fish crackers

Method
Slice all the ulam leaves and either blend or pound finely. Add 2 glasses water to leaves and extract the juice. Sieve and repeat with another glass of water.

Wash rice. Add ulam juice to the rice. Add three pieces of pandan leaves and kaffir lime leaves, and 1/2 a block of palm sugar. Cook in a rice cooker.

Rub some salt on the fish and grill over a low fire. When cooked, let it cool and then break into flakes.

Dry fry the grated coconut with sliced shallots, ginger, palm sugar and salt over a low fire. When the mixture turns fragrant, lightly flatten the grated coconut with the back of your spatula.

Dry fry belacan with shallots and garlic over a low fire until fragrant. Blend this mixture with chilli to make the sambal belacan.

Mix some budu with limau kerat lintang and bird’s eye chilli.

Serve the rice with the grilled fish, finely sliced garnishings, sambal belacan, budu and fish crackers.