Finely dice the onion and place in a small prep bowl. Finely chop the garlic, bird’s eye chillies and ginger and place in a separate bowl.

Remove the outside ‘dead’ layers of the lemongrass and bash well.

Finely chop the chillies and place in a prep bowl.

Finely dice the tomatoes and place in a medium sized prep bowl. Finely chop the coriander and place in a small prep bowl.

Coconut Rice

1 cup wild rice
½ cup coconut water
½ cup stock (vegetable or chicken)

Preparation

Wash rice well using cold running water to remove excess starch and until the water runs clean. Soak the rice in cold water for at least an hour.

On a medium size saucepan pour the rice followed by the coconut water and stock. Bring liquid to boil on high heat. Then add the folded up pandan leaf to the rice.

Once vigorously boiling, change to low heat, cover with lid and allow to simmer for 20 minutes until the water level is the same as the top of the rice. At this point, turn the fire completely off and allow to rest for a further 10 minutes keeping the lid on at all times.

The Curry

Heat 1 tbsp of avocado oil in a large saucepan to a low–medium heat. Sear the whole spices in the oil for 1–2 minutes; cinnamon, cumin seeds, coriander seeds and cloves. Then add the chillies, followed by the chopped onions and kaffir lime leaves. Sweat down for 4–5 minutes before you add the garlic and ginger before then adding the chilli powder and turmeric. Now place the sliced chicken pieces into the pan and fry through for 3–4 minutes. Then place the tomatoes in, season well with a pinch of salt, stir through and cover with a lid. Let the curry cook through without stirring too much for about 5 minutes or so before lifting the lid to stir again. Add the coconut water and chicken stock and bring to boil. Then place the lid back over the pan and continue to cook for 10–15 minutes, stirring occasionally. For the last 10 minutes of cooking, lift the lid off the pan and cook through until the chicken is tender and the sauce has thickened.

Sambal

12 dried red chillies
5 shallots
½ tbsp tamarind melted into 2 tsp water
2 tbsp vegetable oil
1 tsp palm sugar
½ tsp salt

Soak the dried chillies in hot water for 3–4 minutes, drain and set aside. Finely chop the shallots. Blend all the ingredients together until smooth.

Heat the oil in a saucepan to a medium heat. Fry off the chilli / tamarind mix on a low heat for roughly 10 minutes until fragrant and dark in colour and more jammy in texture.

Boiled Egg

1 egg

Boil the egg for 6 minutes 30 and allow to cool. De-shell the boiled egg and cut in half.

Serve the nasi lemak on a big plate covered with banana leaves, a portion of rice, sambal, finely sliced cucumber and crushed peanuts.