Kerabu nasi is a Malaysian dish with blue rice, fish, coconut-based sauce, and a side dish of vegetables and Southeast Asian flavors. The rice is blue due to the extract of Clitoria ternatea flowers. Traditionally, mackerel is used for the fish, and the sauce includes coconut milk, shallots, chili peppers, and lemongrass. The side dish consists of greens and herbs such as Thai basil leaves and Vietnamese coriander. Nasi kerabu is served as a side dish and is sold in many food stalls in Malaysia. Other Malaysian dishes with nasi as a base include nasi goreng and nasi ulam.
Kerabu nasi is a traditional Malaysian dish famous for its blue rice. In addition to rice, this filling dish also contains fish, which is the basis of kerabu, or vegetable blend. The other elements of the typical nasi kerabu are the sweet and savory coconut-based sauce and the side dish, which includes vegetables and a variety of ingredients commonly used in Southeast Asian cooking.
The rice in a nasi kerabu is blue because it has been pre-cooked in the blue extract of the dried flowers of the Clitoria ternatea plant. These flowers, which are a surprisingly vivid shade of blue, are also used to dye the rice in other Malaysian dishes such as pulut tai tai and nonya chang. In a typical nasi kerabu recipe, a ratio of 1 cup (237 mL) of cooked rice is used to one medium fish.
Traditionally, the fish used for kerabu is mackerel. In a typical recipe, the fish is grilled and flaked before being fried together with shredded coconut, ginger and shallots mixed in. Sugar and salt are then added to the resulting mixture. Sometimes dried fish is used instead of fresh produce.
In many nasi kerabu recipes, the base for the sauce is coconut milk. Other ingredients normally include shallots, dried chili peppers and lemongrass. The milk is combined with these flavors and simmered, with salt and sugar added to the sauce.
The side dish usually consists of a salad of greens such as cucumber, along with runner beans. Traditional Southeast Asian flavors used include lime, fish sauce, and herbs such as Thai basil leaves and Vietnamese coriander. Herbs and spices such as coriander, mint, ginger and turmeric are sometimes used as alternatives, depending on how westernized the recipe is. As with the salsa, chiles and lemongrass also usually appear in the side dish.
Usually, nasi kerabu is served with kerabu over rice, along with a few torn pieces of Vietnamese coriander. It is traditional to serve nasi kerabu as a side dish to a main meal. Many food stalls in Malaysia sell the dish to passersby.
There are many other Malaysian dishes with nasi as a base. Two of the best-known examples are nasi goreng and nasi ulam. Nasi ulam is, like nasi kerabu, a herb rice dish, and nasi goreng is typically made from fried rice, spices, and proteins such as chicken, prawns, and egg.
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