SAMBAL FRIED RICE

    Sambal Fried Rice is a Spicy Fried Rice with Shrimps/Prawns, Eggs, Carrots, Greens and fresh homemade Sambal.The best about a Fried Rice is that it is quite adaptable, versatile and can cater to satisfy your whims and fancies. This spicy Sambal Fried Rice is not the HOT type, but the spicy type which can treat your spice reckoned taste buds to utmost satisfaction.  Freshly prepared Sambal has a fragrance that makes this Fried Rice inviting and beckons you to eat more.
     Sambal is a hot & spicy condiment mainly prepared with Red Chillies, Spices, Herbs and Aromatics.  Though Fried Rice/Nasi Goreng has nothing to do with being Spicy, it has adapted along with the Cuisine unique to Malaysia, Indonesia and Singapore.  It is a literal adaptation associated with Culture more than Cuisine where Sambal is one base condiment, sauce or relish which can be incorporated into almost every dish.
     I have prepared fresh Sambal for this Sambal Fried Rice, by soaking Dry Red Chillies and grinding it along with Shallots, Garlic, Galangal and Belacan.  If you are from a region where these fresh ingredients aren't available, you can go for store-bought Sambal Paste from Asian Groceries.

For more FRIED RICE RECIPES, Click here...

 Cuisine - Malaysian, Indonesian (South East Asian)
Course - Main
Spice Level - Medium - High
Difficulty - Easy
Serves - 4
Author - SM

Preparation Time - 15 - 20 Minutes
Cooking Time - 25 -30 Minutes

HOW TO MAKE SAMBAL FRIED RICE

INGREDIENTS :

For Sambal Paste :

Dry Red Chillies -  5 Pieces.
Birds-eye Chillies - 3 Pieces
Shallots - 5 Nos.
Garlic - 2 Cloves.
Dry Shrimp Paste(Belacan) - 1 Tspn
Galangal - a Small Piece
Tamarind - 1 Tspn
Salt - To Taste
Palm Sugar (Gula Melaka) - 1 Tspn

For Fried Rice :

Jasmine Rice : 2 Cups (Cooked)
Onions - 1 No.
Garlic - 2 Cloves
Bird's Eye Chillies - 1-2 Nos.
Shrimps/Prawns - Few
Carrot - 2 Tbspn
Cabbage - few Shreds
Light Soy Sauce - 1 Tbspn 
Sambal - 3-4 Tbpsns
Lemon Grass - 1 Stalk
Salt - To Taste
Sugar - 1 Tspn 
Rice Wine Vinegar - 1 Tspn
Oil - 2-3 Tbspn
  

To Garnish :

Spring Onions/Chives - Few Stalks

METHOD :

For Sambal :

• Soak the Dried Red Chillies in hot water for 20-30 minutes until they are soft.
• Dry roast the Shrimp paste until fragrant.
• Grind all the ingredients mentioned under 'For Sambal Paste' into a smooth paste and keep it aside.
• Heat oil in a pan and saute the ground paste on a high flame for about 10 minutes or until all moisture evaporates.
• If the mix is a bit dry, add some more oil and saute them on a low flame for another 5-10 minutes or until oil separate from the mix.
• Add tamarind extract and boil it for another 5 minutes on a low flame.
• Add salt and palm sugar and mix well.
• At this stage, the sambal should be fragrant, if not saute it for some more time.

For more Recipes with SAMBAL, Click here...

FOR SAMBAL FRIED RICE : 

For a detailed recipe of how to cook Jasmine / Fragrant Rice, click here...

• Cook the fragrant rice as per instruction and allow it cool.
• Heat 2 Tspn of Oil in a large pan, fry or scramble the Eggs. 
• Remove it from the pan and keep it aside.
• Cut Lemon Grass Stalk into small pieces, use just the white part of it.
• Can Grind the Lemon Grass along with the Sambal ingredients, or just bruise them and add it while sauteing.
• Peel, devein and wash the Prawns/Shrimps.  Keep them aside.
• Heat Oil in a pan/wok, Saute finely chopped Onions, Garlic and Bird's eye chillies until onions turn translucent.
• Add Sambal Paste and fry this on a high flame for 2-3 minutes.
• Pour in Light Soy Sauce and give a quick stir.
• Add Prawns/Shrimps, finely diced Carrots along with a dash of Salt and a pinch of Sugar.
• Allow it to cook on a high flame for few minutes. 
• Add cooked Fragrant Rice.
• Drizzle Rice Wine Vinegar over the rice.
• Mix it well until every grain is well coated with the Sauces and Sambal.
• Stir in finely shredded Cabbage and Scrambled Eggs to the rice. 
• Fry the rice on a high flame for few minutes or until the rice is dry. 
• Switch off the flame. 
• Garnish Sambal Fried Rice with finely chopped Spring Onions/Chives.
• Serve Sambal Fried Rice hot with any dips, sauces or side dishes of your choice.

• I used the long- wrinkled variety which is less spicy. To reduce the spiciness can snip off the soaked dry chillies into two and de-seed them.
• Adjust the number of Chillies to suit your spice level.
• Blend the shallots coarsely.
• Grind the paste with less water to avoid splattering while sauteing the Sambal in high flame.
• Can add Sugar instead of Palm sugar.
• Any fragrant long-grained rice variety can be used for the recipe.
• Use a day old cooked rice for best results. Obviously, keep them refrigerated.
• Can add any vegetable of your choice in this Fried Rice.
• Can also Chicken Pieces, Fish or any other Seafood. 
• Can fry the Eggs and use them as a side dish or scramble them up and mix along with the fried rice.