Nasi Kerabu

Nasi Kerabu is from the state of Kelantan. Famous Famous!

Usually when it's sold not in the state itself... it always comes in blue. But if one were to eat it in Kelantan, it can come in yellow or even dark green, depending on what is used to tint the rice. It's like a salad rice, tossed together to be eaten, healthy, depending on which side dishes you take.

Some places do not serve it with the sambal tumis gravy, but combines budu with kicap manis as the 'dressing' and a dollop of pounded chilli for heat. Some also serve the fish floss toasted dry and some moist ... it depends on who cooked it, and which area it is. For me, I cannot differentiate the regional differences and hence, just did it the way I think I will like it. A mix and match of those that I have eaten before.

Due to the immense work involved in preparing this rice... I finally had the chance when I had 13 adults coming over to my son's birthday party. 13 adults that I know will love this rice. I split the work to two days, with the first day preparing the stuffed chilli, sambal tumis gravy and the fish floss. The second day I cooked the rice, roasted the beef, fried the chicken and sliced the vegetables. A lot of work for one dish, due to the sides and condiments.....but absolutely worth the effort when they tell me it's good.

And oh yeah.... on budu, don't skip that.
It's a locally made fish sauce and that's so Kelantanese.
Vietnamese fish sauce won't taste and smell the same.

ingredients for Sambal Tumis Gravy

Nasi Kerabu Kelantan

Reference: Azie Kitchen
Serves: 10-12

Sambal Tumis Gravy
5 shallots
4 garlic cloves
10 dried chilli
1 cm ginger
2 pcs Asam Gelugor (dried cambogia)
2 lemongrass( bashed)
2 Tbsp budu
1 cup coconut milk
2 cups water
1 Tbsp palm sugar or more
Salt to taste

1. Remove seeds from dried chilli and soak until soft. Grind them together with garlic, ginger and shallot until fine.
2. Heat a wok and put in about 1/4 cup of oil and saute the chilli paste until it turns glossy.
3. Add in everything, gently stir it for 2-3 minutes. After it has come back to a boil, let it simmer for around 15 minutes or until the coconut milk splits and the gravy looks glossy again. Adjust the taste to your preference.

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Fish Floss Sambal
8 sardines
150gm grated coconut
2 lemongrass
3 shallots
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar

1. Place cleaned sardines onto a lined baking tray and bake/grill it at 200C until the skin turns lightly golden. Let the fish cool down.
2. Meanwhile, put coconut onto a non stick pan and toast it on medium low heat until dry and fragrant. Remove to cool down.
3. Remove the flesh from sardines. Run through the flesh with your bare fingers to feel for bones.
4. Put sardine flesh onto the pan and toast it for about 1-2 minutes, so that it will be drier. Grind the fish in a food processor until it turns to floss.
5. Grind lemongrass until fine, add in shallots and grind until fine. Mix this together with the fish floss, salt and sugar and toast it together on the pan until the floss looks loose.
6. Mix together with toasted coconut.

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Blue rice
1 large handful of fresh blue clitoria flowers or 1/4 cup of dried ones
4 cups water
2 cups medium starch rice (siamese rice, not Thai fragrant rice)
Optional : Lemongrass, kaffir lime leaf, pandan leaf

1. Bring 2 cups of water to boil and add in flowers. Simmer until it turns into a dark blue 'tea'. Dry flowers will take longer than fresh flowers.
2. Strain the blue liquid and add in enough water to make up to 4 cups.
3. Wash the rice and cook the rice with the blue liquid (+aromatic herbs) instead of plain water.
*No seasoning is added*

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Vegetables
1/2 cup Thinly sliced long beans
1 cup Thinly sliced cabbage (I mixed white and red)
1/2 Chopped beansprouts
1/2 cup cucumber, remove seeds and cut into thin matchsticks

Thinly snipped polygonum leaves (daun kesum/laksa leaf), just the leaves
Sliced torch ginger bud ( I used the red variety, and it's half opened for more petals)

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Side dishes (optional)
Spiced Fried Chicken/Ayam goreng
Turmeric Roasted Beef/Daging bakar
Solok Lada
Fish crackers

Other side dishes (I didn't prepare)
Salted egg
Batter Fried Sardines

Nicely grilled and fragrant