America's Test Kitchen LogoCook's Country LogoCook's Illustrated LogoAmerica's Test Kitchen LogoCook's Country LogoCook's Illustrated Logo

Vegetarian Indonesian-Style Fried Rice

By America's Test Kitchen

Published on August 28, 2019

Time

1¾ hours, plus 20 minutes cooling

Yield

Serves 4 to 6

Vegetarian Indonesian-Style Fried Rice

Ingredients

Rice

2 tablespoons vegetable oil 2 cups jasmine rice, rinsed2⅔ cups water

Stir-Fry

5 green or red Thai chiles, stemmed7 shallot, peeled (4 quartered, 3 sliced thin)4 large garlic cloves, peeled3 tablespoons dark brown sugar 3 tablespoons molasses 3 tablespoons soy sauce 3 tablespoons fish sauce substitute Salt 4 large eggs ½ cup vegetable oil 1 pound broccoli florets, cut into 1-inch pieces¼ cup water 4 large scallions, sliced thinLime wedge

Before You Begin

If Thai chiles are unavailable, substitute two serranos or two medium jalapeños. You will need our vegetarian fish sauce substitute for this recipe. This dish is fairly spicy; to reduce the spiciness, remove the ribs and seeds from the chiles or use fewer chiles. This dish progresses very quickly at step 4, so it's important to have all of the ingredients ready to go. For this recipe to be gluten-free, you must use gluten-free soy sauce. We prefer the flavor of jasmine rice in this recipe, but long-grain white, basmati, or Texmati rice can be substituted. Serve with sliced cucumbers and tomato wedges.

Instructions

    for the rice

  1. Heat oil in large saucepan over medium heat until shimmering. Add rice and stir to coat with oil, about 30 seconds. Stir in water and bring to boil. Reduce heat to low, cover, and continue to simmer until rice is tender and water is absorbed, 16 to 18 minutes. Remove pot from heat, lay clean folded dish towel underneath lid, and let sit for 10 minutes. Spread rice onto rimmed baking sheet and let cool for 10 minutes. Transfer to refrigerator and chill for 20 minutes.
  2. for the stir-fry

  3. Pulse chiles, quartered shallots, and garlic in food processor to coarse paste, about 15 pulses, scraping down sides of bowl as needed; transfer to bowl. In separate bowl, stir sugar, molasses, soy sauce, fish sauce, and 1¼ teaspoons salt together. In third bowl, whisk eggs and ¼ teaspoon salt together.
  4. Cook sliced shallots and oil in 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat, stirring constantly, until shallots are golden and crisp, 6 to 10 minutes. Using slotted spoon, transfer shallots to paper towel–lined plate and season with salt. Pour off oil and reserve. Wipe out skillet with paper towels.
  5. Heat 1 teaspoon reserved oil in now-empty skillet over medium heat until shimmering. Add half of eggs to skillet, tilt pan to coat bottom, cover, and cook until bottom of omelet is spotty golden brown and top is just set, about 1½ minutes. Slide omelet onto cutting board, roll up into tight log, and cut crosswise into 1-inch-wide segments; leave segments rolled. Repeat with 1 teaspoon reserved oil and remaining eggs.
  6. Break up any large clumps chilled rice with fingers. Combine broccoli and water in now-empty skillet, cover, and cook over medium-high heat until broccoli is crisp-tender and water is absorbed, 4 to 6 minutes; transfer to small bowl.
  7. Heat 3 tablespoons reserved oil in now-empty skillet over medium heat until just shimmering. Add chile mixture and cook until mixture turns golden, 3 to 5 minutes. Whisk molasses mixture to recombine, clear center of skillet, add mixture to pan, and bring to simmer. Add rice and broccoli and cook, stirring and folding constantly, until rice is heated through, broccoli is tender, and mixture is evenly coated, about 3 minutes. Stir in scallions. Transfer to platter and garnish with omelet rolls, fried shallots, and lime wedges. Serve.
Vegetarian Indonesian-Style Fried Rice

Vegetarian Indonesian-Style Fried Rice

Headshot of America's Test Kitchen
By America's Test Kitchen
Save

Time

1¾ hours, plus 20 minutes cooling

Yield

Serves 4 to 6

Ingredients

Rice

2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 cups jasmine rice, rinsed
2⅔ cups water

Stir-Fry

5 green or red Thai chiles, stemmed
7 shallot, peeled (4 quartered, 3 sliced thin)
4 large garlic cloves, peeled
3 tablespoons dark brown sugar
3 tablespoons molasses
3 tablespoons soy sauce
3 tablespoons fish sauce substitute
Salt
4 large eggs
½ cup vegetable oil
1 pound broccoli florets, cut into 1-inch pieces
¼ cup water
4 large scallions, sliced thin
Lime wedge

Ingredients

Rice

2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 cups jasmine rice, rinsed
2⅔ cups water

Stir-Fry

5 green or red Thai chiles, stemmed
7 shallot, peeled (4 quartered, 3 sliced thin)
4 large garlic cloves, peeled
3 tablespoons dark brown sugar
3 tablespoons molasses
3 tablespoons soy sauce
3 tablespoons fish sauce substitute
Salt
4 large eggs
½ cup vegetable oil
1 pound broccoli florets, cut into 1-inch pieces
¼ cup water
4 large scallions, sliced thin
Lime wedge

Ingredients

Rice

2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 cups jasmine rice, rinsed
2⅔ cups water

Stir-Fry

5 green or red Thai chiles, stemmed
7 shallot, peeled (4 quartered, 3 sliced thin)
4 large garlic cloves, peeled
3 tablespoons dark brown sugar
3 tablespoons molasses
3 tablespoons soy sauce
3 tablespoons fish sauce substitute
Salt
4 large eggs
½ cup vegetable oil
1 pound broccoli florets, cut into 1-inch pieces
¼ cup water
4 large scallions, sliced thin
Lime wedge

Why This Recipe Works

Nasi goreng is an Indonesian fried rice seasoned with chile paste and sweet soy sauce and garnished with fried shallots, egg, and vegetables. We wanted to make a vegetarian version that stayed true to the original. We found that a sauce of molasses, dark brown sugar, soy sauce, and fish sauce substitute was a perfect alternative to sweet soy sauce. We created our own chile paste by coarsely pureeing garlic, shallots, and fresh Thai chiles. To get distinct grains of rice, fried rice is commonly made with day-old rice, but we were able to mimic this effect by rinsing the rice thoroughly, coating it with oil, and chilling it in the fridge before cooking it. For the vegetables, we liked broccoli florets, steamed in the skillet until they were crisp-tender. Finally, we topped the dish with a simple omelet and more shallots, sliced thin and fried until golden.

Before You Begin

If Thai chiles are unavailable, substitute two serranos or two medium jalapeños. You will need our vegetarian fish sauce substitute for this recipe. This dish is fairly spicy; to reduce the spiciness, remove the ribs and seeds from the chiles or use fewer chiles. This dish progresses very quickly at step 4, so it's important to have all of the ingredients ready to go. For this recipe to be gluten-free, you must use gluten-free soy sauce. We prefer the flavor of jasmine rice in this recipe, but long-grain white, basmati, or Texmati rice can be substituted. Serve with sliced cucumbers and tomato wedges.

Instructions

    for the rice

  1. Heat oil in large saucepan over medium heat until shimmering. Add rice and stir to coat with oil, about 30 seconds. Stir in water and bring to boil. Reduce heat to low, cover, and continue to simmer until rice is tender and water is absorbed, 16 to 18 minutes. Remove pot from heat, lay clean folded dish towel underneath lid, and let sit for 10 minutes. Spread rice onto rimmed baking sheet and let cool for 10 minutes. Transfer to refrigerator and chill for 20 minutes.
  2. for the stir-fry

  3. Pulse chiles, quartered shallots, and garlic in food processor to coarse paste, about 15 pulses, scraping down sides of bowl as needed; transfer to bowl. In separate bowl, stir sugar, molasses, soy sauce, fish sauce, and 1¼ teaspoons salt together. In third bowl, whisk eggs and ¼ teaspoon salt together.
  4. Cook sliced shallots and oil in 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat, stirring constantly, until shallots are golden and crisp, 6 to 10 minutes. Using slotted spoon, transfer shallots to paper towel–lined plate and season with salt. Pour off oil and reserve. Wipe out skillet with paper towels.
  5. Heat 1 teaspoon reserved oil in now-empty skillet over medium heat until shimmering. Add half of eggs to skillet, tilt pan to coat bottom, cover, and cook until bottom of omelet is spotty golden brown and top is just set, about 1½ minutes. Slide omelet onto cutting board, roll up into tight log, and cut crosswise into 1-inch-wide segments; leave segments rolled. Repeat with 1 teaspoon reserved oil and remaining eggs.
  6. Break up any large clumps chilled rice with fingers. Combine broccoli and water in now-empty skillet, cover, and cook over medium-high heat until broccoli is crisp-tender and water is absorbed, 4 to 6 minutes; transfer to small bowl.
  7. Heat 3 tablespoons reserved oil in now-empty skillet over medium heat until just shimmering. Add chile mixture and cook until mixture turns golden, 3 to 5 minutes. Whisk molasses mixture to recombine, clear center of skillet, add mixture to pan, and bring to simmer. Add rice and broccoli and cook, stirring and folding constantly, until rice is heated through, broccoli is tender, and mixture is evenly coated, about 3 minutes. Stir in scallions. Transfer to platter and garnish with omelet rolls, fried shallots, and lime wedges. Serve.

Gift This Recipe

Enjoyed this dish? Let others know by sharing it as a gift recipe.

This is a members' feature.