Ad: Food Experiment: Nasi Goreng Belacan Meatball!

Dear readers,


Whazzap? lol I know it's been a while since I've posted any experiments done in the kitchen, and honestly I haven't had that much time to cook but I recently started again. However, I've been very forgetful lately, which means that I tend to forget to take photos! Oh no! I even almost forgot to take photos for this food experiment, but I managed to snap a few shots! Ok, so nasi goreng belacan meatball...where do I begin? Nasi goreng is fried rice and it is a very common local dish. There are many varieties and it can be cooked in many different ways using all sorts of ingredients. 


The reason I chose belacan and meatballs for my nasi goreng was because I didn't have much time to do it and I just decided to go with whatever I had in my fridge. Belacan is actually fermented shrimp paste and it is very commonly used in Malay dishes. Ok so to make this dish, you will need the following ingredients:


1. Steamed rice - preferably a day old or rice that has been kept in the refrigerator
2. Half an onion and a few shallots, chopped
3. Garlic - around two cloves (or more if you like), chopped
4. Carrots - around half a carrot or one whole, depending on how much rice you have
5. Long beans (kacang panjang) - one whole long bean, chopped 
6. Marina Beef Balls
7. Belacan
8. Egg - one egg
9. Cooking oil
10. Salt & Pepper to taste


You will also need a wok and a spatula!


First, take a pinch of salt and mix it thoroughly into the steamed rice. The reason cold or a day old steamed rice is used is because it is harder than a newly cooked steamed rice. If newly cooked steamed rice is used, then it is more likely to get smooshed up and lose its form. 

Ok once the salt has been mixed well with the rice, turn on the stove to low heat and put the wok on the stove. Pour in about two table spoons of cooking oil. I usually use canola or corn oil, but this time I decided to use olive oil. Then, sautee the onions, shallots and garlic. 





Next, throw in the Marina beef balls, or any other meatballs that you like :). I chopped mine roughly so that they would cook more thoroughly, but you don't have to do that if you don't want to. Turn the stove up to medium heat and keep tossing them so that they do not burn. Sautee the meatballs until they turn to a brown or slightly golden colour. This is to ensure that the meatballs are properly cooked. Toss in a pinch of salt and pepper into the wok to add some flavour.





Then, add in the vegetables - the long beans and the carrots. You can use whatever veggies you like, but I chose long beans because of their texture. The long beans are crunchy and go very well with fried rice. I used carrots because they are the most commonly used veggies in this sort of cooking. I also chose those two because they add colour to the dish.





After that, add in the belacan and stir well. You can use any kind. I just bought this off the shelf at the nearest supermarket. It is important to allow the belacan to cook thoroughly, especially if it's the chili or sambal belacan kind. Chili that has not been cooked properly can cause terrible stomach ache, so be extra sure that it's cooked! 





Once the belacan is cooked, add in the steamed rice and mix everything well. Make sure you stir it well enough so that the colour of the rice is evenly spread. After that, taste the fried rice and add in more salt and pepper until you are satisfied with the taste. When you are finally happy with the taste of your fried rice, use your spatula to make sort of like a whole in the middle of your fried rice so that you can see the surface of the wok right in the middle. Pour in a bit of cooking oil and crack in the egg. Leave it for a few seconds then stir in the fried rice with the egg until it is thoroughly mixed and then you're DONE! 





Voila! Now you know how to make fried rice :) Try it. The best part of cooking fried rice is that you can use whatever ingredients you like! Cook it the same way, but change the ingredients :) So, are you read to see the final result? Well here you go! 





Don't you love the colour combination? It tasted pretty good too :P But don't take my word for it, try it for yourself and find out!


Have fun in the kitchen! ;)
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