Nasi goreng

Nasi (rice) is the staple here in Indonesia. I joking ask the waitresses at Cafe Seminyak if they’ve already eaten in the morning and they gleefully say “Sudah” (already). I ask “Makan apa?” (eat what?) and they look at me incredulously, before uttering the obvious “Nasi“.

One of the standard dishes in Indonesia is nasi goreng (fried rice). This is cooked in a wok or a frying pan, and usually contains a bit of vegetable, maybe carrot and greens, plus whatever you asked for, chicken, shrimp, etc. Often a fried egg will be slapped on top and a large krupuk (prawn cracker) added. Nasi goreng is not something I’d like to eat everyday, because of the grease and the fact I like a change. Indonesians don’t seem to mind the grease and actually like it. Ika is from Central Java, where almost everything is deep fried. The other day, one of my bbq chicken breasts needed to be cooked a bit longer. Grabbing a small frying pan, I stir fried it for a few minutes, with just a touch of oil. Ika was amazed, she had never seen meat cooked other than grilled or deep fried. She asked me if it really did the job.

Traveling across Indonesia by local bus in 1993, many times I had to grab a bite at a bus terminal at 4am. Some of these places smelled like the sewer, and the food vendors were actually set up on a metal grill, directly over the sewer. In that kind of situation, I want something that is cooked at maximum temperature in front of me. Nasi goreng will do in times like that.

If I am traveling in the highlands of Bali and a small warung / hotel offers hamburger / fish & chips / nasi goreng, I’ll take the nasi goreng. Its the one thing they know how to do. A decent nasi goreng can be found at Bamboo Corner on Poppies II for 6,500rp, including chicken and shrimp.