← Nouns Cooking · Malaysian & Singaporean

Ingredients

• 500 g cooked jasmine rice, a day old and cold, grains broken up
• 40 g Dried anchovies (ikan bilis), rinsed and patted very dry
• 4 Shallot
• 3 cloves Garlic
• 6 Bird's eye chilli, or fewer for less heat
• 1 tsp belacan (shrimp paste), toasted
• 4 tbsp Vegetable oil
• 2 eggs, for frying on top
• 1 egg, for scrambling into the rice
• 100 g kangkung or long beans, cut into 4 cm lengths
• 1 tbsp Soy sauce
• ½ tsp Sugar
• Salt
• ½ Cucumber, sliced

Method

1. Pound or blend the shallots, garlic, chillies and belacan to a coarse paste with a tiny splash of water.
2. Heat the oil in a wok over medium heat and fry the ikan bilis for 3–4 min, stirring, until golden and crisp. Lift them out onto kitchen paper, leaving the oil behind.
3. In the same oil, fry the 2 eggs one at a time sunny side up until the edges are lacy and crisp, about 2 min each. Set aside.
4. Add the chilli paste to the wok and fry over medium heat for 2–3 min until fragrant and slightly darker. Push it aside, crack in the remaining egg and scramble it roughly.
5. Turn the heat to high, tip in the rice and toss for 3 min so every grain is coated and starts to crackle. Add the soy sauce, sugar and a pinch of salt.
6. Toss in the kangkung and half the ikan bilis and stir-fry for 1 minute, just until the leaves wilt. Taste for salt.
7. Serve topped with the fried eggs, the rest of the crispy ikan bilis and cucumber slices on the side.

Tips

• Cold, day-old rice fries without going mushy. If you cook rice specially, spread it on a tray to cool quickly, then chill it uncovered for an hour.
• Contains anchovies and shrimp paste, so it is not for shellfish or fish allergies. Use tamari instead of soy sauce for gluten-free.

Sources

Written in our own words after cross-checking these recipes:

Nomadette Huang Kitchen Taste Asian Food