Indonesia’s Greatest Export, after Batik

Every country has its national comfort food. The one thing people make when they’re tired, when they’re homesick, when they need feeding in a way that goes slightly deeper than just calories. In Indonesia, that thing is Nasi Goreng. And it has, entirely on its own merits, become one of the most beloved fried rice dishes in the world.

What makes it different from every other fried rice isn’t a single ingredient — it’s kecap manis. Sweet soy sauce. Thick, dark, slightly molasses-like, with a depth of flavour that regular soy sauce simply cannot replicate. It coats the rice in a way that’s simultaneously sweet, savoury, and faintly caramelised. Paired with shrimp paste — terasi — which sounds alarming but smells of the sea and adds an umami baseline that anchors the entire dish, this is fried rice that has something to say.

The fried egg on top is not optional. It is the crown. It is the point. The yolk, broken over the rice and stirred through, becomes part of the sauce. Anyone who skips the egg has misunderstood the assignment entirely.

Ingredients :

• 2 cups cold cooked jasmine rice (day-old)
• 150g small shrimp, peeled
• 2 eggs
• 3 tbsp vegetable oil
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 shallots, thinly sliced
• 1 red chili, sliced (or ½ tsp sambal oelek)
• ½ tsp terasi (shrimp paste) — toast it briefly in a dry pan first
• 3 tbsp kecap manis (sweet soy sauce)
• 1 tbsp light soy sauce
• 1 tsp sesame oil
• Salt and white pepper

To serve:

• 2 fried eggs (sunny side up)
• Sliced cucumber and tomato
• Prawn crackers (kerupuk), if available
• Fried shallots

Steps :

1. Break up your cold rice. Every. Single. Grain. Separate. Non-negotiable.
   
2. In a small dry pan, briefly toast the terasi for 30 seconds per side until fragrant. It will smell very pungent. This is correct. This is the soul of the dish.
   
3. Heat the wok over high heat. Add 2 tbsp oil. Fry the garlic, shallots, and chili for 1 minute until golden and fragrant.
   
4. Add the toasted terasi and smash it into the aromatics. Add the shrimp and cook for 90 seconds.
   
5. Add the rice. Spread across the wok and leave for 60 seconds to let the bottom crisp. Then toss.
   
6. Add kecap manis, light soy sauce, and sesame oil. Toss everything over high heat for 2 minutes until the rice is evenly dark and caramelised. The colour should be deep brown, not pale.
   
7. Season with salt and white pepper. Plate.
   
8. In a separate pan, fry the eggs sunny side up in a little oil — edges crispy, yolk still runny.
   
9. Place the fried egg on top of the rice. Add cucumber slices, tomato, fried shallots, and prawn crackers on the side.
   
10. Break the yolk. Stir it into the rice. Try not to feel smug about how good this is. You won’t succeed, but try.

Pro Tip :

If you can’t find terasi (shrimp paste), a small amount of miso paste plus a dash of fish sauce gets you surprisingly close in terms of umami depth — not identical, but respectable.

More importantly: kecap manis is non-negotiable and not interchangeable with regular soy sauce plus sugar. The thickness, the caramel undertone, the way it coats the rice — none of that happens with a substitute. Find it at any Asian grocer. Buy two bottles. You’ll use them both faster than you expect.