Malaysian Wild Herbs & Rice Salad

Bursting with flavor, this wild herb rice salad, or nasi ulam, is a Malaysian dish that’s not only incredibly tasty but also incredibly healthy. If you live in Southeast Asia, you might easily find these herbs in your local markets or even growing in your grandma’s garden. It will be a little more challenging if you live in other parts of the world. I hope this recipe can inspire you to create your own rice salad using available Asian herbs and vegetables you can find at the farmers markets or Asian markets.

Malaysian Wild Herbs & Rice Salad Recipe

Serves 8-10

Ingredients:

• 4 cups rice
• 1.5 coconuts, desiccated (approx. 4.5 cups)
• 1 large basket daum kadut (wild pepper leaf)
• 2 large bunches peppermint, leaves separated
• 2 large bunches laksa leaves, leaves separated
• 3 cups cekur manis leaves
• 3 whole fish (mackerel or any sweet white fish)
• ½ cup dried shrimp
• ½ cup dried salted fish
• 1 cup string beans, sliced thinly
• 1 cucumber, cut into small cubes
• 1 cup kachang botol (four angled bean), thinly sliced
• 1 laksa flower, top portion thinly sliced
• ¼ cup limau pulut (kaffir lime leaf), thinly sliced
• 2 cups shallots, sliced thinly
• ¼ cup lemongrass, thinly slice the ends
• ¼ cup galangal, sliced thinly into strips
• ¼ cup fresh turmeric, thinly sliced into strips
• Freshly ground white pepper
• Salt to taste

Optional: sambal chili sauce for individual servings

Method:

Cook the rice and once it is ready, spread it on a large shallow tray to let it cool down.

Wash all the leaves and dry them in the sun.

Fry the desiccated coconut in a dry wok over medium heat until golden brown. Can be fried the previous day and stored in an

airtight container.

Deep fry the three whole fish until cooked. When they have cooled, pick apart the meat from the bones. Set aside.

Toast the dried shrimp and the dried salted fish in the oven until golden brown. Using a pestle and mortar, pound the dried shrimp into smaller pieces. Using a sharp knife or scissors, cut the dried salted fish into small shreds.

Once the leaves are ready, start by placing a few daum kadut leaves on a cutting board, then add a few cekur manis leaves, peppermint leaves and laksa leaves on top of the daum kadut leaves. Roll everything together tightly into the shape of a cigar and use a sharp knife to thinly slice thin strips of it. Repeat for the rest of the leaves. Set the strips aside in a large bowl.

Place equal amounts of room temperature rice in two large shallow serving bowls or trays. Add about 5 tablespoons of desiccated coconut and a few tablespoons of cucumber, shallots, string beans and fish on top of the rice and toss everything together until properly mixed. Add the dried shrimp, dried salted fish, laksa flower, and all the various herbs and spices by the teaspoon while mixing thoroughly. Taste constantly to adjust how much more of an item you want to add and if more salt is needed.

Add the rest of the ingredients by eyeballing the amount. Keep tossing until everything is mixed well together and taste to make sure the flavor is to your liking.

Can be eaten as it is, or mixed with sambal to make it spicy.