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1
Steam the rice
20 minutes
Boiling (100°C / 212°F)
Rinse the rice until the water runs clear, then steam or cook it with 480 g of water until tender and fluffy, about 20 minutes. Keep it covered and warm.
Let the rice rest 5 minutes after cooking before fluffing — it finishes steaming in its own heat and the grains stay separate.
Done when: Rice is fluffy, separate and steaming hot.
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2
Bloom the spices
8 minutes
Medium heat (180°C / 350°F)
Heat 20 g of the oil in a heavy pot over medium heat. Add the mustard-seed-sized fenugreek, star anise, bay leaf, cinnamon and curry leaves and fry for 30 seconds until fragrant, then add the onion and cook for 4 minutes. Stir in the garlic and ginger for 1 minute, then the curry powder, turmeric, chilli powder, coriander, cumin and cardamom for 1 minute more.
Spices burn in seconds — have the onion ready to go in the moment they smell fragrant, because the onion stops the burning.
Done when: The pot smells deeply spiced and the onion is soft and golden.
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3
Simmer the chicken curry
30 minutes
Simmering (95°C / 203°F)
Add the tomato and cook for 2 minutes, then add the chicken chunks and turn to coat. Pour in the coconut milk and the tamarind water, bring to a gentle simmer, cover and cook for 25 minutes until the chicken is tender and reaches 74°C (165°F) and the sauce has thickened.
Keep the curry at a lazy simmer, not a rolling boil — hard boiling splits coconut milk into oil and curds.
Done when: Chicken is tender, sauce is thick and rust-red, and a thermometer reads 74°C (165°F).
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4
Cook the cabbage and okra
10 minutes
Medium-high heat (200°C / 400°F)
While the curry simmers, heat 10 g of oil in a wok, crackle the mustard seeds for 20 seconds, then stir-fry the cabbage and carrot with 2 g of the turmeric and a pinch of salt for 4 minutes until just wilted. In the same wok, flash-fry the okra in 5 g of oil with a pinch of salt for 3 minutes until bright green.
Both vegetables should stay crisp — they are the fresh, crunchy contrast to the rich curry, not a second stew.
Done when: Cabbage is bright yellow and still crisp; okra is bright green and tender-crisp.
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5
Fry the eggs and papadom
5 minutes
Medium-high heat (200°C / 400°F)
Fry the eggs sunny-side up in the remaining oil until the whites are set and the edges are crisp. Fry the papadom in the hot oil for a few seconds each until puffed, then drain on paper.
A runny yolk is the point — it melts into the rice and gravy when you break it.
Done when: Eggs have set whites and runny yolks; papadom is puffed and crisp.
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6
Plate and flood with gravy
5 minutes
Serving hot (above 60°C / 140°F)
Mound the rice on each plate, spoon the chicken curry beside it, add the cabbage, okra and a fried egg, and tuck a papadom on top. Ladle a spoonful of curry gravy — and a little of the cabbage cooking liquid if you like — over the rice. That flood of mixed gravy is kuah campur, and it is what makes the plate nasi kandar.
Do not be shy with the gravy: a dry nasi kandar is a failed nasi kandar. The rice should be stained with curry by the last bite.
Done when: Plates show white rice stained with red and yellow gravy, chicken curry, green okra, yellow cabbage and a fried egg.
auto_awesome Finishing Touches & Plating
Serve the plates hot with extra gravy on the side and a glass of teh tarik — the pull of the mixed gravy over the rice, the runny yolk and the crisp papadom are what make this plate worth building.
Malaysia
1h 10m
