Half-glutinous rice steamed with coconut milk, shallots and fenugreek until rich and fragrant, served with a slow-cooked tuna curry, pickled vegetables and a spoon of sambal. The East Coast's beloved morning feast.
Nasi dagang — literally 'trader's rice' — is the pride of Terengganu and Kelantan on Malaysia's east coast, traditionally cooked at dawn and sold to fishermen and traders setting out for the day. Kelantan favours a purplish local grain while Terengganu uses paler rice, but both are inseparable from a tongkol (mackerel tuna) curry simmered with tamarind and spice.
The rice is luxuriously rich, each grain coated in sweet coconut with little bursts of bitter-nutty fenugreek. Against it the tuna curry is tangy and warm with spice, and the sharp pickle cuts through the creaminess like a clean knife.
Steaming the rice in two stages lets the grains first soften, then fully absorb the coconut milk and aromatics without turning mushy, while fenugreek adds the characteristic faintly bitter perfume that defines the dish.
Variations
Terengganu white-rice style, Kelantan purplish-rice style, with gulai ikan tongkol, served with fried coconut (serunding)
On the Palate
Where Nasi Dagang sits in the Malaysian flavor cloud
Ingredients
Serves 4
How it's made
8 steps · 30 min
- 110 min
Soak a mix of glutinous and regular rice for several hours, then drain.
- 215 min
Steam the rice halfway until just softened.
Watch outSteam only halfway — the grains should be just softened, still firm at the core, so they can drink up the coconut milk in the second steam without going mushy.
- 35 min
Stir through thick coconut milk, sliced shallots, ginger and a scatter of fenugreek seeds.
- 420 min
Steam again until the grains are tender and glossy with coconut.
Watch outSteam again until each grain is tender and slick with a coconut sheen — that glossy coat means it's fully absorbed.
- 58 min
Build a curry rempah and fry it, then add chunks of mackerel tuna.
- 625 min
Simmer the fish in coconut milk and tamarind water until the gravy is thick.
Watch outSimmer the fish curry until the gravy thickens and the oil rises — a thin, watery gravy hasn't cooked down enough.
- 710 min
Prepare a quick pickle of shredded cucumber and carrot in vinegar and sugar.
- 83 min
Serve the coconut rice with the tuna curry, pickles and sambal alongside.
