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Indonesian

Nasi goreng

Non-vegetarian

Day-old rice stir-fried with a pounded paste of shallots, garlic, chilli and shrimp paste, darkened with sweet soy sauce and topped with a fried egg.

Nasi goreng is an Indonesian rice dish, ready in about 22 minutes and made with long-grain white rice and kecap manis (sweet soy sauce). It serves 2 and is rated easy to cook.

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Top view of nasi goreng with fried egg, krupuk, and vegetables on a decorative plate.
Photo: Dicky Agustian / Pexels · Pexels License
Prep
10 min
Cook
12 min
Total
22 min
Serves
2
Level
Easy
Calories
705

Ingredients

2 servings

For the rice

For the eggs

Equipment

Method

  1. Step 1

    Pound or blend the shallots (opens in a new tab), garlic (opens in a new tab), chilli and shrimp paste (opens in a new tab) into a rough paste.

    Spices being ground in a mortar and pestle
    How it looks · Photo: https://kaboompics.com/ on Pexels

  2. Step 2

    Heat the oil in a wok (opens in a new tab) and fry the paste until fragrant and starting to colour. If using chicken, add it now and stir-fry until cooked through.

    Food safety: Cook chicken until no pink remains.

    Ingredients tossed in a hot wok
    How it looks · Photo: Aesthos AR. Photography on Pexels

  3. Step 3

    Add the cold rice, breaking up clumps, and toss over high heat until hot. Add the kecap manis (opens in a new tab), soy sauce (opens in a new tab) and salt and keep tossing until every grain is coated and lightly caramelised.

    • 4 min
    • high heat

    Food safety: Chill leftover cooked rice within an hour of cooking and use within a day.

  4. Step 4

    Fry the eggs (opens in a new tab) sunny-side up in a little oil in a separate pan. Serve the rice topped with an egg, with cucumber (opens in a new tab) and tomato (opens in a new tab) on the side.

    • 3 min
    • medium heat

About this dish

Origin
Indonesia · Commonly attributedAlso popular in Malaysia, Singapore, NetherlandsMore food from Indonesia
Dish
Breakfast · Lunch · Dinner · Rice dishes · Main courses · Street food
Cooking method
Stir-fried
Taste
sweet & savoury, umami, spicy (chilli heat), smoky
Diet
Dairy-free · No nut ingredients
All labelsNon-vegetarian · Dairy-free · No nut ingredients · Alcohol-free · Pork-free · Beef-free
Without the optional extras: Pescatarian, Flexitarian-friendlyWorked out from the ingredients. How labels work
Good for
Everyday · Budget-friendly · Uses leftovers · Street food
Cook more with
Long-grain white rice · Kecap manis (sweet soy sauce) · Shallot · Garlic · Fresh red chilli · Shrimp paste
Techniques
Stir-frying

Allergens

  • Contains: Eggsfrom egg
  • Contains: Crustaceansfrom shrimp paste
  • Contains: Wheatfrom kecap manis (sweet soy sauce), soy sauce
  • Contains: Glutenfrom kecap manis (sweet soy sauce), soy sauce
  • Contains: Soyfrom kecap manis (sweet soy sauce), soy sauce

Based on typical versions of these ingredients and not verified allergen-free. Brands differ and cross-contact happens, so always check labels. For severe allergies, follow your clinician’s advice.

Nutrition

705 kcal per serving

Estimated

1 serving ≈ 251 g · recipe makes 2

Where the energy comes from

  • Protein 9%
  • Carbohydrate 57%
  • Fat 34%
Nutrition per serving and per 100 g
NutrientPer servingPer 100 g*
Energy705 kcal281 kcal
Protein16 g6.4 g
Carbohydrate99.1 g39.4 g
Net carbohydrate95.5 g38 g
Sugars9.5 g3.8 g
Added sugars9.6 g3.8 g
Fibre3.5 g1.4 g
Fat26.6 g10.6 g
Saturated fat3.4 g1.3 g
Trans fat——
Cholesterol187 mg74 mg
Sodium958 mg381 mg
Salt equivalent2.4 g1 g
Vitamins & minerals per serving
Potassium
417 mg
Calcium
92 mg
Iron
6.1 mg
Magnesium
53 mg
Vitamin A (RAE)
83 µg
Vitamin C
14 mg
Vitamin D
1 µg
Vitamin B12
0.5 µg
Folate (DFE)
433 µg

How these numbers were made

  • Calculated from USDA FoodData Central (SR Legacy) per-100 g values and the listed quantities.
  • *Per 100 g of combined raw ingredients; the cooked dish may weigh more or less.
  • Optional ingredients are not included: chicken thigh, cucumber, tomato.
  • Shrimp paste: Fish sauce (FDC 174531) at 1.5× as a stand-in salted fermented seafood condiment; protein is understated.
  • Kecap manis (sweet soy sauce): Hoisin sauce (FDC 172886) used as a stand-in for this thick palm-sugar-sweetened soy sauce; sugar and sodium differ by brand.
  • “—” means the value isn’t known for enough of the ingredients; it is never zero by default.
  • Values are estimates for guidance, not for medical dosing. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. fdc.nal.usda.gov.

Good to know

Tips

  • Freshly cooked rice turns mushy; spread it out to dry in the fridge overnight.

Common mistakes

  • Adding too much kecap manis at once — it burns easily on a hot wok.

Serve with

  • Add prawn crackers (krupuk), fried shallots and acar (quick pickle).

Storage

  • Refrigerate within 1 hour; eat within 1 day.

Reheating

  • Stir-fry until piping hot throughout.

Variations

  • Nasi goreng kampung (Malaysia): Village-style fried rice with more chilli, less sweet soy and fried anchovies.

Original editorial recipe · FriendsPantry editorial · Not yet independently reviewed · Added · Updated

Sauces, chutneys & dips for this dish

Recipe DNA

How this dish is built

Built from the recipe’s own sections. Each band’s width is its share of the dish by weight. Choose a component to see what it does.

What the dish is built around

For the eggs

Used in steps 2, 4

Masalas in this recipe

Make the masala first, then come back to finish the dish.

Reviews & corrections

Reviews come from signed-in cooks and appear after a moderator checks them. We never show made-up ratings.

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