WORDS GEORGEN THYE
It is the holy fasting month of Ramadan, the month that embraces the purity of thought, action and speech. Besides that, the lively and colourful bazaar Ramadan selling all the mouth-watering delights is also one of the highlights of the fasting month! One of my personal favourites at a bazaar Ramadan is “drum roll …” Bubur Lambuk! Bubur Lambuk is a rice porridge dish or congee that is cooked with a mixture of different spices, making it exceptionally fragrant and yummy.
I can still recall my first time trying Bubur Lambuk, I was still working at a hospital then. The hospital’s mosque will usually give out Bubur Lambuk to visitors and staff for free during every fasting month. I instantly fell in love with it after the first spoonful. I call it “Love at First Bite”!
In this issue, Georgen Cooking will be sharing with you Bubur Lambuk recipe with a healthy twist! Don’t forget to check out Georgen Cooking’s Youtube channel for the recipe video too.
RECIPE
BUBUR LAMBUK
Serves: 3 persons
Duration: 45 minutes
| Ingredients | Measurement | Remark |
| Red Rice | 1.5 cups | Washed, soaked for 1 hour and drained |
| Carrots | 2 medium sized | Cubed |
| Lean Minced Beef | 150 g | |
| Dried Shrimp | 2 tbsp | Washed and chopped |
| Vegetable Oil | 2 tbsp | |
| Onion | 1 medium | Chopped |
| Garlic | 2 cloves | Minced |
| Ginger | 1 inch | Julienned |
| Pandan Leaves | 2 leaves | Tied into a knot |
| Trim Coconut Milk | 50 ml | |
| Water | 800 ml |
Spices (dry roast and finely ground)
| Cinnamon Stick | 1 inch |
| Star Anise | 1 piece |
| Cardamom | 2 pieces |
| Cloves | 3 pieces |
| White Pepper | 1 tsp |
| Coriander Powder | 1 tsp |
| Cumin Powder | 1 tsp |
Garnish
| Chinese Salary (Daun Sup) |
| Sliced Chilli |
| Fried Shallots |
Method
| 1. | Heat up oil in a non-stick pan over medium heat, sauté onion, garlic and ginger until fragrant for about 2 minutes. |
| 2. | Then, add all the spices and sauté for another 2 minutes. |
| 3. | After that, add dried shrimp and minced beef and continue cooking for 2 minutes before tossing in the carrot. |
| 4. | Continue to stir fry for 1 minute and then transfer the mixture into a rice cooker. |
| 5. | Add water, pandan leaves and then turn on the rice cooker. |
| 6. | A normal rice cooker will take approximately 40 minutes to cook porridge. Stir in coconut milk before the last 3 minutes. You can continue cooking for a longer time if you prefer a thicker consistency. |
| 7.
|
Once it’s done, garnish with sliced chilli, fried shallots and Chinese celery and it’s ready to serve. Enjoy! |
Nutritional Information (1 Serving)
| Energy (Kcal) | 459 |
| Protein (g) | 22.4 |
| Fat (g) | 16.2 |
| Carbohydrate (g) | 53.3 |
| Fibre (g) | 5.3 |
HEALTHY TWIST:
- Using red rice (a whole grain) instead of white rice gives you 3-4 times more fibre and more nutrients and antioxidants too!
- Using trim coconut milk reduces the saturated fats (bad fats that increase the bad cholesterol in the body) and calories too.
- Adding pandanleaves gives more fragrance so you can reduce the amount of coconut milk in the recipe. (The original recipe calls for 100 ml of coconut milk.)
- Adding carrots helps provide vegetables serving and bumps up the fibre and antioxidants of the porridge too.
- Extra salt is not needed as we already have some saltiness from the dried shrimps and adequate flavour from all the different spices.
- Using lean minced beef helps cut back the saturated fats. You can consider replacing the beef with minced chicken (with the skin removed) too!
My heartiest wishes to all Muslim friends: Selamat Berpuasa and Blessed Ramadhan!
