Shrimp Nasi Goreng

A delicious recipe for sweet and spicy shrimp nasi goreng, Indonesian fried rice served with cucumber, tomatoes, and a fried egg.

Nasi goreng is an Indonesian twist on fried rice, both sweet and spicy and much more flavorful than its brown color and simple appearance lets on.

A few years ago my husband and I went scuba diving in Bali, Indonesia, for our second anniversary. The trip was incredible: great food, beautiful sites, and amazing dives.  In spite of my love for the water, I’m not great on choppy seas (I’m pretty sure I turned green on the boat).  After a long day sloshing around in a small boat, a warm plate of nasi goreng was so comforting.

How to Make Shrimp Nasi Goreng

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To make nasi goreng at home, you’ll need two specialty ingredients.  The color in nasi goreng comes from kecap manis, an Indonesian sweet soy sauce. You can find kecap manis at specialty stores or on Amazon, or you can make your own at home by reducing soy sauce and brown sugar. The spice comes from a fresh ground chili paste.  Sambal oelek chili paste is easy to buy online or in the Asian section of most regular grocery stores. The dish is typically accompanied by a fried egg an fresh tomato and cucumber.

Nasi goreng is relatively simple to make.  Use leftover rice if you have it.  If not, then just make some rice and give it some time to cool before using it.  If you don’t have a bottle of kecap manis, make it by combining equal parts soy sauce and brown sugar, bringing to a boil, and allowing the mixture to simmer for about 15 minutes until reduced.

While the kecap manis is cooking, gently beat some eggs and sesame oil with a fork for the fried rice. Set it aside. Then cook the shrimp with a bit of vegetable oil in a large nonstick skillet. Stir in some of the kecap manis with the shrimp right at the end, then move the shrimp to another bowl.

Place the skillet back on the burner. Add the remaining vegetable oil, then saute the onion. After the onion has softened, add the ginger, garlic, and sambal oelek chili paste. Then add the beaten egg and cook gently. Finally, add the rice and the remaining kecap manis and heat it through.

Add the shrimp to the rice mixture and fry the remaining eggs to top your fried rice. Place the shrimp & fried rice with the fried egg, cucumber, tomatoes, lime wedges, and scallions.

Looking for more rice recipes? Try this Curry Seitan with Pineapple Rice, Miso Salmon with Coconut Rice, or Instant Pot Enchilada Rice. If you try this recipe for Shrimp Nasi Goreng, leave a comment and review below and let me know what you think!

Print Recipe

5 from 5 votes

Shrimp Nasi Goreng

A recipe for sweet and spicy shrimp nasi goreng, an Indonesian fried rice served with cucumber, tomatoes, and a fried egg.

Prep Time15 mins

Cook Time25 mins

Total Time40 mins

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Indonesian

Servings: 4 servings

Author: Danielle

Ingredients

• 1 cup rice (about 3 cups prepared, cooked and cooled)
• 1/3 cup soy sauce
• 1/3 cup brown sugar
• 16 oz large shrimp (thawed, peeled, and deveined)
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil (divided)
• 6 eggs (divided)
• 2 teaspoons sesame oil
• 1 teaspoon ginger
• 1 teaspoon garlic
• 1-2 teaspoons sambal oelek
• 1 onion finely chopped (finely chopped)
• 8 oz cherry tomatoes (halved)
• 1 cucumber (sliced)
• lime wedges and scallions for serving

Instructions

• If you don’t have leftover rice, then make some rice according to package directions.
• Start by making kecap manis or sweet soy sauce.  In a small saucepan combine the soy sauce and brown sugar over medium heat.  When the mixture starts to boil, turn the heat down to medium low and simmer for about 15 minutes until reduced, stirring frequently.  Set aside.
• In a medium bowl, add two of the eggs and the sesame oil and beat with a fork for one minute.  Set aside.
• Next make the shrimp: Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium heat with 1 tablespoon of the vegetable oil.  Add the shrimp, cover, and cook for about minutes.  Remove cover, stir, and then cook for another minute or two until the shrimp is cooked through.  
• Remove the skillet from the heat and add 2 tablespoons of the soy sauce mixture. Place the shrimp in a bowl, wipe out the skillet with a paper towel, and return the pan back to the burner.
• Add the remaining tablespoon of vegetable oil and heat the skillet over medium heat.  Add the finely chopped onion and saute for 5 minutes.  Then add the ginger, garlic, and sambal oelek.  Mix for another minute.  
• Add the beaten eggs to the pan and cook for 30 seconds, gently scraping up the egg from the bottom of the pan. Then add the rice and the remaining soy sauce mixture to the skillet.  Break up the rice and cook for about four minutes until the rice is heated through and the soy sauce mixture is evenly dispersed. Add the shrimp to the rice and heat through. Turn off heat and keep warm on the burner.
• Cook the remaining four eggs in a nonstick skillet to desired doneness – often nasi goreng is served with a sunny-side up egg.
• Plate the rice and shrimp with the egg and add scallions, cherry tomatoes, and cucumbers.  Serve with lime wedges and scallions.