Nasi Kerabu

This is nasi kerabu. This rice dish is a regional specialty from Kelantan and the rice is tinted blue from petals of flowers called bunga telang (clitoria). This is a very healthy malay dish with rice mixed in a combination of traditional ulams and vegetables such as daun kadok, ulam raja, bunga kantan, daun kesom, fresh red onions and other wierd looking leaves but it is a very interesting food. Most of these ingredients are very fragrant. At this hawker stall, their rice is blue in color and in addition to ulams, they sprinkle sweet kerisik (fried grated cocounts) over the rice. The blue rice is then served with a combination of fresh aromatic herbs, or known as ulam, hence the other name for this rice dish - Nasi Ulam. With the exception of the rice, nasi kerabu is not cooked or steamed. The ingredients are just mixed with the rice. So, this dish has a very rich natural taste.You must like eating vegetables if you are to enjoy kerabu. The ulams are fresh and you can feel the aroma being released in your mouth as you chew on the kerabu mixture. Very well made.