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7 Comments Indonesian lemper is essentially a roll made out of sticky rice which you can fill with anything you like. Here we made Indonesian lemper filled with tuna.
Indonesian lemper with tuna
My friend Esmée is part Indonesian and every once in a while we make a lot of different dishes. That is how I made the layered cake for the first time (still a favorite) and this time we went for the Indonesian lemper. Gotta be honest here, as I never even heard of lemper before actually making it.
Cooking the sticky rice
Now the first part of this dish is cooking the sticky or glutinous rice. You should soak the rice overnight for best results, but if you’re using sushi rice (the kind you can usually buy in the grocery store) you can also use that. Don’t tell Esmée I told you so. Apparently the cooking of rice is a big thing in Indonesia. You can absolutely not stir the rice. I’m not saying I never stir my rice, but thought I let you know how to properly cook it!
How to roll the Indonesian lemper
Now once you’ve prepared the filling it is time for the rolling. You first lay out a piece of cling film on the kitchen counter and spread about four tablespoons of the rice on it. Place some of the filling in the middle and tightly wrap the cling film around the rice roll. In the images above you can see how to roll and fill them.
Once you’ve wrapped and rolled all the rice with the filling leave it in the fridge to set. You can eat it cold or reheat in the microwave. You can either serve the rolls whole or cut it into pieces. Whichever works.
Serve with dipping sauce
I like to serve these with a dipping sauce, although not sure if that is traditional or not (probably not) I like simply using sweet chili sauce or peanut sauce, but use whatever you think fits with the dish.
More Indonesian dishes
If you like Indonesian cuisine you might want to try any of the dishes we previously made together.
Indonesian lemper with tuna
Ingredients
- 500 gram glutinous rice soaked overnight
- 3 leaves kaffir lime
- 280 gr tuna drained weight
- 2 onions finely chopped
- 4 tomatoes finely chopped
- 1 small leek finely chopped
- 5 red chili peppers crushed and very finely cut. If you want it spicy leave the seeds in.
- 1/2 tsp lemon grass ground
- 1/2 tsp djahe ginger
- 75 gram santen or some coconut milk
- 1/2 tsp salt
- oil for frying
How to make the lemper with tuna
- Place the rice with the kaffir lime leaves in a big pot and add as much water that it is under by two fingers thick . Bring to the boil and let it cook for about 20 minutes or until done. Drain and set aside to cool.
- Fry the onion until they are soft. Add all the other ingredients and bake until most of the moisture is gone.
- Remove the kaffir lime leaves from the rice.
- Place a sheet of wrapping foil on the kitchen counter and add about 4 tablespoons of the rice on top. Make it into a rectangle of around 12 by 8 centimeters.
- Now place a small tablespoon of the filling in the middle. See photo above.
- Fold the rice around it so the filling is in the middle using the wrap to guide it along. Make a tight roll of the rice and twist the ends closed.
- Continue until you’ve used everything.
- Place the rice rolls in the fridge and leave to cool. Cut in pieces if you want or eat as a snack. You can also heat them in the microwave prior to serving.
Nutrition Information per portion:
Disclaimer:
The nutritional values above are calculated per portion. The details are based on standard nutritional tables and do not constitute a professional nutritional advice.
Dear Simone,
I have been making the Lemper filled with Tuna and extra chilly for many years, since my daughter-in-law doesn’t eat meat at all. She does eat fish. I have also made it with Cornet Beef out of a Can and that is delicious as well…!
O thanks for the tip Peggy! I might try that another time!
WOW! it’s been ages since I had this – we used to have this as an afternoon snack as a kid (mum is of Javanese descent) and thanks for taking me back to fond childhood memories and this recipe that I’m going to try!
I’ve never made anything with glutinous rice for some reason. I really need to play with it. This looks terrific — thanks.
Thanks John! I tasted it for the first time when we were in Thailand and thought it was rather good. We did have the sweet version baked in bamboo at the time but still pretty good, so I’ve been hooked ever since!
These look terrific. My mind is racing with all the things I could stuff in the glutinous rice!
O so much Maureen! In fact I am thinking of making a sweet version really soon as I have rice left.. 😉