Malay Food
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Hello guys.
Nasi Lemak
Nasi lemak is a dish sold in Malaysia, Brunei, Singapore, Riau Islands and Southern Thailand. In Kuala Lumpur, it is called the national dish, a national heritage of Malaysia. It is not to be confused with Nasi Dagang sold on the east coast of Malaysia or Terengganu and Kelantan although both dishes can usually be found sold side by side for breakfast. However, because of the Nasi Lemak's versatility in being able to be served in a variety of manners, it is now served and eaten any time of the day. There is a similar dish in Indonesia called nasi uduk.
With roots in Malay culture, its name is a Malay word that literally means 'rice in cream'. The name is derived from the cooking process whereby rice is soaked in coconut cream and then the mixture steamed. Sometimes knotted screwpine (pandan) leaves are thrown into the rice while steaming to give it more fragrance. Spices such as ginger and occasionally herbs like lemon grass may be added for additional fragrance.
Traditionally, this comes as a platter of food wrapped in banana leaf, with cucumber slices, small dried anchovies (ikan bilis), roasted peanuts, hard boiled egg, and hot spicy sauce (sambal) at its core. As a more substantial meal, nasi lemak can also come with a variety of other accompaniments such as chicken, cuttlefish, cockle, stir fried water convolvulus (kangkong), pickled vegetables (achar), beef rendang (beef stewed in coconut milk and spices) or paru (beef lungs). Traditionally most of these accompaniments are spicy in nature.
Nasi Lemak is widely eaten in Malaysia, even as a dish served in Malaysian schools. Nasi lemak is a common breakfast dish, sold early in the morning at roadside stalls in Malaysia, where it is often sold packed in newspaper, brown paper, or banana leaf. However, there are restaurants which serve it on a plate as noon or evening meals, making it possible for the dish to be eaten all day. Nasi lemak kukus which means hot nasi lemak is another name given to nasi lemak served with hot cooked rice.
INGREDIENTS:
Coconut Milk Steamed Rice
2 cups of rice
3 screwpine leaves (tie them into a knot as shown above)
Salt to taste
1 small can of coconut milk (5.6 oz size)
Some water
Tamarind Juice
1 cup of water
Tamarind pulp (size of a small ping pong ball)
Sambal Ikan BIlis (Dried Anchovies Sambal)
1/2 red onion
4 shallots
10 dried chillies
1 teaspoon of belacan (prawn paste)
1/4 teaspoon of salt
1 tablespoon of sugar
Other ingredients
2 hard boiled eggs (cut into half)
3 small fish (sardines or smelt fish)1 small cucumber (cut into slices and then quartered)
METHOD:
Satay
History
For hundreds of years, the humble, yet exotic dish known as satay has tantalized tastebuds across
Despite its murky origins – whether brought by Arab traders or Chinese merchants, they say - satay is synonymous with
Close analogues are yakitori from
Ingredients
- 1 lb. meat- chicken, beef
- 2 cloves of garlic
- 1 cup shallots
- 1 teaspoon coriander seeds
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
- 1/4 inch piece turmeric root
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1/4 cup evaporated milk
- 1 tablespoon cooking oil
- about 35 bamboo sticks
Peanut Sauce
- 8 dried chillies (soaked until soft). Remove the seeds if you do not like it too hot.
- 2 cloves of garlic
- 1/2 cup shallots
- 4 candle-nuts or substitute with macadamia nuts.
- 1/4 cup cooking oil
- 1 cup peanuts (finely ground)
- 1/4 cup thin tamarind juice ( get the tamarind paste, add a little warm water and squeeze the juice, strain)
- 1/4 cup evaporated milk diluted with 1 cup water.
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- salt to taste
For preparing satay :
- Cut meat into small thin pieces.
- Grind together until very fine: shallots, garlic, coriander seeds, cumin seeds & turmeric.
- Combine ground spices with salt & sugar.
- Season meat with the ground spices and let marinate.
- When you are ready to grill soak the bamboo sticks in water so they won't burn, skewer the meat with the sticks, don't overcrowd.
- Grill satay sticks over a charcoal fire (barbecue grill), basting occasionally with evaporated milk combined with oil. Or, for the brush, use the head of lemon grass, smash and flatten to resemble a brush.
For preparing the peanut sauce :
- Grind together until very fine: chillies, garlic, shallots & candle-nuts.
- In a wok or saucepan, fry ground ingredients in hot oil for 5 minutes.
- Stir in ground peanuts and tamarind juice.
- Bring to the boil.
- Add diluted milk and salt to taste and bring to the boil again.
- Serve with satay.
Naturally, if you're completely exhausted by all this preparation, go ahead and buy a bottle of peanut sauce at your Asian grocer.
Variations
While the popular kinds of satay are usually beef and chicken satays, different regions of
Satay Kajang
There are a number of well-known satay outlets are in Kajang, Selangor which is dubbed the
Satay Lok-lok from
Both are Malaysian Chinese twists of the hotpot and the Malay satay. Raw meat pieces, tofu pieces, century eggs, quail eggs, fish cake pieces, offal or vegetable pieces are skewered on bamboo sticks. These are cooked by being dipped in boiling water or stock. The satay is eaten with a blackish sweet sauce with or without chili sauce. If the satay is eaten with satay sauce, it is called satay lok-lok. If the satay is cooked with boiling satay peanut sauce, it is called satay celup. This is available either from street vendors or at certain restaurants. Most of them are non-halal.
Where to find Satay?
Satay Kajang Haji Samuri is very popular in Kajang as well as throughout
Wednesday, August 4, 2010
Laksa
Tuesday, August 3, 2010
Otak-Otak!
Introduction
Otak-otak is a cake made of fish meat. It is widely known across Southeast Asia, where it is traditionally served fresh, wrapped inside banana leaf, as well as in many Asian stores internationally - being sold as frozen food and even canned food.
Otak-otak can be found in certain places in Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore. The southern Malaysian town of Muar in Johor is a popular destination for it — people from surrounding states and even Singaporeans often visit to buy the famous otak-otak in bulk. It is also known as otah-otah, otah or otak. Otak means brains in Indonesian and Malay, and the name of the dish is derived from the idea that the dish some what resembles brains, being grey, soft and almost squishy. It can be eaten as a snack or with bread or rice as part of a meal.
Otak-otak is made by mixing fish paste (usually mackerel) with a mixture of spices.
Otak-otak Indonesia!
In Indonesia, the mixture contains fish paste, shallots, garlic, green onion, egg, coconut milk, and sago flour or can be substituted for cassava starch.
In Malaysia, it is a mixture between fish paste, chillies, garlic, shallots, turmeric, lemon grass and coconut milk. The mixture is then wrapped in a banana leaf that has been softened by steaming, then grilled or steamed.
While fish otak-otak is most common, otak-otak is also made with prawns, often resulting in a more textured variety. In Muar, you will also be able to find otak-otak made from cuttlefish, fish head and even chicken.
In Jakarta, Indonesia, one could find otak-otak being sold in small stalls near bus stops, especially during afternoon rush hour. Some of the best otak-otak can be found in another Indonesian city, Makassar. The main ingredient is fresh King Mackerel Fish or known as King Fish.
Regional varieties
There are different forms of otak-otak originating from different regions.
In Indonesia, it is originated from Palembang, South Sumatra. However, other regions in Indonesia have been populared for their otak-otak as well such as Jakarta and Makasar. In Palembang, people eat otak-otak with cuko (Palembangese spicy tamarind sauce). While in Jakarta, they enjoy it with spicy peanut sauce.
Nyonya otak-otak (Malay: otak-otak Nyonya), with Peranakan origins, from the northern Malaysian state of Penang, is steamed as a cake in pandan leaf. However, otak-otak from Indonesia, the south of Malaysia and Singapore is wrapped up as a thin slice using banana or coconut leaf and grilled over a charcoal fire. As a result, it ends up reddish-orange, drier and with a more distinct smoky fish aroma. Other varieties of otak-otak do exist.
Although otak-otak is traditionally made with fish meat, modern versions of otak often utilize crab or prawn meat. Similar Indonesian dish with cooking method employs banana leaf is called pepes. Other types of otak-otak include dishes called pais ikan, botok, and sata that are made of fish paste cooked in banana leaves.
Sata of Terengganu, Malaysia
Central Europe
A quite similar variety called Szczecin paprikas (Polish: Paprykarz szczeciński) is made by mixing fish paste (around 40%) with rice, onion, tomato concentrate (including vegetable oil), salt with a mixture of spices including chilli pepper powder. It is only available as canned food. Due to larger content of the fish paste, it has more distinctive taste than its Asian version, it is also more spicy than otah.
Origins
After 1960, a Polish fishing company (Przedsiębiorstwo Połowów Dalekomorskich i Usług Rybackich) "Gryf" from Szczecin started fishing and harvesting operations near the coasts of West Africa. Crews of reefer ships were exposed to varieties of African food, including chop-chop - a paste made of minced fish meat (especially pagrus meat) and pima. In 1965 company's laboratories released the first series of artificially designed paste, where African spices were replaced with cheaper ingredients available in Europe.
The creation of the Szczecin paprikas was the side effect of "leftover management" in the company's production facilities. The paste contained pieces left after cutting ice blocks with frozen fishes (various species).
Since then, the product has been exported to over 32 countries, including USA, Japan, Jordan, Liberia, Côte d'Ivoire and Togo. Currently it is produced by various firms in Central Europe (mainly Poland, Eastern Germany and Czech Republic); usually based on alaska pollocks and white rice.
Trivia
In the beginning of the People's Republic of Poland era (1950+) the quality of Szczecin paprikas degraded as fish scales, flippers and other parts were added and mixed with the paste.
In Colombia, due to its popularity, the Polish product was forged and sold with a label "Made in Europe".
Original Szczecin paprikas contained tomato pulp imported from Hungary and Bulgaria.
Szczecin paprikas has a fan page on (Polish) Facebook.
Ingredients :
- 500g Fish - mackerel, salmon, threadfin or barramundi
- 250ml Thick coconut milk
- 2 pieces Small hen eggs or one duck egg
- 4 pieces Kaffir lime leaves, spines removed and leaves finely sliced or shredded
- 20 pieces Betel leaves or young spinach leaves
- Freshly ground white pepper
- Pinch of sugar and salt to taste
- Banana leaves or ramekins or oven dish or foil for containers
Paste Spices:
- 5 pieces Fresh chilies, sliced
- 1 stalk Lemongrass, finely sliced
- 2 slices Galangal, chopped
- 2.5cm Fresh turmeric of one tsp turmeric powder
- 5 pieces Candlenuts, roasted
- 1 piece Shrimp paste, approx. 1.5cm by 1.5cm
- 2 cloves Garlic, sliced
- 5 stalks Shallots, sliced
Method :
- Prepare fish by cleaning, skinning and flaking the flesh.
- Pound the spices, using a mortar and pestle, to a paste, adding the spice ingredients one by one in the order in which they are listed above.
- In a large mixing, add in the fish, pounded spices, coconut milk, eggs, salt, sugar and lime leaves and gently stir to mix thoroughly by hand.
- Make banana-leaf parcels for steaming as follows - Cut banana leaves in pieces of approx. 20cm square and gently heat them over an open flame until softened.
- Place three betel leaves overlapping in the center of the banana leaf, then spoon 2 - 3 heaped tablespoons of the mixture on top.
- Pleat in the sides, then fold one side of the pleat to the front and one side to the back. Repeat on the other side to encase the content loosely, in order to have room for expansion.
- Secure top with a toothpick or staples.
- Place the parcels on the rack of a steamer and allow approx. 20 minutes of steaming time or until cooked and set.
- Serve each parcel in its banana-leaf wrapper.
Where to find Otak-otak?
Otak-otak can be found widely in night market and restaurant. It may cost you around RM 0.60 per piece.
Friday, July 30, 2010
E-0-16, Plaza Damas,
Sri Hartamas
Kuala Lumpur
Kg Tanjung Langsat, Pasir Gudang, Johor Bahru
Johor,
1.6 kg yellow noodles
250g chicken, cooked, shredded
3 hard boiled eggs, cut into quarters
400g beansprouts, blanched
Mee Bandung Gravy
200g prawns, cooked and peeled
3 liter water
100g shallots, peeled, sliced
60g garlic, peeled, sliced
80g ginger, crushed
90g Chinese celery, sliced
100g ripe tomatoes, sliced
40g Beef Broth
50g Prawn Cube
200g tomato ketchup
45g chilli boh
50g sugar
30g red chillies, sliced
50g shallots, sliced, fried
10 key lime (calamansi will be better)
100g peanuts, roasted, grounded
1 egg white
Garnish
40g spring onions, sliced
40g Chinese celery, sliced
Method:
Mee Bandung Gravy
1. Bring a pot of water to a boil. Add in sliced shallots, garlic, local celery, tomatoes and crushed ginger. Reduce to low heat and simmer for 3-5 minutes.
2. Add in beef broth , prawn cube, tomato ketchup and chilli boh. Stir well and adjust seasoning with sugar to taste.
3. Simmer for 5 minutes and strain.
4. Put the pot holding the gravy back on the stove and gradually add in beaten egg white. Remove and keep warm.
To serve:
1. Blanch yellow noodles in a pot of boiling water for a few seconds.
2. Remove, strain and place it into serving bowls.
3. Add in sliced fish cake and blanched beansprouts.
4. Pour in hot Bandung gravy and garnish with shredded chicken, sliced spring onions, local celery, chillies, fried shallots and calamansi.
5. Sprinkle with grounded peanuts and serve hot.