Laksa

Laksa is a popular spicy noodle soup from the Peranakan culture, which is a merger of Chinese and Malay elements found in Malaysia and Singapore, and to a lesser extent Indonesia.

History

The origin of the name "laksa" is unclear. One theory traces it back to Hindi/Persian lakhshah, referring to a type of vermicelli. It has also been suggested that "laksa" may derive from the Chinese word "la sha", meaning "spicy sand" due to the ground dried prawns which gives a sandy or gritty texture to the sauce. The last theory is that the name comes from the similar sounding word "dirty" in Hokkien due to its appearance.

However, others believe it is of Chinese origin, the dish having been brought in by immigrants and adapted to local tastebuds. The ingredients in variant Laksas point to obvious Peranakan influences although the use of mint leaves and the sour flavour of also suggest Thai influences.

Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons of oil

• 2 cups of coconut milk

• 100g (3 1/2 oz) of prawns, shelled

• 100g (3 1/2 oz) of squid, cleaned, skinned and sliced

• 6 fresh scallops (optional)

• 6 cakes dried deep-fried beancurd (tau foo pok)

• salt and pepper to taste

• 200g (7 oz) of fresh rice-flour noodles (laksa), blanched in boiling water, or dried rice vermicelli (beehoon), soaked to soften

• 1 cup of beansprouts

• 2 sprigs laksa leaf, chopped roughly

• 6 quail's eggs or 1 hen's egg, hard-boiled and peeled

• 2 table spoons of fried shallots

For Spice Paste:

• 12 shallots

• 4 cloves garlic

• 6 candlenuts

• 5 cm (2 inches) ginger

• 4 red chillies

• 2 tablespoons of dried prawns, soaked to soften

• 1 teaspoon of dried shrimp paste (belacan)

• 2 lemon grass, bruised

Method

•Prepare the spice paste. Chop the shallots, garlic, candlenuts, ginger and chillies coarsely and blend or process with the dried prawns and a little of the oil until fine. Then, mix in the curry powder and dried shrimp paste, blend for a few seconds longer, then set aside with the lemon grass.

•Heat the remaining oil in a wok or a heavy pan.

•Add the spice paste and cook over low heat, stirring constantly, for about 5 minutes until the paste is fragrant. After that, add coconut milk and chicken stock and bring to the boil, stirring.

•Put in all the seafood and the beancurd and simmer until it is cooked.Then, season to taste.

•Lastly, to serve, divide the noodles and beansprouts among 4-6 bowls. Top with the coconut milk gravy, eggs and sprinkle with laksa leaf and fried shallots.

Variations

There are two basic types of laksa: curry laksa and asam laksa. Curry laksa is a coconut curry soup with noodles, while asam laksa is a sour fish soup with noodles. Thick rice noodles also known as laksa noodles are most commonly used, although thin rice vermicelli (bee hoon or mee hoon) is also common and some variants use other types.

a ) Curry Laksa

Curry laksa (in many places referred to simply as “laksa”) is a coconut-based curry soup. The main ingredients for most versions of curry laksa include tofu puffs, fish sticks, shrimpand cockles. Some vendors may sell chicken laksa. Laksa is commonly served with a spoonful of sambal chilli paste and garnished with Vietnamese coriander, or laksa leaf, which is known in Malay as daun kesum.

This is usually known as "Curry mee" in Penang rather than curry laksa, due to the different kind of noodles used (yellow mee or bee hoon, as opposed to the thick white laksa noodles). Curry Mee in Penang uses congealed pork blood, a delicacy to the Malaysian Chinese community. Two of the most well-known places to try curry mee is at Lorong Seratus Tahun and Chulia Street.

The term "Curry laksa" is more commonly used in Kuala Lumpur or Singapore. Laksa is popular in Singapore and Malaysia, as are laksa yong tau foo, lobster laksa, and even plain laksa, with just noodles and gravy.

Variants of curry laksa include:

Laksa lemak, also known as nyonya laksa (Malay: Laksa nyonya), is a type of laksa with a rich coconut gravy. Lemak is a culinary description in the Malay language which specifically refers to the presence of coconut milk which adds a distinctive richness to a dish. As the name implies, it is made with a rich, slightly sweet and strongly spiced coconut gravy. Laksa lemak is usually made with a fish-based gravy (with vegetarian food stalls omitting fish) and is heavily influenced by Thai laksa (Malay: Laksa Thai), perhaps to the point that one could say they are one and the same.

Laksam, a speciality of the Northeastern Malaysian states of Kelantan, Terengganu and Kedah, is made with very thick flat white rice flour noodles in a rich, full-bodied white gravy of boiled fish and coconut milk. Though usually made of fish flesh, it is sometimes made with eels. Traditionally laksam is eaten with hands rather than with eating utensils due to the gravy's thick consistency.

Katong laksa (Malay: Laksa Katong) is a variant of laksa lemak from the Katong area ofSingapore. In Katong laksa, the noodles are normally cut up into smaller pieces so that the entire dish can be eaten with a spoon alone (that is, without chopsticks or a fork). Katong laksa is a strong contender for the heavily competed title of Singapore's national dish.

b) Asam Laksa

Asam laksa is a sour fish-based soup. Asam (or asam jawa) is the Malay word for tamarind, which is commonly used to give the stock its sour flavor. It is also common to use "asam keping" also known as "asam gelugor", dried slices of tamarind fruit, for added sourness. Modern Malay spelling is asam, though the spelling assam is still frequently used.

The main ingredients for asam laksa include shredded fish, normally kembung fish or mackerel, and finely sliced vegetables including cucumber, onions, red chillies, pineapple, lettuce, common mint, "daun kesum" (Vietnamese mint or laksa mint) and pink bunga kantan (ginger buds). Asam laksa is normally served with either thick rice noodles or thin rice noodles (vermicelli). It is topped off with "petis udang", a thick sweet prawn/shrimp paste.

Variants of asam laksa include:

Penang laksa (Malay: Laksa Pulau Pinang), also known as asam laksa from the Malayfor tamarind, comes from the Malaysian island of Penang. It is made with mackerel (ikan kembung) soup and its main distinguishing feature is the asam or tamarind which gives the soup a sour taste. The fish is poached and then flaked. Other ingredients that give Penang laksa its distinctive flavour include lemongrass, galangal (lengkuas) and chilli. Typical garnishes include mint, pineapple slices, thinly sliced onion, hε-ko, a thick sweet prawn paste and use of torch ginger flower. This, and not 'curry mee' is the usual 'laksa' one gets in Penang.

Perlis laksa' (Malay: Laksa Perlis) is similar to Penang Laksa but differs in garnishing used such as catfish and eel fish. The famous Perlis laksa can be found in Kuala Perlis.

Kedah laksa (Malay: Laksa Kedah) is very similar to Penang laksa and only differs in the garnishing used. Sliced boiled eggs are usually added to the dish. Kedah laksa used rice to make a laksa noodle. The famous laksa in Kedah is Laksa Telok Kechai.

Ipoh laksa (Malay: Laksa Ipoh), from the Malaysian city of Ipoh, is similar to Penang laksa but has a more sour (rather than sweet) taste, and contains prawn paste.

Kuala Kangsar Laksa (Malay: Laksa Kuala Kangsar), made of wheat flour (usually handmade). The soup is rather lighter than the common laksa taste and so much different from Ipoh Laksa in shape, taste and smell. The local municipal council even built a complex called "Kompleks Cendol dan Laksa" near the river bank of the Perak River. It is the main attraction for tourists in Kuala Kangsar.

c) Other variants

Several variants mix together coconut milk and fish and can be identified as either curry or asam laksa.

Johor laksa (Malay: Laksa Johor), from Johor state in southern Malaysia, resembles Penang laksa only in the kind of fish used but differs in everything else. Johor laksa has coconut milk, use kerisik, dried prawns, lemon grass, galangal and spices akin to curry. The garnishing comprises slices of onion, beansprouts (taugeh), mint leaves, Vietnamese coriander or 'daun kesum', cucumber and pickled white radish. Sambal belacan (a kind of chili paste) is placed on the side. Finally, just before eating, freshly squeezed lime juice is sprinkled on the dish. Unique to Johor laksa is its Italian connection - spaghetti is used instead of the normal rice noodles or vermicelli. Johor laksa is traditionally eaten using the hand and the noodles are usually knitted (cetak) into a disk for each serving.

Sarawak laksa (Malay: Laksa Sarawak) comes from the town of Kuching in the Malaysian state Sarawak, on the island of Borneo. It is actually very different from the curry laksa as the soup contains no curry at all. It has a base of Sambal belacan, sour tamarind, garlic, galangal, lemon grass and coconut milk, topped with omelette strips, chicken strips, prawns, fresh coriander and optionally lime. Ingredients such as bean sprouts, (sliced) fried tofu or other seafood are not traditional but are sometimes added.

Kelantan laksa (Malay: Laksa Kelantan) is the easiest laksa recipe that is famous among peoples from the town of Kota Bharu of theKelantan state, located at the east coast of Peninsular Malaysia. The main ingredient of Kelantan Laksa's sauce is 'ikan kembong' orround scad mackerel that are boiled and minced. The minced fish are fried with onions, garlic, ginger, datil pepper, belacan, 'kantan' flower, Vietnamese coriander or 'daun kesum', lemon grass and dried tamarind slice. Coconut milk will then be added as the final ingredient and stirred until it all mixed up and become thick. Kelantan Laksa is served just like the Italian spaghetti by adding 'ulam' (raw vegetables) and blended chili on the side. Another variable of Kelantan Laksa is 'Laksam'. The sauce's recipe are exactly the same but the noodles are a bit bigger and flat.

Bogor Laksa (Indonesian: Laksa Bogor) probably is the most famous Laksa variant in Indonesia from Bogor town, West Java. The thick yellowish coconut milk based soup is a mixture of shallot, garlic, kemiri (candlenut), kunyit (turmeric), ketumbar (coriander), sereh (lemongrass), and salt. The hot soup runs, drained, and filled several times into the bowl contains bihun (rice vermicelli), ketupat (glutinous rice cake), smashed oncom (similar to tempe but different fungi), tauge (bean sprout), kemangi (basil leafes), cooked shredded chicken and prawn, boiled egg, until all the ingredients is soft and cooked. Usually Laksa Bogor is served with sambal cuka (grinded chilli in vinegar).