Ipoh Mali Talak Sombong!

Fried Roti Telur

ipohwav3 — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 15:21:09 +0000

My first attempt on a recipe from Flavours! When I saw this recipe many months ago, (last year, in fact) I know I must try it out even though the description stated there “is a cholesterol bomb”. It’s very easy to prepare but do take note that since roti is already precooked with oil/ghee, I would suggest that you go easy on the oil when frying it the second time (you wouldn’t want your roti to be soaked in oil!).

I tweaked the recipe a bit since I was running out of ingredients:

2 pieces roti telur, shredded
1 tablespoon cooking oil
1 clove garlic, chopped
1/2 medium onion, cut according to your preference
thick chicken curry gravy and chicken meat (shredded) that comes with the roti
a little salt to taste

Heat oil in wok and sauté garlic and onion till fragrant.
Add the roti telur, mix well. Add in the chicken meat and curry gravy little by little and mix well till the roti are evenly coated.
Season with salt and serve immediately.

And here’s the Flavours version:

2 tablespoons oil
1 clove garlic, chopped
1/2 onion, sliced
2 bird’s eye chillies (cili padi), chopped (optional)
2 sprigs curry leaves
2 pieces roti canai, shredded
2 pieces curry chicken meat, shredded
3 tablespoons thick chicken curry gravy
salt to taste

Heat the oil in wok over medium heat. Sauté chopped garlic and onion till fragrant.
Add the chillies and curry leaves and fry until aromatic. Add the roti and meat, using the wok stirrer (if you’re using the metal stirrer) to “chop” up the mixture.
Add curry and “chop” some more, working the curry into the roti. Fry until dry and aromatic, seasoning to taste.

Alternatively, if you’re using plain roti canai, you can add eggs while you’re frying the onion and garlic before you add in the roti.

Bon appetite, everyone!

*Recipe courtesy of Flavours, page 58, July-August 2008 issue*

The King of Spare Ribs in Klang

ipohwav3 — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 04:48:09 +0000

Klan prides itself all these years as the infamous destination when you’re craving for Bak Kut Teh. Very few mention about its other local specialties, such as the Klang cendol and also, the King of spare ribs.

After my fourth trip to Bangkok last month, we went all the way to Klang for lunch at this hidden gem, as Eqhern needed to go to the JPJ office in Shah Alam. CK leads the way after I provided him the address. He has not heard of this place, eventhough he’s from Klang himself. The place is rather easy to find, located at the shophouses next to the mosque (talking about irony; pork and religion) and across the street, is where the Klang cendol shop located.

We ordered four dishes, and the Hakka Char Yuk (meatballs, RM 1.00 per piece) was the first to arrived. The texture resembles the humble Ipoh “sar kok liew” and redolent with Five Spices Powder (a combination of 5 types of spices usually used in Chinese cooking). Crisp on the outside and warm on the inside, this make a good starter.

The main star would certainly be the signature Hakka Paikut (or Pai Kuat, as pronounced in Cantonese, price starting from RM6). Peng Heong uses the boneless spare ribs cut, much to my delight as I don’t really fancy meat with bones attached. It looks very similar like char siew, except the fatty parts but still, it has the melt-in-the-mouth sensation nonetheless. Slightly sticky with the caramelized basting and served with its own marinade, the fillets were exceptionally tender and flavourful.

While the spare ribs was good, their Claypot Chicken Satay was just mediocre. The gravy was flavourful but we feel that it was rather heavy on the dried coconut taste (satay sauce usually doesn’t contain coconut but the four of us agreed that we tasted the same thing, so it’s not just my imagination). The credit of the dish would be the big chunks of tender chicken meat.

Peng Heong Hakka Paikut Restaurant
No. 2, Lorong Gudang Nanas,
Off Jalan Pasar, 41400 Klang.
Tel : 019-260 0855 or 012-236 9855.

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Everyone’s Cup of Tea

ipohwav3 — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 14:52:06 +0000

There’s a new vegetarian cafe in town.

No, no… don’t brush me off just yet. I’m seriously telling you the truth. If you’re tired with the NORMAL Chinese and Indian vegetarian food, give Chayo a try for something UNUSUAL at reasonable price. Apart from being a vegetarian cafe, Chayo uses only organic ingredients in their food and also runs a yoga studio, just above the cafe itself in Kelana Jaya Mall.

Together with Chris&Christine, Ivy Ai Wei, Citygal and another few friends, we paid Chayo a vist last month (thanks to Christine for the arrangement!), hence you will see a vast array of dishes we had that night. As for drinks, I personally like my Chayo Chocolate (RM 5.50, top left) with a little bit of spices that makes it rather interesting and the Orange Mango Delight (RM 4.90). Chris had the signature coffee with spice (top right). Both Mango Lassi and Coconut & Pineapple (bottom left and right) were rather ordinary though.

We were served with mostly vegetarian snacks such as the Tauhu Sumbat (RM 4.50) and Tikki Chat (RM 4.50). The tauhu sumbat was nothing to shout about. The tikki chat was rather good; made from potatoes and topped with cubed tomatoes, onion and coriander which very much resembles bruschetta.

I like their French Toast (RM 4.50) and Tofu Scramble (RM 7.90); the French toast wasn’t look or taste like the exact version as it was much darker in colour and served with molasses, but it was rather good. The tofu scramble was rather interesting (I think they tried to mimic scramble egg on toast) with mashed beancurd cooked with turmeric, onion and other spices and served on toasted bread.

Another interesting stuff, the Bombay Toast (RM 4.50). We couldn’t exactly determine what they used to make it but it was a little bit salty, mushy and spicy at the same time. Aloo Chat (RM 4.50) is a savoury potato salad with homemade sauce, potatoes, spices and coriander.

We also like the Mushroom Fried Rice (RM 6.50), served with homemade sambal. The Spaghetti Pesto (RM 9.90) was rather good as well but I would prefer a stronger basil taste to it. If you’re wondering, yes, Chayo does serve set lunch too such as the Indian set that comprised of capati with curry & fragrant cheese sauce, & spice tea.

I have returned to Chayo with WMW, where she found the prices were very reasonable for a cafe setting and the quality of the food there (they uses real onion for their onion rings and not those frozen type, lightly seasoned with pepper and spices). For your information, Chayo also serves organic Hari and Yogi tea imported from Netherlands and America.

Many thanks to Gurujaswant, the marketing director, Paramjot, the marketing manager, and Vasu for the warm invitation and attending to our needs graciously throughout the meal!

Chayo Cafe
50-1, Kelana Mall,
SS6/14, Kelana Jaya,
Petaling Jaya.
(next to Giant Kelana Jaya and UNITAR)

Tel: 03-7806 2675
Business Hours: 9am to 9pm daily.

Simple Spinach

ipohwav3 — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 16:32:22 +0000

I’m feeling rather uninspired lately (as what I told WMW as I’m typing this). Maybe I need to recharge myself (thank goodness I will be away for holiday this coming Saturday, can’t wait!)

Since I’m uninspired, here’s a short post on the latest stuff I experimented in my kitchen.

I rarely cook spinach cos the nearest supermarket doesn’t sell them, so I have to buy them at the local wet market instead. Mom usually just stir-fry it with garlic and I find it rather plain. So, I experimented it by adding more ingredients to it and that’s the result. It didn’t turn out to be as what I expected; it was rather watery and the eggs were way too mushy. Shall try to improvise it again another time.

I used:

2 cloves garlic, crushed and minced
300 – 400 grams of spinach, roots removed, rinsed in running water and chopped to preferred length
1 medium-sized egg, lightly beaten
a handful of anchovies, heads and innards removed and cleaned
1/2 cup of water
salt to taste

Directions:

Shallow fry the anchovies with medium heat, stirring constantly till it turns crunchy and golden brown. Dish up, drain on paper towel to remove excess oil and set aside.
Sauté the garlic till fragrant, then add in the spinach. Toss to mix well, season with salt. Add water and cover the wok/pan to let it simmer a while to soften the veggies.
Once most of the water evaporates and veggies tender, lower heat. Pour in the egg and mix them gently. Dish up and garnish with the crispy anchovies. Serve immediately.

Have a good weekend, everyone! I know I will.

Kechara Oasis, The New Age Vegetarian

ipohwav3 — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 15:38:31 +0000

While many vegetarian restaurants in town prepares their food based on the local tastebuds and are usually cater to the lower to middle class range, Kechara Oasis brought vegetarian dishes a notch up the scale. The newbie in Jaya One, PJ serves vegetarian dishes with a touch of Tibetan, Chinese, Vietnamese and Nepali in a fine dining concept.

Oh, and before I forget, “Tashi Delek” everyone! That is an auspicious greeting in Tibetan

CK and me were there 2 months ago with KampungBoyCityGal, Ivy Ai Wei and VKeong (finally able to meet up with Vkeong in person!) upon invitation from Kechara Oasis’ management. After we were ushered into a private VIP dining room, we were served the exotic Tibetan Butter Tea (RM 12.80 per litre) which is kept warm in a flask. Also known as “pho cha”, Tibetan drink the tea to provide energy and to warm their body in high altitude. We were warned beforehand that we might find the tea too exotic for our tastebuds but surprisingly, we found it to be very acceptable. The tea was smooth, buttery and a little bit salty at the same time. Best to have it while it’s still warm or the greasiness might get to you when it’s cooled.

5 Mandala of Prosperity (RM 58 for small, top left) is a platter of skewered BBQ “pork”, butter mushrooms, “luncheon meat” and stir fried snow peas with lily bulbs. The BBQ “pork” were rather good. The Kechara Salad (RM 38 for regular portion) taste very similar like the Chinese “yee sang”, Vietnamese Spring Rolls (RM 13.80) and YuXiang Eggplant (RM 20). The eggplant with minced mock meat and bean paste was quite good and flavourful but IMHO (in my honest opinion), it’s rather pricey.

I personally like the Tibetan Vegetable Momo (RM 21), which were firstly steamed, then pan fried till golden. The skin wasn’t that thick despite its appearance. The filling was rather bland but juicy. Try dipping them into the accompanied chilli oil.

Everyone loved the Golden Pocket with Broccoli (RM 20, top pic) as the filling was juicy and flavourful; the Fish Head Meehoon (RM 20) was cooked in a healthier way by substitute vinegar with sour plum. I don’t quite like it as they also add in preserved vegetables in it. The level of sourness is adjustable upon request.

Another crowd pleaser dish, Kechara Oasis’ Fried Chicken (RM 17) was a delight in every bite. The texture and taste replicates the real stuff very well and if I’m to be blindfolded, I don’t think I could tell it’s vegetarian. Kudos to the chef for the great job!

Their vegetarian dessert were pretty impressive too. A simple one such as this Red Bean Banana Roll (RM 10) is perfect for those who wanted something not too sweet. The red bean layer compliments the banana slices very well.

And lastly, some Crystal Fruit Dessert (RM 10). The rest find it tastes like custard inside but I think it’s made of mug bean (green bean).

Overall, I find the dishes were rather okay, with some hit and misses but a refreshing new concept apart from the usual local-influenced vegetarian fare. The price might be on the high side, but considering that the profits goes to Kechara House and Kechara Soup Kitchen (a charity community programme dedicated to provide food and medical care to the homeless folk in Klang Valley), I think it’s worth every cents you paid.

Kechara Oasis New Age Vegetarian Cuisine
Unit 19-LG1, Level B1, Block D Jaya One,
No. 72A, Jalan University,
46200 Petaling Jaya,
Selangor.
Tel: 03-7968 1818
Fax: 03-7968 8118

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Pork Noodles @ Pomander, SS15 Subang Jaya

ipohwav3 — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 13:27:24 +0000

My first entry after my hard disk incident. Luckily I still keep some of the latest photos in my camera, so I was able to share this delicious pork noodles in Subang Jaya with those who hasn’t heard of this place yet.

My housemate is a big fan of pork. He once worked in Subang area before and raved about this very good pork noodles which was situated near Carrefour. The stall then moved to its current location at SS15 but he doesn’t know where they shifted. Luck smiles on him when he accidentally discovered the stall’s new location on his GPS the other day!

He warned me beforehand that the owner cooks the noodle bowl-by-bowl and not in batches, or multiple pots so it would take up to 45 minutes for our orders to arrive. And true enough, we actually waited for almost 40 minutes for the noodles! A regular bowl of noodles of your choice with minced pork, intestines, pork liver, lean pork, vegetables and a sprinkle of deep fried lard crisps costs RM4.50 and large at RM5.50. The soup was sweet from the long hours from boiling of pork bones and meat, very flavourful. No evidence of MSG as we didn’t feel thirsty after the meal.

There are other stalls selling chee cheong fun (CCF), chicken rice and some pastries such as egg tarts here as well, so you can order something else to munch on while waiting for your noodles to arrive.

Pork noodles @ Restoran Pomander
No. 78, Jalan SS15/4B,
47500 Subang Jaya.

Read also entries from Masak-Masak, BlueePinkk, Lots of Cravings and LessThanTen.

Hard Disk Crashed

ipohwav3 — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 01:32:33 +0000

Hello dear readers/fellow bloggers,

Just thinking of updating you, that my hard disk drive crashed last Sunday when I was trying to edit some photos for the next post. I didn’t do any back up before this (DVD writer was faulty and I didn’t bother to replace it), hence all my photos taken in the past 2 years (food/travel/gathering etc) and music files were all gone in seconds. *heartache heartache* >_<"

I would take it to my friend for diagnose and if possible, try to recover the files *fingers crossed*. In the meantime, there won't be any post on Guilin. I will still try to post some updates with another computer (need to learn how to edit photos with Adobe Photo Elements), so do come back once a while to see what's new in the house.

Guilinese Good Luck Restaurant, Zheng Yang Pedestrian Street

ipohwav3 — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 12:58:23 +0000

*continued from Going Guilin, Day 2

Night falls, and we hunt for suitable place for dinner. Initial plan was to go to Yi Yuan Restaurant, which was recommended by Lonely Planet but the guys were rather lazy after a whole day of walking around, hence we just drop by Zheng Yang Pedestrian Street nearby our hostel for dinner. The crowd outside Guilinese Good Luck Restaurant seems promising, so we decided to give it a try.

Kelvan was rather adventurous and went ahead to order stir fried snails! It doesn’t look like escargot to me but I braved myself to taste it. Stir fried with red chillies and garlic, it was rather chewy with an unknown pungent smell at first bite and crispy tail (does snail have tail?). Calvin didn’t touch it at all. We couldn’t finish it in the end.

Can’t remember what duck is this (probably Pipa Duck). The skin was crackling crispy but a bit too skinny and not much meat to be enjoyed.

Perhaps the best dish of the night was the Black Bean Fish with Chillies. Deep fried fish tossed with black beans and chillies, at first glance, it looked like those canned black bean fish from China (except the fish is freshly cooked). A little salty on its own but goes well with rice.

The beancurd with jerky pork and chillies also not bad but we would certainly prefer the smooth, firm beancurd rather than the coarse, rubbery type that we had. We also had the Pork and Papaya soup which was very lardy (from long hours of boiling of the fatty pork, resulting a layer of whitish foam on top of the soup!). We didn’t finish that as well.

Guilinese Good Luck Restaurant
No. 10, Zhengyang Road, Guilin.
Phone: 0773-2829 542
Open daily: 11:30am-1am.
*Credit cards are not accepted.

*to be continued

Going Guilin, Day 2

ipohwav3 — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 14:24:32 +0000

*continued from Going Guilin, Day 1*

After one whole day of walking in Yangshuo, we were finally back to Guilin city. We woke up rather early (biological clock indicates that we should get up in between 8.30am – 9.00am… duh) and after hit the shower, we took a short walk around our hostel area. The weather was still stuffy, warm and humid, just like yesterday and the haze doesn’t seem to be going away either.

*Porky pau from QuYuan Baozi, Guilin Rice Vermicelli, honeydew ice cream, Dan Chao Fan, red bean muffin*

We walked pass by a small shop named QuYuan Baozi selling pau and decided to grab one (0.60 Yuan ~ RM0.30! Very cheap!). The pau skin was a little chewy but the pork filling was yummy; very juicy and flavourful. Most of the shops were still closed that time except for some eateries. We then remembered that Lonely Planet strongly recommends Guilin Rice Vermicelli, a local breakfast staple food which can be found in any corner of the city. Saw another small shop with people slurping their noodles, hence we popped in and ordered the rice vermicelli. Blanched thick rice vermicelli, topped with peanuts, scallions, thinly sliced roast pork and some stock (to keep the noodle moist). There were some other condiments where you can choose to add to your noodle such as chopped preserved vegetable, chopped long beans and so on but we just went for the basic; hot chilli flakes. It looked rather plain at first sight but very delicious! The vermicelli was springy, it’s such a delight to bite on.

*Senior citizens learning Latin and Tango dances at the park by the river*

Merely a kilometre walk from our hostel is the Wang Cheng, a 14th century Ming prince’s mansion (now home to Guangxi Normal University). Entrance fee is 15 Yuan and the mansion houses the famous Solitary Beauty Peak, a 152 metres high pinnacle which offers a fine view of the city. When you enter, the ladies at the gate will usher you to one of the guide, who will explain the history of the mansion as you walk around the area.

*Views inside Wang Cheng Mansion, examination area, taking the Chinese examination*

The interesting part of the mansion would be the examination area. Ancient Chinese government chose their civil servants and officers through a strict and tough examination process, where thousands of Chinese who wanted to work with the government would come from all over the region to sit for the exams. The exam takes 3 days and the candidates would have to sit in a cramped, small place. Whoever passed the exam with flying colours will instantly be promoted as a government officer. We had the chance to actually sit in the “examination cubicle” (one cubicle can actually fits two medium sized adults) and “took” the exam (just write your name on the “examination paper” will do!).

*View above Solitary Beauty Peak, the steep stairs, Spicy Dan Chao Fan*

When we left the mansion, it was already pretty late. We decided to take a short boat cruise along Li River, where one can see the Elephant Trunk Hill, a famous landmark and tourist attraction.

*to be continued*

Going Guilin, Day 1

ipohwav3 — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 14:52:41 +0000

I must admit that China wasn’t my preferred choice when it comes to vacation. Being a “banana” (Chinese who can’t understand Mandarin) myself, it would be difficult in terms of communication – my first concern. But if I’m going with three friends where two of them are Chinese educated, then that’s a different story afterall.

Known as “Sweet Osmanthus”, Guilin got its name in 1940 and is located at the north-east of Guangxi region, China. It was a well-known tourist destination due to its unique scenery, thanks to the picturesque karst landscape but I have not heard about it until last year. Our plan was to visit Yangshuo, a typical backpackers small town located 2 hours (by bus) away from Guilin on first day, so as soon as we arrived at our hostel, we took bus to Yangshuo.

It was very hot and humid in Yangshuo, as it was still in summer. Our initial plan once we arrived here is to take the bamboo rafting along Yulong River, visit the Moon Hill and Lotus Cave but because the places are located quite a distance from each other, it would takes time to travel from one place to another. Furthermore, we wouldn’t want to risk the chance of missing the local folk musical, Impression Liu Sanjie by China’s famed director, Zhang Yimou (who directed Hero, Curse of The Golden Flower and Beijing’s Olympic opening and closing ceremonies), so we decided to cancel our sight-seeing plans and stay in the town instead. Tips: If you’re to explore the scenic places in Yangshuo, it would be better if you spend a night here.

*Top pic – traffic condition in China is scary; Bottom left – scene from the wet market; Bottom right – A curving karst hill with shophouses in foreground.

The guys were famished and hungry, so we decided to hunt for food (late lunch). Saw a shop with plenty of claypots at the front, and they decided to give it a try.
For your info, Yangshuo’s specialty is the Beer Fish, which is popular with tourists but we didn’t order that. Instead, the guys opted for Beer Duck (top right) which doesn’t have any beer taste to it and the meat were rather tough too; Pork with Yam (kao yuk) which was rather good; the stir-fried lotus root looked plain but good nonetheless (bottom left); and Brinjal with Minced Pork.

*Typical scenes you can see in Yangshuo – fruit that resembles peach, lotus pond, fruit market, the shopping area West Street, hot air balloon and KFC.
We then spent a few hours walking around the town, window shopping and taking pictures before we wandered into West Street, a popular street with plenty of small shops selling souvenirs like shirt, accessories, paintings, silk and potteries. It has its own charm which makes you feel like you’re in some typical old China town. And before the show, the guys took a break at KFC (cos there’s air conditioner!) but couldn’t resist the smell of fried chicken wafting thru the air, so they grabbed a KFC burger with chestnut cream.

Tickets to the show can be purchased at local travel agent at around 150 Yuan (RM80+/-). They will arrange transport for you to bring you in and out of the show area but it’s a rather troublesome and time consuming process. Buses, vans, cars, cabs, motorcycles, bicycles are all streaming towards the small courtyard of the entrance gate and we waited for about 30 minutes to get into the seating area. But the show worth all the waiting and hassles, really. It takes places on the river (the stage is the river itself!) with karst hills as the backdrop, complete with light show. The breathtaking show, by all means, is the most magical show I have ever watched so far.

*to be continued