The Gluttons hit Penang for an Epic Food Trip

Several moons ago, there was Penang food itinerary that kinda went viral on social media. On that particular list, they’ve scheduled to eat a famous Penang dish every hour. Being the gluttons we are, we decided to take up the challenge and do an Epic Penang Food Trip. Travel plans were made, and I’ve spent a few days researching, coming up with a list. We even went super low carb for a week in anticipation of this trip.

So the day finally came, we touched down at Penang Airport at 8:30 am (yes, we were dedicated enough to take the first flight out of KL) and were picked up by Kevin’s BFF, Clarence; who’s a Penang local. The first thing he said? “You know what? F**k the list and let’s go to places that only locals go!” Who are we to say no to that right?

Our first stop was Genting Cafe, located at Island Glades, Greenlane. This place is known for its Pork Leg Rice, Chee Cheong Fun and Curry Mee. Unfortunately the day we visited the CCF was not available and we were a little too early for the Pork Leg Rice. But at least we got the Curry Mee.

I found this to be just alright. The broth is a bit on the thin side and the chilli was not as hot as I’d like (Hot Bowl Curry Mee being the benchmark), but the toppings were nice. It was a bit early for curry mee though for me.

Kueh Tiaw Th’ng is common Penang breakfast. The texture of the noodles was quite good, though the soup was nothing to shout about. Just a light noodle dish to start off the day.

Loh Mee here is alright. The gravy has good flavour and worked well with the sambal.

Sneaked a photo of him.

We headed to Georgetown after to suss out some of the dishes I’ve listed. One of which was Tiger Char Koay Teow found at Kafe Ping Hooi on Lebuh Carnarvon.

This particular stall is frequently listed as one of the Top CKT in Penang. There wasn’t a queue as it was still rather early (just before 10 am). Unfortunately, this Char Koay Teow was rather ordinary, it didn’t really hit the spot for us.

Located on the same street is the Famous Pitt Street Koay Teow Thng, made with Eel balls. We went to check it out, but look at the size of the crowd!

It was already getting pretty hot at that stage and we weren’t going to stand in line for this. So we gave up. Next time perhaps we should do it first thing in the morning.

Clare decided to bring us to try the Char Koay Teow that he likes. So off we went to Ho Ping Coffee Shop, on Penang Road.

This one actually tasted better than Tiger, with distinct charcoal taste and enough wok hei to flavour the noodles. The spicy version is better though.

We ordered the Rilwana Mee Goreng but it wasn’t anything to shout about.

We took a little walk through Penang Road and visited Chowrasta Market, the newly refurbished space looks really good!

We spotted these super cute Link Bike, a newly launched Bike Sharing System, an initiative by Penang city council to make Penang a greener city.

Has anyone been on one of these?

Chowrasta Market is still occupied by a row of secondhand bookstores, the nerd in me was a little excited to spot these Medical textbooks.

It was nearly hitting lunch time and we decided to drop our stuff at the hotel and then continued on with our journey. Next stop, New World Park. Built as a food, shopping and lifestyle hub, it hosts several fine dining restaurants, casual cafes and also home to a popular food court. We ordered a few things to share.

I enjoyed the Yam Cake here, which has nice chunky yam bits which lend a lovely aroma to the kueh.

I had to order the Oyster Omelette (Oh Chien). Clare said that he would be bringing us to the best Oh Chien ever and refused to touch this one. I thought it was ok though, the oysters were fresh enough and egg vs starch ratio was quite balanced.

Hot day warranted Ice Kacang, the mixed fruit version definitely hit a sweet spot.

I’m not a huge fan of Otak Otak, but this version tasted fresh, aromatic with soft chunks of fresh fish. Quite good.

The stop on our trip was rather unexpected. There’s an Indian uncle who sells Laksa and Popiah on the bike by the roadside near CIMB bank at Pulau Tikus. This is been around for a very long time and a lot of regulars have been eating this since young.

Check out the plump golden popiah! The metal bottle on the side contains laksa broth. The recommended way of enjoying this combining the popiah and the laksa.

The broth here is a mixture of Assam and Nyonya laksa. It’s a little more on the light side, but the fish bits were all blended in already. Topped with the piquancy herbs and cucumber this is really quite addictive! Dipping the popiah in the laksa broth definitely elevated the whole experience.

He also sells Cucur Udang (Prawn Fritters), which also goes fabulously with Laksa broth. Yum!

We were joined by the rest of the makan team in the afternoon and the first place we hit was the Fort Cornwallis Food Court, which houses the Hameed Pata Mee Sotong.

I’ve had this Mee Goreng several years ago and was quite impressed. Though this time, everything is a just a little too sweet for our liking.

Mee Rebus version, also sweet.

Pasembur, which tasted strangely like a dessert, the sauce is super sweet with a hint of chocolate and milk, most peculiar.

Next stop, got to have the Teochew Chendul to cool down.

We chose to have it in a cup for convenience. The line there was insane too.

At this stage, we were all sweaty and rather full, but of course. A quick freshening up was all it needed for us to prepare for dinner. This time, the target is Keat Seng Kopitiam in Air Itam.

Remember we were supposed to try the best ever Oh Chien? Well, it’s located here! No mercy here and we ordered the biggest portion (RM16).

Looking that the juicy oysters! Upon our first bite, I gotta say, this is probably the best Oyster Omelette I’ve had in my life. The oysters were super fresh and briny, the eggy aroma mixed with the light starch makes the perfect texture. Completely with the chilli sauce that’s seasoned just nice. Perfection on a plate I tell you. And here, they do not skimp on the oysters either.

The Chee Cheong Fun here is generously doused in Hae Ko, which adds a fantastic umami taste. This is really good too.

We also shared a curry mee, which was a touch better than the one at Genting Cafe.

Surprisingly the Sar Hor Fun here is really tasty! We had it as the mixture of Mee Hoon and Hor Fun, the sauce is full of wok hei, and there were even slivers of pork liver, cooked perfectly.

The Char Koay Kak here is pretty popular too, but I’m personally not a fan of Penang style Koay Kak, which is slightly bland compared to the Sarawak type.

The Pai Tee was fully vegetarian I think, these were just ok.

Here’s a little food porn in the form of Apam Balik. Hehehe. I didn’t eat these because I can’t eat Peanuts.

Gluttons at work!

….. And that was the end of Day 1. We went back to the hotel with happy tummies. It was to be an early night because we needed to do Penang Hill in the morning.

Good Morning Penang! Picture heavily filtered to hide fat lol.

We initially wanted to do the full hike but seeing some of us had a plane to catch and we wanted to maximise eating time we chose to go up via the tram. It was still a full hour walk though. But not before some light fuel for the body.

Just some Toast and Eggs at the Food Court.

The Token Half Irish had Tiger for fuel. Crazy yo!

The View here is beautiful though.

Anyway, after working out for our meal, we headed to the Hawker Stalls located on Jalan Sekolah La Salle for our proper breakfast.

Since we haven’t had Hokkien (Prawn) Mee the day before, it’s only apt we gave this a go. The broth is excellent with the heady sweetness of prawns. The chili paste has a good kick too.

The same stall also serves Loh Mee and if you know the local lingo, you can order the Hokkien Cham Lor, which is a hybrid of the Prawn Mee with some Loh gravy. This adds a further depth of flavours to the noodles. Good stuff.

Surprisingly this Mee Goreng is pretty good, almost rivalling Bangkok Lane, though a little bit wetter.

Clare bought us some Bak Kwa sandwich, featuring a thick slice of Bak Kwa and a little bit of soy-based sauce. Very simple, but very moreish.

Couldn’t resist ordering the Char Koay Teow again and this is even better than the one we had the day before! Goes to say that a good plate of CKT doesn’t necessarily come from those super famous ones, and perhaps this is also very subjective to personal taste.

Phew! We definitely ate up a storm in Penang, and would very much repeat the experience again in the near future. Special thanks to our ‘uber driver’ and ‘tour guide’ for showing us what Penang food is REALLY about.

Rendang Tok Perak with Philips All-In-One Pressure Cooker

Unboxing a new kitchen appliance is always a very exciting affair. Especially when it’s as big as the Philips All-In-One Pressure Cooker. That’s right, I received my very own just a couple of weeks ago and have been cooking up a storm with it. The original Philips Pressure Cooker has been very helpful in our kitchen too, but with the addition of new functions, I don’t even have to cook on the stove very much anymore.

One of the very first dishes I made was, of course, the Rendang Tok Perak, which is well-documented in the book co-authored by Chef Marina Mustafa and Sara Khong, “One-Pot Wonders”. By the way, if you own a Philips All-In-One Cooker, this book is highly recommended, with details instructions on how to cook each dishes in either slow or pressure cooker mode, as well as conventional method (although who needs to use the conventional method with this?).

So, back to Rendang. Normally, it takes around 4-5 hours of cooking and you can’t go very far away from the stove as you’d have to stir it quite frequently to prevent burning. That’s why a lot of newer generation cooks don’t even bother anymore. But what if I tell you-you can make this dish in under 1hour, with almost the same result?

Of course, the very best rendang also lies in its ingredients. Make sure you use freshly squeezed coconut milk, the kerisik you choose should be those submerged in oil for the best flavour, and the quality of meat does matter.

As you can see here, my Rendang is a little bit on the wet side. And that’s because I didn’t let it cook till dry (it’s an additional 15 minutes or so). I happen to like the extra gravy and in fact I kept some for future use (Rendang goes fabulously with Pasta!). Anyway, here’s a video, shot and edited by none other than Kevin, hehe.

I’ve made beef rendang the traditional way in the past, and I honestly feel that this is just as delicious. And this was even better the next day when the flavours had the time to develop and the sauce continued to thicken as I left it in the pot to warm. Other things I’ve cooked with the Philips All-In-One Cooker includes a Kek Gula Hangus (that was amazing), Barbeque Pork Ribs, Pork Belly and Bittergourd Stew, Japanese Mille Feuille Nabe (Napa Cabbage and Pork hot pot). It has made my life so easy!

Rendang Tok Perak

Ingredients to marinate:
1kg beef, cut into 11/2 inch cubes
2 tbsp ground coriander
1 tbsp ground black pepper
1/2 tbsp ground fennel
1/2 tbsp ground cumin
2 tbsp ground cinnamon

Spice Paste (Blended)
2 large red onions
3 cloves garlic
1 inch ginger
2 inches galangal
4 stalks lemongrass
3 fresh turmeric root, removed skin

Other ingredients:
2 star anise
5 cardamons
5 cloves
2 cups thick coconut milk
1/2 cup grated palm sugar
1 tbsp Chili Paste (or a lot more…. if you want spicy)
2 tbsp tamarind paste, diluted in 1 cup of water, discard seeds
1/2 cup kerisik
2 tsp salt
3 pieces kaffir lime leaves
2 turmeric leaves, finely sliced

Pressure Cooker Method:

Rub the ground ingredients all over the meat and set aside until needed.
Open the lid of the Philips All-In-One Pressure Cooker and press “Saute/Sear High Temp” and press “Start”
Pour in oil when hot, add the blended ingredients, chili paste, whole spices and stir to mix.
Put in the marinated beef cubes and stir for 20 seconds.
Pour in coconut milk, tamarind juice, kaffir lime leaves & palm sugar. Stir til combined. (I accidentally added kerisik at this point but I don’t think it affected the outcome too much.
Close the lid and turn the valve to “Seal”
Press “Pressure Cook” button, choose “MEAT/POULTRY” and set the cooking time to 30 minutes (I actually set it to 40minutes because I prefer my beef more tender), press start.
When “Keep Warm” light flicks on the panel, the beef rendang is ready. Open the lid and put in the kerisik, season with salt if needed. Since I already added the kerisik earlier I didn’t have to do much except for letting it reduce a little by putting it on “Saute/Sear High Temp” function. If you prefer a very dry/flossy rendang you just have to continue searing until desired consistency.
Sprinkle with sliced turmeric leaves before serving.

Thank you Philips Malaysia for your fabulous product, I’ll continue to post more recipes soon.

For more information on the Philips All-In-One Cooker, refer to my post for the product launch or visit www.philips.com.my/pressurecooker

The Neverending Story at Just Heavenly Cafe, Bangsar Shopping Centre

Several weeks ago, I received an unusual invitation for an evening at Just Heavenly Cafe. By unusual, I meant it’s not just our normal food review evening where everyone just goes there, eat the food, socialised a little and leave the event. We were made to work for our food! That’s right, we had to exercise a little bit of our creativity for a little bit of social media detox.

This event is a collaboration between Just Heavenly, @the5tory and PenGallery.com. Just Heavenly is a brainchild of Nigel Skelchy and Allan Yap, while Allan also started crafting his own leather notebook; and PenGallery is an authorised dealer carrying large selections of pens.

Lai, founder of PenGallery.com brought his prized possession out for us to view: The Sailor Summer Haw Chinkin Maki-e Pen. Definitely the most expensive fountain pen I’ve ever seen, valued at RM68000! Chinkin means “Gold Inlay”, which is the method used to create the pen. Specialised chisel carved out the design, and the carving is then filled with gold and silver metal powder.

We were each given a fountain pen, to create our own artwork referring to the picture above. Which include the newly launched cake: “Play it again Sam”, a tribute to the late Samantha Schubert, Malaysian Actor and Model. This cake is a delicious triple decker melange of Bananas, Strawberries, and Chocolate all topped with fresh cream. Beautiful to look at, even more exquisite on the tongue.

A myriad of coloured ink for us to colour our art.

This was our collaborative effort. Kevin did most of the work, to be honest, but still, it was fun creating this together. Our cake looks like it’s dripping with blood.

Meena @llemongrass and Jason @smashpop won the contest, and they each received The Adventure Travellers Notebook. Made with 140gm paper, hand cut and hand sewn from beautiful leather lovingly by Allan Yap.

We then were treated to some delicious food. Including a sausage pasta with spicy tomato sauce. This is also part of their pasta lunch set, all priced at RM20++ with an Iced Lemon Tea, great value!

Their specially created Raya Cakes are also available in stores now, here are some of them:

Royal Gold, whole 6’tall butter cake, featuring Vanilla sponge with orange buttercream.

The Ukiran, 9′ fondant cake. Chocolate fudge fans will love this one!

Thank you Just Heavenly for the hospitality!

Follow @the5tory, @justheavenly_my and @pengallery for more updates!

Just Heavenly Cafe
3rd Floor
Bangsar Shopping Centre
Jalan Maarof
59000 Kuala Lumpur
10am-10pm daily

Jaya One branch
10am-8pm
Genting Skyavenue
10am to 10pm

Josper at Work, La Bodega Telawi Bangsar

In the sea of the ever-changing culinary landscape in Bangsar Telawi, La Bodega has truly stood the test of time. I believe it’s because of their friendly hospitality, consistently good food, attention to details and continued effort to reinvent themselves from time to time. Today, La Bodega has its name not only in the F&B scene but also in the entertainment industry.

A couple of weeks ago, we were invited to spend an evening at their Telawi outlet experiencing Josper@Work and Asia Beat with Lewis Pragasam, a combination of delicious food and live music. For those uninitiated, Josper Charcoal Oven is a combination of grill and oven in a single machine. You might have seen it advertised in a few restaurants. This device is great for sealing flavours of meat and seafood while retaining the signature charcoal smokiness. Every Saturday from 6pm there’s a special menu featuring dishes cooked with Josper, hence the name. Here’s their current menu.

We ordered a few selections suggested by them and sat back enjoying our drinks. First to arrive at our table was this majestic looking Grilled Squid (RM26).

The squid is served with Italian parsley, garlic and extra virgin olive oil. Simple seasonings but plenty of flavours. It’s cooked to perfection, not a second over. I might add this goes superbly well with wine too.

Our next dish was the Grilled Rainbow Trout (RM55), which came with grilled vegetables and Spanish Style sauce. I liked that the skin is slightly charred here while the flesh is still wonderfully tender. With produce this fresh, natural taste is best.

The meat component was satisfied with duos of Lamb skewers (RM28+/ 2 pcs RM50+/ 4 pcs). We got to taste both styles, the Moroccan with spicy harissa and the Peruvian Anticucho with Mojo Picon. Harissa is a hot, aromatic paste made from chilli and assorted other spices and herbs, versatile enough to use on pretty much anything. Pairing with Lamb is a good idea for its pungent flavour complement the meat well. The Mojo Picon is another variant of chilli sauce, with paprika, garlic and vinegar as main ingredients. As you can imagine the Peruvian Anticucho style is more piquant and refreshing.

We were getting pretty full by this stage (having a whole fish for 2 is not an easy feat, I can tell you), but we couldn’t resist ordering a dessert once we saw Creme Catalana on the menu.

Crema Catalana or Catalan Cream is the Catalan name and version of the often considered French dessert, crème brulée. Despite the French claim, however, there are many regions that lay claim to the origin of this popular dessert. Catalonia, in the northeast corner of Spain (near the French border), is one of them. But wherever it’s originated, still one of the best desserts ever invented. Here they do a pretty decent version, though the sugar coat is a little thinner. The custard is light, dissolving in your mouth leaving the aroma of vanilla (or coffee, for the other one). Delightful.

After dessert, we adjourned to upstairs for some live music, aka Asia Beat by Lewis Pragasam, featuring different artists each week. We had Helga on the mic and violin for us. I’ve watched her previously in another outlet too, this girl is definitely talented! Check the event flyer below for their June program.

Thank you, La Bodega for hosting us!

La Bodega Telawi (Bangsar Baru)
16-2, Jalan Telawi Dua,
Bangsar Baru,
59100 Kuala Lumpur,
Telephone: +603 2287 0848
Website: http://labodega.gastrodome.com.my/
Operating Hours: Monday to Sunday 8am till 2am

Traditional Meals Made Easier with the New Generation Philips All-In-One Pressure Cooker

The Holy month of Ramadhan is here, which means Raya is just around the corner. I don’t know about you, but I can’t help to associate Raya with good food. Rendang, Ketupat, Ayam Masak Merah, the list goes on. To prepare these dishes the traditional way it is often tedious and time-consuming. Well, today I’ll like to talk about a miracle product that’s going to be the super helper in our kitchen, The Philips All-In-One Pressure Cooker.

That’s right, the pressure cooker gets an upgrade and this time it comes with a lot more functions other than just pressure cooker, which to me is definitely good news! I was lucky enough to be invited to the launch of Philips All-in-one Cooker, held at the Yellow Apron in PJ, and we got a preview of how magic happens in the kitchen with this wonderful appliance.

“Ramadan and Raya is a time for families and friends to come together over a hearty meal and is typically a time for Malaysians to savour and appreciate delicious home cooked traditional Malay dishes such as rendang, curry and soup. However, the cooking process for some of these traditional recipes is time-consuming and can take up to several hours of slow cooking to achieve optimal flavour and texture in the dish. In line with our mission to help people improve their lives, Philips Malaysia wants to help you preserve traditions with modern innovations by helping you cook your favourite buka puasa and Raya dishes more conveniently, so you have more precious time to spend with your loved ones,” said Muhammad Ali Jaleel, Country Manager of Philips Malaysia.

“We have collaborated with Chef Marina Mustafa in conjunction with the launch of this new generation Philips All-in-One Pressure Cooker as she has a very innovative approach to preparing delicious healthy home cooked traditional meals. She shares our vision in offering easy yet delicious healthy recipes for consumers. With the new Philips All-In-One Pressure Cooker, this is certainly possible,” Ali added.

Formality aside, we were treated to a few Chefs demonstrating their raya recipes for us. First up, of course, we have Chef Marina Mustafa herself, cooking up the most anticipated Beef Rendang.

Traditionally, Beef Rendang takes at least 4-5 hours to cook, which is cut to dramatic 30minutes with the Pressure Cooker. The result? Same delicious taste with tender beef chunks. Heavenly!

Chef Jovin Lee cooked Lamb Shank Kurma for us. He actually used 2 different methods, one with slow cook function overnight and another with pressure cooking function. That’s right, this cooker can also slow cook, which means you can put all your ingredients in before leaving for work, then coming back to a delicious meal. Fabulous!

Miss Anna Sha demonstrated how she make Mee Rebus gravy with her own twist, using Sweet Potatoes for the natural sweetness.

You can also bake cakes with it! Here Chef Ichiro showed us how he makes the Burnt Sugar Cake (Kek Gula Hangus). This was my favourite, the cake is moist with nice depth of flavours, couldn’t have guessed it’s made with a Pressure cooker!

Fellow blogger Ruby made Acar Buah, using Stew function. Hmmm I can’t wait to get my hands on this to start cooking some exciting recipes. Will keep you all updated once I do!

More about the Philips All-In-One Pressure Cooker:

Equipped with an intelligent cooking system, the new generation Philips All-In-One Pressure Cooker offers a fully customisable cooking experience that allows you to slow cook or pressure cook, in just one appliance. You can also sauté, sear, bake, reheat and warm up your meals, all in the same machine. The Philips All-In-One Pressure Cooker allows you to cook eight times faster saving time and energy in the kitchen. The pressure cook function comes with various menu buttons for cooking and steaming a variety of dishes ranging from soup, risotto and rice to meat and poultry as well as bake cakes.

The aluminium alloy inner pot of the Philips All-In-One Pressure Cooker is durable and offers more effective heat conduction for a more thorough and even cooking result. It is coated with a special golden Whitford coating that is anti-scratch and non-stick. With an easy-to-programme timer that indicates cooking progress, the days of second guessing when your dish will be ready are over.

For your peace of mind, the new generation Philips All-In-One Pressure Cooker has nine safety protection systems and comes with a pressure regulator that is microchip-controlled. Right after cooking, the pressure regulator automatically turns on to release the pressure, so there is no need to discharge the pressure manually or wait for the pressure to drop naturally as the cooker cools. You can enjoy piping hot delicious homecooked food immediately right out of the pot!

Pricing and availability

Sold at a recommended retail price of RM799 (although I’ve seen some places selling them at special promotional price, you can check the Philips Pressure Cooker facebook group for more info), the Philips All-in-One Pressure Cooker (HD2137/62) is available at the Philips Brand Store in Publika Shopping Gallery and The Gardens Mid Valley, both in Kuala Lumpur, and in Sutera Mall, Johor Bahru; at Philips Experience Stores in Menara Axis, Petaling Jaya and in Penang; and at retail partners and distributor stores nationwide and online via Blip.my and the Philips Official Store on Lazada: http://www.lazada.com.my/philips-official-store/.

For more information, please visit www.philips.com.my/pressurecooker

Ruyi & Lyn, Bangsar Shopping Centre

Ever since Ruyi & Lyn opened its door to the masses back in June 2015, it sure has gotten people talking. I’m sure some of you might have seen their signature Nasi Lemak sushi which is essentially miniature nasi lemak served as a sushi. Yes, this provides a glimpse of what this place is about. The innovation of traditional food with a touch of fusion.

Yet, as you step into the place, you get a little disoriented at the sheer size of it. The red carpet, soaring ceiling with dancing light, met with a large stage and a DJ console. Is it a restaurant, a club, a lounge? Turns out it’s all of them. There are also private areas for more intimate affairs, as well as a cigar lounge, a balcony terrace and a sizable bar. The overall ambiance is classy, yet casual enough for all kinds of events.

RUYI represents a heartfelt desire of the good life. LYN is not only the name of the pretty owner, but also an acronym for Link Your Network: our dream of bringing people together – of all races, gender, religion, social backgrounds, and nationalities. Kinda reminds me very much of GEM Tang’s Get Everyone Moving.

The menu here is crafted by Executive Chef James Ho, a returning Malaysian with dreams of innovating the Malaysian food industry with his Pan Asian creations. He’s honed his skills in Singapore, Indonesia, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Thailand, Korea and Japan for the past 20 years. His skills are impeccable and his dishes are definitely photogenic, channeling a well of creativity.

We started our dinner with a Thai inspired Morning Glory Tempura (RM28), a savoury and sweet treat with its sesame sauce. Unlike the usual Thai version that’s encased in a thick batter, this one is super delicate. A good accompaniment to some alcoholic drinks.

Speaking of alcoholic drinks, Ruyi & Lyn has some impressive cocktails. We sampled a Bloody Mary that comes attached with a side of very tasty Ribbon pasta in Tomato sauce and capsicum. Talk about perfect food pairing!

The French Fries Soda is a cocktail made with Southern Comfort and I tasted hint of Apple and Cinnamon in this. This one is especially pleasing to the girls.

It is indeed creative to serve Deep Fried Soft Shell Crab in a form of Rojak (RM58), though this is probably the priciest rojak I’ve ever encountered. The crab is delicious though, covered in a sauce spiked with Ginger flower.

The Hot Chick (RM43) is basically Szechuan style chicken popcorn laced with dried chilies. I didn’t try it because I don’t eat Chicken to protect my throat, rest of them gobbled these up though.

The Dancing Fish (RM28) is part of their Ocean’s 8 promotion for May. The fish is fried to a crisp, then paired with a Patong Curry dipping sauce which is piquant and spicy, which is rather appetizing. I couldn’t resist taking the fish head which can be eaten as a whole, even.

Also part of the Ocean’s 8 Seafood promotion is the Indonesia Curry Prawn (RM28), served with Toasted Sesame Mantau. This is super fabulous, with a great depth of flavours. The mantau dipped in gravy is just divine. RM28 is a steal, so get this promotion before the month ends.

We also tried the Shanghai Fried Nian Gao (RM38), which was fried with eggs, crabmeat and XO sauce. The XO Sauce added a lovely umami taste to the dish and this was very comforting indeed with an extra decadent feel.

The last of our savoury course was this very impressive looking tray of Crab Curry Fried Rice (RM68). The curry sauce is incredibly rich, in fact, I couldn’t stomach much of it because it’s just a little too creamy for me. Apart from crab (obviously), there are also scallops and prawns in the mix.

We ordered some desserts though, and I have to say this Pistachio creme brulee is quite textbook, with the signature crust to crack, and the creamy custard that’s delightful to eat.

More cocktails! The Dancing Jim features whole Passionfruit, a slice of peach, and is a mixure of fruity sweet and sour. Good stuff.

Thank you Ruyi & Lyn for your hospitality! We even got to bring home a pack of these super addictive snack: Salted Egg Yolk Fried Chicken Skin!

That’s right, fried chicken skin is already delicious on its own but combined with salted egg yolk for that extra umaminess, this is a winner! Best yet, a pack of this is priced at only RM6. Although I think you best buy a few of them because one is definitely not enough. Hurry before offer ends!

Ruyi & Lyn
4th Floor Annexe
Bangsar Shopping Centre
Jalan Maarof
59000 Kuala Lumpur
Tel: 03-2083-0288

Opening hours:
Lounge
12.00noon-2.00am Mondays to Sundays

Restaurant
Lunch: 12.00noon-3.00pm (last order at 2.30pm)
Dinner: 6.00pm-2.00am (last order at 11.00pm)

Tapas are available at both Restaurant and Lounge:
12.00pm-12.00am from Sundays to Wednesdays (last order)
12.00pm-12.30am on Thursdays to Saturdays (last order)

Pork and Kimchi Cauliflower Fried Rice

My love for Fried Cauliflower Rice runs for at least 2 years deep. Some of you might remember my old post from 2014 for a basic version, or a Nasi Tomato adaptation (along with a cooking video! I must attempt that again soon). But because I have well and truly fallen off the Paleo bandwagon, this has dropped off my cooking rotation for a while. Meanwhile, my skill for the actual fried rice levelled up so much thanks to the rice monsters at home at one point I was considering opening up a place selling just fried rice. I’m looking at you, Kevin. But anyway I digress.

One day while we were getting ready to go out, I heard a cry from the next room. Thinking that Kevin might have hurt himself I rushed over to check, “I DON”T HAVE ANYTHING TO WEAR HUHUHUHUUUUU” he exclaimed with much exasperation. “Huh, why ah?” “Because I’m FAT la*”

Here, you heard it from me.

Yes, we keep ourselves active mostly, but we certainly have been indulging a little more than usual when it comes to food. Case in point: the Bak Kut Teh post just before this, haha. So with much persuasion and bribing, my-very-sexy-despite-a-little-overweight-so-he-claims-boyfriend finally agreed that we will go on a low carb diet, allowing one cheat day a week. Which means I get to exercise my muscles (and my brain) in the kitchen to come up with things interesting enough for him. I’m sure if I bring something like a poached chicken breast with blanched broccoli on a plate, he’d run out the door faster than our little Colt (the car). No….. we don’t want that. What we want, is diet food that tastes good. (Is there even such a thing?)

Well apparently yes. Something as simple as Cauliflower, mixed with other veges, some sort of protein and just some simple seasoning. Today, I present to you Kimchi and Pork Fried Cauliflower Rice! There’s no rice in this at all, so I can safely say that this is almost 100% nutri-dense. Plus, kimchi is really good for you what with the good bacteria for your gut and all. So without further ado, here’s a pic, and how you make this dish.

Pork and Kimchi Cauliflower Fried Rice (for 3)
Half a head of Cauliflower
Few florets of Broccoli
2 clove of Garlic, minced
Half an onion, finely chopped
1 Carrot, finely chopped
1 big handful of Kimchi, chopped, reserving juice
100g Minced Pork
2 Eggs
Pinch of Salt and Pepper
1 tablespoon Soy Sauce*
1 tablespoon Ketchup
Spring onions, to garnish

To prepare the “cauli rice”, cut or tear the cauliflower florets by hand, remove excess moisture and pulse in food processor or blender until resembling rice. For this recipe, I pulse the cauliflower along with carrot and broccoli to save myself some time.

Heat oil in pan and saute onion and garlic until soft, then add minced pork and kimchi. Fry til the pork starts to brown, then add in all the vegetables. Stir around a little, then season with kimchi juice, soy sauce, ketchup, salt and pepper.

If you don’t drain the excess moisture enough, you will find that liquid will slowly pool up (happens to me all the time because I am err lazy). This is ok, just slowly let the liquid evaporates by pushing everything to the side. Not a disaster, but you do have to let all the liquid cook out otherwise it will become a soggy mess.

When the cauli rice is almost ready, make a well in the centre and crack 2 eggs into the space. Stir around to break up the yolks. Once it’s set, move around to mix everything merrily. Once the eggs are done, taste to adjust seasoning, then turn off heat. Garnish with Spring onion before serving. While this dish is also edible slightly cold, I’d suggest enjoy it while it’s hot for maximum comfort.

As with normal fried rice, you can customize it until the cows come home. Don’t like pork? Use chicken or prawns, maybe tempeh if you want it vegetarian. More leftover vegetables crying for help in your drawer? Throw it in! The possibilities are endless. Eat this often enough (replacing your normal high carb meal la of course), you will thank me for your slimmer body soon enough.

So, since we have been so good this week, where shall we go for Bak Kut Teh this weekend?

Oh, and have a great weekend y’all!

*Conversation might not be in those exact words. But you get the jist la

Classic and Contemporary Flavours for Breaking of Fast at Renaissance Kuala Lumpur

Can you believe another year has passed and another Ramadhan month is just around the corner? That’s right, this is the time where most hotels would be promoting their Ramadhan buffets and I was recently invited to Renaissance to check out what they have to offer.

This year, you can choose to tantalize your tastebuds with Malaysian classics at TEMPTationS or for something a little different, opt for a touch of Cantonese at Dynasty Restaurant (that’s right, they are now pork free).

Discover the diverse cuisine and delicious flavours to break your fast starting from 27th May 2017 at TEMPTationS, Dynasty Restaurant or privately catered to your exclusive needs.

Make your way to TEMPTationS with family and friends after a long day of fasting where experienced Chef Ali Tuwin and his team will engulf your senses with a feast of more than 100 dishes including Malaysian classics enjoyed during the fasting season. Afterwards, be spoilt with an all-you-can-eat tropical fruit fiesta and durian, the king of fruits at their ‘urban tropical oasis’.

The buffet of Malaysian classics inclusive of the tropical fruit fiesta is priced at RM145nett per person and half price for children from 6 to 12 years old. Early birds will enjoy the buffet at RM110nett per person from 27th May to 2 June and 17 June to 24 June 2017.

As with most hotel buffets, the starters include a seafood bar, a variety of salads and there’s also a ulam station featuring plenty of fresh raw vegetables.

Cold seafood on ice

Salads including Kerabus and some Pasta salad.

Ulam ulam

Classic flavours to be savoured include Biryani Gam Ayam, Sup ‘Gearbox’, Ayam masak daun limau purut, the all-time favourite Roasted Whole Lamb with Percik Sauce, Serawa durian with glutinous rice and the must-have beef or chicken Bubur Lambuk that will be available every evening throughout the fasting month.

Biryani Ayam Gam

Sup Gearbox. Check out the size of the bones! The marrow is the best part.

Roasted Lamb with Percik Sauce

Bubur Lambuk

Fish Head Curry

Ayam Masak Daun Limau Purut
Sotong with Petai

Crab curry

Paku Pakis Masak Lemak

Teochew style Seabass

At the live action stations, their chefs will dish out Kampung style Ikan Bakar accompanied by its hot and spicy sauces and juicy chicken and beef satays.

All manners of Grilled Fish

Accompanying sauces

Satays

The noodles station offers a rotation of noodles every evening, be it Mee Rebus, Laksa Penang, Sup Mee Hoon Utara or Nyonya Laksa.

Those with a wider palate may opt for the non-local dishes such as baked salmon with fennel (this was good), grilled Mediterranean vegetables, or the pasta station.

Salmon with Fennel

Grilled Vegetables

Roasted Chicken

Pasta Station

A meal will not be complete without a sweet ending, and the dessert section has a variety of Malay kuih, whole cakes, puddings, ice cream and not forgetting the tropical fruit fiesta.

Local kuihs

More desserts

For a unique breaking of fast dining experience, go for contemporary Cantonese cuisine at Dynasty Restaurant where Executive Sous Chef Kok Chee Kin awakens your palate with four creatively crafted set menus. His two 8-course menus and priced at RM138nett per person and RM168nett per person for a minimum of 2 persons, a 9-course menu at RM938nett for 5 persons and a 10 course menu at RM888nett for 5 persons. These menus are also inclusive of the tropical fruit fiesta.

Specials from the menus include the Baked Lamb Rack with piquant Mongolian sauce, Casserole of beef with vermicelli in satay sauce, Crispy farm chicken with spicy minced garlic, Baked cod Portuguese style and Stewed oxtail with radish in casserole.

Cantonese Four Seasons Platter

The rest of the platter

Baked Cod Portuguese Style

Sauteed Prawns with Green Tea Mayonnaise

Baked Lamb rack with piguant Mongolian Sauce

Cripsy Farm Chicken with Spicy Minced Garlic

Alternatively, should you plan to host private breaking of fast get-togethers or Aidilfitri celebration for a group of 50 persons and more, our catering team is able to customize packages to suit your needs. Catered exclusively for you from 27 May to 23 July 2017 with a 10% discount for bookings made before 22 May, you will enjoy a host of benefits.

For details on customized packages please email rhi.kulrn.sales@renaissancehotels.com or call 03 27169910/03 27169918

For restaurant reservations, please call 03 2771 6692 or email rhi.kulrn.fb@renaissancehotels.com

Follow their Facebook…..

www.facebook.com/RenaissanceKL

www.facebook.com/TemptationsKL

www.facebook.com/DynastyKL

Website – http://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/kulrn-renaissance-kuala-lumpur-hotel/

Address – Corner of Jalan Sultan Ismail and Jalan Ampang, 50450 Kuala Lumpur

The Battle of Klang Bak Kut Teh: Mo Sang Kor, Seng Huat, Chow Kiat

Bak Kut Teh, or directed translated from Chinese as “Meat Bone Tea”; is the greatest Chinese invention ever. I might be exaggerating a little, but this humble dish has fed generations so it’s not too far from the truth from a foodie’s perspective. Although the origin of BKT remains one of the most debatable, I choose to believe that Klang is where it all begins, at least in Malaysia. And we all have Mr Lee Boon Teh to thank. Mr Lee came to Malaysia in 1940s and started selling Bak Kut Teh to fellow early Chinese immigrants who were working at the port, and this dish serves as a tonic soup to replenish their energy and boost their health.

At its very simplest, BKT is just meat and bones slowly simmered in fragrant Chinese medicinal herbs. An order of BKT would be your favourite cut of meat, a bowl of rice, with optional YouTiao (Chinese fried dough) and a side of soy sauce with chili. A lot of places have included things such as mushrooms, tofu, green veges etc. But in this post I’m only including the original type of BKT.

You see, one of our resolutions for 2017 is to be more active and we try to go hiking/running every weekend. For the most part of the year we’ve been keeping to our promise. But the reward came rather randomly as a form of BKT in Klang, especially if we go for hike at Taman Botani Negara Shah Alam, which is kinda nearby. So far we’ve visited 3 different outlets (multiple visits) and first one I’ve like to share is Mo Sang Kor.

Mo Sang Kor 毛山稿肉骨茶

Mo Sang Kor is located at Taman Berkeley, and I believe they have another branch in Hutong Lot 10 as well as Puchong. Although I’m not sure if they are as good as the original. Anyway, this place is relatively big, so even on a busy Sunday it’s not hard to get a table. The waiting time might be significantly longer if the place is packed. As this was the first Klang BKT we’ve visited, we left them to recommend a mixture of parts for us and this is what we got:

We got the Sai Kuat (Small bone) and Pork Knuckle, each come in a small bowl. Yeah the bowl is rather small and the amount of soup is not what we accustomed ourselves to, but just check out the colour! It is so far the thickest soup we’ve had, each mouthful delivering a powerful punch of herbal notes as well as the unmistaken gelatinous mouthfeel from the pork fat. The meat totally melts in the mouth with the flavour of the soup fully permeated.

Note that they don’t serve YouTiao here. But a lot of people buy their own from the hawker centre nearby, which we did too. Condiments wise, they have soy sauce and chili padi, as well as garlic which you have to get from the counter. Personally I felt that the garlic is not even needed with this.

Our second visit was also on a Sunday. This time we had an idea of what we want, though they ran out of Tua Kut by the time we got there. We got Pun Fei Shao (Half lean half fat), Chicken Feet, Pork Belly.

Good news is, the food remain consistent, but the service left a lot to be desire for. Our food took a long time to come (some of the customers who arrived later got theirs), but the lady told us we ordered the ‘wrong’ cut that’s why we got ours late. *shrugs* Oh well, plenty of other BKT shops to go to I guess.

Seng Huat 盛发肉骨茶

A week later, we visited Seng Huat, which is operated by one of the third generation Lee (that’s right, there are a few of them still selling the original recipe from Mr Lee), now this one is more famously known as BKT under the bridge and it’s been around since 1979. We went there on a Monday (one of the very few that opens on a Monday by the way) and happy to see that it’s not too packed at lunch time. This time we ordered more confidently, going for the Tua Kut, Small Intestines and Pun Fei Shao (yes I like my fatty pork if you haven’t noticed).

Check out that glorious piece of bone! Which I may or may not ngaw on after the deed. The soup here is a little lighter than Mo Sang Kor, and it’s not as thick. But still very much full of flavours with a nice balance of sweetness too. The Tua Kut is amazing here, with plenty of skin on offer. We also enjoyed the intestines. Here they serve YouTiao, chili padi and soy sauce, but no garlic.

Our second visit, just yesterday. We arrived at 11am and the crowd was crazy! Luckily we found a table of a twosome who were ok to share the table with us. Same order of Tua Kut, intestines and pun fei shao, along with YouTiao. Same satisfaction. Currently this would be our favourite until a better one comes along. This costed us RM45 in total. So, not entirely cheap, but worth it lah!

Chow Kiat 超吉美味肉骨茶

This one was recommended by none other than kyspeaks, another BKT monster. This one is another local favourite, so you best go there before 1030am before all the nice cuts sell out. We arrived there a little before that and they already ran out of YouTiao! Anyway, we went for our favourite parts again.

The Golden triangle of Tua Kut, Intestines and Fatty Pork! Big boner alert! There was so much meat on that bone it’s a little intimidating at that hour, hahaha. The soup here, also deliciously thick, although I’d say that it’s a little more on the salty side and less sweet. I’d say the meat here tastes somehow lighter than Seng Huat. They too serve this with soy sauce and chili. The reason I keep mentioning this is apparently if you go to the original BKT Teck Teh run by Mr Lee’s grandson, you don’t even get any condiment at all. We still want to go there though one day to try it out.

So these are the 3 BKT restaurants we have tried so far, there are many more on the list, which I’m sure I’ll blog again when we accumulate enough hehe.

So how big a BKT fan are you and do you have a favourite Klang BKT restaurant? All suggestions are welcome!

Restoran Bah Kut Teh Mo Sang Kor
41 Leboh Bangau, Taman Berkeley,
41150 Klang, Selangor.

Restoran Seng Huat Bak Kut Teh
No.9, Jalan Besar, 41000 KLANG
Selangor Daru Ehsan, Malaysia

Restoran Chow Kiat
Jalan Kapar, Kawasan 18,
41400 Klang, Selangor

Nepali Private Kitchen, delicious homecooked Nepalese fare

Authentic Nepalese cuisine is not that easy to find in Klang Valley. A quick google search turned out less than a handful of them and the top result is the now-defunct Restaurant Nepal, which I’ve visited numerous times. But what if I tell you, you can now dine at a Nepalese couple’s cozy home for just a small price?

Yes, finally there’s another place for us to satisfy our momo craving, although it is only available for group booking. You might want to start gathering your troop for this.

Knowing my love for Nepalese food, Cheng Yi sent an invite to the test run of the aforementioned Nepali Private Kitchen. What is Private Kitchen? Well, this trend has been around for a couple of years and this enables home cooks to open up their own place to host friends or strangers. I used to run one myself and had to stop because I can’t fully commit to regular hosting. So you know how precious this opportunity is.

So one steamy hot afternoon Kevin and I found ourselves in the lovely home of the Sherchans. Both Mr and Mrs Sherchan can cook! We were first greeted by this humungous platter of meat.

This is Mr Sherchan’s Gurkha BBQ, featuring an amazing spread of bbq meats, accompanied by Mrs Sherchan’s superb chutney. Oh ya, this meal is definitely Non-Halal, much to our delight. Note that this is not part of their regular menu, but can be requested at a separate cost.

We were served quite a few starters. This is Pyazi, crispy onion fritters. Kevin being onion crazy gobbled these up with gusto.

Sadeko Badam, a spicy peanut salad that combines ingredients such as cucumber, tomatoes, red onions, chili, peanuts and herbs.

And of course, the amazing momos! These are filled with pork, which is a bonus. I’m definitely a dumpling monster as I’m pretty sure I had about a dozen of these. Extra delicious with the homemade chutney. If they sell these, I’d buy them in bulk.

Another dish I really liked was the Karela Ko Achar. Underneath the crispy anchovies, soft bittergourd marinated with strong spices. Yes, it’s bitter but the flavours combination is rather addictive. I think during the supperclub they might serve a different variation of this dish because not everyone eats bittergourd. Lucky we got this version!

As a fan of potato I was delighted to taste this dish, Alu Ko Achar. The potatoes here are cooked with a myriad of spices and then seasoned with lime/lemon juice, hence it has a dinstinctive tang. Brilliant way to encourage more potato consumption. I want to try making this one day too.

Oh by the way, if you are a fan of spice you must absolutely try the Nepalese chili, Dalle Khursani. Don’t be fool by its cute round shape, it’s fiery!

The star of the meal would be the Thali set. A very traditional Thakali meal and a hearty one at that. They would be serving this on authentic brass Thali serving ware. Basically, there are a few types of side dishes accompanying the rice. Let’s break it down.

Kukhura Ko Masu is non-creamy chicken curry cooked with fresh spices. Very moreish. The Machha Ko Jhol or Nepalese fish curry is mustardy, tangy and definitely umami. The fish here is siakap, which to me is an unusual choice for curry but I enjoyed the tender flesh. And next to the bowl of fish curry, a creamy bowl of the best dhal you’ve ever eaten in your life. It’s unlike the Indian version, almost akin to red bean soup with its thickness and creamy consistency. Yum.

The other side dishes included Alu Ghobi (Potato and Cauliflower “curry”), Sauteed Green, a Savoury homemade Plum Pickle, and this lovely pickled radish, Mula Ko Achar.

It’s a feast! The side dishes may vary from time to time. There’s even a Tomato char which I also enjoyed.

And then Mr. Sherchan brought us another Gurkha specialty, a delicious pork curry with tender pieces of pork and amazing depth of flavours. This dish is not included in the Supperclub menu, but just s testament how well the Sherchans can cook! Recipe of this too please!

Last but of course not the least, homemade Yoghurt served with Almonds, Mango bits and special Nepalese sweet. I love Nepalese dessert and polished up Kevin’s portion too.

Thank you Mr and Mrs Sherchan for your fantastic hospitality and amazing food. We want to try to get a few people together and do this again. The location is somewhere in Sunway, and they cater for groups of minimum 6 and maximum 12. It’s priced at RM70 per head for 3 starters, Thakali set and dessert. If you are interested, do make your reservation through Cheng Yi at 012-3240988 or John Sonam at 012-4152512.

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