CRIZ BON APPETITE

The Northeastern Style Dumplings, more commonly known as DONGBEI JIAOZI (東北餃子), are the staple food of the capital city of Beijing, China. The ravioli textured and size like dumplings can be stuffed with just anything you like. Since Dongbei cuisine are often quite heavy in the usages of meat, garlic, vinegar and thick sauces, you would expect the stuffing to contain meat of any sort combined with different types of vegetables as well as different versions of vinegar content condiments. Instead of the normal white flour skins, let me show you a basic recipe with the usage of natural fruit or vegetable juices to make the dumplings more colorful. I would also be sharing a basic filling recipe here.

SKIN INGREDIENTS:
300g bread flour
150ml fruit/vegetable juice
1 tsp of salt
Water (add some if too dry)
Note: You can substitute the juice with water for plain ones

FILLING INGREDIENTS: (SPICY FRAGRANT CHICKEN)
300g minced chicken (any meat of your choice)
300g cabbage (finely chop)
3 stalks spring onion (finely chop)
1-2 red chilies (remove seeds, finely chop)
1/2 tsp 5-spice powder
2-3 tbsp chili oil (from the dipping sauce recipe below)
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp of sesame oil
1 tbsp cornstarch
Pinch of salt
Sprinkle of grounded pepper

DIPPING CONDIMENTS:

Option 1: Ginger & Black Vinegar
200g young ginger (remove skin, finely julienne)
1/4 cup black rice vinegar
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar
Preparation: Mix all the liquid. Add in the julienned ginger when serve.

Option 2: Spicy Chili Oil
60g-80g chili flakes
3/4 cup oil (any type)
2 star anise
2” cinnamon
1 tbsp sesame oil (optional)
1tsp salt
3 cloves garlic (remove skin, finely chop)
10-15 bird’s eye chilies (slice, optional)
Preparation: Heat up the oil, sauté the star anise and cinnamon for 1-2 minutes. Add in the chili flakes and sauté until fragrant under LOW FIRE. Add in the salt, stir evenly and scoop out. Add in the chopped raw garlic and sliced chilies when serve.

Option 3: Pickled Peanuts & Garlic (14 days required to be eaten)
300g raw peanuts with skin (wash, soak in hot water 20 minutes, drain well)
3 bulbs garlic (cut off roots, remove skin)
1 cup black vinegar
1/2 tsp salt
1 tbsp sugar
1/2 tbsp sesame oil
1/4 cup lime juice
Preparation: Mix all in a large bowl and pour into a tall jar. Marinate in the chiller for at least 2 weeks. Serve the pickled peanuts and garlic without the liquid.

PREPARATIONS:
• Mix all the filling ingredients thoroughly and leave it to marinate in the chiller for at least 30 minutes.
• To make the dough for the skin, sift the bread flour into a mixing bowl. Make a well in the middle of the sifted flour and slowly add in the juice and salt mixture slowly. Knead until the dough stay clean from the mixing bowl. Add a bit of water if the juice is not enough. Let it rest in the bowl covered for about 20-30 minutes.
• Dust your table with some flour, slightly flatten the dough and cut into 4 strips.
• Dust more flour on the table and roll them into long sausage like rolls.
• Cut all up to evenly sized small balls (about 40-50 pieces). Dust more flour to avoid them sticking on the table.
• Take one piece of the dough and slightly flatten it with your palm.
• Use a small rolling pin with your right hand and slowly flatten the dough while your left hand slowly rotating the dough.
• When the dough is flattened to your preferred size, fill it up with about 1 tablespoon of the meat filling.
• Fold it up and crimp the side as shown in the diagram below, starting from the left side and do the same for the right side.
• Dust a tray with more flour and place your done dumplings on it.
• The cooking of the dumplings is quite crucial as you would want to maintain the al dente of the skin. So take note of the method to boil them. You could steam them but the skin tends to get dry faster.
• Heat up 3/4 pot of water. When boils, pour in the dumplings. When the water boils again, add in a glass of room temperature water. Let the water boils again and do the same step by adding another glass of water. When the water boils this time and you can see the dumplings floating up, they are cooked. The whole process would take about 6-8 minutes.
• Scoop out the dumplings and apply some oil on them to prevent them from sticking.
• Serve hot with your preferred dipping sauce.

(Makes: 40-50 pieces)

YOU CAN CHECK HERE FOR MORE RECIPES.

Alternatively, you can also serve these dumplings with some noodles as how I did it. This noodle dish was simply irresistible!

For those who would love to savor these delicious dumplings but reluctant to stay in the kitchen to produce them, you are in luck! You can soothe your dumpling craving by just calling up the supplier at the link here.

It looked like Penang has its personal halal street burger challenges amongst the burger stalls surrounding the island as more and more stalls are coming out with more innovative ways to promote their burgers. Initially, it was the “Ramly Burger” style where the owners tried to outdo each other by increasing the factory made patties until double burger special with added eggs, cheese, etc, such as the one at Old Trafford, Lebuh Chulia, Penang. Then, it was a matter of adding in more extras such as potatoes as at Post Burger, Jalan Gelugor, Penang. As it got harder to tower up the burgers, the diameter of the bun has increased tremendously until 8”-10” such as at Zul’s Burger, Sungai Nibong, Penang. As more and more people got to watch Asian Food Channel through the Astro channel, the burger cooking methods has changed to grilling over cooking grids. One such method of cooking was the sloppy burger style with homemade beef patties and grilled chicken at Hero Burger Bakar, Astaka Stadium Bandaraya, Jalan Perak, Penang. The latest opening of yet another stall with grilling style is the Street Grill – Burger Bakar Penang, Lebuh Sungai Pinang 1 (beside Ocean View Apartment), Sungai Pinang, Penang.

The differences between Street Grill and Hero Burger Bakar, lies in an additional supply of mutton patties. Street Grill would serve you with boneless chicken thighs, homemade beef and mutton patties, all marinated with their secret recipes. All the meat would be grilled on their custom-made cooking grids. The other difference was that each meat piece would have a special BBQ sauce brushed on to maintain the moist and served with your choice of dressing such as their homemade black pepper sauce, thousand island sauce or mushroom sauce, on top of the normal dressing of chili sauce, tomato sauce and mayonnaise. Only chopped up iceberg lettuce and slices tomatoes were provided as some of the sauces had some chopped onions added in. The buns were also grilled with a little crisp.

We were first served with the Grilled Chicken with Cheese (RM5.50nett), topped with Black Pepper Sauce. The grilled boneless chicken was indeed flavorful with the nicely sealed in marinates. However, the evenly balanced bite was not there. Somehow, the meat shrunk quite a lot after grilling. Thus, it looked as though the bun was bigger than the grilled meat. Alternatively, they can seek smaller buns or spread cut the meat to ensure a balance bite size in ratio to the bun. On the other hand, the black pepper sauce was rather spicy and the onions were a bit too chunky to stay within the bun. They should have finely chopped the onions further and evenly break them apart to ensure they stay in the bun with each mouthful. The chopped iceberg lettuces were also falling apart due to the lack of sauce to hold them together. Maybe they could just serve each burger with one whole leaf? They would have to look into the stacking steps to ensure the perfect bite.

The next was the Grilled Beef Patty Burger (RM4.50nett). The grilled beef patty had chunky bite and obviously with less veins in it. It had the necessary marinates to subtle up the beefy flavors. This burger came with their homemade thousand island sauce. Personally, I felt that it would go better with black pepper sauce. I also find the patty to be rather fibrous and lack of moist. I wonder if it would be wise to ask for a medium rare version during my next visit? 😛

The Grilled Mutton Patty Burger (RM6.00nett) was actually our target as you would hardly find this burger in the menu of most stalls. Indeed it was the best pick of the night as the meat was more tender and flavorful with the right amount of marinates. It was undeniable the best choice of meat for the burgers served here.

There also do serve half kilograms homemade meat patties (beef: RM15.00nett, mutton: RM25.00nett). One day advance booking would be required. Obviously, we opted for the 1/2kg Grilled Mutton Patty Burger (RM25.00nett) since it was rather rare. The burger would come with an 8” custom-made bun. Taste wise, the mutton patty was perfect except for a little hiccup in the utilized bun. The 8” diameter 500gms mutton patty eventually shrunk to almost 5.5” in diameter after grilling. Thus, the ratio of the patty versus the bun was 1:2, resulting in a double amount of bread compared to the provided patty. The management was aware of this issue and would rectify it with their vendor for a custom-made 6” bun after the Hari Raya Aidil Fitri. It would be a good move too as I also found the bun texture to be drier compared to the rest of the buns.

Just look at the juiciness of the mutton patty below. Isn’t it delicious? However, let’s hope that they rectify the size and texture of the bun soon.

It has been said that interesting food would always get the attention first rather than the hungry tummies~ LOL! Regardless of gender, there would always be the camwhoring session amongst the guys and ladies~ 😛

Overall, the taste for the burgers here can be quite good, especially the mutton burger. However, there were no proper sitting places for savoring the burgers straight from the grill. Even if there were stools provided, there were no sales of any beverages to quench the thirst. It would be advisable to bring along some personal drinks if you planned to dine there. The other suggestion I have would be on the availability of egg usages. With the current setup of only cooking grids, there was no way they could have cooked any egg to go with the burgers. I kind of like the one served at Hero Burger Bakar as the given runny egg was a great complement to moist up the overall bite.

If you know where the new Sungai Pinang coastal area is or where the Sungai Pinang “Si Ki Tiang aka 4 tall blue pillars” is, you won’t get lost. LOL! If you are coming from the Penang Bridge coastal highway via Tun Dr. Lim Chong Eu Expressway, you would drive pass eGate/Tesco. Drive on ahead. Go over the first flyover. As you are about to reach the second flyover when you see Shell petrol kiosk on the opposite direction, keep to your left and follow the sign towards Sungai Pinang. At the traffic lights (Sg. Pinang Food Court at the left corner), turn right into Lebuh Sungai Pinang 1. Move on until the next traffic lights and turn left. You would see the roadside van stall with a standing banner stating Street Grill just 100m away on your left before the Ocean View Apartment entrance.

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Name: STREET GRILL – BURGER BAKAR PENANG
Address: Lebuh Sungai Pinang 1 (in front of Ocean View Apartment), 10500 Penang, Malaysia.
Contact: 012-571 1050 (En. Abu Hasan Abdul Rahman)/012-465 9066 (En. Zain)
Business Hours: 7.00pm-1.00am (Closed Sunday)
GPS: 5.398042, 100.327887
FB: https://www.facebook.com/streetgrillburger

RATING:
Ambience: 5/10 (1-4 cheap, 5-7 average, 8-10 classy)
Food Choices: 7/10 (1-4 limited, 5-7 average, 8-10 many choices)
Taste: 7/10 (1-4 tasteless, 5-7 average, 8-10 excellent)
Pricing: 7/10 (1-4 cheap, 5-7 average, 8-10 expensive)
Service: 7/10 (1-4 bad, 5-7 average, 8-10 excellent)

Taipei 101 – Taiwan Cuisine Restaurant has been in operation for almost 3 years and I had just managed to pay them a visit recently. The restaurant would serve quite a number of Taiwanese dishes but tweaked to suit the locals’ taste buds. The food here could be real economical for all consumptions as prices would be in nett.

The restaurant practically served quite a variety of bento sets just like the one I had at Kim Tavern @ Sunway Carnival, Bandar Sunway, Penang. One of the sets was the Sweet & Sour Garlic Pork Bento (蒜泥白肉便當 – RM9.90nett). The bento set came with some stir fried sweet and sour garlic pork, a bowl of rice, half a braised egg, some vegetables and some bean curd stick and seaweed soup. The deep fried eggplants were somehow rather hardy and the stir fried mixed vegetables were somewhat overcooked, thus losing the crunchiness. The dishes were just some simple home cooked dishes which was nothing much to brag about. It would be better if they could give those pork slices a touch of batter and presented it in a semi dry sauce just like how Kim Tavern mentioned above did.

The next bento set was the Deep Fried Lemongrass Chicken Rice (檸檬香茅雞腿排飯 – RM9.90nett). The crispy chicken drumstick portion was humongous but somehow the taste was not up to my expectation as it lacked the taste of the lemon and lemon grass marinates as the said name. Maybe some finely chopped lemongrass and kaffir lime leaves added in the batter would have given the chicken choice piece a better flavor. Alternatively, some thick lemongrass gravy on the crispy chicken would be another good solution. This dish also came with some steamed rice with braised pork sauce, spicy chili tofu and half a braised egg. Unfortunately, the sauce did not have the fragrance as in the traditionally served Taiwanese Braised Pork Rice just like the one I had at my favorite Formosa Restaurant. It lacked the lard flavors.

They do also serve claypot dishes sets which would come with a bowl of rice, some spicy chili tofu and some egg. One of the dishes would be the Spicy Pork Ribs Claypot (辛辣排骨 – RM11.50nett/set or RM9.50nett ala carte). This dish was somewhat like the dim sum version of Steamed Pork Ribs with some fermented black soy beans (黑豆豆豉/tao see) and some spicy spices but with more gravy. Though the pork ribs were tender and packed with flavors, the gravy was rather diluted. The kitchen should simmer the gravy more to thicken it or use less water in the process of cooking. Else, the gravy was quite nice to go with hot steaming rice.

We were also served with the Braised Pork Trotter Claypot (滷豬手 – RM12.50nett/set or RM10.50nett ala carte). Obviously, some pork belly meat had been added into the dish to create more bulk as pork trotters usually would not contain much meat. The sweet black vinegar based dish had some mushrooms added in too. I personally prefer more old ginger added in to pep up the flavor but overall the dish was still great enough to go with a hot steaming bowl of rice.

Another claypot dish that you would hardly get at any Taiwanese fast food restaurant chain would be duck dishes. Taipei 101 do serve Braised Ginger Duck Claypot (子姜鴨砂煲 – RM11.50nett/set or RM9.50nett ala carte). The dish had some choice duck pieces braised in ginger and Chinese wine with some wood ear fungus added in. Not a bad dish but the flavors from the Chinese wine might be overpowering for some diners.

A visit to any Taiwanese restaurant won’t be complete if you did not try out their mee suah (麵線/wheat grass noodles). Taipei 101 has the options for ingredients such as oyster, mushroom, squid, mock abalone, mussel and scallop. We had their Neptune Mian Xian (海皇麵線- RM7.80nett/1 ingredient, RM10.80nett/2 ingredients or RM12.80nett/3 ingredients) with mock abalone (貴妃鮑魚/processed calamari slices). Instead of using the Taiwan imported noodles, Taipei 101 was using a local version which had been deep fried. Thus, the noodles had more al dente than the Taiwanese’s but still flavorful for the dish. The almost miso taste-like soup has a distinctive bonito flakes flavor with additional omelette slices, crabstick slices and some spring onions added as garnishing on top of the mock abalone slices.

The noodle dish would go well with some dry chilies in oil from the table.

Snacks most probably play an important part in the lives of any Taiwanese. One of the snacks that I like most was their Deep Fried Kumara Potatoes with Plum Powder (甘梅地瓜 – RM4.80nett). The sweet red potatoes were done with the perfect crispiness and they were generous with the plum powder too.

Another of their snack was the Popcorn Chicken (鹽酥雞 – RM5.00nett). Great chunks of chicken were used but the batter was not up to my expectation as there were some parts of the coating which were rather hardy. Moreover, the juiciness of the meat seemed not to be in presence as drumstick meat pieces were not used in the preparation. Some seasoning powder with high hints of salt and pepper were tossed into the chicken chunks but it lacked the slight spiciness from some finely grinded chili flakes. I wish they could have done up the dish as great as Formosa Restaurant.

We were also served with their Taiwanese Sausage (臺灣香腸 – RM5.00nett). There were two sausages given compared to other places with only single serving. It was a great bargain. However, the lightly grilled sausage slices were obviously not handmade as the meat within was rather finely minced. Taste wise, they were still acceptable except for the missing chunky bites.

As for beverages, the options were rather standard except for some with a slight twist. We tried out their Winter Melon Lemon Tea (檸檬冬瓜茶 – RM3.90nett), Chocolate Pearl Milk Tea (朱古力珍珠奶茶 – RM3.90nett), Mango Smoothie (芒果沙冰 – RM5.90), Ice Blended Red Bean (紅豆冰沙 – RM4.90nett) and Papaya Milk Shake (木瓜牛奶 – RM4.50nett). The own created recipe of Winter Melon Lemon Tea was rather unique.

Overall, Taipei 101 could be quite an ideal place for a quick and simple meal without worrying much on your budget. Food wise, they are not much into the authentic Taiwanese cuisine but a bit more towards fusion food. There are still rooms for improvements as some of the dishes were a bit out of track with more localized flavors. I also hope the kitchen would improve on their balance in flavors as I found a large amount of their dishes lacked the required usage of ingredients. Let’s hope they could revamp a better menu in the future with the help of some qualified professionals in the industry. Free delivery services would be available for purchase over RM25.

Taipei 101 Taiwan is located just opposite Queensbay Mall. If you are coming from Georgetown towards Bayan Lepas Free Trade Zone via Bayan Lepas Expressway, do watch out for the Pulau Jerejak signboard (leading to Pulau Jerejak jetty). Ignore the turning and drive on to the next left junction. Turn left into Jalan Aziz Ibrahim and drive on until you a roundabout. Turn 3 o’ clock and drive on until you see a big Eastin Hotel signboard at the traffic lights. Drive on until you see a stretch of shop houses before the open space car park opposite Queensbay Mall. Taipei 101 is at this stretch of shop houses. The entrance is just before the open car park. Turn left and drive one round to find your parking space.

Name: TAIPEI 101 TAIWAN CUISINE RESTAURANT
Address: 35G Persiaran Bayan Indah, 11900 Bayan Lepas, Penang, Malaysia.
Contact: 604-642 1339
Business Hours:
11.00am-3.00pm (Lunch), 5.30pm-10.00pm (Dinner), 11.00am-10.00pm (Weekends)
GPS: 5.334662, 100.307305

RATING:
Ambience: 6/10 (1-4 cheap, 5-7 average, 8-10 classy)
Food Choices: 7/10 (1-4 limited, 5-7 average, 8-10 many choices)
Taste: 6/10 (1-4 tasteless, 5-7 average, 8-10 excellent)
Pricing: 6/10 (1-4 cheap, 5-7 average, 8-10 expensive)
Service: 8/10 (1-4 bad, 5-7 average, 8-10 excellent)

At one time of our lives, we might have taken instant noodles in whatever form, whether they were in packet form or in a cup. Why don’t we make it a bit more interesting by adding in some ingredients to make it more appetizing? Let me share with you my STIR FRY CHICKEN & MUSHROOMS NOODLES WITH TOMATO SWIRLS recipe. This dish has balanced fragrant flavors with a tad of sourness from the tomato swirls to boost up any appetite.

INGREDIENTS:
6 pcs instant noodles
250gms chicken breast meat (thinly slice, marinate with a bit soy sauce, pepper and sesame oil)
10 dried Shitake mushrooms (soaked, drain, slice thinly & marinate with ginger juice, a bit soy sauce, a pinch of sugar, pepper and sesame oil)
1 thumb size young ginger (grate & juice)
1 carrot (fine julienne)
1 stalk spring onions (cut into 1” length, leave some finely chopped ones for garnishing)
1 clove garlic (finely chop)
2 eggs
1 tbsp tomato ketchup
3 tbsp oyster sauce
Soy sauce
Sesame Oil
Oil
Sugar
Salt & pepper to taste
Sambal belacan (optional)

SAMBAL BELACAN RECIPE:
3 fresh red chilies (remove seeds & cut into chunks)
2 tsp belacan (shrimp paste) granules
1-2 limes (juice)
Pound the red chilies until small bits, add in the belacan granules. Add in lime juice when serve.

GARNISHES:
Spring onions (finely chop)
Red chilies (optional)
Deep fried shallots (optional)
Tomato swirls

PREPARATIONS:
• Beat up the eggs with the tomato ketchup, some sprinkles of pepper, a dash of soy sauce and sesame oil.
• Heat up your pan (18-20cm pan) and fry the beaten eggs in 2 batches.
• Roll the cooked eggs up tightly and leave aside.
• Heat up a pot of water and cook the instant noodles until you get the al dente required. Drain well.
• In a wok, heat up 4 tablespoons of oil and sauté the chopped garlic until brown.
• Put 3/4 of the sauteed garlic and oil onto the cooked noodles, together with the oyster sauce, one tablespoon of sesame oil, 2 tablespoons of soy sauce and some sprinkles of pepper. Mix thoroughly.
• Heat up the remaining oil in the wok and sauté the marinated mushroom, slices until brown. Scoop out.
• Add in some more oil and sauté the chicken until cook. Add in the cooked mushroom and mix well. Scoop out.
• Add some oil and saute the carrots for about 2 minutes.
• Add in the seasoned noodles and mix well.
• Pour in the mixed chicken and mushrooms and mix thoroughly. Add in pinch of salt and pepper to taste.
• Add in the 1” cut spring onions and give it a stir or two.
• Scoop up the noodles onto a serving plate and garnish with some chopped spring onions, sliced chilies and some thinly sliced tomato swirls.
• Serve hot.

(Serves: 3-4)

YOU CAN CHECK HERE FOR MORE RECIPES.

More and more diners in Penang are beginning to appreciate the wonders of Thai cuisine, which has an unquestionable harmonious balance of Yin and Yang. Thus, a new restaurant by the name of Thai Food Restaurant has recently opened its door within the vicinity of Green Lane, Penang to enable diners to enjoy the coexistence of all the major flavor characteristics, namely sweetness, sourness, spiciness and saltiness”. The provincial style of cooking basically came from Chiang Mai in Northern Thailand, almost similar to those dishes served at Aroy Chang Moo Kata in Pulau Tikus, Penang.

Instead of starting off with the commonly available Mieng Kam aka One Mouthful, we started with Nam Prik Kapi (น้ำพริกกะปิ/Thai Style Ulam aka Fresh Green Salad – RM9.00nett). I always have phobia having the hot sauce as in the Nam Prik as different provinces in Thailand have their own different level of spiciness. Surprisingly, I felt in love with the version here as the hot sauce has just the balance of sweetness, sourness, spiciness and saltiness to my liking. The vegetables consisted of long beans, cucumbers, carrots and cauliflower.

Next, we started off with some appetizers. A simple and nutritious Yam Hed (ยามเห็ด -Black & White Fungus/เห็ดหูหนู & เห็ดหูหนูขาว – RM9.00nett/RM12.00nett) would be a great appetizer to start off a meal. The flavors were quite similar to that of Lab Moo Sub (ลาบหมู/Spicy Minced Pork Salad) but minced chicken was used instead. I love the crunch on both the black and white fungus used as well as the well balanced flavors from the onions, chopped chilies, fish sauce, lime juice, palm sugar, spring onions and coriander. This combination would also go well with chicken feet in place of the fungus.

Another appetizer we had was the Yam Abpen (ยำแอปเปิ้ล/Spicy Green Apple Salad – RM9.00nett/RM12.00nett). The crunchiness of the Granny Smith green apples used combined with chopped chilies, fish sauce, lime juice, palm sugar, fried dried shrimps and garnished with some cashew nuts was nice. Again, the level of spiciness was just right for everyone.

Another nice dish to start off a proper meal would be the Pak Boong Krob (ปากบุ้งกรอบ/Batter Fried Crispy Morning Glory aka Kangkung – RM8.00nett). It went well with some Thai chili sauce. Instead of serving it just this way, I have seen a few restaurants tossed these vegetables with some sauce and served as a salad.

The next dish which was the Tod Man Goong (ทอดมันกุ้ง/Shrimp Nugget/Shrimp Cake – RM3.00nett each) was my favorite amongst all those that I had tried elsewhere. The dish was quite simple to make but required the right balance between the usages of minced meat to prawns. The balance here was 1:2 and the patties were coated with breadcrumbs prior to being deep fried until golden brown. These delicious shrimp cakes would be a must order item.

The Pik Gai Yat Sai (ปีกไก่ญาติซ้าย/Stuffed Otak Chicken Wings – RM3.50 each) is another of the restaurant’s signature dishes. The spicy egg paste or so called otak otak was stuffed into the partially boneless and marinated chicken wings and deep fried to perfection. The combination was great and it could be even better if a bit more of chili paste and sliced kaffir lime leaves were added in to pep up the flavors more.

Other than the Germans, the Thais are also great cooks for pork knuckles. Instead of having the stewed version, we opted for the Kha Moo Krob (ขาหมูกรอบ/Crispy Pork Knuckle – RM18.00nett). Each bite was amazing crispy and flavorful. Moreover, it was convenient for everyone as they had removed the bones too.

Sometimes, a simple Thai dish such as the common household dish of Khai Jiu Cha Om (ขายจิ๋วจะออม/Cha Om Omelette – RM8) would please me most. The feathery young shoots of the food plant (also known as climbing wattle/Acacia pennata) are commonly used in omelettes, soups, curries or simply by stir frying in mild sauce in Thai cuisine. The shoots have a unique smell similar to that of the stink beans (buah petai) but with a subtle flavor. It was great to have it with some hot sauce as served with the green salad.

The Thais loved squids as well and we were also served with Pla Mek Sam Rot (ปลาหมึกสามรส/Squids in 3 Flavors Sauce). The boiled squids were tossed in chopped garlic, chilies/bird’s eye chilies, fish sauce, palm sugar and coriander and served on a hot plate. Even though this was another version of the wetter version with some added stock, it was real appetizing.

We also tried out their Gaeng Som Pla Grapong (แกงส้มปลากะพง/Gaeng Som Sea Bass – RM25nett-RM45.00nett). The sour and spicy curry may differ in different parts of Thailand but I love this clearer version with just the right amount of sourness from the tamarind as well as a generous portion of vegetables used. However, I would prefer to have fresh fish rather than deep fried ones for my Gaeng Som.

Their Green Curry Chicken (แกงเขียวหวานไก่/Gaeng Kiew Wan Gai – RM14.00nett/RM20.00nett) was reasonably tasty. The dish was not as spicy as expected as they were using a light amount of sliced red chilies instead of bird eye chilies. There were some bigger version of mini Thai eggplants being used here plus a generous amount of fresh Thai basil leaves. The gravy had a strong hint of coconut milk being used but was a bit less concentrated than I expected due to the chef’s method of cutting down on the level of spiciness from the pre-prepared green curry paste. Alternatively, some long beans could be added in to reduce the spiciness rather than diluting the gravy too much.

Most people would think that Thai food would always be spicy until the max but not at all as you can still order some oyster sauce based dishes such as the Phat Phak Naw Mai Goong (ผัดพักหน่อไม้กุ้ง/Stir Fry Asparagus with Prawns – RM12.00nett/RM16.00nett). this dish would be served with some prawns stir fried with young asparagus shoot and carrots in light oyster sauce.

The next dish was something that I almost would not miss out in my list of orders in a Thai restaurant. It’s the Tom Yam. I would normally order the clear version as the red version would only consist of added chili oil. We ordered the Tom Yam Nam Sai (ตมยามนามซ้าย/Clear Tom Yam with Mixed Seafood – RM18nett/RM28nett) instead. It had prawns, fish and squids. The soup was rather mild, considering that the chefs were quite careful in the usage of bird’s eyes chilies which would give a really powerful spicy punch. Although there were traces of fish sauce, lemongrass and galangal found within the soup, I found the soup to be too mild in sourness. It needed a tad bit more of tamarind/lime juice or even some added tomatoes to pep up the flavor more. Moreover, some added oyster mushrooms would be nice too.

Instead of steamed rice, you could also order their Khao Pad Sapparot (ข้าวผัดสับปะรด/ Pineapple Fried Rice – RM5.00nett/RM12.00nett). This was one of the best pineapple rice dishes I have tasted as the dish had the nice “wok hei” (high heat cooking) and flavors. Moreover, there was the bonus of having some meat floss and chopped coriander as garnishes. It would be great if some chopped spring onions and fried shallots being added in.

You can also order the Khao Krok Kapi (ขาวกรอกกะปิ/Belacan Fried Rice – RM5.00nett/RM12.00nett). The dish basically had shrimp paste (belacan) fried with rice and served with side dishes such as bird’s eye chilies, onions, egg, mango, cucumber, dried shrimps and meat. Compared to the Pineapple Fried Rice, the former had better flavors.

To end the meal, we had the Tub Tim Krob (ทับทิมกรอบ/Jellied Water Chestnut Rubies with Jackfruit in Coconut Milk – RM4.50/bowl). It was a decent dessert with added jellies. It would be even better if the coconut milk added was more concentrated.

Currently, the beverages served here were rather limited but they do serve freshly brewed Lemongrass Tea (RM1.50nett Hot/RM2.00nett Iced). They should consider importing Nam Daeng (red – sala flavored syrup) and Nam Kaew (green – cream soda flavored syrup) and add in some soaked sweet basil seeds in making the drinks. These two drinks have cooling effects for the burning sensation in your mouth whenever you have taken too high level of spiciness.

Overall, the dishes served here were quite fulfilling for a Thai cuisine hunter like me here. The wonderful thing is that they managed to control the level of spiciness well for the general local consumers. You could always get them to spice up the dishes if you find them to be too mild for you. However, they are not quite close to the homely style of cooking as I had at Annathai-Kitchen yet but some of their dishes served here surely exceeded my expectations.

The Thai Food Restaurant is located just at the back portion of the Batu Lanchang Market Food Court and won’t be hard to locate at all. If you are coming from Jalan Mesjid Negeri towards the Penang Bridge, you would pass by Lam Wah Ee Hospital. Just drive on until you see a Petronas petrol kiosk on your left. Drive on about 100m more and you would see a left turning. Turn left into Lebuhraya Batu Lanchang and drive on until you see CIMB Bank/KFC. Turn left into Medan Batu Lanchang and drive on until the other side of the shop houses and you will see the restaurant just at the back of the food court on your right. Try finding some legal parking spaces here. If you can’t, I would advise you to park your car within the Batu Lanchang Market car park compound as the local MPPP officers could be rather summons happy here. LOL!

Name: THAI FOOD RESTAURANT
Address: 19L, Medan Batu Lanchang, 11600 Penang, Malaysia.
Contact: 012-486 9191 (Mr. Christopher Choong)
Business Hours: 11.00am-3.00pm, 6.00pm-10.00pm
GPS: 5.389492, 100.305363

RATING:
Ambience: 7/10 (1-4 cheap, 5-7 average, 8-10 classy)
Food Choices: 8/10 (1-4 limited, 5-7 average, 8-10 many choices)
Taste: 8/10 (1-4 tasteless, 5-7 average, 8-10 excellent)
Pricing: 7/10 (1-4 cheap, 5-7 average, 8-10 expensive)
Service: 8/10 (1-4 bad, 5-7 average, 8-10 excellent)

With National Day just around the corner, Swez Brasserie @ Eastin Hotel, Penang is promoting its Marvelous Malaysia Cuisine for the whole month of August 2012 (1-31 August 2012). There would be an array of Malaysian dishes ranging from appetizers, main dishes and desserts to fill your appetite. This promotion would be arranged under the skillful hands of Jr. Sous Chefs, Chef Mohamad Bakri and Chef Mohd Fauzi. For the month of August, there would also be a 15% off the bill for all MAYBANKARD, VISA, CIMB and UOB card members.

As for appetizer, there would be some juicy skews of Chicken Satay with Condiments. Of so many styles and flavors of satays I’ve tried from so many buffet lines, I would say that Swez Brasserie did a great job in maintaining the juiciness of the meat within each skew. The flavors were just right with the creamy and flavorful spicy peanut sauce. The satays were served with some onion, cucumber and ketupat cuts.

Another option was the Pasembur with Peanut Sauce. The dish came with some julienned cucumber and jicama, topped with deep fried items such as potatoes, hard boiled eggs, fish balls, bean curds, chicken rolls, pita bread, prawns and more. It was appetizing.

As for the main course, we were served with a variety of dishes accompanied by Nasi Briyani. Each grain of the used Basmati rice was evenly coated with briyani seasonings, topped with some raisins and chopped roasted almonds.

One of the main dishes that I like was the Daging Rendang Tok. The dish had chunks of beef slowly simmered in herbs and spices until the meat prices were tender and nice. It was creamy dry with a large amount of coconut milk and desiccated coconut being used. The dish just lacked a bit more of ginger in it to cover the beefy taste as many of the guests could not get use to the overpowering flavors.

Next was the Curry Chicken which was of a drier version compared to the normal style served elsewhere. The dish has a tad of Indian influence and would go well with chapatti or any types of bread.

I love the Ikan Panggang (Grilled Fish) a lot as the kitchen made a right choice of choosing stingray as the flesh was the best for any type of grilling. The flavorful turmeric coating on the fish as well as the beautifully prepared condiment of sauce made the dish the perfect dish for all.

The next dish which was the Assam Prawns was another well prepared Nyonya dish. The nicely fried tamarind with a light touch of sugar and soy sauce marinated prawns were quite a hit. However, due to the limitation of the prawn supply, tiger prawns were used instead of the ideal white/green shelled prawns.

The Malaysian sea has an abundant supply of flower crabs, thus Flower Crab Curry was served. For crab lovers, this would be an ideal dish for you as those crabs were indeed super fresh.

With such a humid weather in Malaysia recently, no one could resist the temptation of having a large bowl of Ice Kacang being served. You can choose all the ingredients you like such as corns, kidney beans, jelly, grass jelly, cendul, attap nuts, nutmeg strips and crushed peanuts for your shaved ice dessert, on top of having a large scoop of ice cream on it. How I wished there could be peanut ice cream as well. Haha!

Other than cakes, pastries, local kuih or even fresh fruits as desserts, they also would serve some local fruits and vegetables fritters. There would be choices of batter fried Goreng Pisang, Goreng Ubi Keledek, Goreng Ubi Keladi, Goreng Cempedak, Goreng Buah Sukun (bread fruit) or even Kuih Kodok. They sure know how to handle the batter well as each piece of the fritter had a nice crispiness that won’t go soggy even left for a long time.

Overall, Swez Brasserie do serves quite a variety of delicious Malaysian cuisine with a touch of kampong style. There dishes during our review were reasonably up to the required standards.

For MAYBANKARD, VISA, CIMB and UOB card members, you can enjoy 15% discount for the Marvelous Malaysia Semi Buffet Dinner (Monday – Thursday: 21 August 2012 onwards), Weekend Buffet Dinner (Friday – Sunday) and Ramadan Buffet Dinner from 6.30pm – 10.00pm daily (21 July – 18 August, 2012).

Here’s the summary of the promotion.

MARVELOUS MALAYSIA PROMOTION (1-31 AUGUST 2012)
Lunch (12.00 noon – 2.30pm): Monday – Friday
RM48++ (adult), RM24++ (child)
Hi-Tea (12.00 noon – 3.00pm): Saturday, Sunday & Public Holidays
Normal weekend: RM55++ (adult), RM28++ (child)
Festive Occasion (National Day- 31 August 2012): RM68++ (adult), RM34++ (child)
Semi Buffet Dinner (6.30pm – 10.00pm): Monday – Thursday (From 21 August 2012)
RM48++ per pax
Weekend Themed Buffet Dinner (6.30pm – 10.00pm):
Friday: Seafood Supreme
Saturday: Japanese
Sunday: East Meets West
RM80++ (adult), RM40++ (child)

The Swez Brasserie is located at the ring wing of Eastin Hotel, Penang (next to Queensbay Mall). If you are coming from Georgetown towards Bayan Lepas Free Trade Zone via Bayan Lepas Expressway, do watch out for the Pulau Jerejak signboard (leading to Pulau Jerejak jetty). Ignore the turning and drive on to the next left junction. Turn left into Jalan Aziz Ibrahim and drive on until you a roundabout. Turn 3 o’ clock and drive on until you see a big Eastin Hotel signboard at the first right junction. Turn right and drive on. Park your car at the basement car park. Take a lift to the first floor lobby and you would see the restaurant there.

Name: SWEZ BRASSERIE @ EASTIN HOTEL
Address: 1 Solok Bayan Indah, Queens Bay, 11900 Bayan Lepas, Penang, Malaysia.
Contact: 604-612 1128, 604-612 1138
Business Hours: 12.00pm-2.30pm (Lunch), 6.30pm-10.00pm (Dinner)
GPS: 5.33643, 100.306345

RATING:
Ambience: 8/10 (1-4 cheap, 5-7 average, 8-10 classy)
Food Choices: 7.5/10 (1-4 limited, 5-7 average, 8-10 many choices)
Taste: 7.5/10 (1-4 tasteless, 5-7 average, 8-10 excellent)
Pricing: 8/10 (1-4 cheap, 5-7 average, 8-10 expensive)
Service: 8/10 (1-4 bad, 5-7 average, 8-10 excellent)

My friend recently presented me with a frozen Boston lobster and I thought why not I cook it the Oriental way instead of the normal Western cheesy bake. The dish turned out to be amazingly tasty with a mild tad of spiciness. It’s not hard at all to pep up a noodle dish with the lobster. Let me share with you my STIR FRY SPICY LOBSTER NOODLES recipe.

Since lobsters do not have much flesh for the consumption of more than a pax, I have added in some prawns, meat and fish cakes to make the bulk. Each individual added items gave the noodles superb flavors.

INGREDIENTS:

1 Boston lobster (about 800gms – brush to clean it well)
1.5L water
300gms young morning glory/kangkung (pluck the leaves only)
200gms bean sprouts (remove roots if possible)
200gms lean meat (thinly slice, marinate with a bit soy sauce, pepper and sesame oil)
300gms medium sized prawns (peel and remove vein, marinate with a bit soy sauce, pepper and a pinch of sugar)
1 cup lobster stock
1 cup meat stock
2-3 pieces of fish cake (slice thinly)
3 shallots (slice)
1 clove garlic (finely chop)
7-8 tsp chili boh (refer below for recipe)
600gms yellow noodles (wash away the lye water in running water)
Soy sauce
Sesame Oil
Oil
Salt & pepper to taste

INGREDIENTS FOR CHILI BOH:
In case you can’t get the ready blended chili paste, just blend all the ingredients below with a bit of water. Freeze the balance until needed.
20gms dried chilies (remove seed, soak in hot water for 10minutes, drain)
4 fresh red chilies (remove seed & cut into chunks)
1/2 tsp salt

GARNISHES:
4 sticks crabsticks (cut into strips, deep fried until crispy)
1 stalk spring onions (finely chop)
Iceberg lettuce (optional)
Lobster shell (brush some oil on the hot boiled lobster to maintain the shiny shell)

PREPARATIONS:
• Heat up the 1.5L water in a wok on MEDIUM-HIGH heat and add in 1 tsp of salt.
• When the water boils, put in the lobster and cook for about 12-15 minutes.
• Remove the lobster and apply some oil on the shell to maintain the shining red color.
• Take out the lobster flesh and cut into bite chunks.
• Sift the boiled stock to be used later.
• Heat up 2 tablespoons of oil, add in the chopped garlic and stir fry until fragrant.
• Add in 1 teaspoon of chili boh and fry until fragrant.
• Pour in the prawns and stir fry until curl. Do not overcook it. Scoop up and cut the prawns into halves. Stir fry again until they are in twisted curls. Add in the boiled lobster flesh and sliced fish cakes. Stir evenly. Scoop up and leave aside.
• Add in another 2 tablespoons of oil, 1 teaspoon of chili boh, the sliced meat and stir fry until cook.
• In the same wok, add in some more oil and saute the sliced shallot until golden brown.
• Add in 4-5 teaspoons of chili boh (depends on your spicy level) and stir fry until fragrant.
• Pour in the cups of lobster and meat stock and let it boil.
• Add in 2 tablespoons of soy sauce, a pinch of salt and a light sprinkle of pepper to taste.
• When the soup boils, add in the morning glory, noodles and stir thoroughly until the soup almost dry.
• Add in the bean sprouts and stir until translucent.
• Add in the cooked items such as the lobster flesh, prawns, meat and fish cake. Stir mix thoroughly.
• Scoop up the noodles onto a serving plate. Garnish with some deep fried crabsticks and chopped spring onions.
• Serve hot.

(Serves: 3-4)

Enjoy your appetizing noodles~ Good Luck!

YOU CAN CHECK HERE FOR MORE RECIPES.

Most people would love to have sweet desserts for tea. For my case, savory items would suit me better as it’s another way to control my blood sugar level. Nobody would believe that I created these yummy snacks for tea mostly with leftovers~ Haha! Well, I have some puff dough left in my freezer as well as some mushroom gravy I have in stock from my previous grilled meat dishes. I just added some finely cut chicken slices to the mushroom gravy and that became my filling for my CHICKEN & MUSHROOM PUFF BOAT.

I learned the puff pastry from Gordan Ramsey’s Rough Puff Pastry recipe. Let me show you my mushroom gravy recipe instead which would serve as a great sauce for any grilled, batter coated or breadcrumb coated meat dishes. As for the balance of the cut dough, I simply wrap around some boiled cocktail sausages to come out with another snack I called COCKTAIL PUFF. Another bonus snack~ 😛

INGREDIENTS FOR MUSHROOM GRAVY: (Make about 4 cups)
250gms dried Shitake mushrooms (soak in hot water & slice thinly) or 400gms fresh mushrooms (slice thinly)
60gms butter (about 1/8 of a 454gms block of butter)
1/3 cup flour (sift)
900ml meat or vegetable stock
1/2 tsp dried mixed herbs
1 tsp dark soy sauce
1 tbsp brandy/whiskey
Salt & freshly grounded black pepper to taste

INGREDIENTS FOR CHICKEN & MUSHROOM FILLING:
300gms chicken breast meat (slice & coarsely cut into bits)

GARNISHES:
Cherry tomatoes & micro greens

PREPARATIONS:
• Melt the butter in a large saucepan/wok on MEDIUM-HIGH heat.
• When the butter sizzle, add the mushrooms and sauté until dry with golden brown color for about 10 minutes.
• Reduce the heat to MEDIUM and stir in the sifted flour. Cook for about 5 minutes.
• Reduce the heat to LOW and slowly whisk in the meat/vegetables stock.
• Add in the mixed herbs and let it simmer for 25-30 minutes (or until your preferred thickness) while stirring occasionally to avoid the base being burnt.
• Add in the brandy/whiskey, salt and freshly grounded black pepper to taste. Now you have your sauce to serve with any meat dishes.
• As for the chicken & mushroom filling, just leave about 1/4 of the gravy (about a cup with mushrooms) and pour in the chicken meat. Slowly saute until cook. If the gravy is too thick or salty, just add a bit of hot water to dilute it. Roughly drain the gravy into any existing gravy stock you have left.
• As for the puff pastry (based on my displayed photo), cut the rolled dough into 2″ x 4″ rectangular. For every 2 pieces, cut a hole in one and lay it on another whole pastry. The remaining cut piece you can use it to wrap around a boiled cocktail sausage to avoid wastage.
• Glaze your baking tray with some butter.
• Place your puff pastries on it and brush evenly with some butter.
• Preheat your oven on 210°C-220°C for 10 minutes.
• Place your baking tray inside and bake for 10-12 minutes or until the crust is golden brown.

• When the puff pastries are done, use a butter knife to flatten the inner layer.

• Fill them up with the chicken & mushroom filling. Garnish with cherry tomato and micro greens. Note: Try not to have any gravy in the puff pastries as it would wet the base.
• Serve hot

(Makes: 12-15pcs)

Do enjoy your simple snacks~ 🙂

YOU CAN CHECK HERE FOR MORE RECIPES.

Nobody could resist the #1 dish in the world as rated by CNNGo if not for the rich and balanced flavors in sweetness, saltiness, sourness and spiciness. What’s the name of that dish? It’s the infamous Thailand’s Massaman Curry~ Slurps~ You can cook the curry with beef, lamb and poultry with this curry recipe but I prefer chicken as it’s easier to tenderize the meat and faster to heal my hungry tummy! Haha! Anyway, let me share with you my version of Chicken Massaman Curry or commonly known as Gaeng Matsaman Gai (แกงมัสมั่นไก่) in Thailand. Having Thai dishes in the comfort of your home would be a reality now~ Enjoy cooking! 🙂

INGREDIENTS:

3-4 chicken drumsticks/500gms chicken breast meat (remove bones & cut into chunks)
2 big potatoes (remove skin, cut into chunks & deep fry until cook)
1 big onion (cut into wedges)
1-2 red/green chili (remove seeds & cut into 6 pieces)
15 cherry tomatoes
4 cloves garlic (smash & remove skin)
3 leaves kaffir lime leaves
1 1/2 cups tamarind juice (3” tamarind ball in hot water/3 tbsp tamarind paste in water)
1 cup thick coconut milk/cream (use evaporated milk if none)
100gms cashew nuts/peanuts (deep fry until golden brown & keep some for garnishing)
5 tbsp oil
1-2 tbsp brown/palm sugar (Gula Melaka) to taste
Fish sauce & pepper to taste
50gms massaman curry paste (use the recipe below or just buy the Mae Pranom brand aka “lady head” brand from your nearest hypermarket)
Soy sauce

OPTIONAL:
1 round aubergine (cut into bite size)
10 leaves Thai basil/3 bay leaves
5 cili padi/red chili flakes (for spicier version)

GARNISHES:
Cilantro leaves/micro cilantro
Cashew nuts
Tomatoes

PREPARATIONS:
• Marinate your cut chicken pieces with some soy sauce and a light sprinkle of pepper for 30 minutes.
• Heat up some oil and deep fry the potatoes chunks until golden brown. Scoop and leave aside.
• Pour in the cashew nuts and deep fry until golden brown. Place on a kitchen towel to drain the excess oil.
• Leave about 5 tablespoons of oil and saute the smashed garlic until fragrant.
• Add in 1/4 cup of the coconut cream and cook until the oil surface.
• Add in the massaman curry paste and saute until fragrant.
• Add in the chicken pieces, chilies and onions and stir until the onions look translucent.
• Add in the tamarind juices and cook the chicken until tender.
• Add in the kaffir lime leaves, fried potatoes and balance of the coconut cream.
• When the gravy thickens to your preference, add in fish sauce, palm sugar and pepper to taste. You may add in some hot water if it is too thick due to the starch coming from the potatoes.
• Add in the cherry tomatoes and let it simmer for another 3 minutes.
• Add in the cashew nuts and stir evenly.
• Scoop up on a serving plate. Garnish with some cashew nuts, micro cilantro/cilantro leaves and tomatoes. Serve with hot steaming rice.

(Serves: 5-6)

YOU CAN CHECK HERE FOR MORE RECIPES.

Massaman Curry Paste Recipe: (Make about 1 cup)

5 cloves garlic (bawang putih)
3 shallots (bawang merah)
1-2 red chilies (depending on your spicy level)
1 stalk lemongrass (serai – mince finely)
1 1/2” galangal (lengkuas – thinly slice)
1 tsp grated kaffir lime skin (kulit limau purut)
1/2 tsp fennel (pokok adas)
1 tsp ground coriander (ketumbar)
1/2 tbsp ground cumin (jintan putih)
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon (kulit kayu manis)
1/8 tsp ground cloves (bunga cengkih)
1/4 tsp ground cardamom (pelaga)
1/8 tsp ground nutmeg (buah pala)
2 tbsp fish sauce (nam pla)
1 tsp toasted/raw shrimp paste (belacan)

Method: Put all in a blender and blend everything into a paste. Put in a jar and refrigerate for future usages.

Sometimes we yearn for dishes that were served to us during our childhood years and one of the dishes that would make me crave endlessly even as an adult would be the simple meatball dish. Let me share with you my all time favorite MEATBALLS IN GRAVY recipe with lots of potatoes and carrots. It was another way my Mum managed to convince me to eat more vegetables when I was a kid. Well~ She succeeded! Haha! 😛

INGREDIENTS:

GROUP A:
300gms minced meat (chicken, pork, beef, lamb of your choice)
1 small onion (finely chop)
1 tbsp spring onion (finely chop)
1 tbsp corn flour (if chicken – half the amount)
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1/2 tbsp sesame oil
Pepper

GROUP B:
1 small onion (cut in wedges)
1 cup meat stock/water
3-4 tbsp mushroom sauce/vegetarian oyster sauce/oyster sauce
1 tbsp corn flour (mix with some water)
Salt & pepper to taste
Oil

GROUP C:
2 big potatoes (remove skin, dice, deep fry until golden brown)
1 big carrot (remove skin, dice, blanch)
1 big tomato (remove seed, dice)

GARNISHES:
Spring onions

PREPARATIONS:
• Mix everything in Group A thoroughly and marinate in chiller for 30 minutes. Make into small even sized balls and place on a flat tray.
• Heat up enough oil in a wok and deep fry the diced potatoes until golden brown. Scoop and leave aside.
• With the same heated oil, deep fry the meatballs until brown. Scoop and leave aside.
• Filter the oil and leave about 1-2 tablespoons of oil in the wok.
• Saute your onion wedges until translucent.
• Add in the meat stock, mushroom sauce, salt and pepper to taste. (DO NOT make it too salty as the flavors from the meatballs would give it the adequate flavors)
• Thicken it slightly with some corn flour in water.
• Pour in everything in GROUP C (deep fried potatoes, blanched carrot dices, tomato dices) and deep fried meatballs and let it simmer in LOW fire for 2-3 minutes.
• Scoop up on a serving plate, garnish with some spring onions and serve with hot steaming rice.

(Serves: 3-4)

YOU CAN CHECK HERE FOR MORE RECIPES.