eG Foodblog: Laksa - Wild man of Borneo

[Laksa]

Oh no! I forgot there are Malaysians reading this blog.

But really, I never planned to make "Nasi Lemak", just the rice.

[helenjp]

Ms. Congeeniality thanks for the info on fern shoots and roots.

And sorry, by "yams" I meant roots such as taro-related things, rather than sweet potatoes. In NZ we avoid all this confusion by calling sweet potatoes by their Maori name, "kumara". I've heard that they came to Southeast Asia from South America via Portuguese ships. I wonder if they really were that recently introduced.

Japanese rice cookers mostly have a congee setting, very handy to be able to cook it on the overnight timer ready for breakfast. I haven't seen that type of rice cooker in New Zealand, but I was curious to find that they don't seem to be available in the US either.

Laksa, we have the "eats roots and leaves" joke in NZ too. A kind of LCD of the joke world...

I'm enjoying the blog - my Borneo friend's gift for blarney is second only to yours - is it something you guys eat?

Is there room for Malaysia/Singapore, or at least Southeast Asia in the forums? "Rest of Asia/Pacific" covers quite a lot...

[SG-]

Japanese rice cookers mostly have a congee setting, very handy to be able to cook it on the overnight timer ready for breakfast. I haven't seen that type of rice cooker in New Zealand, but I was curious to find that they don't seem to be available in the US either.

Just used my Zojirushi for the first time this weekend to cook congee, sooo easy and convenient. No more standing by the stove stirring constantly, highly recommended.

[smallworld]

This is what I can look forward to for afternoon snack.

The Japanese snack on the left has no English on the packet at all. I like to think of myself as a pretty adventurous eater so I took a chance and got it. The only thing I need to watch out for is crab because I'm allergic to it. I figure with all the different chip flavorings to choose from, the odds are in my favor, don't you agree?

You were probably joking, but on the off chance you weren't let me point out that the chips on the left are, in fact, crab chips. "Of all the different chip flavourings to choose from" indeed!

And it might be tempting to assume that, like kani-kama kamaboko, the crab flavour is fake, but I think the small print says they're made from real crab.

Enjoying your blog very much, by the way!

[Laksa]

You were probably joking, but on the off chance you weren't let me point out that the chips on the left are, in fact, crab chips. "Of all the different chip flavourings to choose from" indeed!

smallworld, I'm so glad you noticed (and care). After many dark hours of self-doubt, I vowed never again to inflict eGullet with my weak attempts at humor, but you've caused me to rethink that.

Now see what you've done!

[Laksa]

After I woke up this morning, I found this on my bathroom wall:

Oh goody goody. I've been pondering what to have for breakfast, and now I know.

Spider in the morning is a bad omen, they say. Yeaah! It's a bad omen for the spider when he chooses to mess with the hungry Wild Man!

But...

The longer the Wild Man looks at the spider, the more the Wild Man's heart softens.

Itsy-bitsy spider, you are so cuuuuuuuute!! I can't possibly eat you!

(Don't let that get out or it'll ruin the Wild Man's reputation)

So... it's taro kuih from Sanur for breakfast instead.

Ohhh... tiny tiny shrimpies, you guys are so cuuuuuuute!!

It's okay to eat them Wild Man, they're already dead.

[tryska]

so you get the pandan flavoring from essence, eh? how many drops?

i've been so confused about this essence thing, so i just order nasi lemak from my local takeout. (it's my roommates favorite - i like it too, but am gonna opt for coconut fried rice next time.)

[Laksa]

so you get the pandan flavoring from essence, eh?  how many drops?

I used about 1 tablespoon for 3 cups of rice. I find the flavor is different from what you get with pandan leaves.

Frozen pandan leaves are available in the States. Bangkok Market has some vacuum sealed packs that were imported from Thailand. If I cook nasi lemak again, I am going to try the leaves as I can't quite get my tastebuds around the flavor of pandan essence.

Here's a gratuitous picture of frozen pandan (because I love posting pictures)

[tryska]

so from your perspective, leaves - good, essence..mmm..not so much?

[spaghetttti]

(Psssst, Doreen, do you know he acts like this when you're away?)

He's taking pictures of spiders and posting them in his blog?!?!?

Poor thing.

Yetty

[Laksa]

so from your perspective, leaves - good, essence..mmm..not so much?

From my perspective, nasi lemak from restaurant - good. If I have to cook myself - it's anybody's guess.

I am so envious that you can get nasi lemak from your local takeout; I have to drive 2 hours.

But I think it's hard to refute the claim that nothing beats fresh leaves. I don't know what the restaurants here use, but the nasi lemak I had on Saturday night was mighty close to the ones I remember having in M'sia.

More important than pandan, IMHO, is the coconut milk. If you want to do it properly, not messing around like what I'm doing in this blog, you need the milk from freshly grated (mature) coconuts. The milk, more than anything else, is what makes good nasi lemak good.

[tryska]

even better than takeout my friend....delivery!

as for coconut milk.....i take it since you are using canned that you don't have a coconut scraper? i'm really tempted to ask my mom for her's if she didn't throw it out during various moves.

[Ms Congeeniality]

(Psssst, Doreen, do you know he acts like this when you're away?)

He's taking pictures of spiders and posting them in his blog?!?!?

Poor thing.

Yetty

Hey Yetty, this is a revelation to me too. He's usually up earlier in the morning anyway, so I have no idea what he's up to. Looks like he goes hunting..

[spaghetttti]

[Ms Congeeniality]

by "yams"  I meant roots such as taro-related things, rather than sweet potatoes. In NZ we avoid all this confusion by calling sweet potatoes by their Maori name, "kumara".

helenjp, I have often heard of "kumara", but had no idea it was Maori until now. We too use "yam" to mean "taro", but one can never be too sure in the US.

I've heard that they came to Southeast Asia from South America via Portuguese ships. I wonder if they really were that recently introduced.

FAO postulates that taro originates from southern or south-east Asia.

Similar finding was suggested by this website. An excerpt:

For example, its speciation has been postulated as occurring in "Indo Malaysia" by de Candolle (1886), in "Indonesia" by Engler and Krause (1920), in "India" by Burkill (1935), Vavilov (1949-50), and Chang (1958), in the "East Indies" by Degener (1945), in "Southeast Asia" by Sauer (1952), and in "Malaysia" by Keleny (1962) and Good (1964).

For sure it's been around for a loooong time in Malaysia

Japanese rice cookers mostly have a congee setting

This is too cool. Seems to be available from Amazon. Great idea for wedding gifts, thanks for pointing this out.

[Ms Congeeniality]

Is there room for Malaysia/Singapore, or at least Southeast Asia in the forums?

I would second that...

[Tepee]

If I cook nasi lemak again, I am going to try the leaves as I can't quite get my tastebuds around the flavor of pandan essence.

You can say that again...I just made a batch of Nightscotsman's marshmallow using pandan essence.....and because it smelled un-pandan-y, I added pandan paste (from Indonesia). It smells so artificial, and has probably ruined my batch of marshmallows. I totally deserve this, for not taking the trouble to make my own fresh juice. But, hey, my pandan plant is a bit botak (bald), and I'll have to pinch my neighbors if I were to make the juice...........off to look for more excuse..........

[SG-]

Don't bother with frozen pandan leaves. It's quite useless really, the freezing process virtually eliminates any flavor.

[trillium]

Don't bother with frozen pandan leaves. It's quite useless really, the freezing process virtually eliminates any flavor.

Actually, the frozen leaves you can get here from Thailand are really good for stuff like nasi lemak or chicken rice because they have a great scent and you just knot them up and throw them in the rice. I'm surprised you say they have no flavor. One or two leaves will not only strongly scent a pot of rice but the whole house as well. I think most Pandan essence you can get in the US is pretty vile, we don't even have any in our house. Mali (jasmine) essence I like, otoh, go figure...

For things where you need to wrap with the leaves the fresh ones from Hawaii work better even though their scent isn't as lovely. The problem is that in littler cities they never even have the fresh ones (or kalamasi limes!). How nice it would be to just go outside and pick some! At least we have laksa leaf growing outside and can occasionally find fresh kaffir limes and leaves.

Mr. Laksa, is laksa leaf optional in your laksa? Is it a regional thing? No S'porean I know would consider laksa complete without a sprinkle and I think I see cilantro in your bowl of laksa, not laksa leaf!

It would be very cool to have more defined sections like Korea, Thailand, Singapore/Malaysia in the Asian section of the forum, but I'm guessing amongst other obstacles that means finding volunteers to do the hosting duties.

regards,

trillium

Edited August 25, 2004 by trillium (log)

[tryska]

Mali essence I like, otoh, go figure...

mali = jasmine?

[Laksa]

A colleague at work is leaving, so we organized a farewell lunch for him at a local Chinese buffet.

The Chinese buffet's ubiquity in sub-urban America is surpassed only by the dullness and uniformity of its food. Yet the local neighborhood Chinese buffet always seems to be packed. The food is definitely edible -- don't get me wrong -- as long as your expectations aren't set too high.

I have my own theories as to why buffet restaurants are so popular. When I think about it, the entire premise of a buffet restaurant is really a well-disguised insinuation that questions my eating ability, and indirectly, my manhood.

"All you can eat for a fixed price!"

Why, don't you think I can eat that much?

To me, the buffet meal has nothing to do with receiving nourishment. It is in reality a duel between diner and restaurant. The restaurant has insulted my honor, and I demand satisfaction!

The following quote from Daniel Benyshek, the nutritional anthropologist at the University of Las Vegas, best expresses my buffet strategy:

I've eaten at the Bellagio [buffet] well past the point where I was enjoying it. That's when you've had a successful run at the buffet, when you're uncomfortable.

Appetizer:

The restaurant we went to also had a Mongolian barbeque. What can better than all you can eat freshly cooked food? This guy's cooking up my meal:

Noodles with just about everything, cooked in every sauce I could find. On the side is a chicken kebab.

Edited August 25, 2004 by Laksa (log)

[Laksa]

Mr. Laksa, is laksa leaf optional in your laksa? Is it a regional thing? No S'porean I know would consider laksa complete without a sprinkle and I think I see cilantro in your bowl of laksa, not laksa leaf!

Laksa leaf? That's a Peninsular/Singaporean extravagance!

No, I don't remember it being used in Sarawak laksa, but others may want to correct me.

[trillium]

Mali essence I like, otoh, go figure...

mali = jasmine?

uh-huh. I corrected my post...

regards,

trillium

[Laksa]

as for coconut milk.....i take it since you are using canned that you don't have a coconut scraper?

Not only do I not have a scraper, I would be too lazy to use it if I did. If only I could buy little bags of the grated coconut.

[trillium]

Mr. Laksa, is laksa leaf optional in your laksa?  Is it a regional thing?  No S'porean I know would consider laksa complete without a sprinkle and I think I see cilantro in your bowl of laksa, not laksa leaf!

Laksa leaf? That's a Peninsular/Singaporean extravagance!

No, I don't remember it being used in Sarawak laksa, but others may want to correct me.

Hmmm. Every reference I found for Sarawak laksa mentions corriander leaf, not laksa leaf, so it must indeed be a regional thing (extravagance? I don't know about that!).

Here's a picture of laksa leaf (top of page middle photo) from one of Thian's websites for them that are curious. No mention of Sarawak laksa, but he's a S'porean, so what do you expect!

Oh my god, this is great, did you know laksa has it's own Webster's Dictionary entry now?

regards,

trillium