Now in KL: True blue Pangkor Island nasi lemak!

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 20 — Ask any Pangkor Island resident what their favourite food is, and they will most likely tell you that it’s nasi lemak.

What makes their version unique is the fact that it comes with fried fish, in particular the small ikan gulama fished from the island’s waters, cooked with sambal. Eat this with fluffy coconut milk scented rice and it’s heaven in a packet!

Now those who grew up on Pangkor Island can get their nasi lemak fix here.

Opened for four months, this stall run by Koay Chin Chee, 50, and his wife, Selina Tan, 42, serves Pangkor Island nasi lemak. Most of their customers are homesick island-bred folk who have relocated to the Klang Valley.

Accidentally discovered by Esther Ong, this place became popular with the Pangkor Island natives after she posted the picture of the nasi lemak on Facebook.

Esther and her sister Alice explained that they are crazy about the nasi lemak and whenever they go back to their hometown, they’ll call their mother to buy at least 20 packets of nasi lemak for them since it sells out quickly in the early morning.

“We are all crazy for the taste of home,” explained Alice. Before they found this stall, the two sisters tell us that they used to pack the nasi lemak from the island and freeze it.

It isn’t the same as the freshly-made version but that was the only way to satisfy their cravings.

Another enthusiastic Pangkor Island resident is Beh Kok Aun who runs Thirdwave cafe and Kakigōri in the Klang Valley. Once he read about the nasi lemak, he could not contain his excitement and gave it a try, giving it the thumbs up.

He tells us that there are generally two types of nasi lemak served on the island: The Malay version has a redder hue while the Chinese version is more yellow tinged from the use of turmeric.

Often it can be even hard to find these coveted packets on the island as the nasi lemak can sell out within two hours! As ikan gulama is commonly available on the island, it’s used for the nasi lemak.

In addition to the ikan gulama version (RM1.80 per packet), the stall also offers nasi lemak with a choice of either sambal petai with prawns (RM3 per packet) or sambal ikan bilis (RM2 per packet).

Even though you did not grow up on Pangkor Island, you will appreciate this simple and tasty nasi lemak.

The fish version has a subtle sweet taste that pairs well with the mild sambal that has a lot of onions.

For those who prefer a stronger flavour, try the sambal petai with prawns that is fragrant from the abundant use of kaffir lime leaves or daun limau purut.

The sambal ikan bilis version is equally satisfying as they are generous with the sambal. Unlike the usual nasi lemak bungkus, this version does not come with any toasted peanuts, hard-boiled egg or cucumber.

At Pangkor Island, they consume the nasi lemak like a breakfast snack. Usually a bowl of noodles is ordered while everyone shares the nasi lemak.

Avid fans of the nasi lemak will take more than one packet of course. Koay tells us he can eat up to five packets of nasi lemak in one sitting!

The nasi lemak is cooked by Selina who can cook anything after tasting it once, a skill she inherited from her mother, whom Koay calls “the goddess of cooking.”

Even though Selina didn’t grow up on the island, she managed to recreate the same taste after three tries. This is also thanks to an anonymous source who gave them a tip for a secret ingredient used in the nasi lemak.

Despite the overwhelming demand, the couple believes in making the nasi lemak in small batches every day. “We don’t want to do a lot as it will not be fresh,” explained Koay.

For larger orders, it’s best to call ahead at least one day in advance. Sometimes depending on how busy they are, you can even order the nasi lemak about two hours ahead too.

Previously Koay worked in a steel mill but after some persuasion from his wife, he decided to venture into the F&B business.

They used to run a noodles stall in Shah Alam for three years before they moved to this space in Kuchai Entrepreneurs Park.

Also sharing the same space with them is a chicken rice stall. At night, another stall takes over to sell ikan bakar and pan mee.

The stall also serves chilli fish, a pre-order item for RM9 per fish (the price varies with the size of the fish). Similar to ikan sumbat sambal, this version uses the hard-skinned ikan cencaru.

The fish is slit at its belly and both sides are stuffed with sambal and deep fried. The recipe is inherited from Koay’s mother who passed it down down to Selina.

She adds her own unique twist to the dish... by stuffing it with sliced white bread. This she tells us was born out of necessity as it prevented the sambal from falling out when she was deep frying the fish in hot oil.

What she also discovered after some experimenting was the fried bread was delicious since it also absorbed the taste of the sambal.

You can also enjoy a comforting bowl of Yellow Wine Mee Shua (RM7) with your nasi lemak. Rather than serve red rice wine that is more common in Sitiawan, Koay decided to stick to the yellow rice wine since locals find the taste more accessible.

The rice wine is made by Selina and it adds a nice sweetish, fragrant touch to the smooth rice noodles topped with poached egg, pork slices, pork liver and kidney.

For those who prefer something spicier, the stall has Curry Mee (RM6) topped with cockles, chicken, bean sprouts, bean curd puffs and hard-boiled egg. There is also a Dry Curry Mee (RM6) served with aromatic chicken curry and noodles tossed with dark soy sauce.

The curry is made from scratch by Selina who uses more than 10 ingredients to prepare the fragrant curry paste. For those who have a sweet tooth, Selina also bakes delicious butter and marble chiffon cakes that you can get at the eatery.

Seeing the success of the nasi lemak, Koay is now thinking of introducing another local favourite, the Pangkor assam laksa.

Currently unavailable here in the Klang Valley, this version of assam laksa is made with fresh white coloured Teochew noodles manufactured on the island.

Who knows, this may be the next big thing for the stall once the talented Selina succeeds at recreating the same taste!

Restoran Seng Seng

21-1, Jalan Kuchai Maju 11

Kuchai Entrepreneurs Park, KL

Tel:016-7439048

Open: 6.30am to 3pm

from Malay Mail Online | Eat/Drink http://ift.tt/2wcXAGz
Source: The Malay Mail