Instead of simply taking us on a usual food tour, our friends from Tourism Selangor and Gaya Travel Magazine made our culinary journey to Selangor more enjoyable and interactive by letting us cook or prepare certain dishes and delicacies. Over four days of traveling across a portion of the coastal Malaysian state, we learned how to make these savory food. Read more…
SPICY OYSTERS WITH PINEAPPLE
To highlight the fresh seafood catch of Selangor state, we were challenged to replicate Chef Afiq Isyami’s spicy oyster with pineapple dish, MasterChef-style. Of course, cooking oysters comes with the seemingly insurmountable task of shucking the shellfish, which took a while for my teammate to accomplish. We then caramelized the pineapple, sautéed the oysters and in butter and onions, and cooked them in a spicy sauce made of paprika, lemon juice, balsamic vinegar, and Tabasco. Lastly, we garnished the dish with cherry tomatoes and cilantro.
KUIH REMPEYEK
Originating from Java, Indonesia, kuih rempeyek (or simply, rempeyek) is a fritter spiced with cumin and coriander and topped with crunchy bits and pieces, like peanuts and chopped soybean. Our friends from Homestay Sungai Sireh were glad to show us how to make them.
Although mixing all the wet and dry ingredients was straightforward enough, what was difficult to ascertain was the right consistency of the batter, given that the villagers make the batter without any recipe. Achieving the right doneness of the kuih, especially because of the peanut and soybean on top, was a challenge too. The good thing was that a makcik gave us a hand, making sure our batches of kuih rempeyek were up to the villagers’ standards.
NASI AMBENG
Also from Java, nasi ambeng is a smorgasbord consisting of a whole ayam masak kicap (chicken cooked in soy sauce), serunding kelapa (coconut floss), sambal goreng Jawa (Javanese fried sambal), and mee goreng (fried noodles) assembled on top of nasi putih (white rice). The villagers from Kampung Sabak Bernam taught us how to assemble the meal on daun pisang (banana leaves) and feast on it using the hand. This big meal is meant to be shared among four people.
This year is Malaysia Year of Festivals 2015 with the theme “Endless Celebrations.” Visitors can expect a series of year-long special events and activities throughout the country. For more updates on MYFEST2015, check out tourism.gov.my and like Tara Na Sa Malaysia on Facebook.
