malaysia's ethnic diversity makes for some great dining. we have sampled heavily from the food stalls and restaurants, eating south indian favorites, north indian cuisine, traditional malay and lots of chinese food. we only have about a week left in malaysia so we have our work cut out for us if we are going to try something from each of the 49,000 registered street hawkers and over 4,000 unregistered hawkers in kuala lumpur alone… here is a run down of a few of the most notable dishes so far.
tandori chicken from kapitain's in georgetown. well, their sign says that they have the best tandori in town. additionally, they were also recommended by the owner of our guesthouse. no one seems to be lying here - it is beyond awesome. of course, nothing that we have ever had in the states is even in the same league as kapitain's tandori chicken. it was heavily spiced in the traditional thick red curry paste that gives the tandori oven grilled chicken it's bright, distinctive color. it is moist and perfectly cooked on the inside and the bits of crispy, charred skin and curry paste on the outside are other-worldly. it is served with, as you might expect, the best naan we have had. we ordered buttered garlic naan and it was perfect. charred and slightly blackened from the intense heat of the walls of the tandor oven on one side and slightly steamed from the quick cooking process on the other side. served with mango chutney, cucumbers, raw onions and dahl - a light curry sauce made with lentils, for dipping. the other plus to the whole experience is that you get to put down the knife, fork, spoon and chopsticks and dig in with your hands, or hand that is (as the left is traditionally reserved for another part of the digestion process…). there are hand sinks throughout the restaurant and diners, wash up before they dig in, holding their right hands in the air like surgeons, waiting for their food to arrive.
hainan chicken and rice - a malay staple dish, served for breakfast, lunch and dinner. the chickens are served two ways, either roasted or poached. both methods are expertly executed and yield perfect results. the chicken is served cold, or room temperature (which is rarely below 30 degrees C). it's served on a small plate with dark soy sauce, raw cucumbers and a few chives. on a separate plate comes hot, steamed rice. in a bowl is a simple vegetable broth with a few lettuce leaves and lastly is house made sambal - a spicy, sour chile garlic sauce that is so good that alina asks for at least one extra every time we have it.
curry mee - served at street hawker stands throughout the country. each version is basically the same, although the thick curry ladened coconut broth varies from stall to stall. mee means noodles in malay and in this version, thick, chewy egg noodles are the right choice. curry mee is garnished with chunks of fried tofu that have simmered in the curry broth, cockles (a bivalve, similar to clams), shredded chicken, long beans (chinese green beans that grow over a foot long), a little cabbage and sometimes ladyfingers (okra). it is a full meal, rich and hearty and immensly satisfying.
samosa and curry puffs. the indian hawkers hold the market on the best of the fried foods - crispy, rich dough stuffed with curried dahl, shredded chicken, raisins and chilies - all fried up g.f.b. and perfect. if they were better for you i would try to sustain myself on them alone - although i am sure that would quickly undo all of our efforts cleansing at the sanctuary…
beef ball noodle is a staple dish in kuala lumpur. ngau kee beef ball noodles is the best in the city. their version is steamed, thick egg noodles covered with stewed minced beef and thick dark soy sauce. accompanying the noodles in a separate bowl are beef dumplings served in a clear beef broth. home made chile sauce, not unlike a good spicy salsa, rounds out the meal. we had ours with iced chinese herbal tea to wash it all down.
the best part about all of this great eating is that, supposedly, it is only a primer leading up to the famous food hawkers centers a few hundred kilometers south in singapore - i can't wait. david
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