Our Food, Demystified
October 14th, 2006 | Published in food and music | 11 Comments
NYMag provides us with some definitions most of us have certainly never thought of. I mean, how do you define a yong tau fu? Well, here goes.
Rojak: “a piquant salad of pineapple, cucumber, and jÃcama dressed in a powerfully spiced savory dressing”
Ipoh beansprouts: “very simple, lightly blanched bean sprouts served in a soy dressing with plenty of freshly ground white or black pepper.”
Yong tau fu: “really fantastic dish, a variety of barely blanched or deep-fried ingredients such as tofu, bitter melon, and eggplant that have been stuffed with a gently seasoned forcemeat of mackerel, and served with lo mein noodles and either a clear stock or an intensely seasoned coconut-milk curry broth.”
Nasi lemak: “coconut rice… steamed with coconut milk and flavored with aromatics like ginger and lemongrass.”
Kangkong belacan: “fresh-water spinach that’s been quickly fried in a very hot wok with shallots, garlic, chiles, and dried shrimp paste (belacan).”
Beef rendang: “slow-braised in coconut-milk curry, flavored with cloves and cinnamon and nutmeg and ginger. All the liquid evaporates, and the meat is left to gently [brown] in the beef fat that remains in the pan”
Alright, I am looking forward to Kuala Lumpur next weekend — I struggle to find ways to explain why I’m spending the long weekend there — because… I feel like Sunday brunch at Zipangu, and the Ramadan dinner deals run by every respectable establishment in that city, are too good to pass up? Because I want to buka puasa in a Bedouin Tent at the Hilton (not that I’m actually fasting)? But now I know: it’s for some Ampang “barely blanched or deep fried ingredients served with lo mein noodles and clear stock”, as well as some excellent “slow braised beef in coconut-milk curry”. I seriously wonder how they would describe “nasi kerabu”.
Weird Weird World
In other news, in our weird globalizing world: Air Slovakia is being transformed into a “Punjabi Experience”. (BBC story here), after being taken over by a Mr Harjinder Singh Sidhu. This brings to mind the great many “Sardarji is mad at midnight” stories my Indian friends love telling… but what I really want to know is, is it going to continue being called Air Slovakia, when all the stewardesses onboard, and the food they serve, will be Punjabi, and the airline is going to fly directly into Amritsar?
October 15th, 2006 at 12:09 am (#)
man, just thinking about all the food you’re going to have is making me hungry at 2am. and i can’t get it here! grr.
enjoy KL. ramadan food tends to be pretty nice… loved it while i was there, completely miss it these days. plus, the sheer fun of eating at 6pm :-)
October 15th, 2006 at 2:44 am (#)
:) i’ll eat more for you.
i’m increasingly of the opinion that what i cannot find in local food in singapore (i.e. greatness), is to be found in kl. my favourite hawkers at home are either dying or retiring. their successors lack… a lot. the airconditioned food courts are a laugh. i’ve had happy memories eating amazing food in the back lanes and streets of kl… and i think it’s still well and alive.
/weeps
i need to stop being so emo about my food, but i can’t help it. so yes, i am sure kl will be a blast, food-wise (though not the air quality there now, i hear)
October 15th, 2006 at 3:12 am (#)
ahh, happy joy! they have the best hor fun in New York, and ming chang kueh… and chicken rice… mmm. (the first restaurant mentioned in the article… and also the feeling i have whenever i think back to all the times i ate there).
October 15th, 2006 at 11:18 am (#)
Yo Pop,
Air quality sucks but based on your schedule, you might just be able to squeeze in a Ramadhan bazaar or two on your trip here. That’d be a blast, I tell ya. So far, the ikan bakar I’ve been having at various ones are superb!
October 15th, 2006 at 7:33 pm (#)
hey there! I’ve been reading your blog on and off for a while. After a recent trip to China, I realized that I love that place. I’m an Indian, in Singapore, obsessed with China. I think I’m your opposite… M.KnightShyamalan moment :D
October 15th, 2006 at 7:59 pm (#)
Great, you should meet my friend Preetam Rai :) There are too many of us displaced indians and chinese!!
October 15th, 2006 at 8:27 pm (#)
Renee: you are so evil. Look what I found because of your suggestion… I’m going to come back 5kg heavier.
October 15th, 2006 at 9:34 pm (#)
ONLY 5kg? with a million food blogs you’re browsing, I doubt it really.
October 15th, 2006 at 10:01 pm (#)
;) don’t be mean! i’ve had to refrain from sending you emails everytime i find something i want to eat. i really should be doing school work…
October 15th, 2006 at 10:23 pm (#)
That picture of Mr Singh says it all, really.
October 15th, 2006 at 10:53 pm (#)
So Treska has fallen out of favors or perhaps defeated by Dal Makhani..