This week, we take you on a trip to the streets of Penang for some delicious and warming recipes – for breakfast or anytime!
Nasi lemak
Serves 4
- 400g (2 cups) basmati or long-grain rice
- 250ml (1 cup) coconut cream
- 5cm piece ginger, sliced
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 pandan leaves, knotted
Sambal
- 2 large red onions, sliced
- 3 garlic cloves, sliced
- 15 dried chillies, soaked in water for 15 minutes
- 30g (1 cup) dried anchovies
- 2.5cm piece toasted belacan (shrimp paste)
- 200ml vegetable oil
- 2 Tbsp sugar, plus extra if needed
- 1 Tbsp tamarind paste
- Salt
To serve
- Hard-boiled eggs, halved, or fried eggs, sunny side up
- Sliced cucumbers
- Fried peanuts
- Fried dried anchovies
To make the sambal, place the red onion, garlic, drained dried chillies, dried anchovies, belacan and 100ml of the oil in a food processor or blender and process to form a paste.
Pour the remaining oil into a frying pan and heat over medium heat. Add the chilli paste and cook, stirring regularly, for 4–5 minutes until it turns a darker shade of red and the oil has separated.
Add the sugar and cook for another minute to let it caramelise with the sambal. Add the tamarind paste and 125ml (1/2 cup) water and cook, stirring, for 3 minutes or until the sambal has thickened slightly. Season to taste with salt and extra sugar if needed. Keep in mind that the sambal should be a good balance of sweet, spicy and sour flavours.
Wash the rice until the water runs clear, then tip it into a rice cooker. Add the coconut cream and 500ml (2 cups) water and stir in the ginger, salt and pandan leaves.
Leave to soak for 5–10 minutes, then switch the rice cooker on and cook the rice according to the manufacturer’s instructions.
Lightly fluff up the cooked rice with a fork or a wooden spoon. Serve immediately with the sambal, egg, cucumber, peanuts and dried anchovies.
Roti jala
Serves 4
- 150g (1 cup) plain flour
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp ground turmeric
- 1 egg
- 180ml (3/4 cup) coconut milk mixed with 180 ml (3/4 cup) water
- Vegetable oil, for pan-frying
Place all the ingredients except the oil in a clean bowl and stir until well combined. Strain the batter into another bowl. Use a stick blender if needed to get a really smooth texture.
Heat a medium frying pan over medium heat and lightly brush with oil.
Pour a ladleful of batter into a roti jala cup and move over the frying pan in an overlapping circular motion to create the lacy effect.
Leave the batter to cook until set, roughly 2 minutes, then slide the pancake onto a plate and allow to cool slightly. Fold in both sides of the pancake, then roll it up to form a neat roll. Repeat with the remaining batter. You should have enough to make about 10 pancakes.
Serve the roti jala with your choice of curry.
Recipes extracted from Penang Local by Aim Aris and Ahmad Salim, out now from Smith Street Books, RRP $39.99.
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