CRISPY AND CHEESY CARBONARA SPRING ROLLS - POPIA CARBONARA CHEESE RANGUP

 

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BANGKOK STREET FOOD - PAD THAI

BANGKOK STREET FOOD - PAD THAI

1. This entry isn't from my recent visit to Bangkok.

2. In fact, this trip happened back in mid 2019. Well, when I procrastinate, I tend to be the best at it. 

3. As a Muslim traveler, Bangkok, has its pros and cons and it's rather long for me to list them down.  I don't think I'd have enough information to make a comprehensive list to share with all of you, anyways.

4. But I would like to share with you about the food. It's not extremely difficult to find Halal food whether you want to get it at a local restaurant or along the busy streets of Bangkok.

5. But as I was too lazy to do some research prior my trip (company trip by the way), I had assumed that it would be as easy as in Hat Yai.

6. I noticed that the price for Halal street food was pretty much more expensive compared to the non-Halal food. I know because I kept on comparing the price with my non-Muslim colleagues.

7. The price could be double than the non-halal versions. 

8. I felt that I should've explored more and look around for cheaper options so I could stuff more food in my face AHAHA. 

9. For instance, this pad thai I got at the Halal food carnival costed me around 200 Baht (around RM 27). Yeah, that's right.

10. But hey, at the end of the day, the food was good, and only took less than 2 minutes to prepare.All a good trip anyway ;)

GRILLED FISH / IKAN BAKAR JALAN BELLAMY

GRILLED FISH / IKAN BAKAR JALAN BELLAMY

1. I forgot when did I go to this place LOL so a few things may have changed.

2. Basically in KL there are a few spots to get decent ikan bakar (grilled fish) but here at Jalan Bellamy is considered one of the favoured spots because it's in the city centre, affordable and the food are fairly delicious.

3. The selection varies and the choices are quite ample. The sauce they use to coat the seafood before grilling is sweet, a little bit spicy and if that's not enough, they have a couple of selections of dipping sauce for you to enjoy.

4. Here's a short video of my experience there:

5. Additional information to share with you if you're planning to give this place a try:

a) The place is normally packed so come early before lunch time.
b) There are a few restaurants but one stood out to be the most packed. I suggest you try that particular one.
c) A mosque is located just in front of the restaurants thus making it convenient for Muslim customers to perform their prayers.
d) There's a stall selling durian ice cream also in front of the restaurants. BUY it. It;s delicious :P

6. Address: Lorong Bellamy & Jalan Istana, Bukit Petaling, 50460 Kuala Lumpur, Wilayah Persekutuan Kuala Lumpur

Mission - Cendol Durian

 

It was initiated by one of those random talks about the things we should be doing to churn the days of of remaining annual leave at the end of 2018.

Rather than rattling on to decide where to go to wrap our 2018 getaway we agreed to spend a night in KL instead.

Kamil is our KL guy. He knows the city in and out.

One of the things he recommended to us was to try this cendol durian near Kampung Baru.

Personally I like to have cendol and durian separately but heyyy, why not spending for the combined for a good RM12 right?

For the full video of the cendol durian experience, please click here.

Located about a 5-7 minute walk from Masjid Jamek Kampung Baru, it wasn't difficult to find the stall selling this favourite cendol durian of Kamil.

Vendors selling durian were pretty much drawn us to the stall. Tempted to stop at one of them for a quick taste, Kamil's swift pace heading towards the stall was an indicator he would not appreciate my intention to fulfill my durian desire LOL.

Once we reached the stall, we realised they were also selling other meals like ayam penyet. Thus it drew crowds to their stall and finding a spot made it quite a pain. But somehow we managed to find a table next to the vendors selling other fruit such as bananas, mangoes etc. Huh, other fruits were so not worthy of our attention that day LOL #DurianFTW

Durian Runtuh, well not literally haha

So according to Kamil we won't be disappointed once we see the portion. And he was right. 

It's pretty isn't it?

Shaved ice, coconut cream, palm sugar syrup, sweet corn, wiggly cendol and of course 6-8 pods of succulent yet soft, tangy, creamy God's lovely creation called durian in a bowl that translate to LOVE. Sorry I got carried away :P

Though it was not the very best quality of durian but still, combining with the coconut cream and based with the cool shaved ice was just something to die for.

Trust me if there's no one around, I'd have my way with this

I wasn't kidding hahaha

I think I devoured the whole bowl in less than 3 minutes. And I actually wanted a second. Tried to convince Yan to share a bowl with me but she was so indecisive. But we were going to have dinner in a couple of hours time so we thought it would be best to just have what we had and stop ...

.... I regret the decision. Should've had more LOL.

Frozen Lunch: Chicken and Egg Wrap

In the world we are living in this day and age, all of us seem to be very busy and on the move throughout the week. Either with work or school, we sometimes find it tricky to decide on what to eat that is cheap, quick and convenient to adjust to our hectic schedules. 

Many defer to buying meals as this will save a lot of time but at the same time forgetting the extra cost they are spending and lacking the concern with the nutritional content of the food they buy. Cooking your own meal shouldn't be such a hassle if you plan it well. Plus, this will allow us to include in the healthy components to our meal and yes, this will save us a lot of money too!

Chicken and Egg Wrap is one of the perfect meals that is packed with good proteins that will fill you up instantly and last for a long time. You can make a bunch of them at one time to be frozen and you will have your meals for the week already sorted. Find out on how to do this below!

WATCH THE VIDEO ON HOW TO DO IT HERE!

INGREDIENTS

1. 5 eggs
2. 2 large chicken breasts
3. 2 onions
4. 1 large capsicum
5. Red cabbage
6. 1 tsp of paprika, garlic powder, cumin, salt, pepper and white pepper
7. Olive oil
8. 5 Tortilla bread

INSTRUCTIONS

1. In a bowl, marinade the chicken breasts with the mixture of olive oil, paprika, garlic powder, cumin, salt and pepper. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let the marinade set in the fridge between 30 minutes to 2 hours.
2. Chop onions and capsicum as well as red cabbage and set them aside.
3. Get your pan nice and hot on medium high heat and drizzle some olive oil in the pan. Then throw in the chopped onions and capsicum. Stir once in a while and let cook till the onions are caramelised and the capsicum soften up a little bit. Set them aside.
4. In the same pan, pour some more olive oil and grill the marinaded chicken breast for roughly 5-7 minutes on each side depending on how thick they are. Once they are cooked, take them out and set them aside to rest for a couple of minutes and start slicing them into thin strips.
5. In the same pan again, pour a tad more olive oil and add in your eggs. Season with some salt and white pepper and start making your scrambled eggs. Once done, set them aside.
6. Time to assemble: Place a tortilla bread on top of a piece of aluminium foil. Add a small portion of each and everything (red cabbage, onions and capsicum, chicken strips and eggs) on the tortilla and then slowly roll/fold it all together, tucking in both sides and secure the entire wrap with the aluminium foil.
7. Repeat step 6 for the other 4 wraps.
8. Once completed, store all the wraps in a ziploc bag. Place the bag in the freezer for your weekly consumption.

SUGGESTIONS

1. I live in the hot tropical country of Malaysia and the frozen wraps will definitely be 'defrosted' by lunch time. If you're in the colder climate, I suggest you cover the wrap with tissue and reheat it in a microwave in your office pantry.
2. Do not add any condiment in the wrap to be frozen as this will make the wrap soggy. Pack the condiment in a separate container and turn it as a dip for your wrap instead.
3. You can also make your own flat bread instead of using the store-bought tortilla. The recipe for the flatbread could be read HERE.
4. The longer you marinade the chicken, the better it will taste.
5. The process of folding the wrap requires practice. Look on Youtube for some tutorials.

5 THINGS TO EAT IN ALOR SETAR, KEDAH

Alor Setar is said to be one of the best places in Malaysia to get delicious and mouthwatering food. Whenever and wherever you are in Alor Setar, you can always have ample choices of food varieties to fill you up either for a big full-filling meal or for even just a casual snack in between them. Not only these are easily to find but most of them are very cheap and affordable. Cheap and tasty, what more do you want, people?! LOL

Now, the list for famous stalls and restaurants in Alor Setar to find good food just seems endless. Everyone always have their favourite joints to get their meals. Below are my personal favorite places to eat whenever I am in Alor Setar.

You can also watch the full food experience below!

ROTI JALA/ ROTI KIRAI STADIUM

For breakfast, rather than having your typical roti canai or nasi lemak, having a huge folded roti jala at the Darul Aman Stadium would be a treat! They are very crispy on the outside and soft on the inside are perfectly served with a slightly sweet and spicy chicken or beef curry gravy.

PRICE: RM2.50 (plain), RM3.50 (special – with an egg).

GULAI IKAN TEMENUNG, KUALA KEDAH

As most Malaysians eat rice in their meals for lunch, having lunch at Kuala Kedah where they serve rice with fresh fish such as mackerel and snapper cooked in a thick and rich curry gravy is definitely to die for! As located near the jetty at the sea, the restaurant prepares the curry earlier on and will chuck in the fresh fish in the gravy before serving them hot to the customers. This ensures that the fish is still fresh, moist, soft and heavenly delicious! Simply by having plain rice with the fish curry will make you come back for more!

PRICE: VERY CHEAP. I don’t know the breakdowns for each dish but for 3 medium-sized mackerels, 2 pieces of snapper, one fried egg and half of a salted egg, it only cost RM27. Yes, including 3 plates of rice and drinks!

MEE ABU

Mee Abu is certainly one of the best restaurants to get satisfying and delicious fried noodles. The restaurant usually prepares the fired noodles in a large batch (rather than cooking them one by one to fit your order). The cook will finish off the serving with how you want the fried noodles to be – such as the spiciness level or with or without vegetables. What’s amazing about the fried noodles here is the quantity of noodles as well as what they put into the dish. They are generous with the quantity of noodles and fried tofu and adding some cuts of soft flour fritters as well as chunks of sliced spleen. Not only it taste great, but this dish will certainly make you full!

PRICE: RM5.50

MEE HAMID

Mee Hamid is also famous for their fried noodles. The noodles are cooked slowly and are mixed together with a nut based gravy. This create a rich flavor to the dish and coats the noodles to produce a gooey texture to it. What makes this dish stands out is that apart from some sliced spleen and fried tofu, they also put in cubes of potato and both soft and crispy flour fritters that all go incredibly well together. These bits of ingredients just make the dish rich in flavours and textures! The crispiness of the crispy flour fritters just makes this dish even more exciting! Genius. Simply genius!

PRICE: RM5

NASI LEMAK ROYALE

A trip to Alor Setar would not be complete if you don’t have the famous Nasi Lemak Royale. This is the perfect dinner meal. Not to be confused with the ordinary nasi lemak (coconut milk rice) the rice here is nothing like that as it consists of aromatic, spiced, yellowish soft and fluffy rice that is then mixed with some spoonful of delicious thick and rich curry and dhal gravies. You can choose to have it together either with the proteins of your choice (chicken, prawns, squid, and salted egg to name a few) as well as some veggies. The rice itself is rich and delicious. The MIXTURE from the different gravies just creates a rich, spicy, sweet and salty taste that will leave you addicted in each and every single bite of the meal.  

This dish is great to be eaten at their stall but trust me, if you want an even more amazing eating experience, have it packed to takeaway and let it ‘rest’ for a few minutes first. This will cause the ingredients to be mixed and glued together that will just elevate the greatness of the flavours!

It’s not a fancy nor a pretty meal. It is a sloppy dish and you’ll get sloppy eating this, but THAT is just part of the Nasi Lemak Royale experience.

PRICE: RM7 (with a piece of chicken and extra rice and gravy!)

This list is beneficial if you have a full day to spend in Alor Setar. You can easily have everything on this list from breakfast, tea time to dinner!

Homemade Flour Tortillas / Flatbread

Flatbread or tortilla is said to be one of the oldest forms of bread in human history. Not only it is so quick and easy to make, but it also very delicious. It can be eaten in many ways. Whether dipping in your favourite curry gravy or turning them into a complete wrap packed with awesome flavours!

Most recipes out there include the use of oil or butter but this recipe is based on the very basic of ingredients. It's healthier and very convenient for you all to give a go at this.

You can also find the similar recipe for chapati HERE.

INGREDIENTS

1. 2 Cups of plain flour
2. 1 tsp of salt
3. 1 tsp of baking powder
4. 1 Cup of warm water

SEE THE VIDEO ON HOW TO MAKE THIS BELOW.

INSTRUCTIONS

1. In a bowl, add in the flour together with salt and baking powder. Give a quick stir.
2. Pour in 1/4 of the warm water and mix with the flour. Repeat this step until you use up all the water (4 times) and you'll end with a manageable sticky flour. 
3. Knead for 5 - 10 minutes until you get a smooth soft dough.
4. Divide the dough into 5 and let them rest in the bowl for 15 - 20 minutes, covered with a warm cloth. 
5. On a flat surface, sprinkle some flour.
6. Flatten the small dough and start kneading until you get a thin, round shape dough.
7. On a medium heat, place the rolled dough on the pan.
8. In roughly 30 seconds to a minute you'd see bubbles started to form on the dough and the colour will change.
9. Flip and cook on the other side for another 30 seconds or so while patting down on where bubbles are formed to release the air from the bread.
10. Done and enjoy!

SUGGESTIONS

1. REFERRING TO STEP 2, TRUST ME, DO NOT ADD IN  THE WATER ALL AT ONCE AS THIS WILL MAKE IT VERY DIFFICULT FOR YOU TO KNEAD THE DOUGH.
2. While kneading the dough, if you must, adjust by adding in some more flour if the dough is too sticky or add in a little bit more water if the dough is too dry.
3. Forming the dough to a round shape requires skills and experience. Do not get frustrated if you do not end up one. It took me at least 20 attempts to be able to get one acceptable round tortilla.
4. If you're making them in a large quantity, do cover the ones you have finished cooking under a cloth or in a container to ensure moisture of the bread won't evaporate, thus keeping them soft to eat.
5. If you're making the breads for later consumption, keep them in an air tight sealed bag and store them in the fridge. 

MY FIRST SHELL OUT FEAST EXPERIENCE: SEAFOOD MAT ROCK DER, KUALA PERLIS

In December last year, my friends and I were in Arau, Perlis. We were there for a quick one-night pit stop at our friend’s place, Syuk before making our trip to Hat Yai. Before our visit to Perlis, Syuk had already settled on to take us to Mat Rock Der Restaurant at Kuala Perlis for a highly-rated seafood dinner.

1.    Getting There

It was just a 20-minute drive to get us from Arau to Kuala Perlis. So if you are from Arau, distance shouldn’t be much of a problem.

Restaurant Address:

2 Gerai MPK, Persisiran Pantai
02000 Kuala Perlis, Perlis
Malaysia

2.    Parking

No proper parking is available there. So you just have to park your car at the side of the road but make sure you park properly as the surrounding area is quite dark and vehicles seem to be moving quite fast.

3.    The Restaurant

It is just a medium-sized stall with small number of tables available. When we were there it was fully packed. I suggest that you make a reservation first before dining, just like Syuk did.

4.    The Food

Portion? We ordered the portion for 6 people. Our small table was piled up with quite a huge spread! We were barely able to get every plate on it. But we were hungry and it looked like it wasn’t enough LOL. #NafsuMakanLOL  

Fresh? Oh, yes it definitely was!

Taste? The seafood were prepared in a balanced flavoured, not overpowering spices. Not spicy and not too salty, not too sweet. Everything was well balanced. I prefer it that way as it draws out the fresh sweet flavours of the seafood itself.

One of my favourites

Yummy!

Love this!

Crispy fried squid! 

5.    Price

For the seafood set for the portion of six people plus rice for 8 servings (YES WE NEEDED MORE LOL), everything was totalled up to around RM 120 inclusive of drinks. So that’s about RM 20 per person. For me, with the quantity and freshness of the seafood, THAT was cheap.

6.    Rating

7.5/10. I have not experienced any other shell out dining elsewhere so I have nowhere else to compare to. But I really enjoyed the food there and totally recommend for others to try whenever they are nearby. Thanks Syuk for bringing us there!

SPICY FRIED RICE – NASI GORENG CILI PADI

Fried rice is a very common dish throughout most parts of Asia. It is the best way to reuse leftover cooked rice. There are no limits on what you can put into the dish. You can choose to put any proteins or vegetables you desire that will make this dish as one complete meal. Fried rice has so many varieties. Some are mild in flavour, and some are spicy – just like how many Malaysians love to have their fried rice. This spicy fried rice recipe is one of Malaysians favourites. It is spicy of course but what’s best about this recipe is how easy and simple it is for one to cook. There are of course other more ingredients can be incorporated into this dish to elevate it to the next level, but this is for us lazy bums out there who want to have something delicious but very simple to make.

INGREDIENTS

• Cooked rice – from a cup of uncooked rice
• 1 shallot, 7 cloves of garlic and 7 bird’s eyes chilies - pounded/blended
• 1 tsp of fish sauce
• 1 egg
• Few strips of boneless chicken – chopped
• Half a handful of dried anchovies
• Cabbage – roughly chopped
• 4 tbsp of oil
• Salt and pepper for seasoning

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Cook rice and let it cool down for a bit.
2. Heat wok with vegetable oil on medium heat.
3. Fry the dried anchovies and once cooked, take it out and let it sit on a plate to be used later.
4. Put in your pounded/blended shallot, garlic and bird’s eyes chilies into the wok and stir for a couple   of minutes.
5. Add in the chopped chicken and stir until they are cooked. Pour in the fish sauce and mix.
6. Set the chicken to one side of the wok. Add in one egg.
7. Season with salt and pepper.
8. Put in the cooked rice and mix.
9. Add chopped cabbage and the fried dried anchovies and mix everything together well.
10. Serve and enjoy.

Watch the video on how to make this HERE!

• This recipe is for 2 portions of serving.
• Suggestion: Have this dish with an additional fried egg and some fried fish crackers!
• Bear in mind, that this dish is quite spicy. So if you can’t handle the heat, please omit or reduce the use of the bird’s eyes chillies. You can add more if you want it to be spicier!
• You can always use other kinds of vegetables such as carrots and green peas.
• It would be nicer to use prawns instead of chicken.
• If you want a touch of sweetness to the dish, you can include about a tbsp of sweet soy sauce.

ROTI CANAI

Roti canai or roti kosong

Roti canai is an Indian-influenced flatbread widely available in Malaysia. It could be found at all local mamak and some Malay stalls. This dish is usually eaten during breakfast or tea time. They are also called Prata and Porotta, in different regions of the world.

The dough of the roti canai is made from such simple ingredients: plain flour, fat (oil or ghee) and water. But making them is not that easy. The dough needs to be flatten, tossed and stretched multiple times until it is paper thin and then folded before placed on a large flat pan. Only experts can do this. Watch the video if you think you can master this technique on one go.

Preparing the roti canai

Roti canai is delicious by itself but goes extremely well with dhal (lentil curry) or overnight curry – you know what they say, “overnight curry tastes better!” The dhal and curry are also served with a spoon of sweet and spicy sambal (Malay chili condiment) – trust me, the sambal takes this dish to another level!

Egg roti canai or roti telur

The roti canai is versatile too! They come with many variations such as roti telur (with egg), roti sardin (with sardines) roti pisang (with sliced banana) and believe me, many more!

The crispy exterior and fluffy interior of this flatbread is such an amazing dish to have. Having it together with teh tarik (pulled tea), this meal will definitely make you addicted for more!

ASIAN STYLE FRIED SPAGHETTI – SPAGHETTI GORENG

Pasta is such an amazing ingredient. Apart from Italian cuisines, it goes great with Asian flavours too!

One of them is FRIED SPAGHETTI. Here’s how to make a spicy fried spaghetti with an Asian twist!

Watch the video on how to make this HERE!

INGREDIENTS

100 – 110 grams of spaghetti

½ of onion, 3 cloves of garlic, 5 bird’s eyes chilies (optional) – all finely chopped

1 tbsp of chilli paste, chilli sauce, tomato ketchup, oyster sauce

1 - 2 tbsp of sweet soy sauce

A few strips of chicken breast – chopped

2 eggs

1 red chili and 3 stalks of gai choy – chopped

3 tbsp of vegetable oil for cooking

Salt and pepper for seasoning

INSTRUCTIONS

1.    Put some water in a large pot. Turn the stove on and once the water is boiling, add a tad bit of salt and olive oil. Then add your pasta and let it cook (time: refer to the instruction of the pasta packaging). Once cooked, set it aside (with some of the pasta water).

2.     Heat wok with vegetable oil on medium heat.

3.   Once the wok is hot, put in the chopped onion, garlic and bird’s eyes chili and stir for a couple of minutes.

4.     Add in chili paste and let it cook until the oil is separated for the chili.

5.     Next, put in chili sauce, tomato ketchup as well oyster sauce. Mix everything together.

6.     Add about 3 tbsp of pasta water and stir with the rest of the mixture.

7.    Add in the chopped chicken strips. Once they are cooked, set them to one side of the wok and break in eggs on the other side of the wok.

8.     Season with salt and pepper.

9.   Add in the cooked pasta and pour in the sweet soy sauce. Mix everything well till the pasta is all coated with the sweet soy sauce.

10.  Taste for seasoning.

11.  Finally, add in the chopped gai choy and red chili. Stir everything together for about a minute.

12.  Serve and enjoy.

·       This recipe is for 1 portion of serving.

·      Bear in mind, that this dish is quite spicy. So if you can’t handle the heat, please omit or reduce the use of the bird’s eyes chilies.

·       You could always use other kinds of vegetables such as bean sprouts, cabbage and carrots.

·        Apart from chicken, feel free to replace/ add together with prawns or beef.