Pulau Ketam Seafood Steamboat @ Pandan Indah

Steamboat is the ultimate meal for an informal gathering (that you can easily replicate at home).....and one where minimal cooking (just the stock) is involved.  You can buy almost all the ingredients from fish balls, meat balls, quail eggs, mushrooms, tofu, fried fu chuk, all types of vegetables to fresh prawns, squid and fish to even fish wantans.

But, there's one thing I don't know how to make and that is a 'kick-ass' chilli to go with the steamboat.  So, I found myself at Pulau Ketam Seafood Steamboat @ Pandan Indah one weekday evening.

The prices for the Steamboat Set (for 1 pax) is @ RM19 and RM17 per pax (for 2 pax).  The one above is the set for 1 person...leaving room for us to add on items of our liking from their a la carte menu.

Most items on their a la carte menu are sold in 5 or 10 pcs.  This is their Homemade Pork Meatball @ RM6 (for 5 pcs).  I like these as it was tender and tasted like all minced meat without the bouncy texture. 

These are the Special Pork Balls @ RM6 (for 5 pcs) and Homemade Fish & Pork Meatballs also @ RM6 (for 5 pcs).  They have all types of "balls" that you can imagine on their menu for your ordering pleasure.

I also like their Fish Noodles @ RM4 (per 100g).  Fish Noodles are just fish paste made in the form of noodles and this was a serving of 200g.

A staple that I must have whenever I'm having steamboat is the Fish Dumplings @ RM4 (for 5 pcs).  These are "wantan" with minced pork filling...only difference is that the skin is made from fish paste.

As I come from the 'I Love Eggs' fan club, I must have my Quail Eggs @ RM3 (for 5 pcs).  Quail eggs are like little nuggets of hard-boiled eggs that are pretty darn cute and equally addictive to eat!

I also ordered Fresh "Sek Pan Yue" or Garoupa Slices @ RM7.50 per 100g.  [#Tip: The price is only an indication of the weight but you can't order by weight.  They will give you an uncut block and charge you according to how much that block weighed.]  The one above came up to 200g.  As soon as it arrived at our table, I realised that it was still partly frozen (an indication to me that the fish might not be that fresh after all).

Indeed, it was....as soon as it was cooked, the flesh was rubbery in texture and the colour was greyish.  I duly informed them that the fish was not fresh (as I wanted them to be aware of the freshness of their produce).  But, when the bill came, I was pleasantly surprised that they had decided to charge me only RM7.50 (for 200g) which was kind of them (although I didn't expect the discount at all).

It's time to dump (almost) everything in and get the cooking started.  I would usually leave out those items like fresh prawns, fish and squids as these need little cooking time, so I would just put them in after I lift the lid (and the stock is still boiling).  The other thing that I would leave out (to the end) is the eggs, otherwise you end up with a thick and cloudy broth.

Patience is a virtue if you want to eat steamboat as you have to wait for your stock to come to a boil...don't forget to add some of those fried shallots =) to further enhance the fragrance of your stock.

While waiting for our pot of steamboat to get ready, let's have a look at the condiments they offer.  The 1st is a fresh chilli dip with bird's eye chillies, chopped garlic, Chinese coriander and lime juice (my favourite).  The 2nd one is a blended fresh sambal and the 3rd is our all-time favourite of freshly fried shallots (which is a must, in my books...and you can help yourselves to more of this....yay)!

And here's some of the cooked stuff that's ready for eating.

We also like to have the Fried Dumplings @ RM6 (for 5 pcs) when we're here and this is served with a Thai sweet chilli sauce.  No complaints with anything crispy!

Or you can have the Fried Luncheon Meat @ RM12 a plate, fried to a fragrant crisp that's bound to be a hit with everyone.

The Homemade Seafood Taufu @ RM7 (for 5 pcs) is pretty decent too, served with the same chilli dip as the one for the fried dumplings.

After devouring all the 'prized possessions', it's time for the "Yee Mee" (a type of pre-fried noodles) at the end...and also the eggs! 

You can also opt for meehoon if yee mee is not your thing (but we love our yee mee).  Top this with some fried shallots...and it's a slurpy sensation waiting to happen!  [#Tip: The soup is a tad salty at this stage (after adding the yee mee) so I would suggest that you have your fill of the soup before you add your yee mee.]

The "sar lei shuen mui" (kedondong juice with sour plum) @ RM3.80 is nice too.

My Personal Opinion

To have the words "Pulau Ketam" (which literally translates to mean "Crab Island") as part of your restaurant's name is a great selling point already (as the island is well known as a provider of fresh seafood).

Prices here are pretty affordable if you stick with the set @ RM17 per pax (without ordering any additional a la carte dishes), otherwise expect to pay anything from RM25 per person if extras are ordered.

Although there is another more well-known steamboat restaurant (Home Town) in my neighbourhood, it's still this one that I keep coming back to...the fresh chilli dip (with coriander) and the (limitless supply of) crispy fried shallots tipped it in their favour!

Steamboat is probably best eaten in a large group...more choices lend more flavour to your soup ;)

Pulau Ketam Seafood Steamboat

M4-A-8 Jalan Pandan Indah 4/1A

Pandan Indah 

55100 Kuala Lumpur
Tel: 016-385 6272