Restaurant LuckyPot @ SS2 PJ

Restaurant LuckyPot @ SS2 PJ is a popular spot for Hunan/Sichuan cuisine and comes highly recommended, so we found ourselves here for dinner one weekend (and made reservations ahead).  They have other branches located in Kuchai Lama, USJ Taipan, Puchong, Cheras, Kepong & Bukit Tinggi (and all with a rating of not lower than 4.8 which is very encouraging indeed).

When we arrived for our dinner reservation at 7 pm (this photo was taken when we left), the place was in full swing and we had to wait for about 10 minutes for the diners before us to finish and the staff to tidy up the table for us.  The space isn't very big, just one shoplot space, so prior reservation is highly encouraged especially if you're a big party as big tables are very limited.

Checking out the menu, I see some similarities in their dishes to the ones I've eaten at Dragon-i in Sunway Velocity like sour spicy potato shreds, fried string beans, spicy chicken, hua diao chicken, fish with preserved vegetables, braised pork with pickled vegetables and more.  Which is better, you ask?  Read till the end to find out! ^_~

This first chosen dish of Spicy Chicken (Small) @ RM45 is probably one of their most popular dishes as you practically see this on every table.  They're cubes of chicken fried until superbly crispy with lots (and I mean lots) of dried chillies along with fragrant peanuts, whole garlic cloves, onions and curry leaves.

The dish was incredibly fragrant overall and the spiciness will hit you once you keep eating more of it.  It's tolerable, not numbing, spiciness though.  If you're a lover of spicy food, you'll enjoyed this immensely (I did)...it was excellent! ^o^

The Chef Chilli Fried Meat @ RM45 (comes only in one size) is a dish of thinly sliced pork pork belly (I usually don't enjoy pork belly as much but this one I did coz they were sliced incredibly thin and not as fatty) stir-fried with green chillies.  They looked like green bell peppers initially but they were much thinner in texture and when I tasted them, there was a hint of spiciness, so they were some sort of green peppers/chillies indeed (tiger skin peppers?).

The green peppers were cooked until nicely soft along with well seasoned pork, soft and caramelised garlic cloves, (something resembling the crunchy texture of) wood ear fungus (but they were whitish, not black in colour) and bits of pork lard.  It all came together to yield a very flavourful and tasty dish.  Another outstanding dish if you can see pass that it was a bit oily.

After two chilli-forward dishes, I wanted some respite from a dish of Minced Meat Homemade Tofu (Small) @ RM20 and this was beautifully done both in preparation and presentation (the top was embedded with some greens).

The outside of the tofu was fried to such a crisp texture (more so than the many similar ones I've eaten before) and the tofu smooth, silky and luscious with a good egg flavour.  The minced meat topping enhanced the taste of the tofu even more to make it one of the best tofu dishes I've had. ^.^

Our vegetable dish was the Delicious Beijing Cabbage (Small) @ RM20, a seemingly standard and ordinary vegetable dish.  But there is stir-fried cabbage and there is this stir-fried cabbage...lol!  What sets it apart is the flavour imparted by the tiny cubes of pork lard, fried garlic chips and dried chillies along with some slivers of pork belly.

I could also detected a fragrant dose of wok hei in the stir-fry, a sign that the cabbage was cooked on high heat...and that's why you don't see a lot of leakage of water from the cabbage.  We've had our fair share of wet and soggy cabbage from many dai chow and Chinese restaurants...and this version was definitely more successful...not to mention delicious.  Taste aside, I found it strange that it was served on an aluminium foil wrapped hot plate.  I'm thinking...if it was stir-fried in a wok, why not just scoop it onto a plate?  I can only guess that the cabbage was treated differently (roasted/grilled in the oven or to keep it warm but not overcooked on a hot plate?).  Well, only the kitchen knows.

For nibbles & bites, I got us some Lamb Skewers (5 pcs, top) @ RM18 (for a change) and Pork Skewers (5 pcs, bottom) @ RM15 just because I noticed many people ordering this.  Both had strong flavours of spices in its marination with a warm, earthy, aromatic flavour and just a hint of heat.  I believe cumin was one of the spices used in the lamb skewers (since they have a dish of Cumin Lamb on their menu).

My husband found the lamb skewer more tender (and I do agree) and preferred it over the pork skewer.  For non-lovers of lamb (like me), we'll always be able to detect a very faint hint of gaminess in the lamb (no such thing as far as my husband was concerned).  It wasn't detectable at first bite but it was certainly there in the next bite or two but this one I could at least eat (so lamb lovers would certainly enjoy this).  Ya, I should have gone for the beef skewers and would probably have enjoyed that more.  The lamb and pork skewers were decent (for me) but I couldn't help but wish I could dip them into some kind of sauce (like the way we eat satay...lol!).

My Personal Opinion

For people who love China-style (Hunan/Sichuan) food with spiciness (I've to admit I'm not a big fan of this type of cuisine but I am of this place), so I can confidently recommend that you give this place a try (and there are lots of other options that aren't spicy as well).  Portions are generous, prices reasonable....and the taste outstanding (better than the ones I had at Dragon-i and I consider Dragon-i good already although they're more known for their fried rice, hand-pulled noodles, pork chop & siu long bao...which again is also quite similar to what Din Tai Fung offers).

For me the best dish of the night was the absolutely the fragrant and crisp spicy chicken along with the peanuts...it was very addictive and a must-order.  My other favoured dish was the humble and simple housemade tofu with its silken texture and eggy flavour.  I'd be very happy with just tofu and rice for a healthy meal.

We ordered way too much for the three of us but we knew we wanted to try more dishes, so I brought along my trusted containers to tapau whatever food we anticipated that we wouldn't be able to finish (by the way, the Chef Chilli Fried Meat did well reheated until the green chillies were soft and lightly charred...and the meat sizzling because it's pork belly and that's when you can see the oil oozing out...lol!).  I'm sure I'll be back coz there are a lot more dishes on the menu that I'm hoping to try! ^_~

Restaurant LuckyPot

No 185 Jalan SS2/24

47300 Petaling Jaya

Selangor

Tel: 019-576 8749

#ewew cooks Air-Fried Prawns with Roasted Potatoes & Capsicum

Every household should have this incredible kitchen gadget in their kitchen...an air fryer!  Before I got my air fryer, I relied on my convection oven to grill or roast meat, potatoes and vegetables.  Since getting an air fryer, my convection oven has been officially "retired".

I now use my air fryer a lot, mostly in making western-style meals like roasted chicken, potatoes and vegetables...and I'm loving it! ;)  But I've never used it to roast/grill seafood of any type, whether fish or prawns.  Then again, I've also never used my convection oven to cook seafood before (other than making baked salmon wrapped in parchment paper or foil).  

So, this is my first attempt at cooking prawns in an air fryer.  I didn't google for any information or recipes since I reckon prawns will cook pretty fast in the air fryer and I wanted to keep it simple.  First, I prepped my prawns by making a slit down the back and removing the vein.  I let the prawns drain on some wet paper towels (in the fridge) and made sure I pat them down really dry when I took them out from the fridge (coz seasoning will not adhere well to wet prawns + they'll tend to steam rather than fry in the air fryer if they're wet).  These prawns cost me about RM45 for 20 prawns (and I used half of it here).

Next, I drizzled some olive oil over the prawns and marinated them with just lots of freshly cracked black pepper and plenty of my all-purpose Montreal chicken seasoning (you don't really need any salt, you can use any spices you want like chilli, curry, turmeric, paprika, etc.).  I made sure I opened up the prawns (including the heads) so that the seasoning can get into into all the nooks, cracks and crevices in the prawn (especially in the slits).

Then put your prawns in a single layer in an oven-proof dish (or paper liner) that fits your air fryer...along with a few slices of garlic.  Since my air fryer is pretty small, I can only fit about 6 - 8 prawns in a single layer at one time, if more than that it'd be overlapping a bit.  Since I only need 10 prawns for myself, I might as well do a second batch, so I split them equally giving them more room to cook better.

Prawns cook pretty fast in an air fryer, so I cooked them at 200°C for about 6 - 8 minutes (and mine were fairly large prawns).  I flipped them halfway through and realised that there wasn't enough charring, so I tossed them in a bit of soya sauce to get that desired browning.

My oh my, my Air-Fried Prawns look pretty darn good, I have to say...sufficiently browned like it came out straight from a restaurant (self--praise is no the praise...lol) but without the smoky flavour, for that it has to be cooked over a flame! ^_~

I'm pretty stoked at how successful my air fried prawns turned out on my first attempt. ^o^  They're so easy to cook and cooks super fast too.  If you like your prawns more charred, I guess you'll have to use more of the browning agents like light/dark soy or oyster sauce.

I made some roasted potatoes and red capsicum to go with the prawns as just 10 of it is not going to make me full, so I need some carbs on the plate in the form of roasted potatoes, my favourite, crisp on the edges and fluffy inside.  While I'm at it, might as well throw in some vegetables like red capsicum, broccoli, french beans or brussel sprouts.

I love seafood, especially prawns, so it was worth it to experiment and try to make it at home coz it's even costlier to eat prawns at restaurants.  You won't realise just how easy it is to cook them until you try it yourself...and I'm glad I did.

Now that my attempt at cooking prawns in the air fryer turned out better than I expected, you bet I'll be making them more often.  I especially enjoyed sucking out the juices and flavour from the prawn heads.  If you're lover of prawns (like I am), then I urge you to try this simple dish (no recipe required) at home at a fraction of the cost of what you'll need to pay at a restaurant.  You'll find that it's so fast to make but absolutely delicious as a healthy meal! ^.^

The Hungry Beast @ Sunway Velocity

When it comes to western food, my husband is not into those fancy-schmancy dishes both in terms of taste and presentation.  If we want to eat western, it has to be meat-centric...lol!  So, we decided to head to The Hungry Beast @ Sunway Velocity for dinner one weekend.  This place was first suggested by a friend as a possible venue for one of our makan gatherings.  When I googled the place, I was encouraged by the high rating (of 4.7) + I also found out that they have a branch near me (their other branches are in Sri Damansara, SS15 & Mont Kiara).

On arrival (it was before 7pm), we found the place full and placed our names in queue and were told it could be up to an hour's wait.  Oh dear, that's too long a wait but decided to try our luck and wait a while.  After just about a 10-minute wait, the staff informed me that there's a table available provided we can finish eating in an hour (as the table's next reservation was at 8pm).  I told him that an hour is doable as long as the food comes out fast.

There's a fresh selection of all the meats from beef to pork, chicken to lamb, bacon to all types of sausages and more.  The concept is somewhat similar to Anne Elizabeth in Cheras or the (now closed) Cork & Cleaver in Bukit Tunku where you choose your meat (individually wrapped per portion basis with weight indicated) from the meat counter directly and they cook it for you.  There's also a preset menu (written on the board at the meat counter) of soups, salads, sides, pasta and house specials to choose from.

And kept their word, they did...the dishes came flying out of the kitchen in no time.  The first one to hit the table (like 5 minutes after we ordered) was my Seafood Chowder @ RM16.90.  The soup had one good-sized, captivating-looking prawn on top and two mussels inside the soup. I also found something which I first thought to be scallops but it had a rather chewy texture like soft, chewy gnocchi, so I don't know what they were.

If you like your soup thick and creamy, then you'll like this a lot.  It was a very decent tasting soup and I liked that it was thick but just a tad too creamy for me personally.  I could taste the cream more than the seafood flavours of the soup.

For mains, I had the (Australian) Marbled Ribeye (250g) @ RM88.70 and asked for medium-rare doneness. The meat had a good sear and was tender and juicy (even though the steak wasn't very thick) except for the inherent streak of chewy fat and sinew around the centre (eye) of the steak which I've always disliked (but have to accept since ribeye is still my favourite cut).

The flavour commensurates with the price and the fact that this is Australian beef.  For a piece of steak that's under RM100 (which I'd say is affordable steak), just don't compare their flavour with steaks that cost more than RM100 and you should do just fine.  It was served with confit garlic and (wholegrain) dijon mustard with some sort of brown sauce that tasted a tad too creamy for me, so I used very little.  Since they don't use a proper menu, it's difficult to say for certain the exact sauces they use.

I got the (House Special) Iberico Pork Collar (230g) @ RM48.60, cooked medium-well for my husband.  This was also served with some confit garlic and a green sauce (probably some kind of pesto or herbs sauce) that again was a tad too creamy for me.  I don't mind sauces with a thick consistency but I don't like to taste too much cream in the sauce.

I felt the Iberico pork collar was tender and juicy enough though my husband felt otherwise (not quite tender enough).  I think it's because he's used to eating thinner cuts of pork chop, some of which have been pounded/treated like a schnitzel, so for sure it's going to be more tender that way.

My son, as usual, went for his favourite (British) Fish & Chips @ 31.90 featuring two good-sized pieces of fish and thick-cut chips served with a tartar and chilli sauce.  It was a satisfying fish & chips with crispy batter coating and flaky, soft meat.  As most fish used for fish & chips are flaky, again it's not possible to ascertain what type of fish was used when it was not mentioned.

The tartar sauce wasn't my son's favourite and I can only guess it was also too creamy.  I only taste-tested a small piece of fish and didn't use any of the accompanying dip.

I ordered a couple of sides for sharing starting with some sausages, a Habanero Sausage @ RM14.90 and a German Valley Sausage also @ RM14.90.  I believe their sausages are inhouse made and they've got quite a selection of different type of sausages (some with more unique flavours) ranging from Spanish Chorizo to Heritage Lemongrass, Hungarian, Cheddar Cheese, Emmental Cheese, Fresh Italian, Spiral Herbs, Smoked Garlic, Apple Cinnamon, Lamb, Chicken Vienna and more.

The sausages had the texture and taste of a good, well-made sausage.  They were savoury, firm, meaty, tasty and slightly smoky.  Between the two, I preferred the Habanero one with its distinct spiciness.  From the colour of the dipping sauce, if I had to guess, it's probably some kind of a romesco sauce (again, thick and too creamy).

Next up was the Crispy Fries @ RM15.90 which arrived piping hot, fresh from the fryer.  The skin-on fries had an absolutely crispy exterior and were fluffy inside (marks of well executed housemade fries).

Of course, there has to be a salad to balance out all the meaty goodness that we were going to have.  There were only 3 choices, so I went with the Calamansi Salad @ RM15.90 (the other salad choices were Classic Caesar Salad which I'm not a fan because of the cheese and Black Forest Salad with fruits apparently).

I liked the sound of calamansi (a tart dressing to cut through all the meatiness).  The salad was filled with fresh frisee greens (or curly endive), mesclun, pickled radish, cherry tomatoes, juicy orange segments (my favourite) and chopped nuts of almond and walnut.  Nothing to fault, nice and refreshing! ;)

For drinks, we both had refreshing drinks of Fresh Watermelon Juice @ RM14 (for me) while my son had the Cold Lemon Tea @ RM10.

My Personal Opinion

This is a place you need to make reservations beforehand (if you don't wish to queue in wait) but I feel it's also not conducive to linger and chit-chat after your meal, so it's more of a eat-and-go kind of place.  I wouldn't recommend it for a get-together where you'd probably need to stay longer to catch up seeing that there are always people waiting for a table (perhaps you may need to choose one of their other branches where the space is much bigger with more tables)! >.<

But, having said that, the food is good and commensurates with the reasonable pricing for such quality meats.  From the cooking to the quality meats, good taste to the fair pricing, I'm very satisfied.  I just wish that their sauces weren't that creamy (and by that I don't mean having a thick consistency) until I can taste the cream in the sauce (though I know some prefer it this way).  I felt a much lighter/refreshing sauce with the heaviness of the meats is more suitable (at least for me) though this is not a big deal since I can do without any sauce with my meats.

Overall, it's a place I'll not hesitate to return when I'm hankering for some affordably-priced good meats backed up by taste.  Only the waiting for a table (without reservations) when it's crowded or during peak periods is a deterrent...lol!

The Hungry Beast

VS2-01-08 Sunway Velocity 2

No 158 Jalan Peel

55100 Kuala Lumpur

Tel: 017-220 7108

#ewew cooks Homemade Beef Burger

While at Aeon supermarket to restock my butter, I finally found jalapenos I've been wanting to get so that I can cook minced beef omelette ever since seeing PH The Meat Lover cooking (and enjoying) the same.  By the way, did you know that jalapenos with tiny white lines (or stretch marks like the one on the left) are spicier than those with a smooth surface?  Well, they supposedly are when I googled (and I really did taste some that are hotter than the rest), so now you know which ones to choose (if you get to choose) if you want spicier ones.

Once I got the jalapenos, I had to get some minced beef and spotted this pack of chilled minced beef which were the only ones available on the shelf.  Back home I portioned the 500g of beef mince into two...one half of it I portioned into 3 portions (for freezing) to make minced beef omelette (or whatever I could think of for the beef mince).  The other half I portioned into two...with the ambitious plan of making beef burger (for the first time at home!), so that means my beef patty was about a 125g patty (that might sound a bit small to some but since I was using smaller than regular buns, it was ok).

I googled on how best to prep the meat patty and most would have two ingredients in common...breadcrumbs and egg to bind the meat together.  Most says to use Panko breadcrumbs (you can also blitz your own breadcrumbs) or crushed crackers (that's just great as I so happen to have some salted crackers with me). 

I marinated the minced beef with salt, freshly cracked black pepper and used my Montreal chicken seasoning (coz that's the only all-purpose seasoning I keep in my pantry).  You can use whatever seasoning you like, even just salt and black pepper will do.  I pounded up 3 pcs of salted crackers into a fine crumb and added that to the mince along with some egg (not the whole egg, just eyeball it as long as it's not too wet for you to form into a patty).  I also dusted it with a bit of cornflour just in case it sticks to my non-stick pan (which has lost its non-stick ability!).

Every burger needs some sweet, caramelised onions...so I started with that but I didn't cook it long enough (that would have taken an hour at least!) until it turned jammy and sweet.  I just sweated them in olive oil on low heat until well soften and caramelised.  Using low heat is best (though it would take a longer time to cook) as onions can easily burn if you don't watch it.

I also wanted an oozy egg with my burger.  Cooking an egg with its egg yolk still runny is one of the hardest thing to do...more so when I don't have an egg pan (as the egg white will run all over the surface area of a large pan) + my pan is also no longer non-stick.  So, I used and egg ring...but forgot to oil the ring, so the edges got stuck a bit.

Next, I placed my burger patty on my non-stick pan with olive oil on medium heat.  I cooked my patty for 4 mins on each side for a total of 8 mins as I wasn't planning for a pink centre not knowing the quality of the chilled beef I got from Aeon (if you want it medium rare, you can cook it for a shorter time).

I relied on two tips I found on the internet...1) flip it only once (to get a great sear on your patty and leave it undisturbed until you're ready to flip) and 2) don't press down on your patty (with your spatula as that'll squeeze all the precious fats and juices out).  Wow, look at the great sear I got (on my first cook)...woohoo! When I flipped the burger, I also dropped some sliced jalapenos to sear and soften for a while.  You can also add some butter towards the end and baste your patty with it for more lusciousness...but I didn't.

I chose wholemeal raisin buns (for a healthier option) and toasted one with a bit of butter.  Time to assemble my burger!  First goes the burger patty on top of the bun.  Followed by the caramelised onions and slightly spicy jalapenos (this time I dug out the seeds first to reduce the spiciness...lol)!  Then the fried (hopefully) oozy egg goes on top and we close the bun....and my first homemade beef burger is ready to be devoured.

Wah, look at the layers in my burger (macam professional...kekeke)...bun, patty, onions, jalapenos & egg (only melted cheese and maybe a sauce is missing).  Well, you could also add on some slices of cucumber, tomato, grilled pineapple or some lettuce for a professionally executed burger...but this one is good enough for me! ;)

Of course, a burger is best served with fries...but since I didn't have any store-bought frozen fries in my freezer, I roasted some potato chunks (which I actually prefer) for a fluffier/healthier side dish.

This burger will not have a pink centre coz I deliberately cooked it for longer just to be safe not knowing the freshness of the beef.  It's still very much tender but, of course, will lose a bit of juiciness in the meat but still tasted good to me (if you're not weary, you can certainly cook it to medium rare for your preferred doneness).  The egg was just a little oozy. >.<

After being successful at cooking my first burger at home, I was more ambitious for round 2 (on another day) and decided to make smashed burger (like the ones I saw on TV...haha).  So, I made two smaller patties with my other 125g portion of beef and press it down with a potato mash (if you have one or use a metal plate will do).  This time I finished it with a bit of butter at the end.

This is my first housemade smashed burger!  I think I need to smash it thinner (it looked more like I'm having a double burger)!  This time I was too lazy to make caramelised onions and oozy egg, so it was just a layer of omelette, patty and jalapenos.

I enjoyed this version too.  It has more of a crisp texture on the outside because of the surface searing.  I think if it was thinner, it'd be even more tasty.  I'm loving my homemade beef burger (or smashed burger) which is not loaded with sauces...and cheese (of course, those who like those, feel free to add on).  This cook has given me confidence to make my own burgers from now on at home...and I'll probably be making them again soon.

It's not that difficult to do actually but may take a bit more work...but the end result of a homemade burger (with a proper beef patty is so much better, not to mention healthier, than those commercialised Ramly or frozen beef burgers)! ^o^  Hope my homemade burger has inspired (or tempted) you to make yours too! ^_~