More food inside!

Over the past year, I've had many meals from dahmakan.....some wonderful....and some not so wonderful. You can read the meals I've tried so far in my previous entries here, here and here.

Even though I'm no longer a dahmakan Select member now, I still order meals from them from time to time when the cook or kitchen is having a downtime! ;)

#1 - Assam Laksa @ RM9.90


lai fun (or laksa noodles), assam broth, pineapple, lettuce, lemongrass, prawn paste

Since I've not tried any of their noodles, I thought I'd give their assam laksa a go...but I wasn't expecting the elaborate packaging that it came in.  This was what I was confronted with when I opened the lid.  There's a separate plastic compartment for the noodles and another plastic container for the broth and all this is then put into a paper container.

I wish the packaging was simpler (like D'Laksa) with one paper container for the broth and one plastic bag for the noodles.  I guess it can't be helped as they have to ensure everything is packaged as one so that the rider doesn't forget anything and that the broth doesn't spill while intransit.

The noodles looked hard at first glance but then I understood when I realised the reheating instructions ask that you put the noodles into the broth to reheat.  After reheating, the noodles tasted exactly like lai fun you come to expect in assam laksa but don't expect the noodles to be in long strands as they've been cut in order to fit into the small box.

So that would mean the noodles will be a small portion as well coz, after all, how much noodles can you fit into a container that's slightly over an inch in height! >.<  Luckily, I was able to "kar liew" since I had some yong tau foo leftover from earlier otherwise it wouldn't have been quite enough.

The noodles came with just a piece of lettuce, bits of lemongrass, some pieces of canned (not fresh) pineapple and a wedge of lime.  You won't find staples of shredded cucumber or onions...there weren't any (and, to me, I can't really have the whole assam laksa experience without these vegetables)! >_<

The assam broth was fairly thick with bits of (probably) canned mackerel or sardines but it was neither spicy nor sour enough (even after I squeezed the lime in)...and that, to me, is not the essence of a good assam laksa broth (although I must confess that I didn't pour all the har ko (prawn paste) in but it wouldn't have made any difference coz when I tasted it on its own, it was sweet instead of spicy).  By right, it should be very spicy, that's why I usually omit it (or use only a very light drizzle).

For an assam laksa to be successful, you want the spiciness and sourness to hit you in the face...and this one didn't do that (but if you like one that's neither spicy nor sour, then this one fits the bill).  Guess I won't be ordering this noodle dish again (or any other noodle dish for that matter anytime soon)...there's just too much plastic packaging for one noodle dish alone and the extra work needed in reheating and washing just isn't worth the effort.   Note that the dish arrives cold (or room temperature at best), so reheating is a must...and since I only reheat broth to boiling point in glass containers, that meant even more washing up to do.

#2 - Brazilian Fish & Squid Stew @ RM24.90

fish fillet, squid, cilantro brown rice, broccoli & carrot, spicy sauce

I'm not sure what fish was used but they were much thicker slices than the ones that came with Thai Red Fish Curry I had previously.  Nevertheless, the fish chunks (about 5 good-sized chunks) were soft and flaky.  The squid was tender too (and I found at least 4 slices of the squid tube).

The spicy sauce was really good....it was da bomb! ^o^  I didn't expect it to be that spicy though I was able to tolerate the heat.  This dish had a spiciness score of 2-chillies which is just about the heat level I'm comfortable with (I could probably go 1-chilli higher but that's about it for me).  I better stay away from those with a 4 or 5-chillies rating! :O

I'm not sure why it's called a Brazilian stew as it tasted a bit like our assam pedas minus the sourness.  This sauce also had a thicker consistency to the one that came with the Thai Red Fish Curry and Portugese Steamed Fish.  This sauce was the best of the three...and the best dish thus far from dahmakan that I've tasted.

And, for once, there is no complaint of not enough sauce as it was plentiful.  I loved the sauce so much that this is the first time I'm going to say I wanted more of the brown rice (with bits of coriander and green chillies).  The vegetables of broccoli and carrot was undercooked as usual but, this time, I didn't even mind as I dutifully ate the hard vegetables after they've been dunked into the sauce.  If there's just one dish you want to try from dahmakan, make it the Brazilian Fish & Squid Stew...period.  This one I have no qualms whatsoever about reordering. ^.^

#3 - Garlic Black Pepper Chicken @ RM14.90

chicken pieces, onion, red capsicum, black pepper sauce

The chicken chunks (from chicken breast) seem to have been deep-fried as there's a batter coating the chicken pieces, the texture of which made me feel like I was eating chicken nuggets.

Although onions and red capsicum are listed in the ingredient list, I actually found only one miserable piece of red capsicum and maybe two pieces of onion.  Not sure if the vegetables were actually lacking or it was a portioning problem during packing.

Flavour-wise, it was an ok dish, not overly peppery in taste.  Portion of chicken and rice commensurate with the price paid.

#4 - Roast Chicken Breast with Sweet Potato Mash @ RM26.90

chicken breast, sweet potato mash, green capsicum & onions, mushroom sauce

It's not quite me to order a dish of chicken breast (since I dislike this cut of chicken immensely) but it was the vegetables of green capsicum & onions that were peeking from the menu pic (finally something other than broccoli & carrot) that encouraged me to order chicken breast for once.  And.....surprise, surprise...it turned out better than I expected.

The chicken breast, though known for its dryness, actually turned out rather pleasant as it had a decent flavour and charring on the outside.  The sweet potato mash was very good...sweet tasting, smooth and with a few chunky bits.  Portions of chicken and mash were substantial...this is one dish you won't complain of not being enough.

The accompanying mushroom sauce, fairly thick and made with shiitake and oyster mushrooms, was really good too with the flavour of mushrooms coming through (I wanted more sauce).  The sauce, sauteed vegetables and sweetness of the mash all contributed to make the chicken breast less dry...the sweet potato mash especially (it wouldn't have worked if it was a potato mash).  Eat each forkful of the chicken with the sauce and a bit of mash and you'll soon forget that it's chicken breast that you're eating.

Recently however, I noticed that dahmakan's website has been revamped and one of the first things I noticed was that there are even lesser choices now (of meals priced above RM20) compared to before but the side dishes of drinks & desserts have increased significantly.  The other obvious thing I noticed was that they're now more focussed on offering the more affordable meals (priced RM14.90 & below) packaged with Tealive, Starbucks, Famous Amos or Krispy Kreme.  Perhaps they're consolidating, hoping to reduce wastage and manage costs better by offering less choices.

I've tried some of these cheaper meals, though they're not all that bad, they aren't something I'd be interested in having again.  That's because the vegetable component in the rice meals is sorely lacking (in both variety and taste) and having to rely on just chicken isn't quite what I fancy.  For a Chinese-like rice meal at that price, I'd be better off having chap fan where I can have more vegetables than rice to fill me up.

This switch seems more suited for office workers who have no time to eat out but want a quick, affordable meal delivered to their desk.  For me personally, I prefer the choices of the pricier meals (for dinner time) and now that there are even lesser options, I guess my dahmakan orders will be infrequent one-off orders from now on.

Note: Dahmakan has since been rebranded to Pop Meals (in late 2020)