San Peng Prawn Mee @ Jalan San Peng

Ever since dining in was allowed again during this period of Conditional MCO, I've still not been able to dine at some of my favourite shops.....and that's because some of these places (I'm referring more to stalls in coffee shops) are highly popular.  I have to be selective (for now) as to which shops I can or should dine in as it would mean sharing a table with strangers more often than not.  As these places (with good food) are perpetually crowded, finding a table to ourselves is almost impossible unless we're willing to wait...and, even then, there's no guarantee you'll get a table to yourself.

And it was because of this very reason of not being able to eat my favourite prawn mee that I had to look for other alternatives which brought us to San Peng Prawn Mee @ Jalan San Peng one weekend morning.

This one happens to be located just next to my favourite kai see hor fun.  I've heard of this prawn mee before but have never felt the need to try since I already had my go-to one.  Well, this is a typical roadside hawker stall, so get ready for minimal cleanliness and comfort in terms of eating environment.

We both ordered the usual bowl of Prawn Mee @ RM9 which came with the usual trappings of prawns, kangkung, beansprouts, fried shallots and chilli paste (but no thinly sliced pork or hard-boiled egg).

Except this bowl of prawn mee isn't quite the traditional bowl of prawn me as it came with an unusual accompaniment of poached chicken (instead of lean pork slices) which the lady boss did allude us at the time of ordering.

As for the prawn stock, there seemed to be an adequate amount of prawn oil swimming around the bowl but the soup base tasted a bit diluted to me and lacked sufficient prawn aroma in the stock.  Well, at least the fried shallots were freshly fried in-house (and not the straight-out-of-a-packet kind).  You can add on chilli paste (which is free flow...until they take away the bowl of sambal) to spice up your soup base even more although it's already quite spicy without any addition.

Nothing to fault the medium-sized prawns as they were fresh and sweet tasting but don't get so excited first when you see 5 - 6 prawns in your bowl of prawn mee when served.

Coz the prawns turned out to have been halved lengthwise! :O  Haiz, that means you only get half the amount of prawns! >_<

You can also order a more premium bowl with larger prawns which will cost at least double (RM22 was the price I saw stated in a 2021 blogpost).  I did see some bowls of that whizzing past me (with 2 or 3 shell-on large prawns sticking out from the bowl) but I'd want to know how the taste stacks up first before attempting a more luxurious (aka expensive) version, of course.

Since there's the non-traditional ingredient of poached chicken in their prawn mee, I gather it must be a speciality of theirs, so I ordered a separate plate of Poached Chicken @ RM9 (I asked for the thigh portion) to savour it in its true form.

The poached chicken was served on top of some crunchy beansprouts and they were tender and certainly decent but not quite the standard of the smooth and tasty poached chicken of their kai see hor fun neighbour.  The soy sauce served with the chicken was not in the same league of deliciousness either as their neighbour's...it had a more pronounced flavour of sesame oil which can be a little overpowering if you're not a fan of sesame oil.  There weren't (or, at least, we weren't given) any fresh chilli dip for the chicken too.

My Personal Opinion

Neither the prawn mee nor the poached chicken wowed us.  Worst still was that my husband saw (after our meal) something that was best left unseen (with regards to their food prep).  I won't go into the details of that but let's just say that when your stall is set up in such a way that your diners have full view of your prep area, you should be alerted to the fact that what you do is open for all to see. >_<  Of course such deplorable acts may also occur in other food stalls...but (at least) what we don't see, we won't feel disgusted.

Well, it looks like I won't be needing to come back to try the more luxurious version with big prawns now. More so when we saw something we didn't need to see.....and let's leave it at that! O_o

San Peng Prawn Mee

823/15 Jalan Susur

Off Jalan San Peng

Pudu

55200 Kuala Lumpur

Just One Food - Burger King's Salmon Burger

I didn't get to try Burger King's Hokkaido Salmon Mentaiko Burger the first time round when they were launched in 2019.  So, when they made a return in February this year, I made sure I didn't miss out this time since I do enjoy eating fish burgers.

Even though I have a Burger King branch in my neighbourhood, I decided to order via foodpanda but opted for self pick-up.  That way I don't have to wait for my order on-site + not only is the delivery fee waived, there's usually a discount attached (at least 25%) for self pick-up.  On top of that, I don't have to pay parking (yes, Burger King, unfortunately, is located in an area where parking attendants will descend on you like flies the moment you step out of your car.  You have to pay the minimum one hour parking (RM1) even if you tapau food from eateries there....so annoying, right?  With self pick-up, they'll alert you when your order is ready for pick-up...which usually ends up faster than I can reach there...lol.  So, I'd zip in and out of there in under a minute and if I'm forced still required to pay parking, I'd surely make known my annoyance to Burger King's staff.  Luckily, nothing like that happened.

Anyway, let's get back to our burger, shall we?  My Salmon Mentaiko Burger (a la carte, RM15) cost me only RM12.54 in total (with a medium fried onion rings included, RM5.90) at a 40% discount (RM8.36).  Not bad, eh, for self pick up.

Well, if you want to look at visually attractive burgers, you better look here....at the photoshoots where the burgers are painstakingly presented at its best with not a smudge on the box or a drop of sauce in sight...haha! :D  Otherwise, they'll probably look more like the mess above! >_<  

One problem with ordering online is that they tend to forget my special instruction of 'no cheese'...haiz! :(  I did my best in trying to peel/scrape off the cheese.  This fish burger features a salmon patty (supposedly imported from Hokkaido) with American cheese, crunchy sliced onions, juicy tomatoes, fresh lettuce and savoury mentaiko sauce, of course.  If you're thinking it tastes like mentaiko (similar to those in Japanese restaurants), you'll be sorely disappointed.  This one tasted like a lightly spiced version of Thousand Island sauce...that's about it....and also there wasn't enough of it rendering the patty on the drier side.

As for the salmon fillet, it was neither drool-worthy nor tender (as advertised)! >.<  The texture of the salmon patty tasted more like fish paste, lightly chewy, certainly not flaky...it's something with a frozen feel than freshly-made.  I'd rather eat McD's Fish Burger (or their Fish & Fries) anytime to this.

When it comes to Burger King's burgers, I'd much rather stick to my usual order here, the Whopper, which is my favourite fast food beef burger for now...that's near me.

This Whopper (Medium Set) of a flame-grilled beef patty with onions, tomatoes, lettuce & pickles, finished with mayo & ketchup, on a well toasted sesame bun cost RM13.58 (RM20.90 with a 35% discount of RM7.32) that comes with fries and a drink option of iced teh tarik (extra charge).

I really like the beef patty for the taste (and smell) of its smoky, charred flavour....and, surprisingly, the ketchup too.  I don't usually like ketchup but this one tastes more like some kind of barbecue sauce (or maybe that's a result of it combining with the grilled patty...hehe! ;)

And the best thing is that this burger comes with an option without cheese...yay! ^.^  So, no need for special instructions to omit the cheese which may fall on deaf ears or be overlooked.

So, that's it.....no more salmon burger for me...although I've taken a liking to self pick-up now...more so for the no waiting but also for the discount (not sure if prices are better when you order on-site with promos though)! ^_~

A Steaming Pot of Celebration in a Moo-ving Year

Steamboat or Chinese Hot Pot is very popular during Chinese New Year (CNY) as it takes a lot less effort than a full-on spread of dishes.  Some families would even have this as their reunion dinner.  If not, it's bound to feature at some point in one of their meals during the course of the 15 days of CNY.

As families gather over a pot of hot, bubbling broth (within the comforts of air-conditioning, of course) and various steamboat ingredients, it's a time for sharing joy, along with sharing good food and conversation.

So, when the lady boss of a place I frequent weekly for breakfast gifted me a bottle of her home-made chilli sauce (which she makes only once a year, she said), I volunteered to hold a steamboat dinner at my place...to celebrate the end of CNY though it wasn't quite on Chap Goh Mei day itself but a few days earlier on a Sunday for everyone's convenience.

An enjoyable steamboat starts with a good soup base.  Going with a clear soup base (like chicken soup which is easiest to cook and probably the most failproof option) is the safest bet as it goes well with any kind of steamboat ingredients + it's also the most accepted and well-liked stock of many.  I like to keep the stock simple with just choi yin kai (kampung chicken) bones and good quality dried cuttlefish, sometimes I would add some kei chee (wolfberries) or white peppercorns.  Although you can also use celery, onions, spring onions, carrots and what-nots, I don't think it's really necessary as you'll be adding meat, seafood and vegetables during the course of the hot pot experience which will further add flavour to the soup, so no need to make the initial soup base too complex.  So, I prepared two big pots of chicken soup.

To complement a tasty soup base, you'll need good ingredients to go into it, of course.  So, I tried my best to procure these ingredients but it wasn't easy as most of the places (near me) seemed to have run out of them, a testimony that steamboat ingredients are well sought after during CNY.  In the end, these were what was available which I managed to source and procure.

#1 - Pork Meatballs, non-fried version (25 pcs) @ RM15 (RM0.60/pc).

#2 - Pork Meatballs, fried version (25 pcs) @ RM15 (RM0.60/pc), both these were from a stall selling sam kan chong noodles.

#3 - (Frozen) Pork Balls with spring onions @ RM11 for a box of 15 (that I frequently buy from a meat shop).

#4 - (Frozen) Soup Wantans (40 pcs) @ RM9 for a box of 20 pcs.

#5 - (Frozen) Mini Sui Kow (pork with chives & pork with mushrooms) @ RM13 for a box of 15 & 14 pcs respectively (I bought the wantans and dumplings from the same meat shop).

#6 - XL-sized Sea Prawns @ RM50 (size 26/30).  I initially thought the size indicated the number of prawns I'd be getting but turned out I was wrong.  There were only 20 large prawns in the box making it RM2.50 per prawn.

#7 - Tilapia Fillet @ RM12 (which I sliced into smaller pieces).

#8 - Siakap Fillet @ RM13.50 (all the seafood were from Vfresh and they were adequately fresh). 

#9 - Quail Eggs (2 boxes) @ RM3 for a box of 15 (which I boiled and peeled).

#10 - Baby Corn @ RM2.50 (these were fresh ones which I cut into two).

#11 - Abalone Mushrooms (2 pkts) @ RM3.30/pkt (which I tore up into smaller pieces).

#12 - Japanese Firm Tofu (2 pkts) @ RM1.60/pkt (which I cut into cubes).

#13 - Fried Beancurd (2 pkts) @ RM5.30/pkt (bought from the supermarket).

#14 - Fish Paste Beancurd (which my sister-in-law made).

#15 - Fish Maw & #16 - Pork Belly Slices (which my sister-in-law brought).

3 types of greens @ RM16, #17 - kangkung, #18 - yin choy & #19 - bok choy (I almost got a 4th veggie, yau mak, but it got left behind when I went to the checkout counter which ended up a blessing in disguise as I bought too much already).

#20 - Yee Mee has always been the choice noodle (for my family) compared to meehoon when having steamboat though I personally find that it often changes the broth from clear to cloudy with a much saltier aftertaste.  Luckily, this only happens towards the end of the steamboat meal and I try to have my bowl of soup before that.

#21 - Eggs (we were so full by the end that we could only muster enough stomach space for 3 yee mee and 3 eggs).  Was that too much food?  Hehe! ;D

I had wanted to buy fish balls and fish wantans too (from my favourite fish ball noodles shop) but my sister-in-law thought there was already too much food when I told her what I had bought thus far.  In the end, I did buy too much food (and couldn't finish) coz (as a host) we're always afraid there won't be enough.  Next time, I better allocate just one piece of each ingredient per person and it'll be enough since we have so many varieties (but, then again, when the ingredient is tasty like the pork balls from the sam kan chong stall, we finished all 50 pcs without any problem!).  I think we would have been able to finish the fish balls (RM0.70pc) and fish wantans (also RM0.70/pc) too if I had gotten them.  What wasn't enough was the soup though.

You can't very well have an enjoyable steamboat meal without the condiments, right? ;)  So, I prepared three....chopped garlic & bird's eye chillies, fried shallots (I actually thought I made quite a substantial amount but with anything crispy, there's never enough) and soy sauce mixed with fried garlic.  And, of course, there was the 'gift' of fresh sambal.

For dessert, we had these....a last minute addition at the end of our steamboat meal (someone tekan tekan the phone for delivery lah) with flavours of Belgian Chocolate, Coffee & Strawberry (coffee was what I enjoyed the most of the three).

I don't think we had ever had steamboat meal at home during CNY in KL (but we certainly did when we were in Ipoh), so this was a first experience for us.  Looking back, I learned a few things from this so-called virgin experience (haha!) of making steamboat at home.

One, you have to boil a lot more soup than you think you need (even two large pots were not enough) as the soup gets reduced from all the boiling and boiling.  It progressively got more concentrated as the ingredients kept boiling, so we needed more soup to thin it out.  We ended up trying to drink the soup conservatively as there wasn't enough! >_<  My sister-in-law commented that the chicken soup was good (when she tasted the initial broth when it was still light and ching) but I certainly didn't feel it was at the end when it got too intensely-flavoured (and cloudy in look).

Two, the sources and suppliers of the ingredients bought are equally important.  Even though I had bought 50 meatballs from a sam kan chong stall, not a ball was in sight at the end of our meal.  That means, the good stuff (however much) will get eaten.  The common, frozen commercial stuff you buy off the shelves in supermarkets (or even from steamboat suppliers), you can expect leftovers if they're not good.  In the end, I'd rather pay a little bit more for good quality, house-made stuff from my favourite noodle shops.

Three, the type of ingredients you buy is also crucial to a good pot of steamboat.  I made a mistake of buying frozen wantan and sui kow coz, as they defrost, the pastry skins tend to stick together and you end up either throwing them in all lumped together or they get torn when you try to separate them.  Worst still, the bits of pastry get ridiculously soft and bits of it end up in the soup thereby thickening it.  Another ingredient you have to be careful with is fried beancurd.  The poor quality ones contribute a lot of oil to your soup base. The same goes for fish maw as they tend to soak up a lot of soup when rehydrated.  And then there's the yee mee which can be salty and oily thereby causing the soup to become cloudy and too salty.

Four, you don't really need to have XL-sized prawns for steamboat (there are better ways to use them). Because overly big ones take a longer time to cook (for one), they end up releasing too much prawn-bisque flavour into the soup (and thereby causing the soup to be murky as well).  Those medium-sized prawns (that we usually get when we eat steamboat outside) are good enough.

Five, the fish fillet I got (though fresh) was flaky and broke into pieces in the soup as a result of all the ladling action going on in the pot.  When it comes to fish, we have to know what kind is best for steamboat and we need to fish them out immediately after cooking because of their delicate texture to prevent them from breaking into tiny bits and pieces.

Steamboat may seem easier to assemble than cooking but, like all cooking, it gets better with practice. ^_* I've learned a thing or two from my first time and I'm sure our next steamboat experience will be much better.  For one, don't overbuy and two, buy the right ingredients.  Pay a little bit more for shop-made ingredients (buy from reputable shops you've eaten in before to be assured of the quality and taste) rather than mass-produced, frozen stuff (from supermarkets or even steamboat specialists).

Even though our steamboat meal could have been better (I have to admit), it still beats having one outside where you can't linger and chat or, worst still, end the meal dripping in sweat...lol.  We were able to savour this in the comforts of home with the air-conditioning on at full blast! ;D

This is a steaming pot of celebration in a sombre and moo-ving year brought about by the pandemic.....and there's nothing better than sharing a pot of happiness with family during CNY, is there? ^_~  Let's hope the pandemic gets its butt kicked by the raging bull this year! :D

How to Make Ramen Eggs

A ramen egg (ajitsuke tamago or, in short, ajitama) is a marinated soft-boiled egg that is part of an important component of not only a good bowl of ramen but also makes a pretty good accompaniment in any donburi or even as a side dish eaten on its own.

Ever since I first saw phonghongbakes make ajitama (in 2016!) I had wanted to try but then conveniently forgot all about it until I was reminded of them again when she made Korean mayak eggs recently (which is pretty much similar).  Well, I better not procrastinate any longer! ;)

To make this is pretty simple.....all you need is to nail two things.  One...the cooking of the eggs to achieve a soft centred and slightly runny yolk, and two....the marinating broth.

Let's do the easy part first...the steeping marinade for the eggs.  I went with the recipe from Just One Cookbook (JOC)....and made it with 2 tbsp soy sauce, 2 tbsp mirin and 3 - 6 tbsp water.  I decided to go with 6 tbsp of water as I know the brand of soy sauce (Chinese soy) I have is saltier than the norm.  Perhaps if you're using Japanese soy or shoyu, you can use less water.  The right balance of the marinade depends on the saltiness of your soy, so give it stir and a little taste to ensure you're ok with the final flavour.

Once you're happy with the taste, pour the marinade into a ziplock bag.  You can also put them in a container with a lid but you'll probably need a lot more steeping liquid than what I've used here (to ensure the eggs can be completely submerged).  Just make sure you don't cram too many into the container as they'll lose their shape since the whites are pretty soft.

Now for the cooking of the eggs (I used kampung eggs).  Bring water to boil in a pan (make sure the water is enough to cover the eggs).  Once the water is boiling, reduce to a simmer and lower two eggs carefully into the boiling water (with a perforated ladle if necessary).  I use eggs direct from the fridge as I find that simpler and easier to control since we might use different timings to get the eggs to room temperature.  When I say simmer,  you should still be able to see some bubbling, just not bubbling vigorously to the point where the eggs bounce around in the pan.  Now, this is the hard part as the timing is crucial to achieve that sought-after runny yolk.  Most recipes will tell you to use a timing of between 6 - 8 minutes.  I simmered the eggs (uncovered) for exactly 7 minutes (as JOC advised).....and it worked! ^_~

Once done (when the timer beeps), take them out immediately and place them in an ice bath to stop the cooking process.  When cooled, carefully peel the eggs.  This turned out to be the hardest part (for me) in making these seasoned eggs coz they're just slightly firmer than soft-boiled eggs where the egg whites are lightly firm while the yolks are still slightly runny, so they're harder to handle and peel unlike hard-boiled eggs.

The first time I made these eggs, I nailed the consistency of the yolk, I think...a bit runnier than expected but still ok....but then I cracked the whites during the peeling process and had to discard them (by discard, I mean eat them up) as the steeping broth will most likely seep through the cracks...and they won't be very pretty after that.  So I had to boil another two! >_<  This time, I gently tap on the egg shells (with a spoon) to create more cracks so that they'd be easier to peel.

Once you've got a perfectly peeled egg with no cracks (or blemishes if you're a perfectionist like me), you're on the home stretch!  Put them into your ziplock bag and tie the top with a clip or string and let the eggs steep in the liquid.  This amount of marinade is good enough (I would say) for up to 3 eggs (and not 4 according to JOC).  If you want to use this marinade for 3 eggs (which I tried recently), do note that you might not get perfectly browned eggs (as some parts of the egg will get squished in the bag).  For best results, I would stick to 2 eggs.

Sit the eggs overnight in the fridge in the marinade.  I soaked mine for 24 hours.  Adam Liaw thinks that a great ajitsuke tamago is one that has been steeped for two days as he says that's when the egg yolk achieves a beautiful, more intense colour with a better taste and texture because of the longer curing process.

When I first took the soy marinated eggs out from the steeping liquid, I thought they looked perfect on the outside.....beautifully coloured, don't you think? ^.^

The moment of truth is when you cut open the egg.  Phew!...the yolk was still runny.  Perhaps slightly less runny than the previous one I cut open and ate immediately (without curing).  I think I nailed this one better, with the edge of the yolk slightly more cooked, as the runny yolk didn't run out on to the cutting board when it was cut open.  What do you think?  Well, if I can get them perfect (at least to me) on my first (and second) try, I'm sure you can too.

 

They say if you want your egg yolk to be in the centre, you have to swirl or rotate the eggs around during the first few minutes of cooking.  Well, I did do that but they don't look very much like they're in the centre. That's probably because the eggs weren't at optimum freshness judging from the larger air sac in the eggs.

Getting your perfect half-boiled ajitama egg depends on the right timing for cooking your eggs.  I'd suggest you experiment the trial and error way between 6 - 8 minutes until you find your magic number.  Mine was 7 minutes...but I can understand that there may be some variables in terms of the size of the egg and the amount of water used to boil the egg.

These flavourful soft-boiled eggs with that savoury-sweet balance is well-loved for its just firm egg whites and a lightly runny, custard-like yolk.  If you enjoy soft-boiled eggs (like I do), you're bound to love these soy-marinated eggs.

It's one of the most popular ramen toppings but it's also equally good as an add-on in a donburi (or any type of rice bowl) or even in a salad.  Sorry they don't look all that great in this bowl as the entire egg is very wobbly and soft, so they tend to get misshaped easily by the contours of the bowl or the food.

I didn't think I'd nail the cooking of these ramen eggs on my first try....but I did! ^o^  It turned out to be easier than I thought....and once I've got the timing right (my magic number), it was just a matter of replicating it each time and I've been making them ever since.  Game to try? ^_~