The Bubur Cha Kitchen @ Taman Cheras Indah

When I clicked into this restaurant named The Bubur Cha Kitchen @ Taman Cheras Indah on Shopee Food, I was expecting it to be selling some kind of sweet (dessert) soups (or tong sui).  Turns out it was nothing like that...but selling bubur (or porridge) instead of bubur cha cha...lol.

Hmmm, porridge isn't something I'd associate the Malays with selling as they're more known for their fare of nasi lemak or nasi campur, for example.  But they have been known to copy some of our Chinese fare like char kway teow, fried yau char kwai (Chinese crullers), steamed pau (steamed buns) and chee cheong fun to name a few although I can't say they've been very successful at it.  It's the same when we copy their nasi lemak but our Chinese version of nasi lemak just isn't the same, especially since our sambal is not quite of the standard of a Malay sambal.

The only Malay-style porridge I've tasted so far is Bubur Lambuk, a porridge cooked with spices and santan (coconut milk) from the Ramadan bazaar.  It's so different from our Chinese porridge that I think it needs a bit of getting used to with all the spices and santan in the mix.

So, you can understand my apprehension when I saw this porridge offered by a Malay vendor but decided to give it a go since it had a 4.9 rating on Shopee Food.  I ordered the Bubur Ayam + Cendawan Goreng (or Combo B of Porridge with Fried Chicken + Mushrooms) @ RM14 for my first taste test.

Let's start with the porridge.  First thing I saw when I opened the box was that the porridge had toppings of crispy batter bits, fried shallots, kacang (nuts) and chopped spring onions....all I like! ;)  But would have liked it even more if they had packed this separately for us to pour into the porridge ourselves when it arrives.  The porridge had the right consistency and was nicely savoury.

My initial apprehension of a Malay-style porridge was not warranted.  I thought it wouldn't be as good as a Chinese-style porridge but I was proven wrong.  I've not had anything remotely this good (from past experience) with Chinese-inspired food from a Malay vendor.

I was pleasantly surprised that the enoki mushrooms were still super crispy even though it had been steaming together with the hot porridge in the box.  This could partly be due to the fact that I'm staying nearby the seller and the food got to me within 10 - 15 minutes.

Encouraged by the good taste of the first combo, I just had to have it again and ordered their other combo of Bubur Udang + Sotong Goreng (or Combo A of Porridge with Fried Prawns + Squid) @ RM14 so that I can try their two other proteins to see which ones I liked better.

The udang goreng was another winner.  The batter that coated the prawns was probably the same one as the earlier mushrooms but somehow this one felt a little bit thicker and fried to adequate crispiness.  I don't know what prawns they used but it had this rather intense prawn flavour to it.

But I can't say the same for the sotong goreng as the texture was very chewy...not something I would want to have again.

Now that I've tasted all four proteins, it was time to order what I enjoyed the most here.....starting with the Bubur Cendawan Goreng (or Porridge with Mushrooms) @ RM8.  When the porridge arrived, I realised that they used the same (compartmentalised) packaging as before...meaning a two-protein combo would share the same (box) space as one protein.

As you can see, there seemed to be a lot more cendawan goreng that can fit into the smaller compartment of the box...hehehe! ;)  This was so good...the fried mushrooms were super crispy and the batter so crisp and light.

Based on this observation alone, it would probably be safe to say that it's more worth it to order the porridge with a single protein (as an additional RM4 can get you a second box of porridge already).  The portion size isn't very big, so those with a bigger appetite can definitely chow down two boxes of porridge...and that's what I did with this order.  I got another Bubur Ayam Goreng (or Porridge with Fried Chicken) @ RM9.

That said, these little cubes of ayam goreng were fairly tender and crispy (but not super crispy as one would expect or want fried chicken to be) but, at least, these little bites of chicken are the freshly made and fried kind (and not the frozen nuggets kind).

And no, I couldn't finish eat the second box of porridge (kept all of it for another meal) but have no problem polishing off the second protein if I really wanted to (but purposely kept some so that I have something to eat my balance porridge with later).  Wish they would just sell the proteins separately as a side dish so that we can choose to have two proteins with one porridge.  Yes, they have the combo for that but it's not quite the same.....just imagine two proteins sharing the same (box) space as a single protein (you get less...haha!). >.<

Next was the Bubur Udang Goreng (or Porridge with Fried Prawns) @ RM9 on its own as I had taken a keen liking to the prawns.  The same number of prawns were given (as in the combo with udang + sotong)...which was three.  They can't very well give anything less since we can count the number of prawns...lol!

The prawn bodies are deshelled (with just the tail intact), so eating it is super easy but you do get some with prawn heads intact occasionally (I think this happens when the prawns are smaller)...but no worries since they're fried to crispy perfection, you can chomp down the heads (and tails) as well.

I mentioned earlier that their prawns have this intensified prawn flavour to them, so much so that there was once I could even taste it in the cendawan goreng.  They must have fried the mushrooms in the same oil as the prawns...hah..hah! ;P

Initially, I was very tempted to drizzle light soy sauce over the porridge (as I would always do with any Chinese-style porridge) but luckily did not as it would change the taste of this Malay-style version.

I once ordered a side of Telur Masin (Salted Egg) @ RM2 (for half) as this is something we've always paired with our Chinese porridge so that it wouldn't be so bland.  Actually, it wasn't needed as the porridge itself had a nice savoury taste already.

There's also a side order of Sambal Bilis Lobak Asin @ RM2 which I initially thought would be a strange combo to eat porridge with a sambal but I remembered that I thought it strange also to eat porridge with something spicy like kung po-style frog (cooked with dried chillies) which turned out to be a revelation as it was so good eaten together! :O

So I gave this sambal bilis lobak asin (as in lobak masin or salted preserved radish) a try and it was a dynamite combination!  This sambal lobak asin is like a spicy sambal cooked with salty-sweet preserved radish (choy poh) though I didn't detect much of the ikan bilis taste.  Who knew a spicy sambal (the taste is unlike those sambal you get in nasi lemak) would go so well with porridge.  It was very good...but too small a portion given (some might think it's not worth paying RM2 for)! O_o

My Personal Opinion

The success and taste of this Malay-inspired porridge took me by surprise.  It's now one of my most ordered food delivery through ShopeeFood.  My favourite is the Cendawan Goreng followed by the Udang Goreng.  A new revelation would be eating porridge with a sambal...and it turned out to be an excellent combination (only a Malay vendor would think of pairing it with a sambal, after all, sambal is a mainstay of their cuisine).

Now, why didn't any Chinese food operators think of pairing something fried and crispy with porridge?  Our Chinese-style version always usually offers something braised.  Well, if you like something crispy with your porridge, this is it...but obviously not a porridge to have if you're feeling under the weather.

This Malay-style porridge has changed my perspective that porridge need not always be paired with something braised or boiled like duck, peanuts, pork innards or minced meat but can be with something crisply delicious...and you can enjoy it with a sambal too.

The Bubur Cha Kitchen

No 22 Jalan Indah 33

Taman Cheras Indah

56100 Kuala Lumpur