When it comes to steamboat in Malaysia, tomyam, clear soup, and porridge usually comes to mind. Most people aren’t aware that there is also the spicy Sichuan and Mongolian style steamboat in the valley. Last I had this type of steamboat was more than 1.5 years ago at Hong La Qiao and Inner Mongolian Restaurant at Pudu, so when the invitation to Jin Shan Cheng from foodstreet came in, I was rather delighted to revisit this version of steamboat.

steamboat is always best enjoyed in a group

Jin Shan Cheng is located at Sunway Mentari, across NPE from Sunway Pyramid. The restaurant itself is on first floor, but there’s actually elevator for those who are extremely lazy. Interior decoration is rather simple and without much fan fair, but this isn’t exactly a fancy restaurant, we’re here only for the food anyway.

the condiments and two types of soup

The steamboat comes with two types of soup, the traditional super spicy with lots of chili oil Sichuan style, and the other without. They are basically the same soup base though. Instead of your usual chicken rice style sambal or chili padi, there is a pretty special type of sauce accompanying the steamboat. I tasted a hint of cilantro, garlic, ginger, oil, and some type of pepper. Of course, there are also fuyu (fermented tofu), peanut sauce, and chili oil. Those usually go very well with meat items.

spicy frog legs, spicy fish pot, pepper beef

While waiting for the soup to boil, we were served three traditional Sichuan dishes. The spicy frog legs cos Eiling mentioned to the owner that she likes frog legs, the spicy fish pot, and the sizzling pepper beef.

The frog legs were actually very good, spicy yet full of flavor. The boss explained that they use a type of pepper imported from China to bring out the original taste. The fish, while very oily (wouldn’t be the correct recipe if it wasn’t), tasted pretty good too, I think it’ll go well with some rice but unfortunately we didn’t order any. Though cooked with tilapia instead of cod, it still did justice to the dish.

stop teasing with scallop already, Eiling!

For the steamboat, we had beef slice, scallop, vegetable, pork kidney, fish meat, and a few other items. My favorite had to be the kidney, closely followed by the beef. Both items tasted great with the strong flavoring from the soup and condiments. However, you need to make sure that they are not over cooked, a 5-10 second bath in the boiling soup is all you need.

Jin Shan Cheng is located at Sunway Mentari

The price at Jin Shan Cheng is pretty reasonable, the cooked dishes start from RM 15 for small portion. For example, the spicy fish pot costs RM 20 to RM 35. Not bad for something authentic an different. This place is best for those who love spicy food, you’re advised to stick with clear soup pulau ketam steamboat otherwise.

more pictures at my flickr set

Address:
No. 42A-2, Jalan PJS 8/2
Dataran Mentari, Bandar Sunway,
56301 Petaling Jaya, Selangor
GPS: 3.075284, 101.613053
Tel: 03-5631 8220
Web: www.jscmsb.com

Tags:  dinner,  fish,  hotpot,  review,  sichuan,  spicy,  Steamboat

Posted by KY | 17 Comments »

A couple weeks ago three of us went to the much blogged Indonesian food outlet Waroeng Penyet at the Curve. For those who can’t read the Indonesian (or Malay) language, waroeng (or warong) is a traditional hut, while penyet translates to flattened. So I guess you can call it a flattened hut though the place doesn’t look exactly like a hut nor is it flattened.

no frill fast food outlet setting

As their logo suggests, the signature dish at this outlet would be the ayam penyet (flattened chicken). We ordered 2 servings of that, a bawal bakar (black pomphret), udang penyet (flattened prawn), pete udang belado (prawn with petai), and a sayur asem (vegetable soup). Of course, we were not able to deny the temptation of the curious soda gembira (happy soda).

Just like Carl’s Jr., you get a number after you order, and the food is served to the table fresh and steaming.

how do you like the soda gembira?

The chicken were absolutely stunning. Crispy on the outside and still juicy on the inside. The sambal was very flavorful, with the taste of fresh chili and a slight tangy sensation, it compliments all sorts of meat nicely. The prawn and pomphret were equally good as well. The soup though, it something I wouldn’t order again, it was a bit weird to me with the slightly sourly taste that is everything wrong between tomyam and chicken soup. I guess it might be an acquired taste… but perhaps not for me.

These dishes were served with rice, so you do get a proper traditional meal in a modern setting.

flavorful, spicy, and absolutely delicious

If I remember correctly, each dishes were priced just under RM 10. The excellent sambal (3 types actually) can be refilled at will, and I will definitely go there again. Give it a try if you are one of those who love spicy flavorful food!

Waroeng Penyet is situated on the first floor near the bridge connecting Ikano Power Center to the Curve.

Address:
First Floor, Lot 1.32
The Curve
Mutiara Damansara
Petaling Jaya
GPS: 3.157699, 101.611540
Tel: 017-200 3988

Tags:  ayam penyet,  chicken,  cinneleisure,  fried,  ikano,  ikea,  sambal,  spicy,  the-curve

Posted by KY | 28 Comments »

So since today is a Friday (meaning 2 hour lunch) and I was thinking of something spicy, together with Nicholas decided to pick up the nuffie Skyler for some Pan Mee in the city. Ordinarily, we would have gone to the famous Kin Kin Pan Mee, but I decided to give Restaurant Super Kitchen just across the road a chance to prove their worth since Kin Kin is always too packed, and I was never too good at tolerating horrible service anyway. Give the underdogs a chance, shouldn’t we?

a much more hygienic setting, with air conditioning too

We ordered the dried Pan Mee, and instead of having to wait for over half an hour in hot and sweaty condition, the food came within a few minutes. Minced pork, anchovies, poached egg, pretty much the same thing you get from their more famous counterpart. One of the most annoying thing about Kin Kin besides the owner’s attitude, is the fact that the soup always lag behind the noodle by at least 3-5 minutes. Over here, everything is served at the same time, perfect.

the chili is just as good and the pan mee very well made

Of course, the most important part is the taste of the food. After all, many of us might place good food above everything else. I find that the Pan Mee at Super Kitchen, if you can shrug off the psychological effect of this place offering “imitation food”, it is actually pretty good! I believe that a person who has never heard of Kin Kin would probably prefer this place especially if you take everything else (price, service, and ambiance) into consideration.

Nicholas is feeling the heat, over sized forehead sweating like mad

Another thing to note about this place is the choices of drinks you get to choose. While the opposite restaurant only serves a few choices of canned drinks and over sweetened herbal tea, you get much wider choices, just like an ordinary coffee shop. After discovering this place, I think I’m not going to have to put up with the famous Kin Kin again, the food is pretty much just as good, and the service with a smile won me over.

Restaurant Super Kitchen is just right opposite Kin Kin Pan Mee

Address:
Jalan Dewan Sultan Sulaiman 1,
off Jalan Tunku Abdul Rahman, Kuala Lumpur
GPS: 3.161031, 101.698272

Tags:  hawker,  kin-kin,  KL,  kuala-lumpur,  pan-mee,  spicy

Posted by KY | 16 Comments »

One of the must-eat item (especially for females, I don’t know why) in Penang is the Asam Laksa. The most famously stall would be this one at Air Itam, walking distance from the Kek Lok Si temple, by the alley across the morning market.

a walkway packed with hungry people

The place is not particularly hygienic or comfortable, just some tables and the stalls by the busy road, partially exposed to the element. But hey, we’re here for the food anyway.

The Penang Laksa, popularly referred to as Asam Laksa in other parts of the country, comes in a sourish fish (ikan kembung) based soup with thick rice noodle, plenty of shredded pineapple, lettuce, red chili, cucumber, onion, galangal (curry flower), and lemon grass. All these are topped with some mint leaves and the thick shrimp paste with a very distinctive love-it or hate-it smell.

yumm… *slurps*

Our order was served up in just a few minutes’ time. Simmering hot and oozing with the glorious laksa smell, we attacked the bowl like a vengeance. There were nothing left 5 minutes later. The combination of sour and spicy soup with the fresh produce and the thick rice noodle was perfect. I never waste the soup either, thick with shredded fish, it has a very unique texture and taste that I find very nice.

the map of air itam laksa!

The smallish bowl of laksa is yours for RM 2.40. I would never recommend this as a main meal due to the sour and spicy nature of the dish, but it does make a nice afternoon snack. This Air Itam stall serves in the afternoon to evening.

Address:
Jalan Pasar,
Ayer Itam, Penang
GPS: 5.401386, 100.277377

Tags:  air-itam,  asam,  chili,  fish,  hawker,  laksa,  Penang,  shrimp-paste,  spicy

Posted by KY | 16 Comments »

Sort of like the laksa of Penang, anyone who goes to Melaka should not miss the uniquely Melaka delicacy, the satay celup (celup: dip). It is basically a type of steamboat on with the raw food on the stick to be cooked in a boiling spicy peanut sauce that is similar to those that comes with normal satay. Other than the different medium for cooking the raw food on stick, it is identical to the more recognizable lok lok.

this stuff are absolutely mouth watering

For supper during our Melaka trip, we headed to Ban Lee Siang to fill our stomach with this uniquely Melaccan food. Now some of you may suggest that Capitol Satay Celup is the “better” place to go. In a way, while Capitol is one of the “original” and oldest place serving satay celup, there are simply way over-crowded (with people standing right next to your table waiting for you to get done) for anyone to enjoy a peaceful meal there without rushing. My baba friends from Melaka hence suggested this place, which is just as good.

only 50 sen per stick, pay what you eat

The place was quite packed as well, we managed to get 2 tables right next to each other to fit all 10 of us. We then head straight to the line to get our stuff. At this place, everything is priced at RM 0.50 per stick, no matter if it is prawn, vegetable, fish ball, quail’s egg, cockles, anything. You only pay for what you eat. You can also order some bread too.

some happy diners (notice Kim, on the left, stained her shirt)

Serving is simple, you just put the stick of raw food in the boiling satay sauce/soup, let it cook, and then put it to your mouth. The stuff packs a punch though, in terms of hotness, I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone who can’t have spicy food. But if you like spicy food and enjoys lok lok, this is an awesome combination.

the map of Ban Lee Siang satay celup at Jalan Ong Kim Wee

After crowning herself with 38 sticks of satay in the afternoon, Kim got the better of us again and devoured almost 30 sticks of satay celup. I only had 2/3 of what she managed, respect.

If you head down to Melaka, do not miss this dish.

Address:
45E, Jalan Ong Kim Wee,
Melaka
GPS: 2.202742, 102.243994
Tel: 606-284 1935

Tags:  ban-lee-siang,  hot-pot,  Melaka,  satay-celup,  spicy

Posted by KY | 22 Comments »