Rice Cube Delight

Strange as it may seem, it's not all that easy to find great Malay food in Kuala Lumpur. Fine Indian food - vegetarian, especially - abounds, and almost every coffee shop is home to at least one extra- talented Chinese hawker, but sniffing out memorable Malay dishes is a little tougher.

Malay is one of those cuisines that seems most at home at a home. It's not surprising then that when one does come across delicious Malay delicacies they are more likely than not the product of a family business, prepared in a home kitchen whether or not they're sold in a restaurant or from a stall.

 

Personal recommendations lead to the best Malay food, and over the holidays we were lucky enough to receive one from a local blogger. His raves for the goodies dished up at a semi-permanent stall on the MRR2, and a warning to get there early if we wanted to avoid disappointment, got us into the car bright and early one morning just before New Year.

 

The specialty here is lontong, which consists of nasi impit (cubes of pressed rice) doused in kuah lodeh (coconut gravy), sprinkled with serunding (grated coconut dry-fried with spices) and dabbed with sambal (chile sauce). One could stop there, of course, but our source had praised the stall's sambal sotong (brown squid cooked in sambal, opening photo) and beef rendang (above). Who were we to doubt him?

First things first: the kuah lodeh here, plenty creamy but not too rich and packed as it is with vegetables (cabbage, long beans, carrot) and strips of tempeh, is in and of itself delicious; sambal is just slightly sweet, featuring soft caramelized shallots and a wicked, creeping burn.

We surely can't fault the beef, subtly spiced and cooked to fall-apart softness (it's worth noting  that the serving of meat here is quite generous), but it's the squid we keep thinking back to. Brown squid is a large, thick-bodied variety, making for rather meaty pieces. The ones swimming in this sambal are exceptionally tender, with nary a trace of rubberiness, making for a dish that begs to be taken home and enjoyed again, on its own, without the (albeit delightful) distraction of coconut gravy and serunding.

That right there's a meal, but we wanted to linger in the full-bellied afterglow that was hanging over our table by the time we'd finished. So we surveyed the roti menu and settled on a sardine version. The man behind the griddle delivered a freshly made flaked fish and sauteed onion-stuffed pancake that qualifies as 'light as a feather'. Puffy and light rather than leaden, spare on grease, beautifully browned and crusty in some spots, it went down a treat with accompanying red chile and onion-embellished thin yellow curry itself studded with a couple of nubbins of lamb.

We'd stop by here again just for a takeaway bag of the kuih dadar, rice flour 'pancakes' rolled around a filling of grated coconut and sugar. This version is exceptionally fresh, the pancakes soft and the filling - featuring white, rather than brown palm sugar - heavy on the coconut and very, very moist. After finishing our breakfast with these two we went back for more, emptying the stall's tray.

Lontong, roti, and kuih, MRR2, Kuala Lumpur. On the MRR2 heading away from the city, pass the exit for the National Zoo and keep to your left. Before the next overpass you'll find a line of cars parked at the curb - the semi-permanent stall is there, right next to an Indonesian wood furniture store. 630 or 7am until 12 noon (but be advised - most everything is mostly gone by 11am). Closed Mondays. Lontong 2-4 ringgit, roti .70-2 ringgit.

Comments

[Ivy]

Oh my goodness. I just had lunch 5 minutes ago and am hungry again looking at the irresistable lontong. See also i know it's good!

[Su-Lin]

Is ayam always more expensive than daging in KL? It's so different from the UK where chicken is the cheaper stuff!

[Robyn]

Ivy - yeah, kinda made myself hungry doing that post.... ;-)

Su-Lin - depends, but I think beef is usually more expensive. Truth be told I don't pay a lot of attention to prices as places like this bec. they are so low. I should probably make it a habit to do so, though. Some readers want to know.

[SimCooks]

I wish I know how to make Lontong. Until I do, I'll just reference your delightfully delectable plate of lontong topped with beef rendang!

[farina]

gosh! tht lontong w kuah kacang and sambal sotong is making me miss home. :( hhmm how come i dont see 1/4 or 1/2 hard-boiled egg in the lontong? thank u for sharing the pixs. btw, this is my 1st time commenting on ur blog. :)