Penang Assam Laksa pictures (1 of 10)
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Before I start writing this post, I have a confession to make. I have an Asian (Chinese/Malaysian) mouth. In my gastronomic dictionary, it simply means that I can’t live without rice and noodles, soy sauce, sambal belacan, spicy and pungent food–the foods of my Chinese-Malaysian root.
Just this past week, I had a massive Asian mouth attack. Granted, I savored some of the best French foods–foie gras, cheese, mussels, seafood, duck, terrine, and the list goes on. However, three days into eating meals after meals of immaculate French food, I got bored of it…it’s too heavy and luxurious for my cheap taste. No offense to French cuisine connoisseur, I wanted something without cream or butter or sauces or excessive details; I wanted something simple and straightforward such as my Asian rice and noodle dishes–Hokkien mee, fried rice noodles, steamed rice rolls, char kway teow, chicken rice, and especially Penang Assam Laksa…
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After my brief but intense love affair with Japanese food, I am ready to get back to my culinary root. I miss my savory, fiery, rich, sweet, sour, salty, and pungent Malaysian food. As much as I love other cuisines and am constantly infatuated with various exotic dishes from other countries, I am not about to ditch the color and taste of Malaysian food anytime soon. Fret not, I am back and will be serving up even more Malaysian delights.
I made this dish but I am not sure what to call it. My mother and aunt call this “masak berana” which is supposedly a type of Nyonya cooking style with tamarind juice and onions as the two main ingredients. However, “berana” doesn’t make much sense to me literally but I have no way to prove it. The other challenge to verify the real name is that–other than my parents’ and my aunt’s home–I haven’t seen this egg dish elsewhere, except at Cafe Sambal (a very popular Malaysian restaurant) in Beijing. If you do make this at home and know its name, please drop me a comment and let me know. (The real name of this cooking style is called “Masak Branda/Belanda.” Pixen – Thanks for leaving me a comment; mystery solved and I am forever thankful…) Click for more
