Chik's Crib: August 2024

26 August 2024

Trip to Bangkok, 2024

Travel August 26, 2024 0

It’s only been a few years since I’d last came to Bangkok, but well, I just couldn’t stay away. It’s been so much fun, and there had been so many things that I’d not been able to go the last time around.

Bangkok is still the city to come to for all tailor-made formal wear. Post-pandemic, Paul Fashion in Amari Waterfront remains thriving. Their efficiency knows no bounds. We came as a group of half-dozen (guys and gal), and we got our fabrics chosen, our styles penned and our measurements done in a couple of hours. Within 4 days, we were packing our new clothes - suits, shirts and pants into our suitcases, with all of them in the style that we want and fitting satisfactorily. I’ve had tailors that took 6 weeks to fill in an order, so colour me impressed. We had to return intermittently across the four days that we were in Bangkok for fittings, which I heartily endorse. There’s no substitute to being able to try on the clothes to make sure they’re exactly how you like them. While all tailors can take down our body measurements and ask how we like our clothes, the slim fit I have in mind may be different to the tailor’s understanding. Returning for fittings make our travel plans a little more complex for sure, but this would be much less troublesome than waiting for 6 weeks to find that the tailored clothing don’t fit right, and then negotiating for the tailors to redo your clothes from across an ocean. We were a little wiser this time around and stayed at Amari Waterfront itself. After their renovation, the hotel looks refreshed. We had a terrific stay.

Leather shoes were amongst the other things worth having a look at in Bangkok. Minimalist Shoes makes shoes for the ladies, and uses some of the softest lambskin shoes that I’d felt. For those ladies who ever had trouble finding petite shoe sizes, this place is a must-go. For guys, Mango Mojito in Siam Square sells handcrafted leather shoes. I picked up the last pair of shoes in my size in the design that I wanted, and it felt a little like winning the lottery.

Everything is within walking distance from Amari! We revisited plenty of old favourites on this trip. Platinum Mall is just across the road, and we bought loads of casual clothes and accessories here. There’s an After You cafe too. We also usually stop by at the food court on the top floor here for their Mango Sticky Rice.

And sometimes with mango's cousins: durians and jackfruits!

We start every morning by walking across the road to 28ml Cafe in Platinum Mall for a cup of coffee. Their coffee, lightly roasted with a distinctive floral aftertaste, had turned all of us into light roast converts from our first sip. I came back on my last morning for one last fix, bought a bag of beans, and used Google Translate to ask the barista on the coffee’s brewing ratio. I only wish that I had bought more.

We were never at a loss of finding things to do in Bangkok. We visited the famous Chatuchak Weekend Market (we love the soft shorts from Toogtons available from a few different shops), shopped for snacks from Big C, and went to the malls in Pathum Wan. I didn’t know Bangkok was also a Carebear hub, stocking limited edition merchandises that couldn’t be found elsewhere. The Carebear Cafe in CentralwOrld was crowded with tourists when we were there. We found some street food from the food court at Siam Paragon, including Kanom Krok, delectable bite-sized pandan pastries from Kanom Siam Take Home, which was served fresh off the cast-iron grill.

Between all the walking, we ate really well. It’s hard to find a bad meal in Bangkok. We went to a few places that we enjoyed tremendously. My best breakfast here was a bowl of beef boat noodles from Thong Smith. Are boat noodles too heavy for breakfast? Well, this place was so popular, mornings are the only time when we didn't have to queue to get a table. We first came to Thong Smith on a Monday afternoon at 230pm, and the queue snaking out the doorway was quite incredulous. After returning another day (albeit for breakfast), I could see the reason for its popularity. The beef slices were tender, the broth intensely fragrant. We ate them alongside their wonderfully crisped wantons.

Another good breakfast option is Rung Reung Noodle Shop located along Sukhumvit 26 Street. The Tom yum, catered to the local palate, was a bit too spicy for me. But I thoroughly enjoyed their pork soup, and its minced pork were so finely minced, it set a new bar for me. The minced pork soup (without noodles) was sweet and flavourful, and the soup somehow more fragrant than the clear soup that came with noodles, which was perhaps a bit more peppery and bitter in comparison. The next time we come around, I’ll get the minced pork soup and add a side of noodles separately. And also a side of the crispy fish skin.

We also went to Laem Charoen Seafood in CentralwOrld, which was pretty good. We particularly enjoyed their fried fish, which was crunchy around the edges but the meat was soft and tender, as if steamed. It came with little dishes containing an intensely flavoured, lime-green chilli sauce.

The most anticipated meal was the night that we went to Nawa. Our reservation was at 8, and it was nearly midnight by the time dinner ended. The cuisine was Modern Thai. The dishes’ presentation, taste, and texture were delicate where the chef demanded, playful when they can, and bold when they needed to be. Even the pandan-based street food, Kanom Krok, made an appearance here. Every dish was a contemporary spin on the traditional cuisine, each one looking like a work of art. What’s the difference between this restaurant and an interactive museum exhibition? The lines blur.

The most memorable part of the dinner was their salted egg here. The egg white and egg yolk were layered and rolled up like a Swiss roll. In the mouth, the texture resembled the best part of an onsen egg: runny and velvety soft.

Even the humble rice that they served as an accompaniment to the main dish was itself a highlight of my meal. Sourced from a small village in Chiang Mai, the fragrance of the rice, served out of a communal bowl, was out of this world.

Thai cuisine is a harmony of tastes - sweet, salty, sour, unami. A couple of times, some parts of the dishes can be numbling spicy, for example the spicy shrimp paste portion that made up our main dish, which was perhaps exactly what the locals would want, but we couldn't handle all that heat. The server, noticing one of our party’s discomfort, ensured that the remainder of her meal’s spiciness level was toned down. And as the server said as she served her a watermelon slice, the Thai way of combating spiciness was to take something sweet.

Another memorable meal was had at Methavalai, a restaurant that had been recommended back in 2018 but one which we only managed to come to this time around. They serve traditional Thai cuisine done to excellence.

My favourite dishes here were their Pomelo Salad and their Stir-Fried Fluffy Catfish with chilli. The catfish in particular, somehow tasted like the equivalent of pork floss.

We like the vibe: a glitzy retro atmosphere complete with a live band. There were several singers, singing songs in Thai, Mandarin, Cantonese and English. And the whole room came alive as a singer started crooning a jazzy version of Top of the World. Being here with one another on that night, that was exactly how we felt.

18 August 2024

Kuala Lumpur 2024

Travel August 18, 2024 0

Amuse bouche, DC Restaurant

We recently drove up to Kuala Lumpur for a fantastic few days of exploration. It’s not as popular a destination with tourists as other parts of Malaysia, and that’s a shame. After my trip here, I think KL’s a pretty underrated place.

Staying in Singapore makes it easy it is to do short getaway trips in neighbouring countries, and I’ve been trying to make the most of it. I really enjoy driving to Malaysia a couple of times a year, whether it’s relaxing on their beaches in Desaru, indulging in Peranakan food in Malacca, or even just going around Johor Bahru for some rest and relaxation. I’ve never tried driving up to KL before, but thankfully, traffic was pretty smooth throughout.

I’d been to KL’s tourist sites like the Central Market before and well, I wouldn’t wish that upon anyone else. This time around, we stuck to where the locals go: the popular restaurants, good cafes and bars, and the shopping malls. We gave the tourist traps a miss, which was probably why I enjoyed myself so much this time around.

On our way up to KL, we stopped in Johor Bahru for wantan noodles for breakfast. Another common rest stop is Yong Peng, which is just a little over an hour’s drive from JB. We stopped here on the way back at the end of our trip to explore the area. I didn’t know it at the time, but I actually came to Yong Peng once before a few years ago for breakfast at Sunroast, a local-favourite restaurant selling meats roasted over charcoal the size of my forearms, on my way to Malacca. This time around, we went to Yuan Yean Fishball Eating House, a restaurant specialising in Yong Tau Foo and Fish Ball Noodles. The fried fish balls were beautifully fried to order, and the minced fish fillings were noticeably firmer than the typical fish balls. In the rain, the hot bowls of yong tau foo were pure comfort.

As we were already in Yong Peng, we also stopped at 正宗永平鸭面 Authentic Yong Peng Duck Noodles, which served decent sliced braised ducks, and then onwards to Eng Hin Bakery, a local bakery. Eng Hin occupied two storefronts: the first, their kitchen with a strong inviting smell of flour and yeast. The second was their shop, where they carry their own products in additional to other local brands. We had their 福州光饼 (Traditional Fuzhou Biscuits), which were generously stuffed with a peanut-based filling. It had an interesting texture, more akin to soft Asian buns and not the flakey sort of pastries that I was expecting.

There were several fruit stalls within walking distance, and we bought some fruits. There’s the usual Mangosteens, which comes into season mid-year. Duku Langsat is another seasonal fruit for these few months: they’re small dusky-brown orbs that break open to reveal slivers of translucent flesh, each sweet and slightly chewy, like nature’s gummies. We also bought a whole Cempedek. But the star of the haul was a fruit called the Pulasan, a close relative of rambutans and lychees, and a fruit that I’d never encountered before. It’s apparently even rarer outside of Southeast Asia. It looks a little like a sea urchin, and contains a single seed surrounded by sweet dense flesh.

Reaching KL, we had no particular inkling on what to do aside from stopping by a few restaurants. Still, the days sorted themselves out. We were never at a lost looking for things to do.

Our apartment’s infinity pool at night, overlooking the city skyline with the Petronas Tower

We start our days with breakfast from local favourites like VCR and Feeka Coffee Roasters, for good coffee and excellent brunch. Are tarts excessive to eat after brunch? Perhaps, but we also saw that VCR also supplies several other brunch places with pastries, so we really wanted to try some while visiting.

Kenny Hills Bakery is another place that had been recommended to us, and we had a fabulous Tiramisu Cake, topped with caramelised nuts.

In the midday, we hung out at the malls: we had direct access to Mitsui Shopping Park LaLaport Bukit Bintang City Centre from our apartment, and The Exchange TRX Mall, the newest mall in KL, was a short drive away. We had a sumptuous meal at DayOne DayOne Noodles; the star was the noodles’ chewy consistency (bring on the extra noodles!).

One restaurant that had been highly recommended to us was DC Restaurant by Darren Chin. Dinner was a three-hour long affair, but what a dinner it was. We were pampered from start to finish. Each dish was a blend of classical French techniques with Asian flavours, and each course was a delight. We were stuffed from the four-course meal.

One of the best things that I'd eaten in KL was from their amuse-bouche (picture at the top of the page): Pâte à Choux with a gruyere filling, and another, a delicate crunchy pastry shell filled with crabmeat on top of a dollop of curry sauce. Every bite was incredible.

Another knock-out dish was something called the Echo of the Sea: pasta served with uni, crab, shrimp, two types of fish roe (tobiko and ikura), and accompanied in truffle sauce with a small mound of wasabi. You're encouraged to stir the dish together before eating, wasabi and all. The many components in this dish may read like a directionless mess, but the execution was on-point, a testament to the chef’s mastery of the balance of flavours.

Saying that our dinner was four-course is a little misleading. Each course is a little like the secondary school MCQ math practice question: each question is divided into a,b,c and so forth. For desserts, we have had 3 different desserts on 3 plates. My favourite was the mangosteen sorbet - unique, flavourful and not at all icy.

Another fantastic find in KL was Sushi Yoshi Omakase. Sitting on the counter watching the chefs prep each course was an event unto itself. Their swift, deliberate movements making cuts into the fish fillets and rolling each slice delicately to make sushi.

Torching anago. An eel similar to unagi, but with an incredibly soft, melt-in-your-mouth texture.

I ate the single best hand roll of my life here, made with engawa and uni.

At night, we visited nearby bars. One of our favourite finds is PS150, a speakeasy hidden behind the front of an antique toy shop. It was crowded, loud and dark. But somehow, we loved it immensely. The drinks were well-crafted, and the waitstaff and bartenders look like they were having a great time. As did we, throughout the entire trip.

Cocktails from Hookie Dookie

All too soon, it was time to leave. Our original plan includes checking out a whole host of other bars, as well as Village Park Nasi Lemak (which just about everybody said we had to visit) and Mu Artisan, a niche soy sauce maker that produces my favouritest light soy sauce, but three days turned out to be too short to do everything that we wanted to. I can’t wait to return.

08 August 2024

红烧肉: Shanghai-Style Braised Pork Belly Recipe

August 08, 2024 0

I started blogging a little over 10 years ago while studying abroad. I was cooking for myself, and writing about recipes that I had enjoyed, though those labour-intensive dishes that I was writing about were not my daily fare. My usual dinners are often simple affairs: often oven-baked meats marinated with Lee Kum Kee sauces or with dry rubs for a quick meal that can be put together within half an hour. And my packed lunches for school were even more fuss-free. One of my schoolmates, after she got to know me better and herself an avid baker, one day exclaimed in astonishment that all I seem to be having for lunch every day was a tuna sandwich. Quick oven roasted meats and sandwiches are not glamourous or particularly exciting, but when there are exams to study for, work to complete, a house to clean and laundry to be done, it was simply what most of us students did back then.

This wasn’t to say that we ate poorly, or that we didn’t know our way around a kitchen. To the contrary, I had gotten quite comfortable cooking for myself and for other people. And when there are pretty girls to impress, I did quite well. (That’s a story for another time, but I’ll say that as general dating advice, spending a lot of time to make one complicated dish is far less impressive than being able to whip up an impromptu meal, complete with sides, using ingredients at home and without having to search for help online.)

Of course, I love to try out new recipes, and there’s no better time than to do it with friends. Once a week, we would gather to cook together, which was an event to eat communally and share what we had made (so we can bask in the glory of a delicious dish, or lessen the blow of any unsuccessful attempts).

At that point in time, it’s hard to find a good Chinese recipe on the English-speaking part of the internet. Nowadays at least, I’m so grateful to see blogs like The Woks of Life, publishing well made recipes for everybody to learn from and to do. Is this a simple, easy to cook recipe? Looking through the lens of my old college self, it’s a magnitude of effort higher than what I would do as daily cooking for one. (Or even for a date night, because the hour that you had spent over the stove would be better spent focusing on your date...) This recipe falls around the threshold for a weekly potluck, for occasions when there are people around to share this fantastic dish.

Shanghai-Style Braised Pork Belly (红烧肉)

For 5-6 pax
Adapted from The Woks of Life

INGREDIENTS
800g lean, skin-on pork belly, cut into 3/4-inch
4 tablespoons oil
2 tablespoons rock sugar (alternatively, 30g granulated sugar)
6 tablespoons Shaoxing wine
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon dark soy sauce
4 cups water, plus more for blanching the pork

STEPS
1. In a large wok filled with boiling water and set over medium heat, add the pork belly slices. Simmer the pork for a couple minutes and allow the scum to form. Remove the pork from the wok and pour away the water and any accumulated scum.

2. Return the wok to the stove set on low heat. Add oil and sugar to your wok, until the sugar melts. Add the pork slices back in, and increase the heat to medium. Cook until the pork is lightly browned on all sides.

3. Reduce the heat back to low. Add regular soy sauce to the side of the wok, allowing it to boil off slightly before incorporating it with the meat. Then add dark soy sauce, and then the shaoxing cooking wine, before deglazing with wok with water.

4. Cover the wok with a lid and simmer over low-medium heat for about an hour, until a fork pierces the meat with little resistance. Stir occasionally every 10 minutes or so to prevent burning, and a little more frequent towards the end of the cooking.

5. To make the glaze: Uncover the wok, increase the heat to medium-high and stir continuously until the braising liquid has reduced to a glaze that coats the pork. Remove from heat and serve immediately.