Making Jingha Masala in the Holiday Inn in Penang

The Malaysian island of Penang is on several lists of great places

people should visit during their lifetime; and, it is second on CNN’s list of “The 17 Best Places to Visit in 2017.”  It is easy to see why. The island has a myriad of different things to do from exploring the UNESCO Heritage City of Georgetown to a walking tour through the new Entopia Butterfly Farm to parasailing over the Straits of Malacca.  

I find the island’s heterogeneous population which is highly diverse in ethnicity, culture, language and religion fascinating. In 1786 Captain Francis Light landed on the shore of Penang making it Britain’s first settlement in SE Asia.  English is a compulsory subject in Malaysian schools. Today the island is about 40% Malay, 40% Chinese and 10% Indian with a variety of other groups

making up the rest.  We were at the Holiday Inn Resort for Chinese New Year which the hotel celebrated with firecrackers, Lion Dance, and the traditional Prosperity Toss. A Prosperity Toss is a plate of colorful veggies, fish, and noodles that people, using their chopsticks, toss in the air while shouting “Loh Hey” which literally means to 'move upwards'. It is symbolic of the wish for fortunes to grow during the coming year.

Penang is a honeymoon destination for Saudi couples and a winter getaway for Europeans.  There are Europeans in itsy-bitsy bikinis and Arab women in swimsuits that covered them completely except for face, hands and feet; some are very colorful. There are women in abayas, some with face veils, mixed with guests clad in a variety of other outfits including saris and hijabs. Usually it is only the women who are so attired but there is an occasional male in a dishsdasha.

With such a diverse clientele the chefs need to prepare food to suit all their guests.  All the food is halal. The breakfast is impressive: eggs, pancakes, grilled tomatoes, cheese, soups, salads, fruits, bread pudding, curries, rice, and even a fava bean dish called foul which was very good. Every Wednesday the Holiday Inn Resort offers a free cooking demonstration in the garden. In the class Chef Laxman, the hotel’s Indian chef, showed us how to make an Indian dish – Jingha Masala.   An Englishman standing next to me said, “I don’t usually like seafood but this is delicious.” I agreed.

Jingha Masala

1 tbsp cooking oil

1 tsp chopped garlic

1 tbsp chopped onion

15 curry leaves

2 tsp ginger

1 tsp garlic paste

½ cup tomato puree or finely chopped fresh tomatoes

1 tsp salt

1 tbs red chili powder

2 tsp turmeric powder

25 pcs prawn or shrimp (cleaned and washed)

one-half green pepper diced

2 tbs cream (light)

1 tsp kastoori mathi powder (fenugreek)

Fresh coriander leaves chopped for garnish

Heat oil in wok or frying pan. Add garlic, onions, and curry leaves. Sauté for a few seconds. Add ginger and garlic paste. Sauté for one minute. Add tomato puree, salt, red chili powder and turmeric. Cook for five minutes stirring frequently. Add prawns and cook gently for 5 minutes. Add green pepper. Cook for one minute. Add cream and kastoori mathi. Stir and remove from heat. Garnish with fresh coriander leaves.  Serve with naan bread. 

The joy of dining at the Hyatt Regency in Kota Kinabalu

The Hyatt Regency in Kota Kinabalu, East Malaysia is centrally located with a mesmerizing view of the bay and islands. It is the perfect location for exploring Sabah and, after visiting Mari Mari Cultural Village, the Nature Center at the Shangri-la, and a beach-day on the islands, enjoy dining at the one of the Hyatt’s excellent restaurants. The options are endless.

Tanjung Ria Café offer all-day dining with an international menu for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Enjoy interactive food preparation as the chefs expertly prepare some of the dishes á la minute at the live cooking stations. On weekends the culinary team creates special themed dinners for the buffet offering a wide choice of gastronomic delights. A must-have at Tanjung Ria Café is Hyatt Regency Kinabalu’s signature dish, the Oxtail Assam Pedas. The recipe is a closely guarded secret.

Hyatt Regency Kinabalu hotel’s elegant and comfortable Chinese Kinabalu restaurant features classic Cantonese, Sichuan and Shanghai favorites, as well as innovative and delicious dim sum. During weekends and public holidays, The Chinese Restaurant at Hyatt Regency Kinabalu hotel opens early for a leisurely buffet brunch offering an abundant selection of dim sum delicacies. Try their Wok-fried XO Fortune Prawns. Nagisa, the Kota Kinabalu restaurant, is styled after a Japanese winter cottage, and delivers authentic Japanese cuisine on its extensive á la carte menu. Nagisa is the only Japanese restaurant in an international five-star hotel chain in the city, making this Kinabalu restaurant the ideal venue to entertain important guests and visitors. The dark wood panels and narrow passages open to a large restaurant with separate spacious dining areas, including a sushi counter, two teppanyaki tables, a tatami room and two additional private dining rooms. On the first Sunday of every month, indulge in an all-you-can-eat menu of delicious Japanese dishes. A bottomless glass of champagne is on offer during the Bubbly Sunday Brunch promotion.

Guests can also enjoy a coffee, tea, and snacks at the Mosaic, a sidewalk level dining area. Or, chose from a yummy selection of cakes, pastries, pies and other local delicacies at their Delicatessen to enjoy at tea time for after dinner. Evening means fun at Shenanigan’s, a traditional Irish pub with international live entertainment, specialty cocktails, and snacks.
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One of the specialties during the New Year at the Hyatt Chinese Restaurant is Yee Sang. Yee Sang is one of those fun recipes that always turns out right. It is popular during Chinese New Year with people in Malaysia and Singapore because the names mean “abundance” and “liveliness,” both of which are auspicious for the coming year.

Making Yee Sang
Collect the following ingredients but, truthfully, one can pick the items that they best like. If you don’t have one of the ingredients, double up on what you have or substitute.
7 oz fresh salmon, tuna or any white fish of your choice
3 oz shredded carrots
3 oz shredded cucumbers
3 oz pickled white ginger
3 oz pickled red ginger
6 oz sliced radish or daikon
3 oz sliced pickled leek
3 oz shredded pickled papaya
10oz pomelo or grapefruit sections
1 oz pickled shallots
2 oz ground peanuts
2oz sesame seeds
3 oz jellyfish
2 oz dried shredded lime
1 oz green seaweed
2 oz of yam crisps in red color
2 oz of yam crisps in green color
2 oz of yam crisps in yellow colour
3 oz of “Pok Chui” or flour crisps. *substitute with fried wanton skins
For the dressing:
Freshly-squeezed juice of 1 lime
5 oz plum sauce
1 teaspoon onion oil
Dash of five spice powder
Dash of pepper
Pinch of salt

Slice fishes and season with a little salt and lime juice. Arrange all the ingredients into sections on a large serving platter. Sprinkle toasted sesame seeds and chopped peanuts over the dish. Make the dressing by whisking all the ingredients together and keep in separate container until just before serving. Just before dining, pour dressing over the salad, and everyone at the table simultaneously uses their chopsticks to toss the salad while making wishes and toasting for the New Year. Enjoy and Happy New Year. Great fun and great eating. For more informationa check http://kinabalu.regency.hyatt.com.

Cooking at the Park Royal in Penang, Malaysia

Our lovely resort hotel, the Park Royal in the popular Batu Ferringhi Beach area, offers cooking demonstrations three times a week as part of their daily activities. It was perfect – lay around the pool most of the day and then head to the restaurant where Chef Teng and his staff put on culinary demonstrations. Asia cooking day featured Char Koay Teow, the signature dish of Penang. It is served at all meals.

Penang Char Koay Teow
150 gm of flat noodles
5 gm garlic peeled, chopped
35 ml cooking oil
30 gm prawns, shelled and cleaned
20 gm squid, cleaned with ink sac removed, cut into strips
10 gm chili paste
30 ml Koay Teow Sauce
20 gm bean sprouts, cleaned
10 gm chives, diced
1 egg

Heat cooking oil in the wok, sauté garlic until lightly browned. Add in prawns and squid. Saute for a few minutes, add in chili paste, bean sprouts, and flat noodles. Add Koay Teow Sauce and fry for 2-3 minutes. Lastly add egg and chives. Stir.

Koay Teow Sauce (make and save)
500 ml light soy sauce
4 tbsp sugar
4 tbsp fish gravy
3 tbsp oyster sauce
2 tbsp dark soy sauce

Whisk all ingredients together.

The Malay cooking demonstration showed how to make Roti Jala, a crepe-like bread made jala-style by being drizzled on the pan to make a net-like bread. Making it perfect is not as easy as it looks. Roti is usually served with curry.

Roti Jala (Net Bread)
1 kg all purpose flour - sieved
2 gm turmeric powder
5 gm salt
30 ml corn oil
3 chicken eggs
730 ml coconut milk
1.5 lt water
In a big bowl mix all ingredients except the oil, mix well until no lumps, sieve if necessary. Should look like pancake batter. Add in ½ tbs oil and set aside. Heat pan to medium heat. Grease. Using a mold or sieve let the batter flow through the holes. Hold close to pan making circular motion. Keep it moving but not too fast. Don’t let it brown too much. After the top is set, fold into a triangle shape. Serve with chicken curry. Chicken curry package mix can be purchased at the airport.

One day the Chinese cooking demonstration was on how to make sweet and sour fish.

Sweet and Sour Fish (or chicken or pork)
1 kg fish thinly sliced on the diagonal (chicken or pork)
Salt and pepper to taste
½ tsp sesame oil
½ cup flower
1 egg
1 tsp baking powder
½ cup cooking oil
50 gm red chili, seeded and diced
50 gram tomatoes, seed and diced
150 grams cucumber, seed and diced
(onions and green peppers can also be added as desired)
1 tbs corn starch

For sauce:
20 gm sugar, castor
30 gm white vinegar
100 gm tomato ketchup or sauce
100 gm chili sauce
80 gm plum sauce
Salt to taste
Mix all sauce ingredients and set aside. Season fish with salt, pepper, and sesame oil. Combine flour, baking powder, and egg, stir until batter is free of lumps. Dip fish in batter into batter. Deep coated fish in hot oil until golden brown. Put aside. Drain excess oil from pan. Saute all vegetables for 1 minute. Pour in sauce and bring to a boil add corn starch to thicken then toss in fish. Serve with rice.
For more information check http://www.parkroyalhotels.com/ and http://www.tourismpenang.net.my/.

Cooking at Damai Beach Resort near Sarawak, Malaysia

Sarawak is one of two Malaysian states on the island of Borneo. Most of Sarawak’s inhabitants belong to one of 27 ethnic groups. The state’s cultural diversity is also reflected in the 45 different languages and dialects. Less than an hour from the Kuching, the capital of Sarawak, is the Sarawak Cultural Center, a living history destination with houses of some of the ethnic groups. And, just a short distance away is Damai Beach Resort where they offer weekly cooking demonstrations that reflect the diversity of Sarawak’s people.

The raw fish salad is from the Melanau who lived mainly in the central coastal area where they build massive houses forty feet above the ground and unlike other Borneo people they prefer sago over rice. Fish in banana leaf comes from the Malay community. To visit a Malay house, many of which were quite elaborate, one must first make their presence known from the top of the stairs then wait to be welcomed. Kway Teow is a very popular dish throughout Malaysia having come from the Chinese who migrated to Sarawak in the early 1900s. They were mainly farmers and built their homes on the ground.

Umai Ikan (raw fish salad)
200g of fish, preferably red snapper fillet (cut into small pieces)

4 bird’s eye chilies – tiny green chili

1 turmeric leaf

1 stalk of lemon grass

2 shallots

½ inch ginger

15 ml of lime juice or Calamansi juice
Salt to taste
Chili flower and roasted sago pellets for garnish
1. Marinate the fish with lime juice for 10 minutes or more. Put aside.
2. Chop or grind three bird’s eye chilies and slice the remaining one. Don’t over grind the chilies.
3. Then slice the turmeric leaf, shallots, garlic, ginger and lemon grass.
4. Put the marinated fish into a bowl and toss in the rest of the ingredients. Stir well.
5. Garnish with chili flower and Roasted Sago pellets over the mixture.

Fish in Banana Leaf
1 kg of fish fillets cut into 3 cm cubes
3 large banana leaves, cut into 6 squares of 25 cm wide
2 cloves of garlic, crushed
1 small onion, chopped finely
1 tablespoon of fresh ginger, chopped finely
1 teaspoon of paprika
1 teaspoon of turmeric powder, ground
1/2 teaspoon of chili paste
1 pc of turmeric leaf, chopped finely
2 pcs of lemon grass, chopped finely
Chicken stock
Sugar and salt to taste
Calamansi (or lime) and chili flower for garnish

Sambal (Tamarind Dip )
Tamarind Juice
Shrimp paste ( Belacan )
Sugar
Chopped chili
1. Lay the cut banana leaves in a bowl and pour boiling water over them to soften so that they will not break when used. Leave the banana leaves in the hot water for about 30 seconds or until the leaves are pliable, then drain.
2. Place the cubed fish pieces in a bowl that is large enough to hold all of them. Add the onion, ginger, garlic, salt & sugar to taste, turmeric, chili paste, paprika, turmeric leaf, lemon grass and chicken stock. Combine the ingredients evenly to ensure that the fish pieces are well coated with the mixture.
3. Divide the fish and the mixture evenly in the center of the 6 banana leaves. Fold the sides of the banana leaf to form a parcel and use a toothpick to hold them in place.
4. Heat up a grill. Place the fish parcels on a grill. Grill for about 15 minutes or until the fish pieces are cooked. Open the parcels to check on the fish before serving. Best to serve steaming hot with steamed white rice.

Fried Kway Teow (Flat Noodles)
500 gm of Flat Noodles
Cooking oil
2 eggs (scramble)
Sliced Onions
Choy Sum
Bean Sprout
Chicken Meat
Pepper to taste
1 tablespoon of chili paste
4 tablespoons of chili sauce
Chicken stock
1 sliced chili, spring onion, fried onion, calamansi for garnish
1. Heat the wok and add the cooking oil.
2. Add in the onion and sauté until fragrant.
3. Then add the egg and chili paste, and stir the mixture.
4. Later, add in the flat noodles and mix them together, followed by the chicken meat.
5. Then add the sliced chili, Choy Sum and Bean Sprout. This is to be followed by the chili sauce.
6. Lastly, add the chicken stock and pepper to taste. Garnish with Spring Onion, Fried Onion, chili and Calamansi.