Episode 4

Ayam Lemak

1 whole Chicken chopped into pieces
3-5 Red Chillis
5 Candlenuts
55g Turmeric
2 stalks Lemongrass
400ml Santan

Directions:

  1. Prepare Rempah: Pound chillis, candlenuts, turmeric, shallots, belachan. Then add lemongrass and smash it into the rempah but do not mince it.
  2. Add a bit of oil in a pot and fry the Rempah.
  3. Then add in the chopped chicken pieces and stir-fry.
  4. Pour in the thick santan, stir, and let it simmer till cooked.

Achar

3.8kg Cucumbers
20 Green Chillis
1 Green Papaya
795g Cauliflower
2 Carrots
935g Cabbage
140g Salt
55g Turmeric
5 Candlenuts
30-40 Dried Chillis
310g Shallots
55g Belachan
455g Sugar
255g Dried Prawns
455g Roasted Peanuts
8 tablespoon Roasted Sesame Seeds
570ml Rice Vinegar
570ml Water

Directions:

    1. (To make Achar Rempah) Pound the ready-soaked dried chillis with candlenuts, then turmeric.
    2. Add in the sliced shallots and belachan, and continue pounding.
    3. (To make Achar) Cut cucumbers into quarters, then into thick slices, add salt and squeeze them dry and set aside to dry the day before.
    4. Boil water with vinegar, and blanche the cauliflower, cabbage and carrots.
    5. Drain the vegetables and leave them to cool, but keep the vinegar water aside for later.
    6. Fry the Rempah till fragrant but don't burn it.
    7. Add the pounded dried prawns, roasted peanuts and sesame seeds, continue frying.
    8. Add a portion of the fried Rempah into a bowl and mix with shredded green papaya and fried pounded dried prawns. To shred green papaya, peel off the skin and grate them finely. Be sure you do not grate the core of the papaya as it is bitter.
    9. Remove seeds from the green chillis, and fill them with the green papaya mixture.
    10. Pour the remaining portion of the Rempah into the vinegar water then mix. Add in all blanched vegetables, and stuffed green chillis.
    11. Mix well.

Sambal Belachan

225g Red Chillis
55g Toasted Belachan
3-4 Lime Leaves
2 teaspoon Sugar
2 teaspoon Lime Juice

Directions:

    1. Grill the belachan over a charcoal stove, but don't burn it.
    2. Put grilled belachan, red chillis and lime leaves in the pounder (Batu Lesong) and pound them.
    3. Add sugar and lime juice and mix well.

Kueh Lapis

680g Grated Coconut without skin
340g Rice Flour
225g Glutinous Rice Flour
¼ teaspoon Salt
455g Coarse Sugar
8 Pandan Leaves
2-3 drops blue colouring
2-3 drops red colouring
2-3 drops of green colouring

Directions:

  1. Mix rice flour with glutinous rice flour.
  2. Pour in thick santan and add sugar.
  3. Stir the mix well.
  4. Divide mixture into 4 portions.
  5. Leave 1 portion as it is, white, and add the green, red and blue colourings respectively into the remaining 3 portions.
  6. Prepare steamer.
  7. Pour in the white mixture, make sure it is evenly spread into a thin layer, and let it cook.
  8. When the first layer is cooked, pour in a different colour mixture as the next layer and cook again.
  9. Repeat the process for as many layers as you like. Some stop at nine layers with the red layer on top.