Showing posts with label Sucker For Supper. Show all posts

SUCKER FOR SUPPER: TAIWAN FRIED CHICKEN

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I
 don’t know about you, but even as a born Kuching-ite, there are mainstream areas that even I have to admit that constantly elude me; Green Road being one of them. From its old streets to how easy it is to get lost in the maze that they call a housing area, it is a place I try not to drive to – only to avoid getting lost as I so often do, even on a normal basis anyway.



Usually I’d have no reason to attempt not getting lost there, but for a while now I have been hearing tales of fried chicken that is worth getting lost for. I was sceptical no doubt, but when your heart craves comfort food in the form of fried chicken in the middle of the night, you answer. And you answer without question. In this particular instance, the Siren singing the song of fried chicken in our story is called “Taiwan Fried Chicken”.

Who knows how long this establishment has set up its roots here. One can only guess after a gentleman has had his question rejected by the owner. I cannot deny that I was disappointed that she did not wish to share, but I suppose that it was partly due to my broken Hokkien. Lord knows if I even asked the right question.

The selection here is vast, but we’ll be looking specifically at the fried goods. 

This spread including drinks and two 200g extra of sweet potato fries came up to approx RM30
What makes Taiwanese Fried Chicken, so distinctly Taiwanese? Not being adept at these flavours is understandable, as Kuching-ites rarely have the chance to experience such things apart from having it Shihlin. Firstly, the most obvious thing that one will recognise immediately which is a staple in Taiwanese fried foods, is the inclusion of Five Spice powder. The distinct features of what this seasoning does, is create a light sweetness from the inclusion of cinnamon and round body of flavour from the presence of peppercorns and black pepper.


Secondly is the distinct light crispiness in the coating of Taiwanese fried foods. Traditionally, this is achieved by the presence of sweet potato starch in the dredge and there is a wonderful article that you can find HERE on the experiments a fellow blogger had on the wonders of using it for fried chicken. 





Among all of the items tried, unfortunately the fish was the most lacklustre as dori was the fish of choice here. It is understandably cheaper but other than the light crisp skin, the fish lacked any real flavour and texture.



The chicken feet are fried very lightly, so the skin has the lightest crispness among the others sampled, while it is as fatty and springy as it looks. The complaints one will have that the feet lack any meat is moot, as now you know what you are getting into. 




Traditionally, the cut of choice for stall vendors in Taiwan is the chicken breast. In this instance, the chicken breast is cut up into tiny popcorn shaped bits that are tasty, firm and soft. Some of the cuts are understandably cooked more than the others as they are fried irregularly.




The highlight of eating these cuts of chicken this way, is being able to have a higher surface area of crunch that is wrapped around the juicy bite sized cut of breast.


The surprise finger food of tonight had to be the sweet potato fries. In Taiwan Fried Chicken, the sweet potatoes manage to still be soft in the inside. A feat that many places fail to do as dry and hard to swallow textures are commonplace. 


The savoury seasoning and crispness of the batter complement how soft and creamy the sweet potato is on the inside. 


The handsome photographer, Julian Sim once again makes an appearance


The chicken wings and drums are where Taiwan Fried Chicken shines, as the use of tenderer meats rather than breast meat has paid off. 

The right way to eat a chicken wing. De-boning it before eating #JustChefJohnThings


As you can see, the sweet and savoury five spice sprinkled over the light crisp batter that coats the tender juicy meat is a tasty wonder to behold.

A subtle feature like how the batter sticks to the meat is an example of how attention to detail for the little things are what makes experiences like these all the better.





Overall, this is worth making the trip for especially if you consider the affordable prices coupled with how well Taiwan Fried Chicken reminds you of how comfort food can be oh so comforting.

Taiwan Fried Chicken is open daily except on Sundays from 4:30pm to 1:00am. And yes. This is Halal <3

SUCKER FOR SUPPER: MINGGU CAFE, PARATHA TOASTED SANDWICHES

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A
s someone wise once sang, or at least I imagined he sang – I got that suppertime, suppertime sadness. I find myself feeling that way, albeit not exactly with that tune in my head, but more so than not when I find myself wanting company of friendly faces and guilty pleasures I want in my mouth. The latter being food.


I wrote not too long ago on the allure of cheap and tasty food at odd hours in a piece right HERE and Minggu Café run by Mr. Minggu is no exception.

Charming is the way I’d put this stall, as it neither is a café nor does it run throughout the “minggu” (Minggu is week or 7 days in the Malaysian language). What it is good for, is an interesting take on frozen paratha and sinful filling. Oh yes, frozen.  

Throw your perception of “authentic” Indian food out of the window, as this simple guilty pleasure is something of an Indian meets Grilled Cheese kind of meal. “Tasty food is tasty” is a phrase I’d use to shield myself as I imagine you foodies out there rolling your eyes at how I can willingly put such inauthenticity in my mouth. That is the thing about Minggu Café though, as authenticity is not something it promotes. What you see is what you get.


The most common and sought after items in his menu are what we will be talking about today. What Minggu does mostly with what you order is toast two parathas and once adding the filling (usually with cheese); he sandwiches and covers them under a lid to allow the filling to heat up. This process is very much likened to that Grilled Cheese experience I talked about.


With whatever filling you choose to have, the paratha skin will be as you imagined. It’s thin and lightly crisp, while being soft on the inside and as you get into the filling, what you will find is gooey cheese. For those wondering, yes it is sliced cheese and not cheddar so you will be missing the sharp saltiness that cheddar brings.



One of the things I did try was the Kaya and Cheese Paratha. If you are wondering if it tastes strange, then yes. I have to admit it does taste strange as the gooey slightly salty cheese and sweet kaya does not blend as well as Minggu recommended. What is recommended when available is Kaya and Bananas as the classic pairing always makes for a good combination.


Finally, the Mushroom and Cheese Paratha is a good pairing with the rich and smokey flavours of julienned mushrooms complimenting the slightly savoury cheese. Once hot, what you have is gooey cheese and mushrooms sandwiched together by thin crispy and yet chewy parathas that makes a rather interesting take on a Grilled Cheese Sandwich.


Places to go in Kuching during the supper hour can be scarce, but if you’re into weird food and cheese paratha sandwiches that can be sliced into pizza shaped bites to be shared with friends, then you may just be in for a treat.

Minggu Café is opened daily except on Mondays from 6am to 3pm and 5:30pm to 11pm. It is found in Lorong 10A of Sungai Matang Kanan  in the map or opposite E-Mart Batu Kawa.

SUCKER FOR SUPPER: THIRD MILE, BBQ FISH BARBECUE SEAFOOD

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P
eng Hu is known to Kuching-ites as a method in which a kind of fish is grilled and has sambal belacan lathered over it. Peng Hu is also known to most Kuching-ites as a kind of anomaly in their food culture. You see it in almost every major food street but no one really knows where or how it started. It just popped out of nowhere like a 7-11 down the street, and everyone just accepted what it was and went along with it.

The most common “Hu” used, the Stingray is debatably what the first variation of this dish consisted of. The stingray was the fish most commonly used as it was considered cheap, most likely due to the lack of any natural flavour in its flesh. Due to its mild flavour, enhancing said flavour was necessary and Sambal being a common condiment, it was only natural that it was used on the Stingray.


Nowadays, the Stingray isn’t the only fish associated with the Peng Hu moniker, as the variety of “panggang-ed” fish has increased in number depending on availability and personal preference.

Peng Hu is usually a tricky dish to order as its price in comparison to most dishes will require you to share the cost with a few friends, which is why it is perfect for late night suppers as one fish is usually never enough for a meal among friends, but perfect if you need a snack to go along with a couple of beers.


The problem with simple dishes like Peng Hu is that there are only so many things to mess up. The fish and the sambal. If you mess up either one of the two, you are left wishing for more; and if you mess both up, well you’d wish you never came out in the first place. Imagine an overcooked chewy fish with dry tasteless sambal. It’s every Supperhunters nightmare. Or mine at least.



Aunty Lillian and her husband of, BBQ Fish and Barbeque Seafood despite them not really serving anything BBQ, are in the business of getting both components right. They have been doing so for little over a decade. 12 years this year in fact.

As most places are, the price of the choice of fish is determined by its weight. The fish of choice today is the Belokok fish, as it is known to be meaty and of few bones. Let’s freshen things up, as we’ll try to throw the owners off by ordering something they’re not amazing at. Key word here is TRY. SPOILER ALERT: We failed. Fish was delish.

RM28.00

The fish came and do not let the unusual look of the sambal deceive you as its colour is due to the intense nature of the sambal. Its sambal has a hint of sweetness and tang but still intense with the flavours pungent sambal.  


The fish, simply put has a mild clean flavour and is firm and moist. Perfect for the condiment of the sambal.


To top it off, the zest of lime is the perfect combination to lift the dish as the tangy sambal compliments the firm and neutral protein of fish.



Peng Hu is a simple dish that is easy to learn but hard to master. That is a fact that most of us are used to, but with the right hands taking care of your meal, the simple things become simply delicious.


Third Mile BBQ Fish, Barbecue Seafood is open daily except Tuesdays from 6pm to 10pm. 

Please follow the map below for directions.

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