World Food Thursdays

Country No. 17: Malasia

 

Date: 05/11/2015

 

Venue: Satay House, Paddington

 

Attendees: Maor, Poppy, Ben, Kim, Becky, Ellen

 

Cost: £22 a head

 

Attending a WFT event is rarely a straightforward affair. Once the rigmarole of finding a date that suits all parties has been negotiated participants are then requested to drag themselves to some godforsaken part of London, or if we get lucky Islington, in order to sample a delicacy or two from another new cuisine. Rarely however does dining at the Dorchester present itself as an excuse for non-attendance. Unfortunately for one nameless member of the group this is exactly what happened. Some say it was overindulgence at lunch, others have implied it must have been food poisoning. Either way the already reduced pool of attendees was further reduced when one of our number was struck down with a rather explosive case of upset tummy. Pulling together to overcome this desperate loss to the group remaining attendees, who had not had the misfortune of sampling delicious but dangerous multi-Michelin starred dining, resolved themselves to do their best to ensure that the elected venue was not out of pocket due to a reduction in punters.

 

Commencing with the now customary pre-starters – a mix of chicken, lamb and vegetarian satay – the gang commenced the latest episode of culinary wonderment. As has been made clear over several entries in this journal of gastronomic exploration ordering can be a laborious process. Under strict guidelines from Poppy, we were advised not to overorder (yes, this has become a verb in WFT lexicon). This tacit advice was swiftly ignored as each individual member had a quiet word with the beguiling waitress and added an extra item or two. The resultant volume of food could barely fit on the table. Notional starters included veggie spring rolls, squid puffs and lamb and potato pancakes. The lamb and potato cakes were particularly good.

 

Mains arrived at approximately the same time. Apart from the ubiquitous Beef Rendang and Nasi Goreng we also received stir fried morning glory with chili, a vegetarian noodle dish, chicken curry, sweet and sticky aubergine, two different types of Roti and a side portion of Sambal Belacan (a spicy paste made from dried fish and chili). A serious amount of food for a serious bunch of eaters. The aubergine was by far and away the stand-out dish, thinly sliced lengthways and cooked in a sweet, coconutty sauce it was delicious beyond words. Even the Rendang, which was the subject of much excitement before we sat down, didn’t get close to the umami flavours emanating from the aubergine dish. It should be mentioned that the rice and noodle dishes were by far and away the biggest disappointment, as unfamiliar with Malaysian cuisine as I am, I couldn’t say whether this makes Satay House less or more authentic. It didn’t seem to have put off the steady stream of Malay customers.

 

Once the plates had been cleaned, and then cleared, there was a small debate over whether some dishes should be re-ordered. Trying to be sensible we instead elected to skip a notional 4th course and go straight to dessert. Choosing three from the wide selection we aimed to ensure we wouldn’t be disappointed. The first dish to appear was a small bowl of deep fried bananas, accompanied by ice cream and maple syrup. So far so conventional. This was followed with a dish firmly in the middle ground, black rice pudding, appropriate given the amount of time we spent discussing how much Becky’s son loves Rachel’s Organic Rice Puddings. It was sweet and the rice retained some bite. The last dish was a bit odd. It could best be described as a sundae, Malaysian style. A red bean ice-cream topped off with crushed ice soaked in sugary syrups. Strangely addictive.

 

All in all a brilliant meal and one of the best so far. Simply delicious.

 

Facts:

• During the second world war the Japanese conquered Malaysia with bicycle infantry, to rub salt into the wounds a lot of the bikes were commandeered from the Malay themselves

• Prior to the war Malaysia did not exist as a country, but a collection of semi-autonomous islands

• In the latter part of the last century the King of Malaysia sent his son to study at Epsom College in Surrey. This led a lot of prosperous Malay families to do the same, including the parents of Tony Fernandes who has now set up an Epsom College in Malaysia.