Nyonya Laksa

For many who are new to Malaysian cuisine, you may not be aware of the many different types of laksa in Malaysia. So many that it can be quite confusing. Even to the Malaysians.

The popular laksa that is commonly available in Australia is usually called curry laksa. There are many other varieties that can be found in various states of Malaysia but are less known overseas. The more popular ones are Penang laksa (also known as Assam laksa), Johor laksa and Sarawak laksa.

I chanced upon this Nyonya style laksa recipe written by Sydney 2-hatted restaurant Claude's owner and chef Chui Lee luk. She was born in Singapore and spent part of her childhood in Sabah, Malaysia. She moved with her family to Sydney when just seven years old. She is better known for her French cuisine despite her Asian heritage. I was quite surprised to come across her traditional Nyonya recipe in 'The Last Supper' - a compilation of recipes and interviews with many famous chefs (include Ferran Adria, Mario Batali, Anthony Bourdain, Alain Ducesse, Fergus Henderson, Neil Perry, Tetsuya Wakuda, Guillaume Brahimi, Thomas Keller among others) about their last meal.

The title she gives this dish is prawn and noodle soup (Nyonya) and when I read through the ingredients, it sounded like a Nyonya laksa dish that I have tasted in Peranakan restaurants in Malacca. It's also quite similar to Siamese laksa which is popular in the Northern region of Malaysia.

It's sort of a cross between curry laksa and assam laksa. It's spicy, sour, salty and creamy. The ingredients used in this laksa soup / gravy are a mix of Malay and Chinese which is unique to Nyonya / Peranakan cuisine. Most of these Nyonya recipes are family recipes passed down from generation to generation. The recipes vary from different families and states (mostly notably Penang and Malacca). I am always interested to try out these treasured family recipes, this recipe by Chui is no exception.

Chui's recipe may not look complicated but nonetheless has all the required flavours you need for a good bowl of Nyonya laksa. The spice paste is made of chilli, garlic, Asian shallots and toasted belachan (shrimp paste), cooked in a mix of coconut milk and cream together with tamarind juice and taucheong (yellow bean paste). You get the spiciness from the spice paste, sourness from the tamarind juice, saltiness from the yellow bean paste and creaminess from the coconut milk and cream.

The soup / gravy is thick & creamy and the tamarind juice and yellow bean paste give a distinctive flavour, different from the curry laksa you have come to know from food courts and Malaysian restaurants.

Traditionally, the noodles used are fresh thick rice noodle similar to the type used in assam laksa. Chui's recipe calls for dried thin rice noodle (meehoon). You can use other noodles to your preference.

As for the garnishing, Chui is suggesting to use prawns, bean sprouts, garlic chives and red pepper. I have added cucumber and coriander as they are my favourite garnishes for my laksa. You can use other garnishes, such as pineapple, mint leaf, Spanish onion and even bunga kantan (torch ginger bud).

Nyonya Laksa (Nyonya Style Prawn and Rice Noodles) Recipe
(Adapted from My Last Supper, recipe by Chui Lee Luk)
Serves 4

Ingredients

10 shallots
5 red chilies
1 head of garlic, cloves peeled
1 tbsp shrimp paste (belacan), roasted in oven until dryish and crumbly
2 cup (475 ml) fresh coconut cream
1 cup (235 ml) fresh coconut milk
3 tbsp (40 g) yellow beans sauce, pureed (taucheong)

1/2 cup (120 ml) tamarind paste
7 oz (200 g) dried rice noodle (meehoon)
1 bunch garlic chives, chopped
8 3/4 oz (250 g) bean sprouts, rinsed and cleaned with roots removed
1 red pepper, flesh shredded finely
12 medium green prawns, shelled and deveined

Method

1. To Prepare the Prawn and Yellow Bean Sauce: In a food processor, grind the shallots, red chilies, garlic, and shrimp paste to a fine paste and set aside.

   

   Simmer the coconut cream in a large pan over medium heat until it begins to separate. Add the ground, aromatic mixture and simmer for 30 minutes.

   

   Stir in the coconut milk and the yellow bean puree and simmer for 2 more minutes, then add the tamarind. The sauce should be spicy hot, a little sour, sweet and salty.

2. To Prepare the Noodles: Blanch the rice noodles in boiling water until they are just soft. Drain and set aside. Heat the prepared sauce to a slow boil. Blanch the garlic chives, bean sprouts, and red pepper in separate batches in the prawn and yellow bean sauce until they are just soft. Combine the vegetables and rice noodles to form a colourful salad.

3. To Prepare the Prawns: Bring the prawn and yellow bean sauce to a boil and poach until the prawns are pink and cooked through.

4. To Serve: Spoon the sauce over the prawns and serve with the noodle salad.