Ms. Jazz Reviews: Fan Cai Xiang

I remember, more than 10 years ago, I had fond memory of a particular vegetarian restaurant in my neighbourhood. Perhaps I was rather amaze by how the dishes can be imitated to taste so much like the real thing, and to this Im referring to mock meat, such as fish, abalone, chicken wings, ham.


Fast forward 10 years later, It strikes me that all these mock meat Ive had in childhood is actually filled with glutton, since then Ive kept out of vegetarians restaurant unless I feel guilty about putting on weight and decide to go on diet, which is rather silly if you ask me, since most vegetarian places uses a lot of gluttony substances and MSG in order to resemble the real thing. And why would you want to eat the mock versions (filled with glutton) when the whole purpose is to stay away from meat for a period?

By the way, eating vegetarian doesnt necessary make you skinnier! Its all in the mind!

Ive got some good friends whom are vegetarian by choice; I often cant see how they can come eat with us, while we chunk down slabs of meat, and them watching with their plate of meat-less misery.

When being asked, they always told me a similar story, that they dont see the need to harm animals to satisfy their stomachs when there is so many varieties of vegetarian dishes around. There is also the health element, apparently eating vegetarian is more healthy than eating meat (I beg to differ, hmmm! Nobody takes my meat away from me)
Fan Cai Xiang in Taman Desa is a well-known vegetarian restaurant in the neighborhood. Occupying an intermediate lot of the buzzing area of Plaza Danau 2 next to KFC, it was easy enough to locate the place. Since its welcoming presence 4 years ago, theyve been able to retain long stem of customers and from what Ive heard, it can be pretty pack during the weekends.

The interior of the restaurant is simple, Chinese oriented, and spacious.

An array of books are available for your leisure readings

Unlike most vegetarian restaurants Ive been, Fan Cai Xiang focus predominantly on natural ingredients, their handsomely bound menu has a vast list of green leaves, tofu, mushrooms, soup etc. As the restaurant promotes healthy living, their dishes are majority less salty and oily, with no use of MSG. It helps that the food is reasonably priced too, most come in three sizes of regular (RM13~) medium (RM19~) and large (RM23~).

Fried butter with Abalone mushroom is one of my favourite of the night. With thick buttery sauce, it melds well with the delightful crispy battered mushrooms.

Stir-fried eggplant with basil (RM13), the fragrant of basil capture my nose senses instantly. The eggplant was slightly on the raw side, but it is done so intentionally without wasting all thenutrients by overcooking it. Personally I prefer the softer versions

Assam fish (RM15) is worth ordering. The fish is made with soft beancurd, while it was wrapped around with seaweed as its skin, battered and deep fried, what wonderful creation and brilliant colours, it almost tasted like the real thing. I like how the sauce is not overwhelming, with the right level of tanginess.

Tom yam soup (RM13), a dish so simple, yet achieving a satisfactory flutter in my stomach.

Spicy Salted Crispy Beancurd (RM13) is a MUST order. Picture this, asI picked up a perfectly golden brown cube thats nicely sprinkled with salt seasoning and take a soft bite into it; ahh..Just as I thought, the skin made the tiniest crunching sound- like music to my ears and the internal content so soft and velvety. Then I closed my eyes and devour each bite with newfound urgency and my hands were already moving to the next piece on the table. Ahh~ more please?

Fan Cai Xiang noodes (RM9) is their house! special ty. A simple stir fry with nice springy texture with a mix of mushrooms, greens and bean curd skin.

Weve lapped up everything without a waste, well except for my half eaten rice, which my friend Y. cant stop looking at me, sending me signal to finish it (I know she doesnt like seeing things wasted) But dont blame me! Blame my super tight skirt and that viciously small belt =P

The owners behind the restaurant has a really big heart, aside from their normal charity works, Fan Cai Xiang often give away well-packed food to different organizations, one of them being Malaysia Buddhist organization. For this upcoming Mothers Day, they plan to distribute 10,000 food packets to promote healthy living.

Seriously, eating vegetarian? Charity? Can one get more holy that that? Im truly inspired.

Fan Cai Xiang Vegetarian Restaurant

No. 23-G, Plaza Danau 2,

Jalan 2/109F

Taman Danau Desa

58100

Off Jalan Klang Lama

Tel: 03-79819812

Tinolang Tahong

Tinolang Tahong is a mussel soup recipe with ginger and spinach.

This recipe is inspired by a famous Filipino soup dish called tinolang manok or chicken tinola which uses chicken, green papaya wedges, and chili pepper leaves.

This mussel soup recipe is simple, budget-friendly, and delicious. This is also quick to prepare. It took me only 15 minutes to cook this dish.

I like to eat mussels because of its nice flavor. Aside from that, mussels are good for the health: they are excellent source of Selenium, vitamin B12, zinc, and folate.

Try this Tinolang Tahong recipe and let me know what you think.

Ingredients:

1 lb mussels (tahong), cleaned

2 cups spinach

2 tablespoons ginger, julienned

1 medium yellow onion, sliced

5 cloves garlic, pounded

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

3 cups water

2 tablespoons cooking oil

Watch the cooking video:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=KtPkFYj99OU

Cooking procedure:

1. Heat a cooking pot and pour-in cooking oil.

2. Saute garlic and onion.

3. Add ginger and mussels, and then cook for a minute.

4. Pour-in water. let boil.

5. Add salt and pepper. Stir and cook for 8 to 10 minutes.

6. Put-in the spinach. Turn the heat off and cover the pot.

7. Allow! the res idual heat to cook the spinach.

8. Transfer to a serving plate.

9. Serve. Share and enjoy.Related Posts:

• Batchoy
• Sinigang na Hipon
• Beef Nilaga

Siow Clay pot Hot Soup (Kajang) -2.

After the previous visit, we just could not resist their others tempting clay pot dishes displayed on the wall.

Today, the whole family tagged along we will able to order a few more clay pot dishes to savor.

Food cooked in clay pot retains all of it's original flavor, taste and is warm-plus the gravy goes well with white rice.

The only complaint was the portion were too small for our apppetite.



Village Chicken-nicely poached- tender but not well muscled-Rm25/ Pig trotter with black vinegar and sliced ginger came piping hot-not too choking-Rm14/
3 layered pork with sliced ginger/ dried red chillies/ spring onion-well marinated and flavorful-Rm14/Fah Tui Kai-chicken cooked with Chinese wine-sliced ginger/onion/spring onion-fragrant and the meat was tender-Rm18/ Lat Tong-Hot but not so fiery pepper soup double boiled with pig stomach, lean pork and chicken meat-garnished with coriander leaves-Rm18/

Blanched fresh and leafy green lettuce with soy/oyster sauce to finish off the meal-Rm15/













Total bill:Rm120/
Location:58-A, Jalan 19/3,
Petaling Jaya.
Tel:012-977-8977.

Bangkok Lane Mee Goreng - Is this the Best in Penang?

The famous Mee Goreng Stall at this Kopi Thiam @ Bangkok Lane is awaiting for you.

Is this the best in Mee Goreng stall Penang? Maybe the most popular but not necessary the best I think there are better ones in the island.

You can have it either wet or drier version of Mee Goreng just let the Hokkien speaking master at the wok know.

The ingredient in the fried mee was generously distinctive and fragrant of the fried noodle was smell & nice. The taste of sotong in it was good so were the bits of potato, tofu and others.

If you do not fancy Mee Goreng there are other choices like an average taste of Penang Prawn Me! e or loc ally known as Hokkien Mee.

Bangkok Lane Mee Goreng @ Seng Lee Cafe

270, Jalan Burmah,

Pulau Tikus, Penang.

Tel: 016-4857859

GPS : GPS: 5 43 12.69 N, 100 31 20.52 E

Chip 'N' Dale

Hungry for a new hangout? It's Chip 'N' Dale to the rescue!

Plenty of pubs on this street serve pork knuckles and other meaty fare, but Chip 'N' Dale is marketing itself as TTDI's premier cocktail bar. Rest assured though, pork lovers won't feel blue here, thanks to tasty treats like the juicy Nuernberger Bratwurst with red cabbage.

How reasonably priced is the food? The risotto with chicken & peas is RM18+ _ OK, considering the hearty portion. Sure, it's a bit bland and could be creamier, but we've had worse. And nope, there's no chipmunk theme here, despite the outlet's name; it's merely a catchy moniker.

Booze is the true lure here, especially the excellent cocktails, which cost only RM20-25 but remain pleasurably potent. The house specialties: Chip 'N' Dale Fruit Drop (vodka, creme de cassis, mango juice, orange juice, sour mix) & Royal Sapphire (vodka, blue curacao, sour mix, passion fruit, pineapple juice).

Royal Lychee Sparkler (vodka, champagne, kwaifeh lychee, lychee cordial) & Green Goblin (absinthe, gin, midori) _ addictive alcoholic mixes. Note: there's no signboard here so far, but this is on the same row as Sid's.

Chip 'N' Dale,

52, Lorong Rahim Kajai 14,

Taman Tun Dr Ismail.

Gat Luang Diaries III: The Other Side of Songkran

Last week marked our first Songkran in Thailand.

When we lived in Bangkok almost 10 years ago we fled to Hanoi in lead-up to the New Year, staying away until the Thai capital returned to its normally torpid, hot-season self. If not for our continuing work in Chiang Mai's Gat Luang neighborhood we would have passed Songkran 2011 as we've passed every other Songkran that we've lived in Asia: far, far away from Thailand.

It's true -- there is a not-so-pretty side to Songkran. To whit: A furor broke out when three Thai girls were videotaped dancing topless in Bangkok. On Chiang Mai's Tha Phae Road a farang standing next to me suffered damage to her eye when a high-powered water gun was aimed at her face. (According to traditional Songkran etiquette splashing is meant to be limited to the body below the neck.) An obviously inebriated bikini-clad farang hopped onto a float in last Friday's provincial procession to the Chiang Mai governor's house. (Note: Just because Thais do not tell you that your behavior is offensive does not mean that it isn't.) A nationwide death toll of 271 between April 11 and 17, (The silver lining: that's down 25% from 2010's number of holiday fatalities.)

But there's another side to the Thai New Year as well.

We began the first day of Songkran by joining the members of Gat Luang's Namdhari Sikh temple in a ceremony marking the Sikh New Year, which begins on the same day as the Thai New Year. After prayers, some of which sung to the accompaniment of a harmonium and drums, we ate a Sikh New Year breakfast of chickpea daal, paratha, raita studded with bits of wheat dough, and sugar-soaked jelebi hot from the wok -- all prepared in the temple's kitchen.

Then more food, as in a local kitchen we learned to make several northern Thai dishes from recipes provided by a family with connections to Gat Luang that go back a century or more. (Recipes will be included in the book, but look for one here later.) One of the dishes was gaeng hang lay, a Burmese-influenced pork and ginger curry that's soured with tamarind. Because it's cooked for half a day, it is considered special occasion food -- especially appropriate to the New Year celebrations.

We then hurried to Tha Phae Road for the annual procession of Buddha images. The statues are brought out from wats around Chiang Mai, paraded through the streets, and washed by observers with splashes of water from silvery cups. The procession finishes in the Old City, at Wat Pra Singh, and then each Buddha returns to its home wat.

The third day of Songkran is devoted to dtam hua -- paying respects -- and making merit. Wat Saen Fang sits on the edge of Gat Luang, just off Tha Phae Road. The wat's prayer hall and other buildings are Burmese in style, and the old wooden house that now serves as the monk's quarters was built by a Burmese family whose wealth came from the Chiang Mai logging trade.

Around 7am worshippers began arriving to make merit, first in the prayer hall -- for themselves and their families -- and then in the entrance to the monk's quarters (the wat's abbott is pictured above). Some brought prepared baskets of packaged foods, while other prepared trays of dishes cooked at home (the opening photograph is an example of the latter -- gaeng hang lay is at about 11 o'clock on the silver tray on the right). Offerings to the monks are made for each departed ancestor, whose names are written on pieces of paper and given to the monks for prayer.

After making offerings of food the wat members then plant paper flags in a sand chedi next to the prayer hall, to wish for a long life. Traditionally the chedi were constructed from sand carried by hand by community members from the Ping River, but these days the sand is delivered by truck to the wats. Throughout the year "sand" or earth is carried out of the wat when community members come and go -- this is how it's returned to the wat, on the second day of Songkran.

Dtam hua of a different sort took place in the afternoon of Songkran's third day. Every year each municipality in Chiang Mai sends representatives to participate in a procession to the Chiang Mai governor's residence. Partipants carry a variety of gifts -- mostly symbolic nowadays. The procession ends on the governor's lawn, where participants may join a line to be blessed by the governor.

Dtam hua is a Songkran tradition repeated in workplaces and homes; younger people dtam hua to their elder relatives, and staff dtam hua to their employers. And it's a tradition that northern Thais hold dear. This year Chiang Mai's newish governor -- a descendent of King Rama IV appointed, as most of Thailand's governors are, rather than directly appointed -- caused a stink by announcing that in order to avoid troubling the people on their holiday he would cancel this year's dtam hua procession. Vociferous objections came from all directions, and dtam hua went on as usual.

If you were in Chiang Mai this year and didn't get past the goings-on at the moat you might not know that Songkran is a deeply spiritual time for many Thais. We're thankful for these peeks at the other side of the Thai New Year. We might even return in 2012.

Malaysia Airlines Enhances Customer Experience With Its New AIRBUS 330-300

Malaysia Airlines has launched its new A330-300 aircraft today, amidst a ceremonious event at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA).

The occasion was graced by Minister of Transport, Y.B. Dato Seri Kong Cho Ha. Also present were Malaysia Airlines Chairman, Tan Sri Dr Munir Majid and Malaysia Airlines Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer Tengku Dato Sri Azmil Zahruddin, as well as representatives from Airbus and the Embassies of France, Spain, Great Britain and Germany, partners from the aviation industry, corporate customers, travel trade, winners of Malaysia Airlines Facebook page contest and members of the media. The reception marked anotherhistorical milestone for the airline.

Starting with a launch flight MH8888 from KLIA, guests were taken for a short journey to experience the new interiors and features of the aircraft. Upon arrival, the traditional water salute welcomed the latest aircraft to the Malaysia Airlines fleet, followed by a mixed drum ensemble. An eclectic dance performance symbolised the potpourri of cultures, as the passengers disembarked from the aircraft.

Malaysia Airlines Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer Tengku Dato Sri Azmil Zahruddin said, We are delighted to launch our first A330-300 five months after the delivery of the new B737-800 in November. The latest fleet is aimed at creating a strong and sustained platform fo! r us to serve our discerning customers and for Malaysia Airlines to remain profitable. These aircrafts will serve the growing markets of South Asia, China, North Asia and Australia.

The new Airbus A330-300 is the first of 15 aircrafts to be delivered to Malaysia Airlines over the next four years, as part of the airlines fleet renewal programme. It is the second fleet after the B737-800 to sport the dynamic livery with red and blue lines representing the Malaysia Airlines corporate colours.

Minister of Transport, YB Datuk Seri Kong Cho Ha said, Malaysia Airlines has made another achievement in Malaysias aviation industry. Malaysia Airlines move to introduce this fleet is seen as an effort to promote more travel and business opportunities for both Malaysians and foreigners.

The enhanced A330-300 has a total capacity of 283 seats, 36 seats in Business class and 247 seats in Economy class. All seats are equipped with AC power supply and USB port for laptops and electronic equipment. The new interiors are installed with mood lighting in all cabins and spacious overhead baggage compartments.

To provide enhanced experience and comfort, the sophisticated features and interiors of the new A330-300 Business Class cabin offer comfortable angled lie flat seats,

a fold-out privacy divider and six-way adjustable headrest, among others, presenting the traveller with both a mini office, as well as a place to unwind.

The Economy Class cabin, features lightweight and slim design seats with four-way headrest. Each seat is equipped with individual audio-video on demand smart screens. The latest movies, TV programs, moving map and games are available for both cabins.

The first commercial flight on the new A330-300 will be from Kuala Lumpur to Brisbane departing on 20 April 2011, followed by flights to Shanghai, Osaka, Beijing, Perth and Delhi on later dates.

The air plane is welcomed to the fleet by a water salute ceremony

As a guest blogger, I got to shoot checkout all the new sections of the plane and shoot lots of photo. Below is some of the photos which I have shot.

This is the first time my foods served before the airplane take off.

Recipe: XO Stir Fry greens and scallop

My mom was very comforting over the phone. I love my mom. When there's a problem, the first person I look for would be my mom. Most people would find this cheesy. Kitschy even. But romantic never went out of fashion. It's evergreen.

Speaking of green, I hereby introduce to you one of my all time favorite dish, XO stir fry greens and scallop. The word "greens" may turn you off but there's a reason to the popularity of this classic Cantonese dish. It's delicious, in spite of the greens, thanks to the unique taste of the XO sauce. The words to describe XO sauce?

Piquant, exciting, fragrant, erring towards the sweet side, well-rounded and delicious.Sounds like I'm describing a hot girl eh? Haha.

Recipe: XO stir fry greens and scallops

Ingredients:

A:
-1 teaspoon of olive oil + 1 drop of sesame oil
-12 scallops

B:
-2 cloves of garlic, smashed

-2-3 tablespoon of XO sauce

-1 can of tinned straw mushrooms, halved.
-1 cup of frozen peas
-1 carrot, peeled and sliced
-1 red pepper, deseeded and cut into squares
-A dash of chinese rice wine
-1 teaspoon of raw sugar
-1 teaspoon of oyster sauce
-1 teaspoon of Lee Kum Kee premium chicken bouillon powder
-Generous amount of ground black pepper

Instructions:

1. Heat up pan and add oil. Place the scallops onto the pan. Sear each side for 20 seconds. Remove scallops and set aside.

2. In the same pan, add in 2 cloves of garlic and the XO sauce. Stir on low heat for 1 minute or until fragrant.

3. Add in carrot, red pepper and mushrooms. Stir for 3-4 minutes on medium heat. The carrots will soften a little.

4. Then, add in frozen peas, oyster sauce, sugar, chicken! powder and a dash of rice wine. Turn to high heat. Stir for 2 minutes.

5. Reduce heat to low. Introduce scallops into the pan. Stir gently for 2 minutes. Finish off with black pepper. Serve with rice.

The wonder of this dish is that you can choose the vegetables that you like. XO sauce works best with broccoli, mushrooms and asparagus.

If you wonder where I got my XO sauce from, I got it from City Super at Harbour City, Hong Kong. Haha. Initially, I wanted to get XO sauce from Chynna or Shang Palace...Both places make really good XO sauce. Wonder why I got it from Hong Kong in the end though. When I told my friend that I bought lots of food stuff from Hong Kong and shipped it back to Melbourne, she found it really strange. I mean, for food?

Well, I love good food and I want the good things to go into my belly. I guess that explains.