My first cooking class! Kari Ayam and Sayur Lemak.
As we now enter the new year, why not start it with something strong? By that I mean, by having something a bit out of the usually scheduled program. And that is my first ever cooking class!One of the meetup groups that I frequent, Hakata Mingle 101 occasionally organizes cooking classes held by foreign members of their community to help others get to know cuisines from various parts of the globe. And a few months ago, it was my turn to hold my own cooking class.
 |
| Welcome! |
Selecting the dishes was relatively straight forward. As not many people know what Malay food is, or have even heard about it, I think it was time to make some old fashioned warung grub. So, for my cooking class, kari ayam and sayur lemak were on the menu. For the uninitiated, it’s chicken curry and vegetables in coconut broth respectively.Getting ingredients was surprisingly easy as I got almost off of it from Kaldi. Kaldi is an imported goods store where their main star maker is their coffee beans. However, they do sell a good array of ingredients around the world. Thanks to them, I was able to stock up on spices and even got sambal paste and packed coconut milk from there. However, sambal seems pretty rare, and they do not stock up often. In terms of fresh ingredients, it was also pretty easy. I mean, chicken, ginger, and potatoes are easily sourced in any supermarket. Maybe not the North Pole, but you know what I mean. There are some exceptions like galangal and fresh chilies. But with a bit of maneuvering, you can still create something special without them.
 |
| Lucky for me, many chefs did not spoil dinner. |
With
a total headcount of 30 people, I was pretty surprised at the reception to the
event. We even had to put notices that we are no longer taking participants as
the original headcount was for 20 only. Still, the venue can accommodate more
than that. And after prepping the ingredients (there were a lot!), we called
the attendees into the venue. In order to start the class proper, I made a
brief introduction in Malay, then translated to English and eventually
Japanese. I did have the intention in making the class as authentic as possible
but since time was limited, I eventually opted to speaking in English only
since that would be the easiest for me.
 |
| A better close up of the action. |
The attendees were then divided into 2
groups. For the first group, they were tasked to chop and marinade the chicken
for the curry with dried chillies, chili powder, ginger, turmeric, garlic, and
curry powder. The second was then instructed to chop the veggies so they are
ready for the coconut stew. Nothing very special here, as it was just old-fashioned
elbow grease. The real highlight was combining the whole thing together.
 |
| Whipping up a storm. |
In prepping the curry, onions, garlic,
ginger, and chicken were added into the pot to allow them to caramelize. Once
this has become fragrant, sambal is then added into the mix. A good helping of spices
and aromatics came suit. Once they are golden brown, but not at burning point, coconut
milk and potatoes are then included. The pot is then left for a low and slow
boil until the potatoes are cooked. The mixture is stirred occasionally to prevent
burning. The steps were quite similar to the sayur lemak. The only difference
is that it has a higher ration or turmeric and less chilies as it is meant to
be a milder dish.
 |
| The final product. What a thing of beauty! |
As you can see, it is relatively simple. However,
the main problem was the number of pots that we have. As such, both dishes had
to be cooked in batches made things a bit more complicated. However, this was
not much of a problem and with a bit of planning, everything went well. This
was in fact a blessing in disguise as participants can take turns in mixing the
dishes together.
 |
| Vegetables done soon after. Plating at the ready. |
I was afraid that things might not work
out, especially considering the fact that the dishes may be a bit too spicy for
local tastes. However, I was surprised by the results as everyone just chowed
down everything without much problem. The rice that accompanied the dishes did
help to temper down the heat. Some even went for seconds. Note to self to have
more backup ingredients.
 |
| Group photo! Despite the stress, this was actually fun. |
So, with bellies satisfied and everyone being able to learn some Malay on the way, I consider this a job well done. Will I do this again? I am not sure. But if there is demand for it, I would probably brainstorm a few more recipes to try. In the meantime, I would like to give a shoutout to the Hakata Mingle 101 team, Hafh the Life Hostel, and lastly, all my friends who attended the event.And if you would like to try making the dishes yourselves, just follow the steps mentioned above! The ingredients are as follows:
Kari Ayam portions for 3 people
Sayur masak lemak for 3 people
Coconut milk 1 pack (240 ml), Turmeric
2 tbsp, 3 Dried chillies, Cabbage half a head, Fried tofu 1 block, Onion one, Carrot half, Mushrooms, Dried shrimp 3 tbsp
 |
| The organisers and me. From left: Ryota, Mako, Mei and Miyu. Thank you all! |
Comments
Post a Comment