Chai Buey pictures (1 of 4)
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I hope everyone has had a wonderful Chinese New Year reunion dinner and a festive and fun celebration for the first few days of Chinese New Year. I looooove Chinese New Year, it’s the occasion that brings family and friends together, and it’s a tradition that reminds all Chinese of our root, culture, and civilization. Never mind the obnoxiously loud and cheesy Chinese New Year songs, the bright red and gold Chinese New Year decor, and the endless foods and offerings for the many prayers and rituals. They are what make us Chinese, and we should embrace all these unique practices for generations to come.
While I am always excited about the reunion dinner and the many courses of traditional Chinese New Year dishes, I have to confess that it’s the leftover that really tickles my taste buds. Yes, I am talking about chai buey, or 菜尾, literally meas “leftover.” In Penang, especially in my Nyonya family, the day after the first day of New Year is when we make a huge pot of chai buey—a soup or stew concocted with all the leftover ingredients from the reunion dinner. It’s generally consisted of meat (chicken, roast pork, duck), vegetables (preferably fresh “mustard green/gai choy/ 芥菜” or kiam cai/picked salted mustard green), and all the other leftover from the reunion dinner, including steamboat (hot pot). The chai buey is infused with tamarind juice, bean paste (taucheo), some dried red chilies, with some peeled assam keping (optional). You then stew the chai buey over low heat to bring out all the flavors of the leftover ingredients, and the end result is a pot of mouthwatering, appetizing, and utterly delicious stew that I can eat for days…
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Udang Masak Lemak Nenas pictures (1 of 4)
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Please welcome Nyonya Pendek Melaka, also known as Petite Nyonya as a guest writer today. Nyonya Pendek Melaka is a wonderful food blog with many delicious and authentic Nyonya recipes. Today, she shares with us her family’s udang masak lemak nenas recipe, or pineapple prawn curry. I tried out this classic Melaka Nyonya recipe and absolutely loved it. Enjoy!
Guest writer: Nyonya Pendek Melaka (Petite Nyonya)
When I started looking into food blogs, Rasa Malaysia was one of the first few I stumbled upon and was in full admiration for. When Bee launched Nyonya Food, I was really glad to see it takes shape as a focused tribute to our rich culinary heritage. Thus, I was honored and delighted to receive an invitation from Bee to be a guest writer on Nyonya Food and contribute to it. I just don’t seem to be cooking Nyonya dishes as often as I should unless I am back in my hometown for family gatherings, so this invitation is just perfect! Bee also requested if I could prepare a dish that is synonymous with the Peranakan household in Melaka. While there are many similarities with Peranakan food in Melaka (where I’m from) and Penang (where Bee’s from), there are a few distinct signature dishes exclusive to or more favored in each of these two Malaysian states…
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Salted Fish Curry (Gulai Kiam Hu Kut) pictures (1 of 6)
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I don’t really have a recipe to share today, but I am going to show you some pictures of one of my favorite Nyonya curry dishes—salted fish curry or gulai kiam hu kut.
My second sister is here in the US and she brought me some instant curry paste for salted fish curry. We went to the market and gathered all the ingredients: eggplant, long beans, fresh pineapples, fried tofu puffs, and cabbage. Other ingredients include salted fish bones (kiam hu kut), shrimp, and coconut milk. With the instant paste, making a pot of salted fish bones curry was rather easy. In less than 30 minutes, we had a pot of aromatic and intensely flavorful curry…
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Sambal Okra (Sambal Lady's Fingers) pictures (1 of 6)
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Before I came to the United States, I’d known okra as lady’s fingers.
I was in primary school in Malaysia when my English teacher first taught us the name of the different vegetables. The strange and awkward name of lady’s fingers deeply imprinted in my mind even though I didn’t like them back then.
In high school, I slowly learned to appreciate okra or lady’s fingers, especially when my mother made sambal okra. I started to love the slimy and sticky texture and its beautiful shape when sliced in pieces. Most of all, I loved the delicious good taste. I eventually fell in love with okra…(get sambal okra recipe after the jump)
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