Nonya Curry Laksa

September 28, 2011
 Nyonya Curry Laksa

If someone offer you a bowl of good laksa... would you politely decline or would you have a Cheshire Cat smile and accept whole heartedly?

Shamelessly....I am the later type of person...

Just in case you were wondering..."What is Laksa?" ...Laksa is a bowl of noodles serve in broth with some garnishing. Its the broth that define what type of Laksa it is... whether its fish based sour and spicy soup or thick and creamy 'curry' like soup.

I wouldn't be wrong if I were to say that Malaysia is a Laksa Haven . I guess I could divide my Laksa 'adventure' into 4 ~ North, South, East Coast and East Malaysia (Sabah and Sarawak).

Here is my quick snippets of the gorgeous mouth watering Laksa...
  • North ~Laksa Utara   (from Perlis, Kedah and Penang) is mostly fish based broth with sourish taste and serve with Rice Noodles, lots of cut up bird's eye chilli, and local fresh herbs. Slight variants to the type of fish used to make the broth between the States.
  • South ~  Laksa Johor  comes from Southern State (Johor) ~ the broth is again fish based broth with spices and coconut milk added. Spaghetti is used in Laksa Johor instead of Asian noodles (yellow noodles or vermicelli or flat rice noodles).
  • East Coast ~ Laksa Kelantan. Broth is made up of fish and it has different texture, taste and colour. The authentic Laksa Kelantan is serve with sambal, thinly sliced snake beans and homemade rice flour flat noodles.
  • East Malaysia ~ Laksa Sarawak ~ again the taste is distinctively different from the rest.

 Nyonya Curry Laksa in spicy coconut soup.

I have another Laksa to add to my list... its Nonya Curry Laksa.

The Flavours of Nonya Curry Laksa is unique, in comparisons to Laksa(s) I have tasted.
To slurp sum it up...  ~ I would say its a combination of Curry Mee and Laksa. The burst of flavours were beyond words... obvious from the long list ingredients listed below...
The preparation was laborious.... alas! to be rewarded with a hot bowl of Nonya Curry Laksa is worth all the slogging, sweat and hard work in the kitchen .... so satisfying, even kids were asking for more.

Note :Nonya Curry Laksa uses a combination of vermicelli and yellow noodles, however, all of us agreed that vermicelli absorb the broth flavour better than the yellow noodle...

Do you know of any Laksa and wanted to add on to my list? Feel free to share ...

Nyonya Curry Laksa Recipe (adapted from Pasar Malam delights with modifications)

500g yellow noodles
300g vermicelli noodles
200 g prawns ~ deveined and leave the tail intact
finely sliced ginger flower (bunga kantan)
mint leaves
4 pieces cooked chicken thigh-sliced thinly
Golden fried shallots
Broth
2500ml water
1 tablespoon raw sugar
salt
150ml light soy sauce
5 Sprigs of vietnamese mint (daun kesum)
3 stalks of lemongrass - bruised
6 kaffir lime leaves
300ml coconut cream
12 deep fried beancurd (tau pok) - halved.
Spice for Broth
200ml canola oil (cooking oil)
1 large red onion
15 dried chillies -soaked
2cm tumeric
2 cm galangal
5 stalks of lemongrass
10 candlenuts
1 tablespoon of Maggi prawn paste granules (belacan)
Sambal (Chilli Paste)
10 dried chillies- soaked
1 medium size red onion
4 garlic
1 teaspoon coriander seeds (ground) 
1/2 teaspoon tumeric powder
1 teaspoon Maggi prawn paste granules (belacan)
3 stalks of lemongrass
salt
sugar
50 ml coconut milk
1/2 cup of oil
Method
Laksa Broth
  1. Blend the spices (under the heading of Spice for Broth) into a smooth paste.
  2. Saute until fragrant in 1/2 cup of oil.
  3. Add in water, sugar, salt to taste, soy sauce.
  4. Bring to boil.
  5. Then add vietnamese mint, bruised lemongrass and kaffir lime leaves.
  6. Bring to a quick boil then lower the heat into a simmer for 30 minutes.
  7. Add coconut cream and deep fried beancurd.
  8. Simmer for another 10 minutes.
Sambal (chilli paste)
  1. Blend the spices into a smooth paste.
  2. Cook the blended spice in 1/2 cup of oil at low heat until aromatic (into a thick paste).
  3. Put aside.
Noodles and condiment.
  1. Blanch the yellow noodles and vermicelli (separately) for 5 minutes. Drain.
  2. Divide the yellow noodle, vermicelli, prawns, and chicken slices into individual bowls.
  3. Ladle hot Laksa Broth.
  4. Garnish with some ginger flower, golden fried shallots and mint.

Comments

  1. That laksa looks amazing! It is a dish I could eat on a weekly (ven daily) basis. What a perfect combination of flavors and textures.

    Cheers,

    Rosa

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  2. This looks well and truly delicious, Lisa! I've saved this recipe and I can't wait to make it for my family when I'm back Malaysia... I'm always looking for dishes I can make for them (whether it turns out good or not, it's a diff story hehe) and I'm sure they'll enjoy this! =D

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  3. I love laska very much. I'm getting hungry again just looking at your delicious laska!

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  4. tengok gambar tu aje boleh batal puasa ooohh...kenapa lah kita tidak berjiran???? aritu you hembus semangat rajin you tak cukup power lah lisa.....:(

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  5. Looks absolutely *yum*, love this...thanks for posting..will definitely try ur recipe..:))

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  6. I've been seeing a lot of laksa recipes this week for some reason. I love the look of yours but I think I have yet to taste my first laksa!

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  7. Rosa
    Daily? ~ I think I could too (enjoy and forget about cholesterol for awhile ;P...)

    Winston
    You will make your Mommy proud, Winston :D and happy trying

    Xiaolu
    Thank you

    Anncoo
    me too... me too :D

    Kak Yati
    Tak pa Kak Yati... nanti I hembus kuat2... :P

    lina_to_u
    Happy trying Lina... :D

    Junglefrog
    Laksa ~ comfort food for all season be it Winter or Summer. Actually we love making excuses... just to have a good bowl of Laksa ;)

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  8. A bowl of comfort and deliciousness! Definitely join you and accept the offer ;-)) Being 'shameless' could be a good thing too.

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  9. yum! yum! i love the coconut-y type Laksa...and Thai Express is the only restaurant in my city where the Thai-ness of a dish can be expected :)and it's Oh-so-far-away from where i reside ;( and i lack the confidence to make it at home for the lack of all the ingredients needed ;( but i heart-heart Laksa and i didn't know there were that many variety...thanks for sharing

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  10. It sounds so good! I love all the various versions of the Laksa's. The pictures look amazing, I could dive in right now!

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  11. Got me craving for some noodles... looks really delicious... salivating over here :) Love the photos.

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  12. I would give a lot to have a big bowl of that in front of me right now.

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  13. Ehhh.. sedap nampak! Lapar sekarang.. can I have it as a supper? :)

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  14. Lisa, your laksa look extremely good. I would loves to have a bowl right now.

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  15. Angie
    I would ask for second too :P

    Panmeiz Cuisine
    Thai Laksa is lovely too :)

    Jeff Rasmussen
    Thank you :D

    Ali
    :D

    Elise's Kitchen
    Thank you :)

    leemei
    terimakasih...
    hey, bahaya kalau nak supper nanti tak boleh tidur sebab perut kenyang ;P ...

    Amelia
    I feel like having one too :D

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  16. Wholeheartedly accept your laksa! LOL

    The variants of laksa is amazing! Don't think I have tried each single variety of them.

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  17. This looks beautiful! Thanks also for the explanation of the different regional laksas in Malaysia!
    When you say "blend the spices" are you actually using a blender?

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  18. tigerfish
    I've tried and love them all :D

    Claudine
    Thank you...
    yes ... use the blender :D

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  19. Haven't had laksa before...I think I'll try and i'll let you know how did it go...

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  20. Fabulous, still so full from my lunch today but could just eat this now, yum.

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  21. Anna,
    Please do :D

    Deb@DKC
    Thank you :D

    Blogger is playing up again.
    I received Your message via email:"Fabulous, still so full from my lunch today but could just eat this now, yum." however it was missing in my comment box.

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  22. Thank you for teaching me what Laksa is. I've seen the name many times after I started to visit blogs but I was only guessing the meaning. I can't wait to try Malaysia one day to try all kinds of Laksa. Your noodles looks sooooo good....I reached my maximum hungriness right now. I can dream your food in bed. You have the BEST OF BEST food photo, really!

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  23. Nami
    I hope that one day you will be able to visit Malaysia enroute to Japan.... and experience Malaysian food haven :D

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