A Michelin star”Katong laksa” recommended by Chef Ramsey.
I was attending culinary class and right after each sessions, me and my classmates would hang out for lunch. The first time I ate Laksa, it was chaos in my mouth as I tasted coconut milk, curry, herbs and a lot more. My Indonesian classmate told me it was normal and I will get use to it and she's right. Nowadays, I eat Laksa like a pro.
It is considered as comfort food by some especially if the weather is cold and rainy. I began to acquire it and there are days that I would really find a way just to eat Laksa. Most of the hawkers, kopitiam sell this but more often its kinda hard to find the most delicious one. The picture below is Laksa from Toast Box. I normally woul go to this place also for a cup of coffee. The staff are nice and accomodating and I feel the comfort as if Im just drinking coffee at home.
Between the two, I prefer Laksa from Toast Box.
Anyway, here is the brief history of Laksa. I hope you will get to try Laksa,
There are various theories about the origins of laksa. In Indonesia, the dish is believed to have been born from the Chinese coastal settlements and the mixing of cultures between Chinese merchants and the local cooking practices.[7] Historian believes laksa is a dish that was born from actual intermarriage.[8] In early coastal pecinan (Chinese settlement) in maritime Southeast Asia, it was only Chinese men that ventured abroad out from China to trade. When settling down in the new town, these Chinese traders and sailors set out to find local wives, and these women began incorporating local spices and coconut milk into Chinese noodle soup served to their husbands. This creates the hybrid Chinese-local (Malay or Javanese) culture called Peranakan culture.[8] As Peranakan Chinese communities have blended their ancestors' culture with local culture, Peranakan communities in different places now demonstrate diversity according to the local flavour.[9]
In Malaysia, the dish is believed to have been introduced by Chinese immigrants in Malacca.[10] In Singapore, the dish (or its local "Katong" version) is believed to have been created after interaction between the Peranakans with the local Singaporeans.[11][8]
Because laksa has different varieties across the region, it is difficult to pinpoint the exact origin of the dish. Nevertheless, numbers of laksa recipes has been developed along the trade channels of Southeast Asia—where the ports of Penang, Medan, Malacca, Singapore, Palembang, and Batavia (now Jakarta) are the major stops along the historic spice route. The intensive trade links among these port cities enables exchanges of ideas to took place, including sharing recipes.[8]
Various recipes of laksas have gained popularity in Malaysia, Singapore, and Indonesia; and subsequently international recognition. Initially in July 2011, CNN Travel ranked Penang Asam Laksa 7th out of the 50 most delicious foods in the world.[12] Its rank however, fell to number 26th after CNN held an online poll by 35,000 people, published in September 2011.[13] Singaporean Curry Laksa on the other hand ranked in number 44th.[13]
In Indonesia, laksa is one of the traditional comfort foods; the spicy warm noodle soup is much appreciated during cold rainy days. However, its popularity is somewhat overshadowed by soto, a similar hearty warm soup dish, which is often consumed with rice instead of noodles. In modern households, it is common practice to mix and match the recipes of laksas; if traditional laksa noodle is not available, Japanese udon noodles might be used instead.[14
The type of laksa is based upon the soup base employed in its recipe; either rich and savoury coconut milk, fresh and sour asam (tamarind, gelugur or kokum), or the combination of the two. There are three basic types of laksa: curry laksa, asam laksa, and other variant that can be identified as either curry or asam laksa. Curry laksa is a coconut milk curry soup with noodles, while asam laksa is a sour, most often tamarind-based, soup with noodles. Thick rice noodles also known as laksa noodles are most commonly used, although thin rice vermicelli (bee hoon or mee hoon) are also common, and some recipes might create their own rice noodle from scratch. Some variants might use other types of noodles; Johor laksa for example uses spaghetti,[15] while a fusion recipe might use Japanese udon noodle.[16][1]
Thank you for reading. Till next.
