Hi guys, welcome to Nyonya Cooking! Thank you so much for the comments and also the requests that you had been sending to me One request or one recipe that has been popping up non-stop on either facebook or in the comment section below is this very special dish called 'laksa' There are many variations of 'laksa' in Malaysia There's the curry based and the sour based There are different 'laksa' from different states As an introduction to this 'laksa', I am showing you how to prepare 'nyonya laksa' or also known as 'laksa lemak' This 'laksa' is a noodle dish which has a curry base It has a lot of ingredients, so don't be shocked For those of you who had tried this 'laksa', you'll know that it's so divine The taste is so complicated but yet, it's so soothing to the soul So, I'm going to show you how to prepare this at home, to show your friends and impress them Let's begin by looking at the list of ingredients To prepare a good bowl of 'laksa nyonya', there are several things to take care of One of it is the broth and secondly, it's the 'rempah' or the chili paste that is used That is the heart to a good bowl of 'laksa' Now, let's begin with the ingredients that we'll need for the 'rempah' Here, I have some lemongrass, 'belacan' This is the one that is sold in a block... it's hard Then, some shallots, garlic, turmeric, candlenuts, it can be substituted with macadamia nuts and also 'galangal' This is something like ginger but it's not ginger Then, I have coconut milk to add this creamy flavour to the 'laksa' Next, we'll also need some chillies I'm using a combination of fresh and also dried chillies because I do not have enough of dried chillies If you have dried chillies, use them or you may use fresh chillies, as you like Then, some dried shrimps For this 'laksa', it's really special We have 'daun kesum' or these are also known as Vietnamese mint or Vietnamese coriander It has a very special smell/fragrance to it So, this adds up another layer of smell/fragrance and flavour to the 'laksa' As for the broth, it is very special because we're using 2 different types of base That would be prawns and chicken Here I have some drumsticks which I had removed the meat to prepare a different dish I'm just using the bones as the base of the soup and also prawns So, as for the prawns, I'm using the prawns' heads and also the skin whereas the meat will be kept here We're going to use them as garnishing So, we do not waste, basically In the 'laksa', we'll also add some tofu puffs and also fishballs Do not forget, we'll also need some sugar and salt to taste A bowl of 'laksa' is always served with 'sambal' This 'sambal' that I am going to prepare now is a very basic 'sambal' that uses my previous recipe which is the 'cili boh' recipe If you want to check that out, click here For that, I have the chili paste or the 'cili boh' and also a bit of 'belacan' So, now let's begin with preparing the 'laksa' The first step is to prepare the broth As I'd mentioned earlier, we're using 2 different types of broth So, let's begin with the chicken first We're going to take the drumsticks over here Put them into a pot Then, add water to it Cook this at high heat Ensure that it boils Once it starts boiling, just put the heat to low and let it simmer for the next 30 to 45 minutes That is what we want at the end of the day Now, we can work with the prawns As for the second part of the broth, I'm going to add a bit of oil, about one tablespoon of oil We are using the prawns' heads and also the skin This will actually add a very sweet note to the broth itself Keep frying until they turn orangey At the same time, you'll see the oil from the prawns coming out Then, it's ready now So, we're going to add water to it and let it boil and then simmer just like the chicken broth After adding water, I'm just going to add 3 stalks of 'daun kesum' or these Vietnamese coriander into this pot together with the prawns You may use a spoon to remove the impurities and the excess oil Step 2 is to toast the 'belacan' as what I'm doing here I've used 2 pieces of 'belacan' that are meant for the 'rempah' and also for the 'sambal' So, I'm just going to toast them and then wait for a while We're going to use them later on Now, we're going to prepare the blended ingredients All the ingredients that are meant to be for the 'rempah', we're just going to put them into the blender and just blend them into a paste Don't forget to add the 'belacan' into the blended paste and also the dried shrimps After all the blending, we are left with this very beautiful 'sambal' paste Aahhh... the smell itself is heavenly Take a look... We're going to leave the chili paste or the 'rempah' aside and work on the 'sambal' Over here, I have a heated pan at medium heat I'm just going to add a bit of oil Let this heat up I'm going to put the 'cili boh' and also the 'belacan' into the pan We're going to fry this chili paste or the 'cili boh' here until the oil separates from the chili paste Then, it's ready Before that, we are also going to add the 'belacan' into the pan Once the oil separates from the 'cili boh', we're going to add a bit of water Just a bit Then, just add some sugar to taste If you find that it's not salty enough, you may also add some salt The saltiness basically comes from the 'belacan' too Now that the 'sambal' is ready, we are moving on to cook the 'rempah' or this paste that we had created So, I have a pot here Again, we're using a bit of oil As usual, just like the other curry recipes, we are going to fry this 'rempah' until the colour changes into a deeper red or a darker colour and then it's ready Then, we're going to add the broth and the rest of the stuff So, let's see now if the pot is heated up The colour of the 'laksa' paste is now slightly darker Then, we know that it's ready That means, we're going to add the broth into it There you go Same goes to the prawns broth as well We're just going to stir this now until the 'laksa' paste is fully incorporated with the broth Then, we're going to let it cook As you are cooking, remember to always taste the food to ensure that you get the right exact amount of saltiness, sweetness... Whatever it is that you are looking for Over here, I have the broth, all incorporated with the 'rempah' Just going to taste a little Hmmm... it's sweet and yet spicy at the same time There's just so many different tastes I'm just going to add a bit of salt here because I think it requires just a bit of saltiness Cook it at medium to high heat and allow it to simmer for a while The word, 'nyonya laksa' or also known as 'laksa lemak' 'Lemak' means creamy/'fatty' Therefore, it indicates there is coconut milk in it Once you add the coconut milk, Hmmm... anything with coconut milk... Super good So, we're just going to let this cook It had been now 10 minutes I'm going to add the coconut milk Now, it creates this very nice golden yellow colour that the 'laksa' should have Now, we're just going to let it cook until it boils Once it boils... means it's done Meanwhile, I have a pot here with boiling water I'm just going to add the prawns that I'd prepare earlier Prawns generally take a very quick time to cook Once they are orange in colour, you can just pick them up and then put them into a bowl Leave them aside The tofu puffs that we had earlier, I'm just going to put them into this boiling water again What you are going to do here is just to extract the oil Then, when you put them into the 'laksa', it would not be that oily The soup is now ready It's boiling vigorously We're going to add these tofu puffs and also fishballs into the soup The tofu puffs and also fishballs will be cooked in the soup for about 10 minutes Meanwhile, we will be preparing the noodles There are 2 types of noodles that I am using here One of it is rice vermicelli or also known as 'mee hoon' They are really thin, as you can see here Another one is the egg noodles I can't find the egg noodles over here So, I just use some yellow wheat noodles This is how it looks like... from the Asian market Normally, in Malaysia, we use the yellow noodles or also known as the 'hokkien' noodles If you can't find it, you may use any types of noodles that you like Now, I'd already cooked these earlier I left them aside Now, I'm just going to put it into a pot of boiling water Just blanch it a little and we're good to go It's time to dish out the soup into this bowl Very carefully, just give it a few stirs first The 'nyonya laksa' is garnished with a few other ingredients That would be hard boiled egg and also a few slices of cucumber and of course, the 'daun kesum' or also known as the Vietnamese coriander This brings up the flavour and the smell in this bowl Do not forget also, the prawns that we prepared earlier So, here I have it all assembled Of course, the best step or the best part of the video That is to try it I can't wait It looks so good It smells so good Accompanied with the 'sambal' that I prepared earlier, I'm just going to add a bit of calamansi juice or also, you may use lemon or lime Just a bit of it I like tofu puffs So, I'm just going to have some tofu puffs here Accompanied with a bit of 'sambal' Hmmm... Every bite... there are like new flavours popping out It's awesome That is why people have been requesting for this recipe There are just so many layers of flavours to it It's a bit spicy Then, I just love the broth because it's really special, a combination of chicken and also prawns So good Let's try the broth by itself Hmmm... delicious It's so good, I can have this everyday... really I just bit into a bit of this 'daun kesum' or Vietnamese coriander It brings up the flavour as a whole Aahhh... so good Try this recipe, please For those of you who had requested, I hope that you will try this recipe Then, send me photos of them I just love seeing all these beautiful photos on instagram, facebook, twitter or even google+ Remember to subscribe to Nyonya Cooking for more recipes like this. It's free You get updated whenever we post a new video Till then, happy cooking!
