Common spices in Malay cooking

My glossary of spices =) Or at least the ones that I usually use. These are the commonly used spices in Malay cooking and recipes.

Halba @ Fenugreek seed. I used this in my assam fish. Some people use this in Nasi Lemak and Nasi Dagang.

Cengkih @ clove. Nice smell. Used in my masak merah and masak kicap recipe.

Buah pelaga @ green cardamon. Can give you diarrhea if consumed, or so said some people. I've never tested that theory though.

Bunga lawang @ star anise. I used this in my Ayam masak merah

Kayu manis @ cinnamon. Also has a nice smell. Ikea sold candles of apple and cinnamon, if anyone is interested.

Buah keras @ candlenut. Used as a natural "thickener" for gravy.

Masak - masak Melayu ~ Assam fish (garoupa) @ Asam pedas ikan siakap

Finally, I've learned how to cook this. Another sour -ish recipe =) I like to use garoupa @ siakap, a fresh one has very sweet flesh, though normally people use stingray @ ikan pari or ikan kembung @ mackerel to make asam pedas. For additional umph, some add daun kesum @ laksa leaf @ polygonum leaf. Mine is actually less red than how it is, this is because I probably used less chili paste. Additional vege that you can add in this dish includes eggplant, tomato and bunga kantan @ torch ginger.

Masak - masak Melayu ~ Asam Rebus Ikan Kembung (Mackerel) dengan Nenas

One of my favourite Malay dish, it has the spicy – sour – ish taste that I simply love, what more with the juicy pineapple. This recipe is very easy and tasty, with cheap ingredients.

Masak - masak Melayu ~ Ayam masak kicap @ Chicken in Soy Sauce

Tomato ketchup is used in this recipe so there’s a sour – ish taste to the gravy.

Happy (Belated) New Year! =) And a bunch of templates!

My first post in 2009!

Finally, I managed to sort out this blog at its new domain. And I simply love the new lay - out, which I found at one of the sites below. They got tons of gorgeous lay - outs!

Blogger Templates

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Jackbook.com Templates aside, they have other stuffs too.

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