Rice to the rescue

A new food delivery service is banking on our love of rice to court the health-conscious, writes Syida Lizta Amirul Ihsan

IHAVE had my fair share of healthy food delivery services and I have found that there are hits and misses. What looks good on filtered Instagram photos need not necessarily deliver in taste. So when Meraki Kitchen, a new delivery service, sends me a rice bowl, I think nothing of it. After all, it could be just another venture that might or might not go well with my tastebuds.

The Buddha Bowl is multi-grain rice topped with mushrooms, tomatoes, long beans, bean sprouts, eggplant and grilled chicken, with a dash of chopped parsley. A tom yum dressing comes on the side.

To my utter surprise, I find the bowl so delightful I polished it clean in one sitting. and I’m not even a big eater.

The vegetables are fresh, the grilled chicken is tender and the tom yum dressing is sweet and sour, packing enough punch to season the whole meal.

I immediately sent an e-mail to request for this review.

FRIENDS WHO COOK

It turns out that Meraki Kitchen founders Colin Lim and Ronald Tee are good friends who cook. Lim used to work in a hotel’s food and beverage department while Tee ran a sandwich stall.

Big on eating healthy, they cook daily because they believe in knowing what goes into their bodies. And so they set up Meraki Kitchen, focusing on rice bowls.

“Rice is the favourite of Malaysians. Coming from a predominately Asian heritage, we believe that rice is one of the greatest sources of energy,” Lim says.

“Our rice bowls have a good balance of meat, greens and rice. They are a good allround meal for lunch especially when your body needs energy to last throughout the day. Malaysians know and love rice. Who doesn’t love a fragrant delicious bowl of rice to go along with their proteins and vegetables?,” asks Tee.

The duo has a formula that goes into their rice bowls.

Five elements go into them. They are: • texture, by adding a crunchy ingredi

ent;

• heat, since most Malaysian gravitate

towards a meal with some heat to it; • colour, by incorporating a rainbow of

colours;

• richness, to give it a creamy, hearty taste that complements the fresh ingredients used; and

• some acidity in taste to give a light note

to the meal.

“We usually create our bowls with around five to six ingredients to provide a balanced meal of protein, fibre, fat, carbohydrate and essential vitamins,” Lim says.

“We usually portion of rice between 80g to 100g. We also have an option of changing it to a salad base for those who are looking to reduce their carb intake,” Tee says.

RICE AND SHINE

The duo says that from the amount ordered, rice bowls are pretty much on par.

“But we realise that our customers tend to gravitate towards and request meals that have Thai or Korean influences. Also, some meals are created based on the request of our customers. In Meraki Kitchen, we enjoy experimenting.”

The majority of meals ordered, they say, are usually with a base of rice.

“We believe our customers prefer rice as it keeps them full long enough to last until dinner time without needing to snack in-between meals,”

I tried the salad but found it quite dis- appointing because there were inadequate chicken pieces to go with the greens. I ended up having greens leftovers even though I’m a big salad eater.

A few days later, we tried the Meraki’s Peri-Peri Bowl with grilled chicken, basil and sweet tomato and pineapple salsa.

The team loved it, even when not everyone is into the whole new-age healthy-eating bandwagon. Most agreed it’s delicious but one said it’s too spicy (it’s peri-peri, after all) for her sensitive stomach.

“We ensure that all our meals are

LIFE & TIMES BY NEW STRAITS TIMES | well-balanced with carbs, protein and vegetables. The food we make are meals that we would serve to people we love. When you cook for your loved ones, it’s not about the price of the food — rather, it’s about the value it brings to your wellbeing,” Lim says.

“We always try to go above and beyond to ensure our customers get the best service we can offer. What you know as great food isn’t only about the meal itself, it is also about the whole experience from start to finish,” Tee says.

Peri-peri Bowl; Colours, flavour and texture are all considered in the meals; Gravy plays a big part in adding taste to the rice bowls; The delicious Buddha Bowl with tom yum gravy; Green curry Buddha Bowl.