A taste of Borneo
Craving for something other than the usual fare, Ewe Paik Leong heads for Rumah Asap Borneo in Cheras, Kuala Lumpur
WHEN I arrive at Rumah Asap Borneo, I discover that the cover photo of its Facebook account depicting BBQ stoves grilling meat is misleading. There are no braziers here but a collection of six or seven hawker stalls operating in a corner shoplot. Apart from two stalls selling chicken rice and Thai street food, all others offer Borneo fare.
This outlet differs from a coffeeshop as shoulder-height bare-brick walls separate the stalls and rectangular tables are arranged in rows.
The spandrel under the first-floor staircase functions as the cashier’s counter and mounted wall fans circulate the air effectively.
IN FULL SWING
My gastronomic adventure kicks off with pork noodle soup. Vermicelli, vegetables and pieces of meat come brimming in a bowl of clear soup with steam wafting about.
Across the surface of the broth are sprinkled sauteed shallots. Instead of chopsticks, I’m given a fork and a spoon.
A slurp of the soup releases a blast of pepper and spicy flavours that resonate like subwoofers in a loudspeaker system! The slithery vermicelli noodles have been blanched right and are firm. There’s also the punch of garlic from the shallots.
Done with the noodle, my gaze flits to a bamboo-filled box sitting on the counter of a nearby stall. Scrawled on one side of the box are the words pansuh chicken and wild boar in local dialect. Pansuh is a meat dish prepared in bam- boo stalk. I order a pansuh chicken to eat with rice.
Then I walk to another stall and, prodded by a sense of adventure, simply order tubu manis from a menu pasted on its glass case.
Other dishes available from this particular stall are cangkuk goreng, kesam ikan and kesam ensabi. The hawker is unable to explain what tubu manis is in English but she leads me to a fridge at the back of the restaurant and shows me a bag containing what look like slivers from the stem of a plant.
When I return to my table, the chicken pieces have been emptied from the bamboo and waiting for me in a bowl.
Soon, my tubu manis is presented as stir-fried with a scattering of anchovies. Expecting a yawn-worthy flavour, I’m instead jerked upright by a wallop of saltish-tartness and gusts of woodyearthy notes almost at once.
Next, the chicken. It eminates gingery-citrusy smells from galangal and lemongrass but the invigorating bash of exotic herbs I was expecting is a tad weak.
The roof of my mouth mutters a protest as it connects with bone. This is a scrawny chicken!
While sipping on my soft drink, I recall having read from the eatery’s Facebook that tuak, a Dayak alcoholic brew, is available.
Drat! I should have come with a companion so that I can drink the tuak and not drive. To take my mind off the tuak, I order penyaram.
They are pancakes the size of a regular burger. The magic of this crispyedged spongey snack is the sugar used as it has a distinctive sweetish taste.
SECOND SWING
To venture deeper into Borneo cuisine, I return for nasi goreng ikan terubuk masin. I enjoy both the fried rice and salted toli shad though the plasticky crackers should be done away with.
The star of this dish is the toli shad, which has a crispy exterior that turns to a mild woody texture that teeters dangerously on saltiness but is brought to comfort by the ingredients in the rice.
Next, I try the nasi goreng dabai. Commonly called “black olive”, dabai is one of the exotic fruits of Sarawak. It has the texture of avocado and is filled with nutty-buttery aromas.