Laksa is synonymous with Malaysian cuisine.
Few dishes are more popular in both Malaysia and Singapore and you'd be hardpressed finding a menu restaurants or hawker centers (similar to neighbourhood food courts) that don't specialise in Laksa.
Laksa is a popular spicy noodle soup from Peranakan culture, which is a merger of Chinese and Malay elements found in Malaysia and Singapore.
There are two types of laksa: curry laksa (curry mee) and assam laksa. The curry laksa has coconut milk in it's soup base while Assam laksa is a hot and sour soup base akin to Tom Yum in Thai cuisine.
An already spicy and rich soup is made even more so by a serving of hot sambal (chilli paste) on the side. In traditional Laksa, the soup is quite thick with the proportion of coconut milk exceeding the quantity of stock, 2-3 times.
Of all the Laksa variations out there, my favorite is the the Nonya classic, Laksa Lemak, which is a seafood laksa also in a coconut milk broth but to me breathtakingly fragrant and exquisitely delicious with home made Laksa Spicy Paste.
Nonya refers to the cultural fusion that occured when the Chinese settled in Malaysia and married the local Malays.
As in all cuisine of this region, the dishes blend Chinese, Malay and Indian cuisines making it a cuisine unique and entirely it's own.
Gather the ingredients,Laksa Spice Paste: Use half for this recipe, refrigerate remainder for upto 6 months for future use
10 brazil nuts or candle nuts, 3 tbs frozen chopped lemongrass (store-bought) or 4 stalks fresh lemongrass, 1-1/2 tbs chopped fresh garlic, 2 tbs shrimp paste in bean oil (store-bought), 2 inches fresh galangal (use ginger if galangal is unavailable), 4 fresh Thai red chillies, 1 tsp ground turmeric & 2 tbs oil
Laksa: 1/2 lb prawns, 1 lb mussels, 3/4 lb white fish fillets (like Tilapia, Flounder or Grouper), 2 cans coconut milk, 4 cups or 1 carton chicken stock, 1 stalk lemon grass cut into 2-3 pieces, 12 oz (1 packet) fresh noodles - egg or flour noodles, 3 oz (1/2 packet) dried mung bean/cellophane noodles, 6 oz deep fried tofu (store bought), 2 tbs vegetable oil & boiling hot water as needed
To serve
fresh mint leaves, fresh bean sprouts & fresh lime wedges
Laksa Spice paste: Must use a food processor for this.
Galangal: Peel and set aside. Galangal is incredibly hard so don't try chopping, just peel with a vegetable peeler.
To the food processor, first add the galangal. Finely chop. Now add all the other ingredients including the oil. Process till all the ingredients are finely chopped.
Stir to include all the ingredients stuck to side of the bowl and process 2-3 times so the paste is as fine as possible. The laksa spice paste will be finely chopped but will not be a smooth paste like a Thai curry paste or pesto.
Fish fillets: Cut into 1-1/2" pieces and set aside.
Prawns: Shell, devein leaving the tails intact.
Fried tofu: Slice into 1/4" thick slices and set aside.
Garnishes: Seperate the mint leaves from the stalks. Cut limes into wedges and mound some bean sprouts on a platter. Plate and set aside until ready to serve.
Method:
Bring a pot of water to boil. There should be enough water in the pot to soak all the noodles.
Once the water is boiling, add the mung bean/cellophane noodles and simmer for about 3 minutes. Add the other noodles and remove the pot from heat. Use a fork to separate the noodles.
Drain in a sieve, run tap water over the noodles separating with clean hands and set aside until ready to use.
In a large sauce pan or wok with a lid, heat the oil until very hot over medium heat. Add half the laksa paste as directed above and saute for about 2-3 minutes until the mixture is aromatic.
Add the chicken stock, lemongrass stalks and coconut milk. Allow to heat through and come to a boil.
Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for about 10 minutes so all the flavors have meld together.
Add the fried tofu, fish, mussels and prawns to the pan and cook, covered for about 5 minutes or so until the mussels open. Discard any unopened mussels.
Good to know: Leave a small gap between the lid and pot allowing the steam to escape otherwise the soup will overflow making one heck of a mess!
Divide about 2 cups noodles per serving in bowls and ladle the hot laksa soup & seafood over the noodles. You can also serve each bowl with the noodles and serve the Laksa soup in a large tureen allowing folks to serve themselves at the table.
Serve immediately. Pass around a platter of bean sprouts, mint leaves and lemon wedges at the table.
Recipe for
Laksa Lemak ~ Seafood Laksa is a Nyonya Classic from Malaysia
Preparation time - 15 mins
Cooking time - 15 mins
Serves 4-6
Shopping list
Laksa Spice Paste:
Use half for this recipe, refrigerate remainder for upto 6 months for future use
10 brazil nuts or candle nuts
3 tbs frozen chopped lemongrass (store-bought) or 4 stalks fresh lemongrass
1-1/2 tbs chopped fresh garlic
2 tbs shrimp paste in bean oil (store-bought)
2 inches fresh galangal (use ginger if galangal is unavailable)
4 fresh Thai red chillies
1 tsp ground turmeric
2 tbs oil
Laksa:
1/2 lb prawns
1 lb mussels
3/4 lb white fish fillets (like Tilapia or Grouper)
2 cans coconut milk
4 cups chicken stock
1 stalk lemon grass cut into 2-3 pieces
12 oz (1 packet) fresh noodles - egg or flour noodles
3 oz (1/2 packet) mung bean/cellophane noodles
6 oz deep fried tofu (store bought)
1/4 cup vegetable oil
boiling hot water as needed
To serve
fresh mint leaves or Asian basil leaves
fresh bean sprouts
fresh lime wedges
Preparation:
Laksa Spice paste: Must use a food processor for this.
Galangal: Peel and set aside. Galangal is incredibly hard so don't try chopping, just peel with a vegetable peeler.
To the food processor, first add the galangal. Finely chop.
Now add all the other ingredients including the oil. Process till all the ingredients are finely chopped. Stir to include all the ingredients stuck to side of the bowl and process 2-3 times so the paste is as fine as possible.
The laksa paste will be finely chopped but not a smooth paste like a Thai curry paste or pesto.
Fish fillets: Cut into 1-1/2" pieces and set aside.
Prawns: Shell, devein leaving the tails intact.
Fried tofu: Slice into 1/4" thick slices and set aside.
Method:
Bring a pot of water to boil. There should be enough water in the pot to soak all the noodles.
Once the water is boiling, add the mung bean/cellophane noodles and simmer for about 3 minutes. Add the other noodles and remove the pot from heat. Use a fork to separate the noodles.
Drain in a sieve, run tap water over the noodles separating with clean hands and set aside until ready to use.
In a large sauce pan or wok with a lid, heat the oil until very hot over medium heat. Add half the laksa paste as directed above and saute for about 2-3 minutes until the mixture is aromatic.
Add the chicken stock, lemongrass stalks and coconut milk. Allow to heat through and come to a boil.
Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for about 10 minutes so all the flavors have meld together.
Add the fried tofu, fish, mussels and prawns to the pan and cook, covered for about 5 minutes or so until the mussels open. Discard any unopened mussels.
Good to know: Leave a small gap between the lid and pot allowing the steam to escape otherwise the soup will overflow making one heck of a mess!
Divide about 2 cups noodles per serving in bowls and ladle the hot laksa soup & seafood over the noodles. You can also serve each bowl with the noodles and serve the Laksa soup in a large tureen allowing folks to serve themselves at the table.
Serve immediately. Pass around a platter of bean sprouts, mint leaves and lemon wedges at the table.
Enjoy!