Meat the Porkers @ Solaris Dutamas

Hogging the Limelight in Indian Cuisine

Talk to me about swine and I will swoon. Shamelessly biased about my love for the hog, I get excited when I hear about dishes made with it. So when Meat the Porkers came on board the culinary scene in November last year, it was big news.

Well truth be told, of course it would be big news. Never in our Indian culinary scene have we had a porky Indian restaurant or even porky Indian dishes. In fact, I would daresay it’s probably a first in Asia! Owner Herukh Jethwani, you would know him from Fierce Curry House, has been tossing his idea of taking Indian cuisine to new heights for years. Despite the unknown, he and his missus was ready to introduce porky Indian delights to our culinary scene, taking the swine into limelight in his heritage cuisine.

After toying the idea for a while, it turned out harder than he thought. Not having the knowledge in the other white meat, he had to really go through a lot but he finally made it. Even then, Herukh tested his porky creations from takeaway orders from his home too. Meat the Porkers finally opened and the rest they say is history.

Located in Publika area, the restaurant has a minimalist industrial vibe that exudes much casualness. Colorful boxy shelves with cute hogs reminded us again what we were here for. Opt for dining in the main dining area or simply al fresco.

It’s quite the thrill to see a menu that reads Siew Yoke Biryani, Tandoori Pork Ribs, Butter Pork and Bacon Cheese Naan. I just couldn’t wait to savor the dishes…

For starters, there’s Pork Pakora (RM20). Yep, you heard me… not onion pakora, not vegetable pakora but Pork Pakora served with mint chutney. These crispy nuggets of porky bits with spices and aromatics tasted so moreish, you’ll want a bucket of these. Oh wait, that’s me that wants the bucket… it’s that good!

Then there’s Pork Seekh Kebab (RM28). Moist and tender, these kebab pieces are very tasty with all the spices and herbs. Served with mint chutney too, I personally didn’t think it needed it as it was already so tasty.

When the Tandoori Pork Ribs (RM48) landed on our table, there was certainly a lot of oohs and aahs in amazement. The sight of glorious meaty pork ribs basted in the classic reddish tandoori marinade and chargrilled in a tandoor oven had everyone at the table salivating.

Don’t know how we managed to resist not attacking the ribs but rather let our camera and phone eat first was a definitely a mystery to us. The ribs is picture perfect with all its colors.

A quick cut up, the ribs looked juicy and very meaty. Expect lovely well-balance tandoori flavours with a slight tang and a good dose of smoky notes. Although it’s tender, I like how it still has a good bite. The Tandoori Pork Ribs come with lemon, mint chutney, pol sambal and tamarind BBQ sauce. Squeeze the lemon over the pork and then sprinkle the pol sambal all over the ribs as advised by Herukh. Then enjoy these with both sauces for different flavours. Lip smacking good…

Then the star of the menu showed up. Siew Yoke Biryani (RM28), hidden in the usual biryani bowl and seal with dough to keep in the aroma and flavours. The roasted pork biryani comes with sides of curry sauce, yoghurt sauce, pol sambal and pork cracklings. I am super glad the pork crackling is served on the side because this means that it will be crispy.

When the lid came off, we were hit with a wonderful aroma of spices. The biryani long grain rice was fluffy with beautiful yellow hue providing the base for fried shallots and coriander. We dug in and low behold, generous chunks of roasted pork were unveiled.

I can’t believe no one has ever thought to come up with this sooner. What a treat! The flavours of the biryani and the roasted pork with cracklings are superb. The rice was beautifully fluffy, aromatic and well flavoured with spices. The roasted pork was tender and tasty too. The combination of both was lethally yummy. As I look around, every table had at least an order of this dish. Damn shiok!

Although the Siew Yoke Biryani hog the limelight, the hogging didn’t stop there. Butter Pork (RM28), a piggy take on the much beloved butter chicken was sublime. His other restaurant already perfected the butter chicken and now it’s made with tenderloin pork fillet. Thick, lusciously rich and creamy with a nice tang of tomato flavours, the Butter Pork goes so well with rice or bread.

There’s also a porky rendition of another classic in Pork 65 Masala (RM28). Bold spice flavours with punchy heat from tenderloin pieces of pork are guaranteed to go well with rice or bread for that matter. The tiny mustard seeds added touches of popping flavours and texture to the dish.

After all that meat, we consoled our health conscience with an order of Eggplant Masala (RM17). Eggplant cooked till soft and creamy with lots of aromatics and spices, the dish was a big hit on the table.

Then, there’s also Tadka Dal (RM17), a must-order when dining on the cuisine. The version here is damn delicious. Thick, creamy, nutty and well infused with spices, dried chilies and fresh herbs, I kept piling this on my rice.

Just when I thought it couldn’t get any better, Herukh presented his pride and joy, the Bacon Cheese Naan (RM15). Bacon chips sautéed with garlic and butter, then folded into his naan with cheese and baked in tandoor oven, smelled heavenly. Definitely decadent than the usual naan. This one is a testament that bacon makes everything taste better…

We enjoyed how Meat the Porkers aim to please us swine fans. It took a huge gamble and has gone where no man has been and the gamble certainly paid off. Meat the Porkers may be the first porky Indian restaurant to hit our shores but I am sure it won’t be for long before many will follow pursuit. Herukh plans to introduce other new dishes every 6 months so expect more porky delights like Pork Rib Biryani to come. When food is this good and made even better with swine, Meat the Porkers is a must-visit!!

MEAT THE PORKERS

D1-G3-5, Publika Dutamas,

1 Jalan Dutamas 1,

Solaris Dutamas,

50480 Kuala Lumpur

Tel: 019-987 1945

Facebook: www.facebook.com/pg/MeatThePorkers

Business hours:

Wed to Mon 12noon - 3.30pm | 6.30pm-10pm (last order 9.45pm).

Closed on Tues

Fierce Curry House Goes Bir-Nana!

All Hail The Bir-Nana, Best of Biryani & Banana Leaf Rice

It takes one passionate foodie and owner who loves Biryani and Banana Leaf Rice so much, he decided to serve them together. Fierce Curry House in Bangsar has made a name for themselves in serving one of the best Hyderabadi Dum Biryani in the city. Using a family recipe, their Hyderabadi Dun Biryani is super yummy and goes from the humble variation of chicken, fish, mutton and vegetable to lavish ones with lobsters, crab, scallop, lamb shank and more (pre-order needed for premium ingredients).

Located in a humming area in Jalan Kemuja in Bangsar, Fierce Curry House is no stranger to many foodies. Owner Herukh T. Jethwani, a humble and jolly fella is set on taking Indian cuisine to new heights. Together with his wife, the enterprising couple are so passionate about food that they make frequent trips around the world to constantly catch up on the food industry.

It’s my first time at Fierce Curry House in this location but I have been to their second outlet in Publika, Fiercer a few times before to taste the dum biryani. This outlet is the original one started by Herukh’s father. They offer a no frill décor with minimal design but sufficiently comfortable and cool for dining in both air-conditioned and alfresco dining area.

The menu is filled with classic dishes of Indian cuisine from their signature Hyderabadi Dum Biryani and Tandoor meats to curries, vegetables, naan bread, snacks and desserts. I opted for a delicious Pineapple Lassi (RM7), perfect tall glass of creamy and fruity yoghurt base Lassi to quench my thirst.

To kick off the appetite while waiting for the mains to arrive, we had a plate of golden Onion Pakoras (RM8). Crispy battered sweet onion rings lightly spiced are light starters and great for sharing.

For RM10, you get to choose a beautiful platter of North or South Indian Thali. A value-for-money platter that offers 5 vegetables of the day, choice of chapati par boiled rice or white rice, rasam, pappadam, salted fried chili, kesari, dal with vegetable curry (North Indian) or sambar with Vathal Kulambi (South Indian). Generous and guaranteed to fill one up, the 13 items thali set is really a steal for its portion and variety.

If you need your protein, then just add on a portion of their choices of meat or seafood masala, curry or fried. There’s a special Crab Curry too available just on the weekends.

The Bir-Nana showed up and we swooned at the sight of the glorious platter. Flashes went off, our pupils dilated and exciting voices glee in delight at this delicious Bir-Nana. Fierce’s Bir-Nana comes with choice of signature biryani and a choice of North or South Banana leaf sidekicks of 5 Vegetables of the Day, Chicken Curry or Vahal Kulambi, Rasam, Achar, Raita, Pappadum and Kesari. Depending on your choice of biryani, The Bir-Nana set is priced from RM20 to RM26 with choices of mutton, chicken, vegetable or fish (Friday only).

We opted for Mutton Bir-Nana. The chunks of mutton are gorgeously tender and tasty. Coupled with the fluffy long grains of rice spiced up, Fierce’s Hyderabadi Dum Biryani is indeed one of the best biryani I have had in the city. Each biryani is sealed in special pots and only unsealed when served to ensure that diners get whiffs of the aromatic and tantalizing spices of the biryani.

Honestly I would have been happy to be enjoying their biryani alone but The Bir-Nana sure makes my meal more balanced with all its serving of vegetables and condiments. There’s one of my all-time-favorite crispy fried bittergourd along with aloo gobi as well as lady fingers, eggplant and potatoes. The cucumber, pineapple & onion salad along with the yoghurt raita gave the dish a lovely tang and freshness. The piquant rasam never fails to add punches of flavors and there’s even a sweet kesari to complete the meal. Super yum…

Besides The Bir-Nana and Thali set meals, there’s plenty of ala carte dishes to order at Fierce Curry House.

From the Tandoor portion, we had a moist and flavorful Chicken Tandoori (RM14 – ¼ chicken). Well marinated, the nuances of tangy yoghurt with various spices made the chicken so tasty and tender. Great on its own with a light squeeze of lime or with rice and bread.

What I love about Fierce is that one don’t really need to choose when it comes to variants of dishes as they try to offer a few on one plate. The Kebab Palette (RM22) has such pretty colours of Tandoori, Malai, Haryali and Kalmi. Boneless chicken pieces, each marinated in various marinades, are grilled in Tandoor oven, each one tasting deliciously different.

Haryali Kebab is marinated in a marinade made from lots of fresh green herbs and vegetable and spices, giving it the beautiful green hue the kebab is named after while Malai Kebab is the white one marinated in fresh cream, garlic, ginger, nuts and yoghurt. The Kalmi Kebab has a yellow hue from its marinade of turmeric powder, yoghurt, ginger, garlic, spices, cream and more while the classic Tandoor Kebab is the red one. Fierce offers the same palette in variations of prawn, fish or paneer if chicken is not to your fancy. Prices starts from RM22 to RM32 for the variations of meat and seafood.

There is also the Lamb Seekh Kebab (RM26), a favorite of mine as the minced lamb is gorgeously flavorful. I enjoyed the robust note of spices as well as the heat. The kebab is tender and moist with a good texture. It is really tasty on its own but there is also a side of mint chutney served for extra kick.

I am not sure how Orange Chicken (RM22) fits into the cuisine but Fierce has made their version well enough to make this quite a popular dish at their restaurant. Offering chicken or prawn, it’s the tangy and sweet orange sauce that seems to work well on our palettes. Lightly battered chicken is literally drenched in the citrus sauce with a creamy note. Though the chicken is good, I heard the prawn is even better…

If you have read my previous post, you would know that I am a die-hard fan of Butter Chicken (RM22). Utterly rich in flavor as well as calories, I could never resist a yummy Butter Chicken. Fierce’ Butter Chicken is one of their best sellers and not surprisingly so because the version here is immensely superb. Tender chunks of tandoor chicken cooked in a luscious cream, butter and tomato sauce with spices that can seriously made anyone’s day better. We couldn’t resist polishing up the luscious sauce with our naan that evening.

To go with all the other dishes, make sure to order Fierce’s Basket of Mixed Naan (RM12). You get pieces of Plain Naan, Garlic Naan, Butter Naan and Coriander Naan, all freshly made-to-order in the tandoor oven. Fluffy, soft and tasty, the hardest thing to do is stopping at a piece of these yummy naan.

Palak Paneer (RM20) is another classic dish that is beloved by many. What’s not to like when its paneer cheese cooked in a spinach cream sauce with spices? When I am dining on Northern Indian cuisine, this dish is a must have as well as the Butter Chicken. Both go so well together with Naan or rice!

We also had an order of Tadka Dal (RM14) to dunk our naan in. This one features yellow lentils cooked till soft and creamy with a mellow touch of spices.

Bhindi Masala (RM14) has a hearty concoction of lady fingers sautéed with potatoes and spices. Easy to enjoy and we do need our vegetables…

Stuffed to max but who can resist an order of Roti Nutella (RM10)? Thin roti stuffed with generous slathering of Nutella makes a different dessert instead of the classic ones. It’s quite a heavy dessert so best to share them though you may not really want too.

I’ll definitely be back for Fierce Curry House’s Bir-Nana, Hyderabadi Dum Biryani, Thali Set, Butter Chicken and Palak Paneer for sure…

FIERCE CURRY HOUSE

16, Jalan Kemuja,

Bangsar,

59000 Kuala Lumpur

Tel: 03-2202 3456 / 019-3830 945

Facebook: www.facebook.com/FierceCurryHouse

Qureshi Restaurant @ Kuala Lumpur Golf & Country Club

A Taste of Royal Indian Cuisine

Little did many know that there is a majestic Indian restaurant located in the Kuala Lumpur Golf & Country Club that serves fine Awadhi cuisine, Northern Indian cuisine from the city of Lucknow. Qureshi Restaurant made it appearance a year ago but unknown to many, the restaurant belongs to Indian Master Chef Imtiaz Qureshi and family. Born into a family of legendary chefs, who has serves the many royalties of India, Chef Imtiaz’s journey was equally as great if not better than the Qureshi clan of master chefs.

Turning 86 this year, Chef Imtiaz has also just been awarded the fourth highest civilian award of Padma Shri, an award that chefs rarely are recipients. Still the grand master chef of the acclaimed Dum Pukht restaurants of the ITC hotels, he not only still reigns his empire himself but his sons are also with him in the same industry.

While his two master chef sons, Mohammed Ashfaque and Mohammed Irfan Qureshi, has their own restaurants all over the world, his other son, also an acclaimed master chef personally trained by his father, Muhammad Ahsan Ali Qureshi manages the family’s newest international venture and the first in Malaysia.

Stepping into Qureshi, one cannot help but to be immediately in awe of its grandeur. The restaurant is gorgeously elegant. All decked in gold, black and neutrals, the main dining room even has a fabulous dome ceiling covered in gold and black.

Lustrous chandeliers mixed with Indian light pieces, elegant plush high back chairs and pristine table setting with brightly polished copper cups, plates, napkin rings and silverware really take shouts fine regal dining at its best. There are also two private rooms as well as alfresco area outside.

From the moment we sat down to the end of our meal, service was discreet and impeccable. And this doesn’t apply to us only because we can see the same for all the other tables too. What surprises us was that the menu was filled with dishes set with affordable pricing. Despite the fine and grand ambiance, Qureshi’s menu was decently priced and quality of the food was indeed refine.

A starter of golden thin disc of pappadums served with some bread and an array of dhals and minty spiced yoghurt was already an explosion of flavours on the palate.

Seafood Pakora (RM45) was golden and crispy prawns, squid and mussel enveloped in a spiced batter. Delicious on its own, these were made even better with a side of soy vinegar reduction.

Crispy patties of potato and cashew nut are breaded with tiny crispy bubbles and fried till golden in Aloo Moti Tikki (RM25). Served with pretty pink radish and mustard pickle and sides of tamarind chutney as well as mint chutney.

The patties are delightfully light and creamy with crispy edges. The flavours are beautifully tasty of potatoes and nuts. The radish gave a refreshing boost while the chutneys are bombs of flavours.

Murgh Peshawari Tikka (RM35) is superb. Boneless chicken thighs marinated in Peshwari spices and grilled in tandoor oven was very moist and tasty. The chicken has a solid balance of spices but is not spicy in heat. Even my little one enjoy this chicken very much although he is not a fan of spices.

Qureshi’s signature is their Dum Biryani. One simply must order these as Chef Imtiaz has made extra effort in perfecting his Dum Lucknowi Biryani (RM45). Cooked the traditional method where the rice and meat is cooked separately before being combined and cooked again in a sealed dough. The long grain basmathi rice is beautifully fluffy and golden. Spiced and seasoned well, we dug in to unveil pieces of succulent spiced lamb that is wonderfully tender and tasty.

Our order of Butter Chicken (RM35) had all the check marks of a delicious mild and creamy curry with a tomatoey base. Large pieces of boneless chicken coupled with the curry had me piling on my plate with much happiness. This is one of my all-time favorite curry and Qureshi’s version did not disappoint indeed.

Gloriously moreish, the Prawn Curry (RM45) warrants an order for its rich depth of spiced flavours. Not too spicy, the prawn has sublime flavours that makes you want to keep savoring it’s richness.

There is also a lush yellow Goan Fish Curry (RM35) that goes very well with rice or bread. Mellow and creamy, the curry goes really well as it does not overpower the delicate boneless fish pieces. Great for diners of all ages, this curry is a signature of the Goa state in India.

Chickpeas ‘Dhaba’ Style (RM26), luscious cassoulet of creamy and nutty chickpeas cooked with nigella seeds till soft was another crowd pleaser that evening.

Paneer cheese is a constant favorite of mine and I would definitely order it if it’s on the menu. The Paneer Tikka Butter Masala (RM28) was easy to enjoy. Cooked the same as the Butter Chicken, the creamy soft paneer was heavenly in the creamy tomatoey curry.

Mirch Balgan ka Salan (RM26) had everyone raving on the gorgeous soft brinjal and bhajji chillies cooked with peanut, coconut and sesame. It has such a tangy and spiced up flavour that literally makes the dish mouth-watering addictive!

One simply must order their Dal Qureshi (RM30) too. While most dal curries are quite mild and cooked with lots of vegetables and yellow dal, the Dal Qureshi is slow stewed black lentils with tomatoes and finished with butter and cream. The result is a masterpiece of luscious curry that goes really well with all their rice and bread.

Qureshi offers a good selections of bread. One can order their Tandoori Roti (RM10) or Cheese Naan (RM12) to go with all the rich curries. I was particularly fond of the Tandoori Roti for its buttery flavour.

We ended our meal with more richness and the Gulab Jamun (RM20) was even served with mango yoghurt sorbet. The dessert turned out to be pretty good because the unctuous fried balls were nicely lighten up with the fruity sweet and tangy sorbet.

We also had some Mango Yoghurt Sorbet and Pistachio Ice Cream.

A surprising treat at Qureshi reminded me that we should not judge a book by its cover. Despite its majestic ambiance, the restaurant is decently priced. Lots of efforts are seen at Qureshi from its gorgeous ambiance to the beautiful rich Northern Indian menu as well as the impeccable service. Head on over if you are looking to impress your dinner guests or family.

QURESHI RESTAURANT

Ground Floor, East Lobby,

Kuala Lumpur Golf & Country Club

No 10, Jalan 1/70D,

Off Jalan Bukit Kiara,

6000 Kuala Lumpur

Tel: +603-2011 1007

Email: info@qureshi-intl.com

GPS: 3.138820, 101.639465

Website: www.qureshi-intl.com

Facebook: www.facebook.com/QureshiRestaurantKL