Laksa

Laksa is a Malaysian, Singaporean, and Indonesian noodle dish with a flavor profile that is hard to define because it has so many different versions. It's also hard to pinpoint its origin but it is believed that the dish was created when Chinese immigrants combined their cooking practices with the local cooking practices.

The kind of laksa that I made is a variation of what is typically called in Malaysia as nyonya laksa or curry laksa and it uses coconut milk with a spice paste called rempah - similar to Thai curries. I first had this dish at a food stall in The Farmers Market called Singapore's Banana Leaf and it instantly became one of my favorites. It has a sweet and mellow flavor but it can be spicy depending on the amount of chilies used in the rempah (in contrast to Thai curries which I think has more complex flavor profiles because of the layering of aromatics). I learned the basics of spice pastes (and this recipe) when I briefly worked for an R+D chef - Robert Danhi - who is also the author of the James Beard Award nominated book Southeast Asian Flavors. I only worked with him for about a month and I kinda wished I worked for him for a longer time. His knowledge on Thai, Vietnamese, Malaysian and Singaporean cuisines are so extensive and I wanted to learn more.

Usually, in nyonya laksa, the rempah is made with turmeric which gives its golden yellow color, as well as candlenuts and Malaysian shrimp paste called belacan. It is typically made with seafood (shrimp or prawn) stock perfumed by daun kesum or Vietnamese coriander and coconut milk, served with rice noodles, fish cakes, tofu puffs, and topped with bean sprouts and sambal. Its mellow flavor makes it a good breakfast dish.

In my version, I used Chef Robert Danhi's recipe as a framework but I did a little bit of tweaking (not necessarily to make it better) and also used some substitutions based on what I already have in the pantry and the fridge.

To make the rempah (you will only use half the amount this recipe makes for the soup - keep the rest in the fridge, it'll keep for about a week):

3 large shallots (or 4-5 small ones), chopped into small pieces
3 medium sized lemongrass stalks, sliced thinly
about 1 tablespoon galangal, minced (better if grated)
3 cloves garlic
1 tablespoon palm sugar
1 tablespoon bagoong alamang (Filipino shrimp paste)
small handful of cashews
2 teaspoons turmeric powder
2 teaspoons coriander seeds, toasted and finely ground using a coffee grinder
about 15 to 20 dried red Thai chilies (or less if you want the soup to be milder), seeds removed, soaked in room temperature water for about 45 minutes then chopped in small pieces
1/3 cup vegetable oil

- puree everything in a food processor

To make the soup (will make 2-4 bowls depending on hunger level)

12 pieces of shrimp, peeled and de-veined, save the shells
small bunch of cilantro
1 quart of water
1 cube of shrimp bouillon (this is optional)
1 can of coconut milk
rempah (half the quantity of the recipe above)
4 calamansi citrus, juiced
fish sauce to taste
cucumber, julienned for topping
bean sprouts for toppintg
soft boiled egg for topping
egg noodles, cooked according to package directions
vegetable oil

In a small pot, heat a small amount of oil and add shrimp shells, saute until pink and fragrant. Pour in water, add in bouillon cube, boil then simmer. Add in cilantro (both leaves and stems) and simmer for about 15 minutes. Strain the stock in another small pot, then poach the shrimp in the liquid. Set shrimp aside. In a larger pot, pour oil enough to cover the bottom and heat on high. Add in the rempah and saute until fragrant and the paste becomes a darker yellow. Stir constantly to prevent the paste from burning. Then pour in the shrimp stock and the coconut milk, boil then lower heat to simmer. Simmer for about 15-20 minutes then adjust saltiness with fish sauce. Add in the calamansi juice last.

To assemble:

Put noodles in bowls then pour soup over them. Then top with cucumber, egg, bean sprouts, and poached shrimp. I like my soup smooth so I strain it before pouring over the noodles. Make sure to squeeze all of the juices out of the strained rempah!

Surprisingly, this soup is also really good ice cold. If you are gonna eat it cold, you might want to add a little more fish sauce and calamansi juice.