Monday, August 27, 2007

Merdeka Open House 2007 : Muhibbah

Babe_KL had asked a group of us to take part in this year's Merdeka Open House 2007 : Muhibbah, a virtual celebration of Malaysia's Independence Day which she will be hosting. What we have to do is to either cook or post on a favourite dish of ours from a different ethnic. Since this is my first time taking part in such an event, I had to check with Babe_KL whether I could just repost an old food entry of mine; one that is truly my favourite. Ayam Percik from Kota Bahru!

The Ayam Percik here in Kota Bahru has a very distinctive flavour and there isn't one that comes close to it here in Klang Valley. I was presently surprised when I received an email from Michael, an American residing in South Georgia.

"Hi, What a great post you did about food in Khota Bharu and ayam percik. I've been trying to make that ever since I was there ten years ago. Twice a year I google it for recipes and your post was the best thing I've seen yet. That tangy sauce is hard to get right.

I posted a link to your blog on mine because I've been telling stories about how good the food is in Khota Bharu for a long time and your pictures really brought it to life for me. Thank you!"

And when I replied a short note to him saying that food in Kota Bahru is great....food in Malaysia is great, this was his reply :-

"You are so right, I ate my way across Malaysia and loved every minute of it. I thought Penang was great for eating, there's such variety; its still the best south Indian vegetarian I've had anywhere. For Malaysian food KB was fantastic and I had a great time on those islands east of there."

Well, you can imagine how great the Ayam Percik here is since Michael still remembers it ten years later! Well, what can I say...except this

Malaysia - love the country, love the food!
Selamat Hari Merdeka!


(Originally posted on May 02, 2007 - Kota Bahru Food Trip Pt. 8 Final)

The is the last installment in the Kota Bahru Food Trip series! The night before we left, we headed to Yati Ayam Percik (Spicy BBQ Chicken) for dinner. I had eaten at this place before many years ago and looked forward to it again as the chicken was delicious. Before I totally forget how it was, it was timely indeed that I manage to pay another visit to this place yet again, refreshing my memory and reminding my taste buds.
Yati1
Located at 847, Jalan Long Yunus - you can smell the lovely aroma of food all around!
Yati2

yati3
They sell plenty of local kuihs too....apart from the lovely Nasi Pulut Panggang
yati4
Food galore! Look at all these really big woks of dishes and different types of curry gravy!
yati5
There's a large grilling pit at one corner where all the cooking action is happening; staff basting the meat with the delicious gravy once in awhile.
yati6
We opted for plain rice with a bit of fried desiccated coconut, beansprouts, some leaves and gravy. Good enough to eat on its own!
ayampercik
Finally, the most delicious Ayam Percik I have ever eaten! The secret is in the gravy that makes it so good. Somehow, I have been unable to find the same tasty gravy served with Ayam Percik here in the Klang Valley. It's creamy with a hint of coconut and unknown wonderful spices (unknown to me, that is)...eating there, I was happy that we could ask for extra gravy. Now, this is what I call "Finger licking good!"

For those who might want to try their hand at cooking Ayam Percik themselves, I found some recipes online; here, here and here (might not be as good as Yati's though). Try your hand at them and let me know if any of them are good. If yes, do invite me for a meal! Ha ha ha...

If you are ever in Kota Bahru, this is one of the places that you must eat at! Opening Hours: Saturday-Thursday (noon-11.30pm); Friday (3pm-11.30pm) Phone: 09-7479867.

Posts on Merdeka Open House 2007 : Muhibbah

17 comments:

KopiSoh said...

Ayam percik is very time consuming that's why I hardly make it :P
Sigh I am feeling nostalgic again thinking of Kota Bharu.....

Anonymous said...

Very nice food but luckily I am sick so no appetite to lau-nuah! :)

Anonymous said...

Of all the kuih kuih, I like savory ones best.

Precious Pea said...

KB, too far for me to go, but luckily ramadan is coming.

teckiee said...

im going to die liua.. have haven got time to cook my entry

Big Boys Oven said...

Oh ayam percik......they are so lovely, so local, so pretty, and yet so delicious. A defintely a local chicken dish to be proud of.

Anonymous said...

Yay, let's go shopping for malay goodies during Ramadhan!

Tummythoz said...

Oh no. Think I'll miss d event this time around, again! Still dono what to post! Arrrgghhh!

wmw said...

firehorse : You didn't make a trip back there when you came back recently?

judy: Aiks! Still not fully well yet?

tigerfish : I like both sweet and savoury ones :o)

precious pea & jason : Yay! Time to go Ramadhan food hunting!

big boys oven : Sigh, I'm missing the ayam percik....

k.t.x said...

oh mann, u r so right!!! i was there with my father some years back on a walk down memory lane trip...and we had a good time checking out those kelate grubs!!!

emmm, seriously, if u were to ask me, i prefer kelate's stuff to penang's. penang's soo over-rated! lol.

Kok said...

wmw,
this ayam percik again! Aiyoyo...how come whenever I come to your blog, I've to have my saliva dripping all over????

backStreetGluttons said...

we shall try to snap some pixs at da same place to understand why
coz we think they are a bit overgravied

daphne said...

my bf saw the ayam percik and got really excited-telling me that he has forgotten abt it till he saw the picture! LOL

I on the other hand.... is looking at the kuihs! ;p

wonda said...

I have forgotten what ayam percik tasted like. I had Kelantanese ayam panggang paste (Maggi brand). Is it the same?

Babe_KL said...

thank you so much for participating. i totally agree with that part.. love Malaysia, love her food!!! i'm so glad i'm a Malaysian!

wmw said...

k.t.x:Yup, food in KB is one of a kind! Love 'em! I suppose I would also rate them higher as there are lots of Penang food stalls here in Klang Valley (though not as good as those in Penang itself) whereas it's hard to find these east coast treats!

kok : Hahaha....Don't drool like that in front of a girl!

team bsg : The more gravy the better, I love the ayam percik gravy!

daphne : Ah yes, I understand that feeling of excitement! :o)

wonda : Same name but probably different taste. You have to eat at Yati's to know what I'm talking about.

babe_kl : Thanks for the invite to take part. But sorry, I didn't cook ler...

jackson : No need to cook, like me, just repost or post of a food that is of a different ethnic.

Anonymous said...

Just saw your post and thought of putting in my 2 cents worth of comment. For most of us who know where to source a good ayam percik, Yati is rated as No. 3. There's one homemade ayam percik by a Chinese lady is to die for ......