[Media Invite] The Peranakan Set Menu of Yesteryears (13 and 14 May 2017) @ Claymore Connect

Thinking of where to dine during Mother's Day this year? If mom likes peranakan food, then you may want to indulge her at The Peranakan, conveniently located at Claymore Connect near Orchard Hotel. For Mother's Day, Chef Raymond has lovingly put up a menu that consists of favourite dishes in a 9-course menu suitable for 4 pax. We took a sneak peak of what's in this menu. So let's eat!

The course started off with a soup. One could choose Sup Bakwan Kepiting or Itik Tim; both are common in peranakan cuisine. I got the Sup Bakwan Kepiting, a mince pork and crab meatballs soup. The broth is subtle, with a tinge of sweetness and the shredded bamboo shoots added a bit of crunch with each bite.

soup

Sup Bakwan Kepiting

Next up, for Mother's Day only, a heart-shaped nasi ulam will be making its presence known. The nasi ulam requires hours of preparations, resulting in a tasty nutritious dish. All of us enjoyed this.

Nasi Ulam

Next up, was an array of delicious and authentic peranakan dishes served together for communal dining. I was looking forward to the Sambal Pisang Jantung (though more commonly written as Sambal Jantung Pisang) which is actually a salad of banana flower.

Sambal Pisang Jantung

The Sambal Pisang Jantung was served on a plate lined with banana leave, where the salad sits in the middle with prawns adorning its crown and surrounded by crispy emping (crackers). Chef recommends us to pick up a piece of the cracker, scoop a generous amount of the salad onto it and pile it with a piece of prawn. I wasn't sure of what to expect as this was the first time I was having the banana heart salad. It was surprisingly sweet, a tad refreshing, a little piquantness and ended with a slight spicy note.

a bite of freshness

If you are looking to dishes with kuah (gravy), no worries. Coming right up!

Babi Asam

Udang Masak Nanas

Babi Asam, was a dish of no return. One bite, led to another and another. It was so flavourful! The sauce and white rice equated to yums. It had a little bit more spicy kick as compared to the rest of the dishes in this course. Liked the tender pork with a good fats to meat ratio. This ranks up there with the Trotters Babi Pongteh.

If you like it sweet, then the Udang Masak Nanas will tickle your tastebuds. The gravy was more like a soup and it was quite addictive. Just found it troublesome to have to peel off the shell off the prawns.

Bitergourd Asam Busuk

When Chef Raymond came round our table to talk about the Bittergourd Asam Busuk, we were like, "Uh? Say that again?" Yes, the name literally meant 'smelly' asam bittergourd. Even stranger, was the two fried dough fritters that sat at the both sides of the plate. For the life of me, I have never seen nor heard about this dish, have you?

Well, it turned out that the 'busuk' was implied from the salted fish. Alright, salted fish do have a distinct smell. Fortunately for us, this dish didn't smell funky at all. The salted fish was cooked down till its fragrance is extracted into the gravy which then paired well with the bitterness from the gourd and when mixed with asam, everything just harmonizes together. It had a good balance of sweet, salty, and savoury. The 'you tiao' (dough fritters) were good by the way, and we were to break it up and dip (or if you prefer, to soak up) into the gravy before popping it into the mouth. I liked it and, I think this was my favourite way of having the bittergourd asam busuk.

Telor Goreng Chinchalok

As part of the course meal, there was a lighter dish of Telor Goreng Chinchalok. Chinchalok originated from Malacca and is made of fermented shrimps. Chinchalok is one of those things that smells funky but taste so good. You could have it out of the bottle and mix it with chopped red onions with a squeeze of lime and pile some of it onto hot steamed rice. Here, at The Peranakan, chinchalok is mixed into the omelette and for extras, there is a small dish of it for you to add more. The chinchalok omelette makes a good side dish.

Of course, no one shall leave The Peranakan without ever trying its rendition of Ayam Buah Keluak. Again, this dish required steadfastness, as the preparations for the buah keluak is a tedious process. Thoroughly enjoyed the sauce and the chicken. For me, the buah keluak is an acquired taste. It's either you like it or you don't. But I do appreciate the effort that Chef Raymond and his team are putting in, in order to make this dish available at The Peranakan.

Ayam Buah Keluak

The Set Course ends with a dessert. However, the Apom Bokwa Pisang was not available during the tasting so we had kueh dadar instead. Ordered a pot of hot Malacca tea to go along with it.

kueh dadar

The above 9-Course Peranakan Set Menu of Yesteryears is priced at $200 (usual price $233) for 4 pax and is available during Mother's Day on 13 and 14 May 2017.

Thank you Hence for the invitation, Chef Raymond Khoo for hosting the dinner and The Peranakan team for taking care of us.

The Peranakan

Location: 442 Orchard Road, Level 2 Claymore Connect, 238879
Website: http://www.theperanakan.com/
Contact: +65 6262 4428
Business Hours: 
Monday-Sunday (11:00AM – 10:00PM)