A SINGAPORE PRESS HOLDINGS WEBSITE
Malaysia, December 21, 2010
THE southern states of the peninsula, especially Johor, are popular for asam pedas.
To the uninitiated, the dish is a hot, spicy and sour stew with usually fish as its main ingredient.
Spanish mackerel, stingray or catfish are commonly used.
In Johor, beef or chicken may replace the fish.
The common ingredients are dried chillies, shallots, garlic, belacan (prawn paste), daun kesum, bunga kantan (torch ginger flower), and asam jawa (tamarind) juice. Some recipes call for ginger, galangal, fresh turmeric, lemon grass and asam gelugor.
A corner restaurant in Kampung Sungai Danga has recently become famous for its assam pedas black pepper for the past year.
Despite its out-of-the-way location -- it is next to the Johor Baru-Nusajaya coastal highway project -- the Asam Pedas Danga Link restaurant is seeing a huge lunchtime crowd on weekdays.
It is accessible from Taman Perling in Johor Baru.
Managed by 53-year-old Asiah Ibrahim, the restaurant relies on quality and freshness of ingredients as the main selling point.
Asiah is assisted by her daughters Julie Diana Omar Shariff, 31, Juwita Farrah, 30, and son Mohd Aliff Zubir, 23.
In the mornings, the restaurant serves the typical Johor breakfast of nasi lemak and mee Siam. By 11am, the asam pedas is ready to be ladled out.
"Asam pedas is a dish close to many Johoreans' hearts. For the dish to be good, it must be made with quality ingredients," said Asiah.
At Asam Pedas Danga Link, the key ingredient is black pepper. The signature dish with your choice of fish, chicken or beef comes in a clay pot, with a plate of rice and vegetables. Those unable to stomach spicy food are advised to go easy on the gravy.
Asiah said to make good asam pedas, one should be generous with the shallots, garlic, bunga kantan, dried chillies, shrimp paste and tamarind juice. She said the daun kesum was a must as it gave the dish a coriander-like smell with a clear lemony note.
Julie said they also made sure the fish, chicken or beef were fresh and properly cleaned.
"The business has been good since we opened the eatery in November last year. We also provide catering services for events," she said, adding that the family plans to expand the business into other areas in Johor Baru.
Asam Pedas Danga Link is open from 6am to 4pm daily, and closed on Fridays. It is located at the junction of Jalan Kassim Nur in Kampung Sungai Danga in Johor Baru.
