The Man Behind the Scenes
A visual presentation for the eyes as the gravy is poured unto the pancake shaped fried bihun noodles (rice noodles) and the fried kuey teow (fried flat noodles). The sharp cracking sound of the noodles breaking apart as you separate them echoed in your ears. So many ingredients come into play inside the gravy itself, you have prawns, squid, pork,chopped garlic, some mustard leaves and the most important one, egg. Egg is used as the mediator as it brings all the different texture and flavour into one table and unites them under one banner. Each time you mix the noodles around the steam arises from the depths of the dish like a phoenix, a blow isn't enough to comprehend the heat but what do you care and you put the hot food into your mouth. As humans we tend to have mistakes but sometimes there are mistakes with a good outcome and in this situation there wasn't.
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| Candy for the eyes |
Chopped cili padi in soy sauce is given as a condiment to bring the scorching heat of a thousand suns into your mouth. The texture of the gravy in this cantonese style fried noodles isn't too thick that it clumped together nor was it too watery that it was tasteless but it was perfect enough that each sip didn't feel like corn flour. The taste of the gravy was exquisite and with each sip you let out a pleasant sigh, accompany that with the cili padi and you'd have a savory taste yet hot spicy kick that is going to leave you wet and panting. Umami is the word I would use to describe the taste of the dish, it is what the japanese call a pleasant savory taste. The portion size can easily feed two person for just RM8.
Cantonese style fried noodles has a very strong texture game going. The fried kuey teow balances the crispy fried bihun with its soft texture that with every bite you take it is a different texture, soft and crunchy. The pork meat is cooked and tender, the mustard leaves are help with the heat when you add cili padi and doesn't have the bitter taste in contrast to what you'd find in other places. Prawn is fresh and juicy and the squid is chewy.
One thing is for sure, the chef's skill is translated into the dish he makes. Equipment is only 10% when it comes to cooking Dai Chao, the rest comes from skill and ingredients. His moves fluid and filled with determination for the craft he makes, with one hand handling the wok, the other throwing the ingredients in like a spell caster. The flames become fiercer but he fears none of it and battles it out so that all the ingredients may blossom in taste. The thunderous roar of the wok echoed in the kitchen. This is what we love about Dai Chao because you cannot produce such an authentic taste out of artificial ingredients. When you look at the dish as a whole you'd see a theater as the ingredients form the stage for its act and with each elegant move they make you are captivated and in awe. All that is happening on the stage is the product of the man behind the curtains, the chef.
Makan Meter: 8/10
Restoran Hiong Pan
Pandan Indah
55100 Kuala Lumpur
Selangor
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