People who come to Penang and those who were born and live here seldom think more about the many wonderful curries they feast on almost every day beyond the spiciness, taste and deliciousness of each mouthful. But curry in Penang has such a rich and on-going provenance that goes back centuries that it would be impossible to write about it on a single blog post.
For starters, the word 'curry' is usually said to derive from the Indian 'kari' - a thin, spiced sauce. But according to the BBC, the English cookbook The Forme of Cury (published in the 1390's, long before any Englishman set foot in India) referred to any form of hot food as 'cury' - and that came from the French 'cuire'. So to avoid any historical disputes, I'm just going to focus on the different types of curry you're likely to encounter around the island, from the most common to the rarest.
The red curry made with coconut milk is the one most Penangites usually think of when you mention the word 'curry' and this may be made with any form of meat, fish or even just vegetables for vegetarians. So by and large, this is the most ubiquitous. But not all red coloured curries are made with coconut, Nor are all curries cooked by Indians and Malays only. Or red for that matter.
Kari kapitan looks like a drier form of red curry and it is a Penang original. It has much less gravy and looks quite a bit darker. It's a semi-dry curry and is very rich with coconut flavour because the coconut milk is simmered until most of the water content has evaporated. There are Indian versions of it and these are more likely to have been the original dishes but the general opinion is that kari kapitan was invented by the Nyonya or Straits-Chinese ladies. One characteristic of it is the combination of coconut milk and lemon grass, a true sign that they was probably influenced by both Malay (the lemon grass) as well as Indian cooks.
There is also yellow curry. A richer, more citrusy and occasionally equally spicy concoction that makes extensive use of lemon grass and kafir lime leaves. You can get both fish, chicken and vegetarian versions of this. It's probably derived from Thai cuisine but the Penang version does not use quite as many herbs and for the most part, is much more savoury, less sweet and a tad more gingery.
And then there's 'masak pedas' or 'cooked spicy' to give it its meaning. It looks like a curry but there's usually no coconut involved and it looks slightly drier than the usual curry. These are usually fish, seafood or vegetable dishes and a usually quite citrusy since asam (tamarind) juice or lime juice is part of the base paste.
But don't mistake masak pedas for 'sambal' which is basically fish, vegetables or seafood (shellfish, squid or octopus for the most part) cooked in a basic chilli, onion or shallot and garlic paste.It's much less rich, sometimes sweeter but usually more spicy hot.
But don't get that confused with gulai (pronounced 'goo-lai') either. Gulai is another catch-all term that can be confusing for the non-Malaysian. Gulai ikan (fish curry) is more like a 'masak pedas' but with more gravy and ground shallots while gulai ayam (chicken curry) is exactly that.
The best part about currying flavours in Penang, however, is how the basic recipes are slowly evolving. Unlike their forebears, modern Penangites of all races and religions are always on the lookout for new flavours, taste textures and combinations. The old-fashioned Penangite who could never travel out of state without a tub of sambal belacan (chilli paste made with fermented and dried fish) is slowly disappearing.
Nowadays, there are even experimental Japanese curries being offered on the island. Made with a rich roux of butter and flour to complement the fragrant spices instead of coconut milk, it is often a little sweeter, much less spicy than the locals are used to and it's smoother. It's equally rich flavour is surely finding favour with local palates as well. Perhaps the often very cutesy presentation might have something to do with that, too. Don't you think a whole nest of baby panda rice balls is more tempting than a big plain old blob of rice?
On the other hand, in such a rapidly changing foodscape, some traditional delicacies are also falling into the 'endangered' category. If you can find masak titik being offered at any of the island's eateries or hawker stalls, don't hesitate to try it because it's rapidly becoming one of those dishes few people under the age of 50 can cook any more.
And what is masak titik? It's not technically a curry or a sambal in any way. It's more of a mildly spiced but peppery soup made with either white radish, watermelon skins, occasionally winter melons or papaya, sambal belacan, both fresh and dried prawns, as well as pepper (lots of it!) and daun kadok or wild pepper leaves.
The rarest form of this rare dish, however, has to be the bamboo shoot version. I have neither seen nor tasted it once during the last twenty years!
So if you're in Penang, feast on the fabulous curries of Penang at either of the Bayview hotels on the island while you can. Even at local 3 and 4-star hotels, some of the things you're tucking away might become little more than the stuff of fondly remembered legends very soon!
Kari kapitan looks like a drier form of red curry and it is a Penang original. It has much less gravy and looks quite a bit darker. It's a semi-dry curry and is very rich with coconut flavour because the coconut milk is simmered until most of the water content has evaporated. There are Indian versions of it and these are more likely to have been the original dishes but the general opinion is that kari kapitan was invented by the Nyonya or Straits-Chinese ladies. One characteristic of it is the combination of coconut milk and lemon grass, a true sign that they was probably influenced by both Malay (the lemon grass) as well as Indian cooks.
There is also yellow curry. A richer, more citrusy and occasionally equally spicy concoction that makes extensive use of lemon grass and kafir lime leaves. You can get both fish, chicken and vegetarian versions of this. It's probably derived from Thai cuisine but the Penang version does not use quite as many herbs and for the most part, is much more savoury, less sweet and a tad more gingery.
And then there's 'masak pedas' or 'cooked spicy' to give it its meaning. It looks like a curry but there's usually no coconut involved and it looks slightly drier than the usual curry. These are usually fish, seafood or vegetable dishes and a usually quite citrusy since asam (tamarind) juice or lime juice is part of the base paste.
But don't mistake masak pedas for 'sambal' which is basically fish, vegetables or seafood (shellfish, squid or octopus for the most part) cooked in a basic chilli, onion or shallot and garlic paste.It's much less rich, sometimes sweeter but usually more spicy hot.
But don't get that confused with gulai (pronounced 'goo-lai') either. Gulai is another catch-all term that can be confusing for the non-Malaysian. Gulai ikan (fish curry) is more like a 'masak pedas' but with more gravy and ground shallots while gulai ayam (chicken curry) is exactly that. The best part about currying flavours in Penang, however, is how the basic recipes are slowly evolving. Unlike their forebears, modern Penangites of all races and religions are always on the lookout for new flavours, taste textures and combinations. The old-fashioned Penangite who could never travel out of state without a tub of sambal belacan (chilli paste made with fermented and dried fish) is slowly disappearing.
Nowadays, there are even experimental Japanese curries being offered on the island. Made with a rich roux of butter and flour to complement the fragrant spices instead of coconut milk, it is often a little sweeter, much less spicy than the locals are used to and it's smoother. It's equally rich flavour is surely finding favour with local palates as well. Perhaps the often very cutesy presentation might have something to do with that, too. Don't you think a whole nest of baby panda rice balls is more tempting than a big plain old blob of rice?On the other hand, in such a rapidly changing foodscape, some traditional delicacies are also falling into the 'endangered' category. If you can find masak titik being offered at any of the island's eateries or hawker stalls, don't hesitate to try it because it's rapidly becoming one of those dishes few people under the age of 50 can cook any more.
And what is masak titik? It's not technically a curry or a sambal in any way. It's more of a mildly spiced but peppery soup made with either white radish, watermelon skins, occasionally winter melons or papaya, sambal belacan, both fresh and dried prawns, as well as pepper (lots of it!) and daun kadok or wild pepper leaves.The rarest form of this rare dish, however, has to be the bamboo shoot version. I have neither seen nor tasted it once during the last twenty years!
So if you're in Penang, feast on the fabulous curries of Penang at either of the Bayview hotels on the island while you can. Even at local 3 and 4-star hotels, some of the things you're tucking away might become little more than the stuff of fondly remembered legends very soon!
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