♪ >> We're at the foot of Mount Ophir, the tallest peak in Southern Peninsula Malaysia.

Tangkak is also a very popular trading center for fabrics.

Here, a lot of fabric shops.

Besides, a lot of delicious food such as beef-noodle soup, roast pork, wonton noodle, and many more.

♪ ♪ ♪ >> "Taste of Malaysia with Martin Yan" is brought to you by... >> ♪ Yeah, yeah ♪ >> Circulon Cookware -- Circles for life.

>> Monogram -- a full line of professional appliances designed for food and entertaining enthusiasts.

♪ ♪ >> By Melissa's.

♪ The freshest ideas in produce.

>> By Granite Expo -- offering a wide selection of cabinet and countertop solutions.

And by B&G Group of Malaysia.

♪ Building Malaysia's tomorrow.

♪ >> In this town, early birds get the fresh noodle.

I'm in front of the most popular noodle shop in town, Chew Chee.

♪ >> The noodle is absolutely delicious, but you know what?

It all starts in this little room.

40 square feet.

They've been doing the same thing, making the noodle here for over 70 years.

Third generation Fai right here, showing us how to do it.

Put a tiny bit of carbonated water and then water.

Mix them all up.

Just like tai chi.

Ah, tai chi.

Wah!

[ Grunting ] Tai chi movement!

You got to get that gluten out.

[ Thudding ] There it is.

Truly family tradition, passed from generation to another.

Started with Mr. Wu's father and grandfather.

They have been selling the same recipe.

That's tradition.

That's experience.

Experience makes the best wonton here.

In today's world, everybody's conscious about health.

Now, this is healthy product.

Brown rice.

It is the healthiest rice, much better than the white rice.

You know, Malaysia is a rice-consuming nation.

This is good for people that are elderly, have diabetes, or simply health-conscious.

I'm gonna check out what other products they have made with brown rice by-products, and check it out.

You can tell by the way I look, I'm very, very health conscious.

I only pick up things that are healthy to my body.

And today I'm very happy to introduce my good friend, Eunice, General Manager of Everlasting Food Industries.

This is brown rice.

And brown rice is definitely a lot healthier than white rice.

>> Brown rice is an unpolished rice.

Because brown rice contains rice bran, rice germ, and endosperm, and white rice only contains endosperm.

>> White rice, you lose a lot of nutrients.

From this brown rice, you can make into all kinds of rice products.

Let's look at the noodle.

All of these are actually made with brown rice itself.

>> All these snacks made from brown rice, also.

And it is non-fried food.

It is oven-baked.

>> Yeah.

>> And it is free from artificial coloring, and also preservative-free.

>> Mmm.

Let me taste -- This is brown-rice coffee.

Much more substantial than coffee because it's got brown-rice powder.

Mmm.

The rice sweetness.

Perfect.

I love it.

With all of these wonderful things, I am educated, and I hope I get an opportunity to try all of these and bring it home and practice.

Thank you so very much, Eunice.

>> Thank you.

You're welcome.

>> You have done a good job explaining to us, from simple rice, you can create a multitude of rice products.

♪ Look at behind me, this majestic mountain range and this beautiful palm-oil plantation.

Over the past 100 years or so, palm oil has replaced rubber and tin as Malaysia's leading natural resources.

Today, Malaysia is one of the leading palm-oil producers in the world, and palm oil holds a very prominent position in the country's economy.

It employs more than 500,000 people directly.

A lot of people probably don't realize palm oil also helps boost the body's immune system, reducing the risk of heart disease, and even vision loss.

I learned this particular dish from Chef Lee of the Gunung Ledang Resort, right on the other side.

Here, I have chicken.

Look at this.

Remove the bone.

And then we're gonna marinate it.

You beat up an egg.

Okay.

Beat it up.

First, salt and pepper.

And a tiny bit of sesame-seed oil.

You do it like this.

Okay?

Right here.

This is the easiest way to do at home, okay?

You mix it, and you coat it on both sides, okay?

And then you put the castor powder, which gives it nice golden-brown color.

Tiny bit of extra salt.

Corn starch.

Lot of corn starch.

If you want, you can even use some cashew, put it here, to give texture contrast.

Okay?

And then I coat it like this.

This is the easy way to do.

Coat it.

Coat it like this.

This way.

Huh?

That's it.

Now this is ready.

I'm gonna get ready the oil for deep frying, okay?

This is the palm-oil fruit, the seed.

Each one of these -- I call it the almighty seeds.

Each one of these, you can extract oil.

Very healthy oil.

For deep fry, for stir fry.

Besides that, you can use it for a lot of other things -- cosmetics, soap.

All kinds of things, okay?

And we'll deep fry this and get it ready.

175 degrees.

Now, we're gonna test whether the oil is hot enough.

Can you see that?

Can you see this?

A lot of bubble coming.

That means the oil is hot enough.

[ Oil sizzles ] Ahhh.

Lay it down.

Beautiful!

And then, in the meantime, I am gonna make the sauce.

We will put a tiny bit of ginger, chopped lemongrass, and tomatoes all together.

And then chili sauce, tomato sauce.

And then I stir them up.

Look at how beautiful this is.

If you want, make it a little bit thinner by putting a tiny bit of water right here.

Sugar.

Tiny bit of sugar.

Oh, this is gonna be so beautiful.

This is done.

Look at how beautiful this is.

Look at that.

This is absolutely gorgeous.

Golden-brown.

Now we are ready.

We're gonna put the sauce, crushed cashew.

Voilà!

This crispy chicken with a sweet-spicy sauce, topped with chopped cashew nuts.

The name is the same in every single town.

It's Tam Sek Kai.

It literally means "Glutton Street."

What it really means is a foodie's paradise.

Today I'm bringing you one of my favorite dishes from the foodie's paradise in this wonderful Tam Sek Kai.

And thank you for being in our studio, Steve and Steve.

What I have is beautiful prawn.

Nice and fresh, okay?

So, the first thing we'll do is, I use this.

The only thing I'm gonna trim off is this.

This is very sharp, very dangerous.

You see this?

Like a saw.

So we remove this.

Use scissors.

I cut it up and remove this.

This is dangerous, okay?

You don't want it.

This is all done.

When this is done, I marinate the shrimp.

Sprinkle a tiny, tiny bit of salt.

Tiny bit of pepper.

Tiny bit of curry powder.

Malaysian cuisine.

Curry powder.

And a tiny, tiny bit of lime juice.

And then, also, a tiny, tiny bit of lime zest.

See?

Let it marinate for a little bit.

After it marinates, I will break an egg, toss it in.

I actually use chopsticks.

The Chinese use chopsticks.

You see this?

Okay.

So, we'll coat this first.

Lightly coat it with this first.

Okay?

This is already marinated.

You marinate it for about half an hour, if you have time.

If you don't have time, marinate at least for 10, 15 minutes, okay, to allow the flavor and the lime juice to really get into it.

And then I mix a tiny bit of bread crumbs with a tiny bit of flour.

Then I dip this in while I'm heating up some oil.

Always start with fresh.

If you don't have this, you can do the same thing with scallops.

All right?

Look at this.

To coat everything.

This is all done.

Now I'm gonna wash my hands.

Next, I'm gonna deep fry it.

Put it right here.

One.

Two.

Three.

Okay?

Now, the dressing, I have a few things.

I have lemongrass, which is very unique.

And I'm gonna chop this up.

So this is how we do it.

I crush, and I go... And then I hold onto this, and I go... Now, this is the way you chop it up.

Because it's so fibrous, this is the only way you can do it.

And then I put it right over here.

And then this is the dressing.

I'm gonna put it together.

I have vinegar.

Rice vinegar.

I have a tiny bit of sesame-seed oil.

Tiny bit of salt.

Tiny bit of lime juice.

Tiny bit of honey.

If you want, a tiny, tiny bit of olive oil, just to give that nice shiny glaze.

And I turn this upside down.

Nice.

Straight.

That is so beautiful.

And then, in the meantime, I put the lemongrass.

Just enough.

Right here.

So you have everything here.

And then I whisk this.

Emulsify.

Now I have some cabbage here.

This is Napa cabbage.

You go to Napa Valley, you can never find this cabbage.

I don't know why.

You cut it up like this.

And then I cut it up like this.

And I hold, fold it, and go... One, two, three.

It's gonna be so good.

Okay.

And then I want to make sure -- I have some cilantro.

I chop this up.

One, two, three, four, five, six, seven.

I put it right over here.

And also basil.

Thai basil.

Also put some Thai basil.

Very, very Asian.

Put it right here.

So, now this is done.

this is gonna be so good.

Look at how beautiful.

Nice and beautiful.

This is great.

And then, now this is a salad.

Look at this.

All of this, put it together.

And you set this right here.

And then you have mango.

I put the mango over here.

And then tomato.

Cherry tomato from my backyard.

I cut it in half.

And I use this knife.

I go see-saw, see-saw, see-saw, see-saw, see-saw.

And altogether right here.

When this is all nice and done, you remember, this is what we have, right.

This is the dressing.

Just enough.

Toss.

This is gonna be so good.

And then we put it right over here.

On one side.

Put it right over here.

And then, extra this on top.

And then...

Okay.

And then... And then all you have to do is garnish it a little bit with some beautiful mint on the top.

Some edible flowers on the side.

And then sprinkle a tiny bit of these on the side like this.

And this, everybody can do at home.

Look at how beautiful.

This is crispy golden shrimp with a mango salad.

Many great food places are not found in your typical tourist brochure in town.

Many of them are hidden well off the beaten path.

As a rule of thumb, I follow the locals.

Ask them where to find the local Tam Sek Kai or just follow my nose.

♪ ♪ Remember when your mom told you never play with your food?

Maybe she should have said, "Never play with your food unless you can throw it like a Frisbee, like a pro."

Hey, this is truly amazing.

Right next to me is Chef Zahari.

He is throwing and making flatbread roti canai.

Just like kung fu, huh?

I'm gonna ask him to teach me how to do it.

Hey, hey!

Hey, hey -- Hey!

Aah!

[ Chuckles ] I can do it, too.

I can catch it, and I can make it faster.

This is inspiration.

When I fold it, and I push it like this... Uh-huh.

Like this.

This is exactly what you come out with, this.

Much faster okay?

Put it right here.

After this is done, you put it on a griddle and grill it right here.

When it's golden-brown, you turn them around.

Nice golden-brown.

>> [ Laughs ] >> Ahh.

[ Chuckles ] Time to eat.

Special curry sauce.

Mmm!

Delicious.

Very flaky.

The thinner the dough, the better the taste.

Thank you so much for teaching me how to do this very popular Malaysian snack, the roti canai.

Not too far away from here is the Strait of Malacca.

Abundant seafood, particularly fish.

Right next to me is our good friend Mister and Master Chef Heng of the Chun Hui Restaurant.

They're famous for their Assam fish.

This particular dish, the most important thing is fresh fish.

And then, of course, you got all the ingredients.

Ginger, garlic, turmeric, chili, candlenut, lemongrass.

Also uses a shallot.

That's deep-fried shallot.

This all together, you're gonna come up with this particular seasoning.

This is the liquid come out from the tamarind.

Nice and tangy.

Now you want to take this fish and start cooking.

And cooking in a special fish broth.

♪ Once this is done, this is the seasoning.

Put it right here.

Then, of course, tiny bit of fried shallot in oil.

And then we will put the broth, the fish broth.

This is the famous Assam fish.

I'm so very happy today, because I learned a wonderful, popular local dish, Assam fish, from my good friend Chef Peng.

Today I am so happy to meet his family.

You know, the great thing about this is, good food and cooking brings the family and friends together.

Are you happy?

>> Yes.

>> Very good.

We are happy.

I'm happy you're happy.

We're all happy.

So let's dig in and enjoy, okay?

Spoon with the sauce.

Mmm!

The fish is so fresh.

Not fishy at all.

Texture is perfect.

The fish sauce is so delicious.

Savory, tangy, spicy.

Everything.

Exploded in my mouth.

Thank you so very much for your hospitality, and welcoming me here to this wonderful restaurant.

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ Otak-otak!

Good, good.

Otak!

Delicious!

The state of Johor is also known for otak-otak, a very popular snack in Malaysia.

Otak-otak!

Delicious!

Let me introduce my good friend, Mr. Chia, the third generation of otak-otak.

This is a more traditional way to do it, just grill it over mesquite.

And this is actually the leaf of otak.

Here, look at this, huh?

This is how they make the roof.

They stack them up, one another, so the water can go down.

This one, when it's grilled like this, got a very special aroma coming out.

This is a giant ocean eel.

Use this as an ingredient.

It comes out not only nutritious, but also absolutely delicious because it's high in fat content.

A lot of good protein and good texture.

This is a secret recipe.

Never been publicly revealed.

I'm so glad that we got the recipe.

First, grind up the eel.

In the old days, they used this.

Special chili paste.

Turmeric powder.

Tapioca starch.

Mixture of salt and sugar.

Coconut milk.

The right ingredients, ah, that's the key to the delicious otak-otak.

With me is Mrs. Chia.

Ni hao.

>> Uh-huh.

>> She has been doing this for 35 years.

The fish paste marinated properly, and you smash it right here, 1 tablespoon.

Even it right in the middle, and then you get another piece of this, and then you fold it, and then you staple it.

Assembly line.

She actually invented this recipe.

Look at this conveyor belt.

Go all the way.

And the heat on top.

So, when you go down to the bottom, it heats up, so it cooks both sides.

One complete cycle, whole thing is done.

Now, time for taste.

Open it up.

Beautiful piece.

Smells good.

It looks like a whole fish.

This is truly taste of time.

That's the reason why it's one of the most popular Malaysian snacks all over Malaysia.

Mmm!

Delicious.

Everywhere I go, I have tried many, many different types of doughnut, but this is very unique.

This is a Chinese butterfly doughnut.

It looks like a butterfly.

This shop has been here for over 40 years, and they have all kinds of doughnuts -- the round doughnut, the butterfly doughnut, the elongated doughnut, the sesame-seed doughnut.

All kinds of doughnuts.

It is so good.

This is raised dough.

Roll it.

Roll it.

You see?

Well-fermented.

Cut it up.

Cut into the right size.

Water.

Put it right here.

Stick.

>> And then we put down.

>> Put down?

>> To deep fry it.

>> You deep fry it.

You keep moving it around.

You keep moving around.

Look at that.

When it's nice and golden-brown, this is ready to be served.

It is hot and muggy.

I think I need something to drink.

Mr. Du, the master, the sixth generation of herbalist, is putting some special powder, herbal powder, in this special herbal tonic.

Supposed to cure my thirst, and also good for your body.

Wah!

It is bitter.

Very, very bitter.

In Chinese, it's very philosophical.

First is bitter.

After you finish the bitter drink, you have a sweet drink.

So bitter, sweet, wonderful herbal tonics.

Mr. Yang!

The king of satay.

Meat satay.

You can use lamb, you can use pork, you can use beef, you can use chicken.

Mr. Yang has been doing it for 50 years.

Very experienced.

So special is the charbroil, that caramelization of the meat and sugar in the marinade.

Get that wonderful caramelized flavor.

On top of that, the meat is properly seasoned.

It's absolutely delicious.

Malaysia is truly a land of legends set down, with many natural wonders.

But for every cloud-reaching peak, there is an even taller and more spectacular one after.

Join me next time for another "Taste of Malaysia with Martin Yan."

>> You can visit our website to learn more about Martin and his travels, get information about upcoming events, find and print selected recipes, provide e-mail feedback, and more.

It's all at yancancook.com.

"Taste of Malaysia with Martin Yan" is brought to you by... >> ♪ Yeah, yeah ♪ >> Circulon Cookware -- Circles for life.

>> Monogram -- a full line of professional appliances designed for food and entertaining enthusiasts.

♪ ♪ >> By Melissa's.

♪ The freshest ideas in produce.

>> By Granite Expo -- offering a wide selection of cabinet and countertop solutions.

And by B&G Group of Malaysia.

♪ Building Malaysia's tomorrow.

♪ ♪ ♪