It is so hot and humid nowadays that you do not feel like having heavy meals. Would like to have something very light like char kuey teow, so off to the market I enquired from the stall selling tofu for a packet of kuey teow that is suitable for frying. From the same stall you can also get bean sprout and tofu. It is very quick and easy to prepare and you do not have the guilty feeling of consuming the normally oily char kuey teow from the outside stalls. Let me share with you my recipe for this healthy dish.
Home cooked char kuey teow
Ingredients: 1 packet of kuey teow for frying 2 pc tofu (sliced into thin pcs and fried in non-stick pan till dry) 30 sen of bean sprout 1/2 packet of konyaku koru ( sliced into thin pcs) 2 tbsp dark soy sauce 2 tbsp light soy sauce 1 tbsp vegetarian oyster sauce A little ginger strips 1 tbsp olive oil Method: 1. Fry ginger strips in olive oil for 1 minute 2. Add in kuey teow and fry for another 2 minutes 3. Add in tofu, konyaku koru and bean sprout 4. Add in all the seasonings and fry till well mixed. 5. Dish out to serve immediately
It is rather difficult to get vegetarian food at The Curve and the only choice we have is Chikuyo. It was way past lunch time when we arrived at the restaurant and the place was not crowded at all. We had ordered a set of "Herbal Noodles" which come with a bowl of rice plus a glass drink of your choice ( cincau, green tea or 100plus ) and the other order is Claypot Yee Mee. By right the herbal soup should have been pre-cooked, so to add a bit of vegetables and together with the rice should be on our table very fast. Unfortunately we had to wait for almost half an hour for the food to arrive. Luckily the food is tasty and portion is generous and we were able to satisfy our tummies.
Herbal Noodles set which comes with rice and a drink - RM 15.90
Claypot Noodles - RM 7
Name: Chikuyo Vegetarian Restaurant -
Address: The Curve, Western Courtyard, Lot 153, 1st Floor, Petaling Jaya.
We are great fans of "Lui Cha", so we are indeed so grateful to Jo to specially going all the way to Kepong to buy this - (which to her is the best lui cha she has ever tasted so far)- for us to try out. She was careful to enquire from the boss and found out that ikan bilis was used for the soup base and so is not suitable for vegetarians. Instead a generous portion of the "Lui Cha" paste was packed for us to be added with steaming hot water later when we are ready to have our meal. The rice had come with a variety of vegetables with tofu and groundnuts. Stir the paste well with boiling hot water and then top it onto the rice. The taste is really fantastic I had always liked my soup to be steaming hot and thick with the aromatic lui cha paste. Thanks Jo for your kindness. Name Big Big Bowl Cafe Address: No. 31 Jalan Metro Perdana Barat 2, Taman Usahawan , Kepong, 52100 K.Lumpur Tel: 03-6250 8088 Mobile: 012-211 5564
What do you think of food being served at Pappa Rich?
Seeing that PappaRich has got a good ambience we decided to sit down to relax our poor feet after shopping for the whole evening. We were really not so hungry so made orders for takeaway to be enjoyed in front of the tv set later. We were rather unhappy when we had to wait for almost half an hour for our simple takeaway. The manager's explanation was that their food all arrive new and fresh and so they needed a longer time to steam the glutinous rice to ensure that it comes out perfect for us. Later, when we finally could settle down to enjoy our food, we found that the glutinous rice was quite tasteless and the egg tart was also not good with a burnt taste on the pastry. Could it be because the restaurant is too crowded so the food served that evening was not up to standard? Anyone has got any opinion on this as we had checked out the menu and noticed that they serve vegetarian nasi lemak and would like to visit again.
Egg tart - RM 2.20
Glutinous rice filled with mushroom and mock meat - RM 4.50
Name: Papa Rich Cafe Address: Level 3, The Gardens, Mid Valley Megamall, Kuala Lumpur
Have been eating so much of sweet goodies and sumptuous meals during Chinese New Year, so while shopping at 1Utama the other day, we were hungry at about lunch time but was not in the mood to have dishes with rice. However, we still need to have food in the stomach to so the best thing to do is to have a very light meal. The best place to go to will of course be Chikuyo as they serve a variety of hawker fare. We ordered Kuey Tiaw with bitter gourd and prawn mee. One thing I like about this restaurant is that their food is not oily and salty and the taste is delicious too!
Kuey Tiaw with Bitter gourd - RM 7.00
Prawn Mee - RM 7.00
Name: Chikuyo Vegetarian Restaurant -
Address: The Curve, Western Courtyard, Lot 153, 1st Floor, Petaling Jaya.
I've always been a big fan of Japanese Bento sets as they forever look interesting and appetizing. Originally, we planned to dine at Sushi Zanmai at the Gardens, Mid-valley, but because the queue was exceptionally long that Friday night, we had no choice but to look for an alternative. We headed to the nearest Japanese place as we could not tame our hungry stomach any longer. After checking out the menu and ordering our respective sets at the HOUSE OF BENTO at The Gardens, we proceeded to the ice-kacang stall. The good thing about dining in the food court is that you get to enjoy different cuisines all in one place. However, the bento set was not up to my expectation and was actually quite pricey (just adding a bit more $ could get me a much better bento set at Sushi Zanmai). By far, if I had a choice, I'd rather dine at Sakae Sushi as I find that they serve the best bento set. Do you guys know of any other places that serves greater bento boxes for vegetarians?
Stall # 08
Vegetable Tempura Udon Set RM13.90 (excluding 5% gov tax) the tempura wasn't very crunchy but the udon was quite good and tasty comes with complimentary green tea
Miso Tofu Bento Set RM12.90 (excluding 5% gov tax) The miso tofu was quite oily but it was quite tasty (sweet and sourish)
Close up of the miso tofu
Name: House of Bento Address: Food Garden, The Gardens, Stall #08.
Would I visit this place again? Probably not, especially when a much better choice is just a few steps away.
Have been invited to so many open house and pot luck parties and I find that the most convenient and suitable dish to bring along for us vegetarians will be a pot of fried meehoon. Just this dish alone you can add in all your different types of vegetables, mushrooms, tofu, woodear plus some mock meat (optional). So there you have it, a wholesome meal in a single pot that everyone will enjoy. Oh, a good accompaniment would be a hot pot of curry
Looking for the perfect tiramisu recipe? Look no further! After two previous attempts, I have finally succeeded in making the tiramisu which I personally find to be 'perfect' (not unless you like spongy cakes). As promised in my previous post “Loving how the cakes melt in my mouth at Alexis”, this post reveals the classic Italian recipe, perfected by my Italian cousin, Vivian. Here’s to all you tiramisu fans out there.
Ingredients: 500g mascarpone cheese 5 eggs, (separated from egg yolks) 40g brown sugar (a bit more if you want it sweeter) 4-5 cups of good coffee (I like Lavazza) (not the size of a regular coffee mug cup but a measuring cup!) 5-8 spoonfuls of Tia Maria or Gran Manier or Drambuie liquor 1 large pack of sponge fingers (Savoriardi in Italian) Cocoa Powder (for dusting)
Method:
(A) CHEESE
1. Separate the egg yolks from the whites into a smaller bowl, yolks in a larger bowl. 2. Beat the yolks a bit before adding the sugar. Remember to add the sugar bit by bit. 3. Add the mascarpone to the yolks bit by bit and set aside. 4. Beat the whites until little peaks form and then add to the larger bowl
(B) COFFEE/SPONGE FINGERS
5. Prepare 4-5 cups of coffee (recipe for this later, meanwhile go get yourself a French plunger and a pack of good coffee grounds – try to get your hands on Lavazza or if not any imported coffee grounds should be fine)
6. Mix the Tia Maria / Drumbuie/ Gran Manier to the coffee until until you can taste the liquor in the coffee.
7. Dip the sponge fingers in coffee and quickly lay them in a square or rectangular container, preferably something that comes with a lid.
I did this by floating the fingers on the coffee then quickly turn the fingers two rounds or so and immediately transfer them to the container.
Note: the fingers tend to break easily (normally they will only last a few seconds, especially in hot / warm coffee).
8. Layer the container with a layer of (B) on the bottom, followed by (A), then (B), then (A).
9. Dust with some cocoa powder.
10. Leave in the fridge for a couple of hours or even overnight.
Kudos to my cousin, Tung and wife Camy for organizing a fantastic Lok Lok CNY party. Upon arrival, we were greeted by a Lok Lok van outside the house. I think it's a great idea to host a CNY open house party, where guests choose to "cook" from a variety of so many different types of meat and seafood at their own heart's desire. Other than the common steamboat pot, this lok lok truck also come with a deep-fryer and a grilling pit, allowing guests an option to cook their food in their own style. It was very nice of my cousin to reserve a vegetarian-only-pot and also prepare some vegetarian balls and kangkung. The vegetarian balls were extremely tasty and went really well with the minced ginger and garlic sauce. And of cause, since it's a CNY party, there's definitely Yee Sang, where everyone tossed high in hopes of attaining higher success, good health and prosperity this year. Again, I'd like to take this opportunity to wish everyone a very happy and healthy Chinese New Year!
Kohyang, Korean Country Delights is always packed with not a vacant table and customers will have to stand by to wait for seats. Indeed, because the food served here is really delicious. We enquired and found that they can do some replacements and specially make them into vegetarian style for us. Bi Bim Bab was good as it comes with eight different types of vegetables. K/C Ji Gye came with a bowl of rice ( which we had to wait for 15 minutes to arrive as they ran out rice). Jab Che is a good recommendation as the noodles were fried to perfection, not gluey and very chewy too.
SIK HYE - Korean bali drink - RM 3.80
Appetisers
Bi Bim Bab - RM 15.90K/C Ji Gye - RM 14.90
Jab Che - RM 14.90
Look........... so appetising!
Name: Kohyang, Korean Country Delights Address: LG-K05, The Gardens, Mid Valley City, 59200 Kuala Lumpur.
Yee Sang is a must have during Chinese New Year for my family. Not only it is for the special meaning that comes with it (we take it for smooth sailing throughout the year), we also enjoy the sweet and sour taste of it. We buy our yee sang portion from the SEA PARK Market which costs RM 23. However, there is a tip which I would like to share here, and that is to add in radish, carrot strips and also a bowl of pomelo fruit which makes the yee sang more tasty and chewy. Toss away for abundance of good luck in the year of the tiger!
I love tempuras and find that it is reallly not easy to get them to make vegetarian ones for me. Tomodachi however do cater for vegetarians like us, so I get to enjoy tempuras with my non-vegetarian friends when we go out to have a meal. Since the chef was kind enough to look into my special needs, I thought I might as well take the opportunity to place a few more orders to try out. The vege tempura was freshly fried and very crispy, the stir fried udon was delicious and the tofu seaweed was very refreshing. Satisfied and full.
Name: Tomodachi Melbourne Central Location: Level 3, Melbourne Central, 211 La Trobe Street, Melbourne, Australia Tel: 9663 1940 Opening Hours: Mon to Sun - 12pm to 10pm
My aunty is all praises for the 'lui cha' that she has patronised in Kepong and insists that I should try it out. She feels that this is the best 'lui cha' she has ever tasted and when she passed by the shop yesterday she was so kind and generous to 'ta pau' a packet for me to enjoy. She found out from the owner that the soup base has got ikan bilis and had requested that the 'lui cha' paste be mixed only in just plain hot water to cater to my vegetarian diet. Overall, I find the taste is good. However, I still find the 'lui cha' in Kuan Yin Temple in Jalan Ampang to be better. You may wish to visit both places and find out for yourself if you are a fan of 'lui cha'
Lui cha - RM 5.50
Mixed in the soup
Name: Big Big Bowl Cafe Address: No. 31, Jalan Metro Perdana Barat 2, Taman Usahawan, Kepong, 52100 Kuala Lumpur. Operation's Manager: Angie Lim Hp: 102-2115564
It will be a long time before I will go back to Melbourne and one of the food outlets that I will be missing will be The Nasi Lemak House. I like to frequent this shop and would like to share that the best 3 choices found under their vegetarian menu here will be their Curry Laksa, Nasi Lemak and also the Char Kuey Tiaw. The taste of all three are so authentic that I find that they are even better than the vegetarian restaurants found in Malaysia. No mock meat are used, only a lot of tofu and vegetables. The sambal is simply delicious. You can opt for mild, medium and very spicy when you place your order.
Name: Nasi Lemak House Address:113 Grattan St Carlton VIC
Feel that this is still the most tasty claypot rice I have tasted.
I love claypot rice and find that it is quite difficult to get vegetarian claypot rice in Malaysia. So anybody who has tasted and find any good claypot rice around, do let me know as I am sure crazy about them. This shop which is not vegetarian restaurant caters to my need when I requested for a vegetarian pot. They were quite versatile and replaced the meat with mushrooms and tofu with beans and other vegetables. The taste is very good and the rice cooked to the correct timing without any crust. Wondered how the chef timed it and veges on top also cooked to perfection.
Name: EC Pot Address: level 1 QV urban market, 200 Lonsdale St, Melbourne, Australia (near Dan Murphy's and Officeworks)
By far, finding good vegetarian Char Kuey Tiaw is as hard as looking for a needle in a haystack. Mostly because a very strong flame is needed to perfectly cook the kuey tiaw and most vegetarian restaurants' stoves are not capable of producing such high bursts of flame needed. However, Blue Boy Mansion's very own vegetarian coffee shop can safely claim that it is the king of all vegetarian char kuey tiaw as it garnered many praises from all who tried it, even from non-vegetarian friends. Even if Char Kuey Tiaw is not your fancy, Blue Boy Mansion has many other things to offer, including yong tauhu, curry laksa etc, definitely worth a visit whenever you are near the Bukit Bintang/Pudu area.
Address: 6001 Blue Boy Mansion, Jalan Tong Shin, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Had ran out of places to visit for vegetarian meals in Melbourne, so a friend recommended this place in Prahran Market for a change. So when we were around the area near the Prahran we decided to give it a try. However, it was quite late when we arrived and it was way passed lunch time and the cafe is already closed. Having no choice we decided to take some photos of the restaurant not realising that the owner of the cafe was nearby. She saw us snapping photos and confronted us. We apologised and explained that we were vegetarian food bloggers and had actually intended to have lunch there and finding the place closed we thought we just take some photos first and requested if she can cook us something for us. Maybe she was already annoyed by our earlier actions and had not granted us our request and even abruptly brushed us off. Anybody who has visited this cafe may want to share with us about the food served here. Name: Vegetarian Cafe, Prahran Market, Melbourne Address: Prahran Market, 163 Commercial Rd, South Yarra, VIC 3181, Australia.
As MG's Cafe is very near to my dentist, after my visit there, the most convenient place to have lunch will of course be at MG's. After ordering the must have - Assam Laksa - we ordered a rice dish, Vege Unadon to try out. The vege unadon is rather fluffy and there is no bite to it but fortunately the taste is delicious and it has got some kelp to go with it. We also had a red bean tart for dessert. It is nothing extraordinary and the red bean inside is hard and like not too cooked. The frontage of the shop is very colorful and attractive now with a lot of Chinese New Year goodies on sale. Many ideas for presents for relatives and friends.
Chinese New Year goodies on sale
Chinese New Year hampers
Red Bean Egg Tart - RM 1.30
Assam Laksa - RM 6.50
Vege Unadon - RM 6.90
Name: MG's Cafe Address: No. 38-G, Jalan 27/70A, Desa Sri Hartamas, 50480 KL. Tel: 03-23-- 3118
Two avid vegetarians are here to share some insights to the world of vegetarianism.
Hopefully, through this site, the lives of some animals can be spared. Always remember, animals have feelings too, they are our friends not our meal.
Ingredients:
Claypot Noodles - RM 7
Name: Chikuyo Vegetarian Restaurant - 
Name Big Big Bowl Cafe
Egg tart - RM 2.20
Glutinous rice filled with mushroom and mock meat - RM 4.50
Name: Papa Rich Cafe
Prawn Mee - RM 7.00
Name: Chikuyo Vegetarian Restaurant - 
Name: House of Bento
Appetisers
Bi Bim Bab - RM 15.90
K/C Ji Gye - RM 14.90
Jab Che - RM 14.90
Look........... so appetising!
Name: Kohyang, Korean Country Delights
Stir-Fried Udon $17.80
Tofu Seaweed Salad $9
Mixed in the soup
Name: Big Big Bowl Cafe
Name: Nasi Lemak House
Name: EC Pot
Name: Vegetarian Cafe, Prahran Market, Melbourne
Chinese New Year hampers
Red Bean Egg Tart - RM 1.30
Assam Laksa - RM 6.50
Vege Unadon - RM 6.90
Name: MG's Cafe
Vegetarian Party
Pot Luck Party