By Eu Hooi Khaw
JAN 23 — The Ikan Haruan, a variety of catfish, has always been known for its fast-healing properties post surgery. But lately it has been appearing on the menus of restaurants. It’s a fish I like for its smooth texture and sweetness, and the traditional Chinese way of eating it is in a soup.
Imagine my delight to see it being encrusted in salt and baked at E San Thai Kitchen in Ara Damansara, near the Subang Airport. Remove the crust with the skin and the lovely aroma of the fish is released. The 1kg fish had also been stuffed with finely chopped serai, pandan, sweet basil and other Thai herbs.
It’s a 1kg fish, so it is very meaty and absolutely delicious just eaten on its own, though three sauces are served with it — tamarind, grilled green chillies and onions and garlic and lime. The sauces though were a perfect match with the salad of cucumber and blanched long beans.
The very subtle tamarind sauce, stirred with some palm sugar and lime juice complements the moist, soft flesh of the fish. Occasionally you bite into a little salt and it still doesn’t take away the sweet flavour of this Salt Baked Ikan Haruan. We ate every bit of the fish: the stomach has a lot of healthy fats, and because the herb stuffing is there it is lovely to eat as well.
E San’s food heritage is from north-eastern Thailand, near the Lao border, and it’s a distinct cuisine that leans towards the Laotian side. Restaurant owner CK Lim, whose husband is Thai, actually went to E San (an actual place there) to learn cooking under a traditional chef there.
Sundried Beef and Red Curry Beef, dry-style is very unusual and absolutely delicious.
Sun-dried Beef is also a speciality of E San. The dark, very aromatic, peppery and tender beef is just so good. The Australian beef had been marinated with a Thai herb and a special chilli pepper for a day, then sundried before being fried. The edges of the meat slices are crispy, and it is a good pairing with beer. A dip of lime juice, chilli and fish sauce comes with it, but the beef with flavour pouring out of every fibre, does not need it.
It helps that all the curry pastes — red and green — are made from scratch by Lim, the spices being hand fried in the restaurant. You can taste the difference in the Red Curry Beef and the Green Curry Chicken.
They are both curries with fine nuances, rather than in your face with the chilli, herbs and spices. I like the Red Curry Beef with the long beans. It’s cooked in a dry style and the wonderful aromas and flavours of the spice paste cling to the meat and long beans. I have never eaten a Green Curry Chicken like this, one that doesn’t overwhelm you with the rich coconut milk. Both scored high marks with me. The green curry had lots of sweet basil in it, eggplant and small chunks of tender chicken.
Green Curry Chicken here is not too rich and you can taste the spices.
Lim introduced us to a special type of rice eaten by the E San people. It’s Fried Crispy Rice, as in the “kerak” or farn chiu. It’s fried with a little curry paste, prawns and spring onions, and finished with fish sauce and lime juice. It’s chewy and appetizing, and goes with everything.
The restaurant does a very light tom yam that’s not too fiery with chilli or chilli oil. Lime and tamarind are in the clear soup with squid, prawns and chicken and lots of lemongrass. It’s a tom yam I’m really comfortable with.
We also tried the very unusual Deep-fried Kangkung in batter. Only the stalks are used and these vegetable crisps are served with a lightly sweet, creamy dip of coconut milk and Thai sauce. It would have been nicer if the batter had been lighter, like in a tempura.
I always find the Thai Otak Otak or Hok Mok too mixed up and rich for my taste, though my friends enjoyed it.
It comes in a coconut and slices of the sweet tender flesh are in it, together with prawns and squid. The ingredients had been stir fried with curry paste and egg before being steamed in the coconut.
You get a free dessert of Tab Tim Krob with yam at E San but you should also have a taste of the very, very nice Pumpkin Custard. Few Thai restaurants serve this nowadays. The custard is light and creamy, well-matched with the soft pumpkin.
I should come back for the Fried Egg Salad, I was told, with a dressing of lime juice, fish sauce and palm sugar that has been simmered together, Thai Laksa (on Saturdays) , and of course more Ikan Haruan done in other styles. I’d love to take home a Salt-Baked one next time, and it costs just RM55 for 1kg.
E San Thai Kitchen is pork-free and is located at G-G-3A + 5 Block G, Jalan PJU 1A/3, Taipan 2, Ara Damansara, 47301 PJ. Tel: 03-7842 7368. It’s closed on Wednesdays.
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