I chanced upon these crumbed potato cakes in the frozen foods section at my local Japanese grocery store. I’m a big fan of potato croquettes, and I took a fancy to these particular ones because of the ingredients – seaweed and cod roe. I’ve never tried potato cakes with this combination of fillings before, so I bought them for yet another taste test at home.

These would make a good snack for those peckish moments, or served as a side dish with some hot rice. Not very good value for money considering their size and amount though.

During one of my weekly grocery shopping trips to my favourite Japanese food store, I was browsing through the condiments isle and right next to the pasta sauces I saw a packet of this “Spicy Cod Roe Spaghetti Sauce” by S&B (Makers of the popular ‘Golden Curry’ range and wasabi sauce). This was a new concept to me, and the thought of some ‘caviar’ infused pasta excited me so I bought it.

A quick glance at the ingredients and cooking instructions:

The instructions were very simple, just like preparing instant noodles. There was one minor problem though- I didn’t have any pasta in my pantry but I had some Udon, so I used those instead. How could you go wrong with Udon anyway? It’s Japanese as well so I figured a happy marriage would be the outcome of the two ingredients together.

The Spicy Cod Roe Sauce packet contained two separate servings which meant I could save the other serving for a rainy day. =) There are two different seasoning sachets; the red and silver contained the cod roe sauce, while the black and silver contained shredded seaweed garnish.

Here is a closer look at the Spicy Cod Roe Sauce when applied onto the cooked Udon – It’s bright orange, has thousands of tiny egg sacs, and a tart, fishy smell. It would put some people off but I didn’t mind it.

I mixed the sauce in well with the Udon, then sprinkled the seaweed garnish on top. So here’s the verdict: Delicious. It tasted EXACTLY like Taramosalata. It’s both salty and tart, and very fishy. As for the ‘Spicy” factor, maybe a 1/10. I have to say it’s an acquired taste. But if you like Taramosalata then you’d love this. The Udon matches the sauce well, and it absorbs more flavour than regular pasta so I’ll probably use Udon next time, but I’m also open to trying it with regular pasta. Although the egg sacs were visible, the sauce itself wasn’t grainy. This dish was a winner, and I’ll definitely be buying more “Spicy Cod Roe Spaghetti Sauce” in the near future. =) Tasty!

Kedai Kopi is a Malay word that translates to Coffee Shop. In Malaysia, these Kedai Kopi do not necessarily specialise in the sale of coffee – most of them actually serve full meals, be it breakfast, lunch or dinner. The name Chuan Hin belongs to the Chinese owners of the establishment – so it basically means Chuan Hin’s Coffee Shop. Kedai Kopi is a loose term and can be anything from cafe to restaurant.

When you arrive at this restaurant, you have to go out the back to pick out your own slice(s) of stingray! The stingray here is always fresh and is caught locally around the shores of coastal Sabah.

Kedai Kopi Chuan Hin is situated at a shop lot on the corner of Jalan Lintas and Luyang, in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah (a mouthful, no pun intended) and is a popular dining destination amongst the locals. My parents and I have been dining at this restaurant for nearly two decades, and their food never dissapoints. Chuan Hin usually only serves food during dinner time and they rarely open during the day.

The stingray is priced by weight – These two chunks cost around RM25 (approximately $12)

Chuan Hin has two main specialties: grilled stringray in banana leaf, and dumplings. These are two dishes that we always order when we eat there. They also serve a wide range of vegetable stir fries, noodles and grilled beef. The stingray is wrapped in a banana leaf and topped with a mild sambal, then grilled on an open fire to crispy perfection. To top it off, the stingray is drizzled with kasturi lime juice to maximise the flavour.

Grilled to perfection – stingray is one of my favourite fishes because of its soft, tender flesh and crispy skin when grilled. The texture is quite similar to a very tender piece of chicken and doesn’t have an overly strong fishy taste.

A meal for three to four people at Chuan Hin would cost around RM50-60 ($30) and is quite reasonable given the great quality of the food. The ambience at Chuan Hin is not something to write home about but the food certainly makes up for it. Chuan Hin probably does the best stingray in Kota Kinabalu and I highly recommend it!

Kasturi lime goes well with this fish as it brings out the flavour and also adds a tangy hit to enhance the sambal flavours.

Chuan Hin’s other specialty dish – Dumplings. Pictured are the fried garlic-chive dumplings. They also serve a minced pork version. You can choose from steamed or fried dumplings. I personally like the fried ones because they’re crispy on the outside!

A meal at Chuan Hin is not complete with their famous fried vermicelli dish. It’s a combination of vermicelli, fish cake, prawns, chicken, egg, bok choy and bean sprouts. We never order rice when we dine here – it seems that the vermicelli has replaced it!

Last but not least, some greens – A plate of stir fried Cakur Manis (Sauropus Androgynus) with Garlic. Cakur Manis is a rich and sweet leafy vegetable with a crunchy stalk that tastes a bit like spinach.

*BURP*