food

Home-style Chinese dishes with a yummy twist

BY EU HOOI KHAW
November 09, 2015

The springy homemade fish paste was sweet and delicious, and paired perfectly with the eggplant. – The Malaysian Insider pic, November 9, 2015.We had meant to go to The Champ Kitchen, famous for its braised pork knuckles in Taman Industrian KIP in Sri Damansara, but somehow KIP Seafood Noodles House down the same road seemed more appealing.

We started out our meal with the Red Rice Wine Chicken (RM16), which was very good: the wine was sweet, with just an expected tinge of sourness. The tender pieces of kampung chicken were well infused with all the heady wine flavours. It’s hard to find red rice wine chicken, a Foochow dish which you would get in Sitiawan, Sibu, or wherever there is a large Foochow community, and even harder to find really good ones, so it was a lovely surprise to find that KIP had gotten it just right.

Diners can also choose to have mee sua with the red rice wine, a home brew of glutinous rice and red rice bran.

It's hard finding red rice wine chicken in Kuala Lumpur, and harder still to find good ones. KIP had gotten it just right. – The Malaysian Insider pic, November 9, 2015.We also ordered the Signature Rice Noodles (RM7), which is also called Lam Lam Mei Fun (named after the chef). The fine meehoon was pale and innocuous looking but they packed in flavours of fried dried prawns, garlic and fried cili padi, together with cabbage, egg and fish cake. They were yummy, filled with the aroma of the crispy dried prawns and so addictive. The noodles were not oily, which was another plus point.

A simple dish commonly found in Chinese restaurants, KIP again does it right, with the bitter gourd having just the right consistency. – The Malaysian Insider pic, November 9, 2015.

The Fried Bitter Gourd with Salted Vegetables and Egg (RM10) was pleasing, with the bitter tempered with the salty and the sweet. Salted vegetables were the perfect match with bitter gourd; wolfberries (kei chi) were added for a touch of sweetness, and the fried egg just brought everything together.

Another dish I liked a lot was the Fish Paste with Eggplant (RM16). The fish paste was soft and springy to the bite, and had the natural sweetness from the fish flesh. It was fried with eggplant in taucheo with chilli and onions.

Chunky cuts of ladies fingers soaked up the delicious, thick sweetish sauce in this dish, that surprised with its harmony of flavours and textures. – The Malaysian Insider pic, November 9, 2015.Fried Pig’s Stomach with Ladies Fingers (RM16) was an unusual combination, but one that really worked! Tossed with dried chillies and ginger in a dark sweet sauce, the pig’s stomach slices were surprisingly tender but I liked the ladies fingers better as they soaked up the delicious sauce.

Sizzling Pork Ribs (RM16) came in a cast iron pot. I found the sauce drenching the ribs too sweet, and didn't really enjoy the dish. 

There are many more dishes to try at KIP Seafood Noodles House, which has been in this part of Bandar Sri Damansara for more than 30 years. I like the chef’s cooking style: homey and traditional, yielding delicious results. – November 9, 2015.

KIP Seafood Noodles House I Add: 17 Jalan KIP 1, Taman KIP Industrial Park, Bandar Sri Damansara, 52200 Kuala Lumpur I Tel: 011-2801 6262, 016-222 9766 I Opening hours: daily 11.45am to 2.45pm, 5.45pm to 9.45pm I GPS Coordinates: GPS 3.12.22, 101.36.25 I Non-halal

* All of The Malaysian Insider food reviews are incognito and reflect the personal opinions of our merry band of foodies. If you know of any restaurant serving awesome grub, share it with the rest of the world and drop us a line with details at [email protected].