KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 21 — Curiosity may have killed the cat but in this case, that inquisitive nature managed to hook me some bona fide kampung style Malay food. I had long wondered about Kak Nik Patin House each time I spied it while driving on the North Pantai Expressway (NPE). One day, I took the initiative to explore the place and discovered a hidden gem.
Operated by Nik Sarimah (or Kak Nik), 51, the humble eatery only started about a year ago. Previously she was helping out at her husband’s company for 20 years. After her retirement, she decided to open this place to keep occupied.
Even though Kak Nik is originally from Kelantan, her husband hails from Temerloh. Despite losing her mother at a young age, Kak Nik would quietly observe others when they got together to cook communally for weddings or special occasions. She would go back and repeatedly cook those kampung-style dishes, tweaking them to suit her own palate.
In the restaurant’s kitchen, she’s the only one cooking even though she’s got a few assistants to help prepare the ingredients.
Bring a hefty appetite here as her repertoire consists of a mind boggling 50 to 60 dishes. Or make repeated visits to try everything. Usually weekdays see a larger variety compared to Saturday as she also offers ikan bakar or grilled fish.
The moment you walk into the place, you’ll be greeted with a large pot on a gas stove that is kept warm on a low heat. This is her specialty, the ikan patin masak tempoyak. Stir the pot that is filled with a bright yellow curry and you will find it’s full of pieces of ikan patin, the prized fish from Pahang.
On a daily basis, she uses about 300 pieces of the fish that is cut into three parts: head, middle and tail. Select which part you prefer and ladle lots of the curry over it. The curry is made from tempoyak, chillies, turmeric or kunyit, daun kesom and torch ginger flower or bunga kantan.
As making tempoyak can be tedious, Kak Nik prefers to source it from a trusted supplier that makes it using durian kampung. They order about 700 kilograms of the tempoyak every week.
That firm favourite can be found on almost every table here. You will find that the fish has a soft texture which pairs well with the spicy curry that has a light durian taste. Kak Nik prefers to source for the ikan patin from Temerloh rather than Pekan as the fish tastes better and sweeter.
If you’re not a fan of durian, try the fried ikan patin. For the wild caught variety or ikan patin buah, this needs to be ordered ahead.
You will also be spoiled for choice with their array of ulam — pegaga, raja ulam, bitter gourd, four-angled beans, lady’s fingers, petai or stink beans and etc. If you spot the reddish tinged assam keping leaves, make sure you grab some of this rarely seen item.
These tender shoots have a slight crunch and an appetising taste that makes it delicious on its own. According to Kak Nik, it’s not easily available as the asam keping tree tends to grow quite high. This type of ulam is also popular with Pahang residents.
Pair your plate of greens with dips like the fragrant and pungent sambal durian, sambal belacan and budu. Kak Nik also serves an unusual sambal ikan that is made from pounded flesh extracted from ikan bakar that is paired with green mangoes and chillies. It also packs a fiery punch as Kak Nik only uses the super spicy chilli kampung to prepare her sambal and dishes.
For those who are homesick for Pahang delicacies, there’s sambal hitam that requires long hours of preparation. First, as Kak Nik explains, the belimbing buluh is steamed for a day till it’s dry and wrinkled to rid it of the bitterness. The next day, it’s cooked with shallots, chillies, garlic and ikan bilis.
You also get kerang or cockles lightly cooked in a broth flavoured with lemongrass. Served in bowls, it’s a popular choice. Others prefer the ketam masak lemak. You also find freshwater prawns with their large heads that have a nice firm flesh cooked masak merah or masak lemak style.
There is also daging bakar fried with soy sauce or fried chicken using the scrawny but sweeter tasting ayam kampung. You also have refreshing kerabu dishes like the kerabu perut lembu or cow’s stomach and kerabu ikan bilis. As Kak Nik is from Kelantan, they also serve ayam percik here. She also prepares nasi dagang and nasi kerabu for orders.
If you love crispy golden brown fried fish, there’s 10 varieties available that includes ikan patin, keli, kembung, tilapia and etc. At Kak Nik’s suggestion, I discover these tiny fish that the Pahang people favour that is known as ikan mukus. Also known as ikan seluang, each of the small fish is crunchy and sweet tasting making me wish I had taken more.
If you are feeling flush with cash, there’s also wild caught river fish like ikan kerai and ikan baung. The prized one is ikan kelah that can cost up to a whopping RM500 for a 1 kilogram fish.
It’s only deep fried since the delicate flesh with its sweet taste is best savoured that way. If you wish to dine on these wild caught fish, order about three hours ahead for the fish to be ready when you arrive at the eatery. Most of their regulars usually order the fish to be taken away.
Their prices are also reasonable, as a piece of ikan patin masak tempoyak is RM12. During the weekdays, this kind of food appeals to an audience of office workers. On weekends, it’s mainly families that drop by for a leisurely meal with their children.
Kak Nik Patin House
Lot 28349, Jalan Masjid, (next to Masjid Khadijiah Pantai Dalam), Kampung Pantai Dalam, KL.
Open: 9am to 5pm. Closed on Sundays.
Tel: 012-9539274
