Nasi Maqlubah, Nasi Mandy and
Lontong Kering are the ‘must eat’ dishes at Spiced Pumpkin Café.
Derived from the word maqlu which means upside down in Arabic, café owner Mas Zuhairin Zubir explains the
maqlubah rice recipe came from her ex-business partner’s husband of Palestinian
descent.
According to Mas, “Our Nasi Maqlubah
has to be pre-ordered as it takes time to prepare. Firstly, onion and garlic are
sautéed with 14 herbs and spices such as nutmeg, cardamom and cinnamon stick
among others to flavour the rice. Then we layer vegetables and protein (lamb or
chicken) onto the rice. The whole pot is cooked over an open fire. Once ready,
the pot is upended onto a plate – that’s why it’s known as ‘upside down’ rice.”
For the lamb version, the meat is
roasted before it’s added to the rice whilst the chicken is spice-marinated. The
original version uses cauliflower but to suit local tastebuds, eggplant,
potatoes and carrots are used instead. Raisins, peanuts and almonds are included as well.
Aside from mixed salad, Nasi
Maqlubah also comes with house hot sauce (concocted with chilli, salt,
sugar and pepper) and ‘daqqus’ (a mixture of lemon juice, Chinese celery
stalks, mint and pepper) for those who like extra heat and piquancy. A mini pot of Maqlubah Lamb (enough
for 3-4 persons) is priced at RM95 while a mini pot of Maqlubah Chicken costs
RM65.
Formerly a trainer
for the housekeeping department at Concorde Hotel Kuala Lumpur, Mas first ventured into
the food business by serving mostly healthy salads, soup and sandwiches out of
a rented kitchen in an old bungalow, for patrons of a yoga studio in the same
premise.
Then she ran a small café at
SACC Mall’s indoor kids’ playground before partnering with another home-based
caterer to open Spiced Pumpkin Café in 2016.
Now she is the sole proprietor
after her business partner opted out due to unforeseen circumstances. “I’ve
maintained her husband’s Middle Eastern recipes such as Nasi Maqlubah and Nasi
Mandy but I’ve also added some Malay specialities into the menu.”
Mas says Spiced Pumpkin’s Nasi
Arab Mandy Chicken (RM21) stands out from the competition as she infused the rice with
charcoal smoke before serving. Tinged with the aroma and
colour of saffron, the fluffy long grain rice has an enticing, subtly sweet
smokiness to it. We enjoyed every mouthful accompanied by the tender, lightly
spiced chicken.
The other show-stealer has to
be Lontong Kering Rendang Daging (RM14.50). Mas explains it’s a Johorean way of
serving lontong, with cubes of nasi impit stir-fried with her signature
serunding kelapa (fried and spiced coconut floss), sambal tumis, peanut sauce,
fried shallots and hardboiled egg halves.
Eaten together, the dish is
akin to a flavoursome party in one’s mouth. Other variations of it include dendeng
paru (dry curried beef lungs) and beef, chicken or fish serunding.
Signature light bites such as Pita
Nachos Cheese (RM16.50) and Tres Quesos PJBB (RM17.90) are also available to
tease the tastebuds of peckish diners. Here, pita bread is cut into triangular
pieces then fried until crisp to resemble nachos.
The former comes laden with the
house special sauce, melted cheese, hot sauce and chilli flakes. Cheese lovers
can relish the latter as the nibbles are topped with three types of melted
cheese, beef bacon bits and chopped jalapeño.
To please the younger set, Creamy
Pumpkin with Pasta and Beef Bacon (RM17.00), and Spaghetti with Butter Salmon
in Salted Egg Yolk Sauce (RM28.90) are among the crowd-pleasing selection
featured here. All the sauces are made on-premise by Mas so her extra efforts help
to dial up the appeal of her pasta offerings.
Having gone viral on social
media, kunafa – a popular Middle Eastern treat made from finely spun phyllo
threads drenched with syrup and crushed pistachios – proves to be a compelling
dessert at this outpost.
Mas levels up her Kunafa with
Tres Leches (RM16.50): mozzarella and cream, orange blossom syrup, dried rose
petals and crushed pistachios. The whole ensemble is creamy, mildly sweet and nutty;
with pleasing whiffs of orange blossom and rose.
She also bestows similar
treatment to Kuih Lopes with Tres Leches and Ice Cream (RM9.50). Coated in coconut
flakes, the wedge of pandan-infused glutinous rice pairs marvellously with gula
Melaka, cream and vanilla ice cream. Ditto for the Sago Pudding with Tres Leche
and Gula Melaka (RM7.50).
Somehow, we couldn’t wrap our
head around the South American-inspired Tres Leches Cake (RM15). Dry sponge
cake is traditionally soaked in cream, milk and fruits, but Mas improvises hers
slightly by immersing the sponge cake into milk prior to serving. Topped with
canned fruit, this dessert fails to hit the spot for us.
For reservations at Spiced
Pumpkin Café, call hp no:019 2728317. Address: Lot
291, Kompleks KPPMS, 2, Jalan RU 3/9a, Shah Alam, Selangor. Business hours:
Mon-Thurs 12 pm –7 pm, Sat 12 pm – 930 pm. Closed on Sun.
TBH, these baked variants comprising White Lotus Paste with Single Yolk (RM46), Pandan Lotus Paste with Single Yolk (RM46), Pure Red Bean Paste (RM38) and Six Coarse Grains Paste (RM46) exceeded my expectations.
Their nice, glossy sheen once I cut into them bears testament to good ‘yau sui’, that slick slight oiliness all notable mooncakes is judged by. According to experienced Chinese chefs, it’s a sign of well-made mooncakes with ample time to rest post-baking, resulting in their deliciousness.
Proof of that is truly in the eating. The red bean paste blows me away with its just-right sweetness. Between the pandan-flavoured and regular white lotus paste, I find the former coming up trumps thanks to its enticing aroma and appealing vanilla-like flavour.
Only the nutty variant seems a little dry and underwhelming. Overall, I’d recommend mooncakes from The Emperor as gifts this Mid-Autumn Festival. They are Halal-certified too.
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