Ever end up gravitating in direction of PLQ Mall in Paya Lebar reasonably than Metropolis Plaza? Properly, certainly one of our readers had really useful Aunty Lily Kitchen, tucked away within the latter. Intrigued, I made a decision to see what the fuss was about.
Venturing by way of quite a few clothes and jewelry retailers within the vintage-looking mall, I finally situated the meals court docket at degree 5. It felt like time stood nonetheless; nothing had modified since my final go to a few years again.
Aunty Lily Kitchen, because the identify suggests, is owned by 63-year-old Aunty Lily herself (pictured left) with the help of her sister-in-law, who helps with serving clients. Earlier than opening her meals stall, Aunty Lily operated a home-based enterprise through the pandemic.
However maintain on, there’s one other aspect to this superwoman! She additionally wears the hat of a hostel proprietor, offering lodging for a number of Indonesian college students from LASALLE Faculty of the Arts and NAFA.
“That’s how I bought and picked up Indonesian delicacies,” Aunty Lily shared.
What I attempted at Aunty Lily Kitchen
We started with certainly one of Aunty Lily’s signatures, the Ayam Penyet (S$7.90), the place I used to be given a alternative between plain or turmeric rice.
The grains of sunshine had been topped with fried shallots, surrounded by a bit of fried rooster drumstick, tau kwa, mini fried tempeh bits, a aspect of veggies and sambal. I additionally added a whole slab of handmade Otah Otah (S$6.50) to go together with it.
I spritzed some calamansi drops onto the rooster earlier than attacking it with my cutlery. Because the workplace crowd hadn’t swarmed in but, I heard the audible crackle of the rooster pores and skin as I tore it aside. As I took my first chew, the fragrant flavours of turmeric and lemongrass burst in my mouth. Its flesh was additionally tender and packed stuffed with flavour.
The yellow rice exuded a aromatic aroma and fluffy texture, and when paired with the crispy fried shallots, elevated the expertise much more.
I couldn’t consider how Aunty Lily’s handmade otah tasted similar to my favorite Muar rendition from Malaysia. It was tasty but gentle, and generously filled with morsels of mackerel.
Surprisingly, it wasn’t overwhelmingly spicy, a lot to the delight of my eating associate, who fortunately indulged in a couple of spoonful.
We then jumped to the subsequent dish, the Gado Gado (S$5.50). Rice muffins, tau kwa, potatoes, lengthy beans, corn kernels, sliced carrots, tau geh and cabbage slices had been drenched with peanut gravy.
The only piece of keropok jogged my memory of a white and puffed-up model of a roti jala. Sadly, it was somewhat deflated and lacked the specified crispiness— although it did redeem itself with its tasty flavour.
The beansprouts, lengthy beans and corn gave a pleasant crunch, making a playful distinction with the pillowy softness of the rice muffins. The peanut sauce hit the candy spot with its good stability of flavours— I couldn’t discover a single factor to gripe about.
For our closing dish, we tried one other of her signatures, the Nasi Lemak with Beef Rendang (S$7.50). It got here with a mound of blue pea rice, beef rendang, egg sambal, peanuts and ikan bilis. From the highest, it was a kaleidoscope of colors.
The blue pea rice was cooked to perfection and was fantastically dyed in a light-weight blue tone. It possessed a delicate coconut flavour which wasn’t overwhelming.
The sambal was candy and mildly spicy with hints of dried shrimp. It was the right accompaniment to the rice and egg.
The meat rendang was extraordinarily tender and the meat fibres fell aside simply. Its spices and flavour had been spot-on, paying homage to my Peranakan grandmother’s genuine rendition.
Name me bizarre, however I’ve been a fan of tempeh from an early age. My late Teochew grandmother would slice them up and deep fry them until crispy. I might then devour them like French fries.
So you may think about my pleasure once I noticed Tempeh Hijau and Chilli Tempeh on the shelf. I fortunately paid an additional S$1 for every of them.
The Tempeh Hijau was perfumed with the distinctive flavour of the inexperienced chilli sambal. Then again, the Chilli Tempeh was stir fried with gula melaka, chilli and garlic. Its style jogged my memory of the candy and spicy tapioca chips snack.
Aunty Lily, whose grandmother is Peranakan, additionally makes a few of the Nyonya kueh which she sells at her stall. They embody the Lemper Udang (S$3) and Kueh Kosui (S$3 for six items).
I packed the Lemper Udang for my breakfast the subsequent day. The hae bee hiam filling was strong and extra beneficiant as in comparison with different mainstream manufacturers exterior— positively price its barely steep value.
Ultimate ideas
It was a pity that I didn’t get to attempt Aunty Lily’s Nasi Liwet (S$7). It’s an Indonesian rice dish cooked in coconut milk, rooster broth, salam leaves, lemongrass, and spices. Wouldn’t it style like nasi lemak? Who is aware of?
She solely cooks this dish on Sundays, when a big Indonesian neighborhood gathers at Metropolis Plaza. Nonetheless, this offers me the right purpose to return, say hello to Aunty Lily, and revel in her meals as soon as once more.
Some stalls make an enduring impression from the very first go to, and Aunty Lily Kitchen is undoubtedly certainly one of them. I’ll be again quickly!
