Tuesday, February 2, 2010

The Kingly Feast


It was August 1973 and I was a gauche kampung girl of 19 when I first stepped foot in Kuala Lumpur to begin my career as a newspaper reporter. Ampang Park was then an upmarket shopping hub in KL, as was erstwhile Jaya Supermarket in PJ.

It was in a restaurant called 'Palong Dulang', located on the first floor of Ampang Park, that I had my first taste of Chicken a la King with Buttered Rice, a dish I took a liking to instantaneously.

For a small-town girl whose palate had experienced nothing beyond the standard fare of budu, sambal belacan, ikan singgang et al, chicken a la king with buttered rice was a kingly feast indeed.

'Palong Dulang' is but a distant memory, and I have since eaten chicken a la king with buttered rice everywhere in and out of the country, but nothing beats the one served in 'Palong Dulang' long ago.

A couple of days back I had a sudden urge to try cooking this simple dish (something I had never done before). A mad scramble on Google followed, searching for a suitable recipe.

Here's the result. I have improvised a bit, here and there. You can substitute mushroom soup with cream of chicken soup, or fresh milk, if you so desire. Any which way, kids will love this one because it is neither hot nor spicy.

Chicken a la King with Buttered Rice

Ingredients for Chicken a la King

- 1 medium-sized onion, finely chopped
- 1 green pepper & 1 red pepper, sliced
- 1 can of button mushrooms
- 1 can cream of mushroom soup
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 200 ml chicken stock
- 1/2 chicken, cut into bite-sized pieces
- Salt & pepper to taste

Directions:
Boil chicken pieces with 3 cups water. When cooked, remove the meat and keep aside the chicken stock. Dilute cream of mushroom soup with 3/4 can water and set aside. Heat up butter. Sautee onion, peppers and button mushrooms till soft. Add flour, stir for a minute. Add diluted mushroom soup and 200 ml chicken stock. Bring to boil. Keep stirring until the sauce thickens. Add chicken pieces and sprinkle salt and pepper to taste.

Ingredients for Buttered Rice

- 4 cups rice, washed and drained
- 1/2 cup butter
- 1/2 cup raisins
- 2 medium-sized onions, finely chopped
- 1 pandan leaf
- 2 chicken cubes

Directions
Melt butter in a pan and sautee onion till soft. Add rice and sufficient water. Add also pandan leaf, chicken cubes and raisins. Mix well. Transfer mixture to rice cooker and let it cook. Spread some crispy fried onions on the rice upon serving.

18 comments:

AuntieYan said...

Salam Tuan Puteri,

Palong Dulang restaurant?..I've been there only once I, way back in 1977 0r may be 1978. I just had a glass of orange juice...no makan makan. I was such a shy and very timid girl then.
Went there with a group of men freinds (from my office), after office hour.As a small town girl, I got a shocked of my life as a few of them took alcoholic drinks...I sweared never to go and blindly follow those friends again.
..kenangan Palang Dulang tuuu...:-)

Cat-from-Sydney said...

Aunty Puteri,
Cholesterol aside, nak sikit boleh? They look yummmy....purrr....meow!

Queen Of The House said...

1973 - I was in Standard 4 :D
Palong Dulang sounds vaguely familiar, though ..... maybe because around 1976-77 I visited Ampang Park several times - it was THE place to shop then, wasn't it?

Pat said...

Hi there! Thanks for dropping by :)

1973? I was in Sixth Form - and yes, Ampang Park was one of the places to be!

Your recipe sounds good. And I especially like it because it won't be pedas. Hahahah! I'm gonna give it a try this weekend.

Thanks for sharing.

Pat said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Anonymous said...

syed mazlan syed mat dom her. emmm sedapnyer...
syedmazlansyedmatdom.blogspot.com

Kama At-Tarawis said...

syed!! I remember you! Kita satu kelas DTA 1981 - 1984.

D said...

I was only 1 in 1973!! HeHe... Ampang Park was like KLCC back then (though nothing like it) and Jaya Supermarket was probably a poor version of One Utama? LOL!!

This is a great idea. I often make creamed mushroom soup to be taken with bread or pasta. Rice would be perfect! thanks Kak Puteri!

Snakebite said...

how come i've never come across this dish? kedai mana ada?

i first step in kl 1977. got lost going to puduraya from bus stand kelang

Kama At-Tarawis said...

Yan - Those days minum liquor takder segan silu. Apa nak buat Yan, zaman jahiliah..hehehe

Cat - it's indeed very yummy, Cat. I'm afraid all these recipe testing is having its effect on my already wide girth (sighh..)

Qoth - 'The' place to see and be seen, it was. I remember buying my kasut hantaran there, at the princely price of RM65. Mahal wooo masa tuu..

Pat - I hv been a frequent visitor to yr lil cottage since i found it via kak teh's. it was just that i had never left any pawmark there.. hehe..

Syed - we must organise another reunionlah syed. the last one was in 1994.. long overdue lah ..

D - you ni only 2 years younger than my eldest son.. :-P

Snakebite - in most hotels you can get this dish. Nowadays I selalu makan this dish kat ampang park also, ada satu restaurant on the first floor (nama dah lupa) sebelah one mamak shop. the shop is packed at noon.

Cat-from-Sydney said...

Cozy Corner?

NURAINA A SAMAD said...

Puteri,

i remember "palong dulang". remember Yasmin restaurant?

amyway...another place yang serve chicken ala king sedap was Coliseum restaurant at jalan tuanku abdul rahman.

i'm not sure whether the dish is still on their menu.

and FYI, another place these days is the national press club -- the chef there cooks in the same style as Coliseum's and ada chicken ala king. yummy.

NURAINA A SAMAD said...

Cat: I remember cozy corner. now ada outlet at Jaya33 in PJ.

i went there but i couldn't get that oomph, as i did back in the 70s.

perhaps the dishes betul2 the 70s...

Kama At-Tarawis said...

cat - yea, that sounds about right..-)

aina - yes, i remember yasmin rest very well. they used to hv cultural shows there. there's a cozy corner in jaya 33? then i must go try cos it's nearer home..

Anonymous said...

Kak Puteriiiiiiiii...

.. dah try semalam... & jadikkk.. & sedapnyaaaa... the children sukaaaa sgt.

.. so hari ni bawak mai office.. cicah dengan pita bread.. sat lagi nak offer MrsN juga (shes my office mate y'know)..

Thank you sbb share the simple but sedap menu. So, that, is in my recipe collection now, besides kuzi you tu :-)

~mia-sara~

Kama At-Tarawis said...

Hehehe mia, i'm so happy you buat menjadik and anak2 pun suka. nanti i pi cari resipi lain pulak, yg sedap and simple to make..

Anonymous said...

You forgot Andrew Jackson’s Big Block of Cheese with nary a macaroni in sight.

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