Two more months until the Malaysian International Gourmet Festival

This was due out in September, sorry for the delay but was without stable & fast internet connection up in Cameron Highlands over the weekend after I had this Kaiseki. Without further ado, the September Kaiseki menu from Iketeru


Starter dish: Boiled Chrysanthemum in Bonito Sauce & Marinated Mackerel in Vinegar Sauce
First look of the mackerel reminded me of mum’s cooking where she marinates fried fish in soya sauce which taste horrible because the texture (anyone ever tasted fried stuff steeped in water for say 1 minute?). At least the acidity of the vinegar cuts through the texture and softened the fish up just nicely. Chef Ricky pointed out that both preparations were mixed when hot so that the heat speeds up the marination.

The other dish was very familiar, must check past menu. (Chef Ricky fessed up that he did served the Chrysanthemum before last year. At least I won't have to trawl through my previous menus to dig that one up)

Soup: Clear Broth with Seaweed Dumpling
After the first bite of the dumpling, I thought the texture of seaweed used in the dumpling resemble stringy Fatt Choy (which grows in the Xinjiang plateau). When I told Chef Ricky later, he even snickered at the comparison. At least I can see the Seaweed as opposed to the Sea Urchin dumpling last month.

When I pointed out the cute decoration of the veggies, Chef Ricky mentioned offhandedly that it resembles the autumn leaves.



Sashimi: Raw Bonito, Flying Fish & White Meat Fish
A distant relative of the Tuna family, The bonito tasted like the non-fatty part of Tuna with a distinct mellowness. Was quite pleased to finally taste it as compared to just sipping it out of stocks and sauces.

The Flying Fish and White Fish Meat were similarly light (compared to red fish Meat), which is typical of their type but I found the Flying fish to be springier in texture and have a mellowed tartness in taste.

















Simmered dish: Simmered Herring & Eggplant with Bonito Sauce
The Herring was cooked until it was so soft that it bordered on mushiness (at least it still has some bite), absolutely no worries of any stray bones getting wedged in my throat. The eggplant served this time was good too but very firm compared to previous servings, have mentioned it to Chef Ricky. The Dish was garnished by thin slices of okra and seaweed mush (that was cooked with Konbu), which went well with the Herring.
















Grilled dish: Grilled Pacific Saury with Liver Sauce, Sweet Prawn with Salt, Yam, Roe Cod Salad, Salted Gingko Nuts, Smoked Salmon Sushi and Sweetcakes.
I just love the Roe Cod Salad and Grilled pacific saury (going together like eggs and bacons). The yam was mellowy, prawn was crunchy and the Smoked Salmon Sushi was the icing on the cake. A near perfect dish if not for the off saltiness of the gingko nuts on the sides.

















Steamed dish: Steamed Egg Custard with scallop
My first impression was that of a shark-finny cawan mushi (which earns me another Chef Ricky snicker).

But I love this dish, it comes piping hot (and I do meaning scalding-your-mouth-and-tongue-hot) so every bite really really melts in your mouth after yielding from the initial chewiness.

I think they should have more cawan mushi on the menu more often, don't you?


Main Course: Rice cooked with Autumn Sea Bream & Miso
(Sorry, also forgot to take a photo of this one. Was to good to resist)
Equal to the Unagi Chazaku two months back (if the Unagi rice didn’t come with tea soup, it would have been running a distant second).

When the lid was lifted, the aroma from this dish overpowered previous servings because it was so fragrant, I could see the tea-coloured rice and flakes of ginger. Carefully laid out among them were millimeter-thin slices of Autumn Sea Bream.

From the very first bite, the rice was full of flavour. The Sea Bream ever so moist and the ginger flakes were mellowed to the point that they are no longer astringe. I just Love It! Love It! Love It!


Dessert: Sliced trawberries, Grapes and Pear
The pears were sweet and mellow instead of tarty; but the grapes were sweet and tarty to the point of acidity, almost like eating grapes that were handpicked especially for acidic wines (or more coherently, like tasting acidic wine that has been cocooned in the grapes themselves). Chef Ricky was bemused by my comparision.


After dinner, Chef Ricky and I started conversing on future menus and the MIGF event, which I am looking forward to in November.

secret notes: Anyone want to arrange a pre-MIGF sampling of the festival menu? I am trying to arrange one on MIGF eve once Chef Ricky has gathered all the ingredients. Secret invitation only, pass me your email addy.

Awaiting more feedback on my food reviews, Say it so in the comment section.