Masak lemak is a traditional cooking style among the Malay community. While it literally translates to “cooked in fat”, masak lemak actually refers to dishes cooked in coconut milk.
It’s a rich and incredibly versatile cooking style and can easily go from vegan to full-on meaty, or mild to incredibly spicy with the addition of a few more ingredients.
And, just like many other local dishes, how masak lemak is cooked varies from state to state, and even family to family.
With this in mind, here’s a lovely recipe for savoury labu masak lemak, or pumpkin in coconut gravy. The mild yet rich sauce pairs incredibly well with cooked-until-tender chunks of sweet pumpkin flesh.
Ingredients (for a large serving)
- 2 large pumpkins
- 2ml coconut milk (santan)
- 2 large red onions, skin removed
- 60g dried anchovies (ikan bilis)
- 2 tbsp black pepper
- 3 tbsp salt
- 3 tbsp sugar
- 8ml water
Method
- First, cut a pumpkin in half with a cleaver or large knife. Remove the seeds and stems.
- Using a knife or a potato peeler, remove the pumpkin skin. You don’t have to remove it completely; leaving a little bit on here and there will help keep the pumpkin intact as it cooks.
- Cut each half of the pumpkin into quarters, then cut into large triangular chunks.
- Now cut the peeled onions in half, then slice thinly.
- There are two ways to prepare the anchovies. You can either use a pestle and mortar to pound and grind them until they are a mix of fine powder and coarse, flattened pieces.
- Alternatively, blend half of the ikan bilis into a fine powder, and blend the other half until coarse. Either way, remember that the ikan bilis must be dry, or you’ll end up with a paste instead.
- In a large pot, add the pumpkin, onions, anchovies and black pepper.
- Pour in the coconut milk, then turn on the flame to high.
- Bring the ingredients to a boil, stirring occasionally to prevent them sticking to the bottom of the pot and burning.
- Once everything comes to a boil, turn the heat down to a simmer.
- Add salt and sugar and stir to mix through. Feel free to use more or less of the seasonings according to your taste.
- Simmer for about 25-30 minutes until the pumpkin is soft and cooked through, stirring occasionally.
- Serve hot with steamed rice and other tasty kampung-style dishes.
Get more recipes from Butterkicap here.
This article first appeared in butterkicap.com, a food and culture platform and community that enables anyone to experience Malaysia through stories of her people, food and places.