Wok affair with a twist

From Cheung Fun Xia prawn to pineapple khai — take your taste buds on an Asian gastronomic adventure with Chap Chay’s new stir-fry and a la carte menu
(Photo | R Satish Babu, EPS)
(Photo | R Satish Babu, EPS)

CHENNAI: Oil is poured onto a hot wok, causing steam to rise from the utensil. Quickly, the chef spills the cut vegetables and meat onto the metal, making a hissing sound. Sauces and seasoning powders are added shortly thereafter, filling the room with the flavourful aroma of stir-fry.

Chap Chay, an Asian restaurant located at The Raintree, St Mary’s Road, will re-launch their stir-fry and a la carte menu today. The newly curated menu includes a variety of dishes across the Eastern half of the globe for customers.

“We decided to incorporate Thai and Chinese dishes into the new menu, but we also wanted to bring in an additional twist to the menu by adding Indonesian cuisine as well. We did this because there are a few similarities between Indian and Indonesian cuisines such as the roti, but Indonesian cuisine uses different spices and vegetables, and we think this will settle well with our clientele,” said senior sous chef Suraj Rana.

One of the Chinese appetisers in the menu is Cheung Fun Xia prawn made with a gluten-free rice flour wrapper around well-steamed prawn and topped with black and white sesame seeds, topped with a sprig of coriander and presented with a rice vinegar sauce. This dish, according to Rana, is a more obscure yet crowd-favourite dish found in China.

The soft rice flour wrapper, coupled with the bite of prawn and sesame seeds, is cleaned up beautifully with the coriander. Other appetisers feature the tofu moon pirai, a soft tofu and basil dish which leaves a tang in the mouth, a crispy spinach salad  as well as a spicy artichoke dish called the Kafir Lime Spiked Artichoke. The main course dishes are easily the best from the selection. The roti chanai ghulai Ayan or Indonesian black chicken served with roti, is made with homemade ghulai sauce, which is a spicy curry. When coupled with the soft roti, the chicken’s natural flavour dominates.  

The pineapple curry khai tastes similar to a Thai red curry, but offers a respite from the spice with chunks of pineapples, grapes and cherry tomatoes. The fried rice is firm yet flavourful, with bits of soft scrambled eggs hidden between the grains like a treasure.

“We hope that our customers, who have really supported us, will be able to come in and order a few dishes from the a la carte menu as well as the stir-fry menu to truly enjoy the whole experience. Stir-fry is a healthy and evergreen food that has been received well by the public so far, and I hope that they continue to visit us,” said Rana.

The meal ended with a banana split and vanilla ice-cream, which posed to be a textural delight for the palate.

A set menu (consisting of a soup, salad, appetiser, dim sum, main course and dessert) and a stir-fry will cost `1,499 including taxes. For details, call 4225 2525

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