Laksa Lemak (Katong Style) From 'The World's Best Spicy Food'

Updated March 15, 2019

In Lonely Planet's The World's Best Spicy Food, writer Tienlon Ho describes laksa lemak as "a reassuring hug followed by a pinch in the cheek; it's creamy and smooth with a lingering spice kick." Indeed, the seafood-rich coconut and noodle soup is a bowl of warm, gently spicy comfort. Ho's recipe also includes plenty of Southeast Asian funk—dried shrimp, fish cakes, and sambal belacan all make an appearance. But from the first slurp, one tastes not a cacophony of ingredients, but a rounded, fragrant, and transportive bowl of soup.

Why I picked this recipe: I'll dive into a bowl of laksa any day.

What worked: The soup requires a lot of hands-on stirring time, but it's worth it.

What didn't: I thought the soup needed a generous squeeze of lime juice right before serving—a problem that was easily solved.

Suggested tweaks: This laksa calls for a number of hard-to-find ingredients. If you're close to a large Asian grocery store, you should be able to find everything. If not, here's my best guess for substitutions: in place of the galangal, use more ginger; in place of the fresh turmeric, use 1 teaspoon dried; in place of the dried shrimp, use fish sauce to taste; in place of laksa leaves, use equal parts mint and cilantro; in place of fish cakes, use extra shrimp; in place of cockles, use small clams; in place of sambal belacan, use a mix of fish sauce and chili-garlic sauce.

Reprinted with permission from The World's Best Spicy Food: Where to Find It and How to Make It by Lonely Planet. Copyright 2014. RRP: 19.19 Published by Lonely Planet. All rights reserved. Available wherever books are sold.

Recipe Details

Laksa Lemak (Katong Style) From 'The World's Best Spicy Food'

Active About 90 mins

Total 0 mins

Serves 4 servings

Cook Mode (Keep screen awake)

Ingredients

12 dried red chiles, soaked to soften, coarsely chopped
16 shallots, minced
7 candlenuts, macadamias, or cashews
Medium knob fresh galangal, minced
Small knob fresh ginger, minced
3 stalks lemongrass, just the tender parts, sliced
1 tablespoon coriander seeds, toasted and ground
Small knob fresh turmeric, peeled
Salt
200ml (1 cup) vegetable oil
60g (2 ounces) dried shrimp, soaked to soften, ground
750ml (3 cups) water
750ml (3 cups) coconut milk, not stirred
4 tablespoons minced laksa leaves
Fish stock or water, as needed
275g (10 ounces) dried, round rice noodles, soaked to soften
2 fish cakes, sliced
275g (10 ounces) shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 kg (2 pounds) fresh cockles
Salt to taste
Sugar to taste
4 slices dry, firm tofu
100g (4 ounces) bean sprouts
Sambal belacan
Extra chile, chopped
Laksa leaves, coarsely chopped

Directions

Combine chiles, shallots, candlenuts, galangal, ginger, lemongrass, coriander seeds, turmeric, and salt in a mortar and pestle and pound into rempah (a smooth paste). Or use a food processor, adding a few drops of oil as needed.
Heat oil in a large pan and add the rempah. Stir continuously over a low heat until fragrant, about 30 minutes.
Add dried shrimp powder, stirring for about 5 minutes, then add water and simmer for another 30 minutes.
Add half of thick coconut milk, a teaspoon at a time, stirring continuously.
Stir in laksa leaves.
Add thin coconut milk a teaspoon at a time, stirring continuously.
Add rest of thick coconut milk as before, and simmer at medium heat for another 30 minutes. Broth should be thick but still soupy. Add fish stock or water to thin, as needed.
Add fish cakes, shrimp, and cockles to broth, and simmer until cockles open and shrimp are cooked, about three minutes. Season with more salt and sugar, as needed.
In a separate pot, cook rice noodles according to package directions, then drain.
Fry slices of tofu in vegetable oil until golden, about two minutes, and season with salt. Set aside.
To serve, divide noodles and bean sprouts among four large bowls. Fill each with broth, then top with even portions of fish cakes, cockles, shrimp, and tofu.
Garnish with laksa leaf, chile, and a spoonful of sambal.

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
1253	Calories
67g	Fat
127g	Carbs
46g	Protein

Nutrition Facts
Servings: 4
Amount per serving
Calories	1253
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 67g	86%
Saturated Fat 36g	179%
Cholesterol 138mg	46%
Sodium 1621mg	70%
Total Carbohydrate 127g	46%
Dietary Fiber 14g	49%
Total Sugars 23g
Protein 46g
Vitamin C 87mg	433%
Calcium 371mg	29%
Iron 16mg	88%
Potassium 2352mg	50%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.