BBITES in Kota Kinabalu

HI EVERYONE! I’m finally back with my Malaysia holiday update. If you’re new to the site, yes this is a Hong Kong food blog (most of the time) – but I also love to blog about my travels and exotic overseas food every now and then, as well! 🙂

So, without further ado… let’s get ready to makan! (that means eat in Malaysian.)Kota Kinabalu, affectionately referred to as “KK” is the capital city of Sabah, a geographically diverse area of Eastern Borneo. And when I say geographically diverse, I’m not kidding: in the space of one day, you can go from the beach all the way to freezing cold at over 4000m altitude!After arriving at the ghostly quiet KK Intl. Airport, we picked up some much-needed tourist info and set out to buy supplies for our upcoming climb up Mount Kinabalu.After this strenuous exercise, my companions and I left the supermarket/shopping mall in dire need of some exciting local sights and flavours…Located on the main coastal strip, KK’s fish market is bustling with locals, tourists, vendors and flanked all the while by restaurants that serve up the fresh catch in a variety of styles, very much like Sai Kung in Hong Kong.To accompany our megalodon – I mean snapper – we naturally ordered classic Malaysian sides: nasi goreng (fried rice) and kang kung belacan (water spinach). PRO TIP: eat everything with generous amouts of Malaysian chili sauce: sambal.In Malaysia, it is custom to eat with your right hand (left hand is rude) so each table has some form of wash basin so that patrons can clean up before digging in.

And now, presenting the massive snapper that had so much meat we couldn’t even finish the leftovers for breakfast…Grilled with a spicy marinade, this snapper (and all the fresh seafood caught off of Borneo) was full of flavour with an almost chicken-like robust texture.The following day we woke early to begin the climb to Mount Kinabalu peak – the non-culinary highlight of our trip to Malaysia.While the markets, hotels and city centre of KK are on the coast, it takes a few hours drive to reach the start of Mount Kinabalu’s trail head.

This was by far the longest and most challenging hike I’ve ever done, but porters and local guides (who must accompany climbers by law) can sprint up and down like it’s a piece of cake – sometimes carrying over 40kg!!!!!!!As you go and up down the mountain, porters pass you all the time – since the inn sitting on the mountainside before the final summit has no access roads, and everything must be carried up manually. Truly impressive.Although Laban Rata has no running hot water or heating system, I was the happiest camper imaginable to snuggle into my creaking bunk bed to restore my energy before the 3AM final ascent!Breakfast ^ before climbing to the summit in time for sunrise 🙂 What an amazing feeling being at the top (apart from freezing my butt off!). The climb down after the sun meant that we could now see the gorgeous yet desolate rock formations at the summit – which earlier were covered in darkness.After returning to Laban Rata to celebrate with some bubbly apple juice (bringing up real champagne didn’t strike me as a good idea), we began the long journey back to KK and our final market/food experience.For our last night in KK, we browsed the central market (separate from fish market) and decided on more grilled seafood after trying snacks like satay ayam and kerupuk.Among the highlights were mud crab and squid. Warning: delicious photos ahead.Fatty, tender yet crisp with a melty explosion of flavour, the grilled squid rocked my world with a lightly sweet tomato/chili sauce.

After dinner, a “quick” stop to the local bar, and the rest is history!Thanks for reading and stay tuned for my next post, which will be a 100% certified Hong Kong food story 🙂

Bakker x

There’s Something About Ping Kee

Ping Kee Thai Restaurant is on Third Street, crossing Water Street.

It’s been a while now that I’ve been meaning to blog about Ping Kee Thai, a neighbourhood restaurant in Sai Ying Pun. The only problem was that I always bring  friends and – in my enthusiasm – kept forgetting to bring my camera with me.

I was first taken to Ping Kee by a family friend, and in turn I’ve passed along the favour by introducing my own friends to this unassuming, family-run restaurant… one of whom literally went back the very next day, on his own, to relive our dinner – and, in particular, the AMAZING grilled fish.That friend was Leonard, who joined me for dinner with his sister, Natalie (her first time at Ping Kee!) on my BBITES mission. Although you can usually walk in to get a table, we happened to go on a public holiday, which meant there were more patrons than usual. After about a 20 minute wait – in which we enjoyed our fresh coconuts outside – we began the feast…Ping Kee is named after its chef, a hardworking and talented lady chef who prepares the food in a relatively small kitchen at the back. Her husband and son also work in the family business: by serving the floor and preparing BBQ grilled menu items.The secret ingredient tying every dish together is their special, homemade chili sauce. Spicy, sweet and little bit tart, it goes well with everything! If only I could somehow steal the recipe; I love it so much I could practically bathe in it…As I mentioned, part of the menu consists of BBQ grilled items that are prepared on order. Then of course, there’s a slew of classic Thai dishes, with a splash of Cantonese influence here and there. We started with some grilled items – this being the perfect way to enjoy and savour Ping Kee’s chili sauce and get our appetites flowing! There’s a LOT more options for skewers/grilled items, so GO and sate your curiosity 🙂The star of the show always was, and continues to be (for me, at least) the Grilled Fish… a phenomenally fresh grilled white fish. Everyone I’ve brought agrees, and when you eat at the restaurant,  you can spot regulars by the simple fact that they’ve also got one on their table.

Arriving steaming hot, with herbs and chilli stuffed in its cavity for flavour, it has crispy, salt-encrusted skin encasing its tender meat. The meat within is sprinkled with dill, and when you eat it with the chili sauce together, it’s just heaven.To accompany this, some pad thai was in order. Brimming with goodies (fresh vegetables, chicken and egg), the pad thai was such a success that we felt it would be wrong to leave Ping Kee without eating more.And so followed a deliciously creamy and fragrant green chicken curry……which, of course, we needed rice to eat with. Thankfully we opted for a huge plate of pineapple rice, instead of steamed rice – because it was the best pineapple rice I’ve ever had.Chunks of juicy pineapple, chopped vegetables, raisins lay under a bed of pork floss which, once you’ve mixed it together, produces a most delightful texture and flavour. I couldn’t help scooping pineapple rice, green curry and cabbage (below) all into one bowl, mixing it together and revel in how lucky I am that I live so near to Ping Kee. Casual, familial and bursting with good, honest food, Ping Kee is one of my favourite places to eat in Hong Kong. It has never disappointed me yet, and whenever I feel like a great dinner and a couple of beers with friends, my mind immediately jumps to Ping Kee…

So, what are you waiting for! 🙂Bakker x