Chapati @ Tiger Jit Singh, Jalan San Peng, Kuala Lumpur

The last time I ventured to Jalan San Peng to sample their prawn noodles laden with those wicked fried lard cubes, Babe in the City - KL recommended the chapati stall just a few doors away. Unable to resist, I recently made a second trip down to Jalan San Peng to sample the chapati.



This time round, it was a much easier affair to search for the place which is oddly named Tiger Jit Singh Chapati. No sign of any tigers nor Indian men helming the stall but instead it was run by a group of Indonesian women. I reckon they were under the watchful eye of an old Indian woman who sat at one of the tables but it was a bit hard to tell since she looked more like a friendly grandmother rather than the boss of the stall.



Heeding Babe_kl's advice, I asked for a fresh chapati but the Indonesian woman refused to make me one citing the stack of chapatis to be fresh as it just came from the stove. Not wanting to create a fuss especially since I was treading on unfamiliar territory (I read somewhere that San Peng used to be a notorious area in the 70s), I just reached for one of the chapatis and ladled the dhall.



The chapati (RM1) was pretty good, light yet fluffy but I felt the surface of it had too much flour. The dhall which came with potatoes and whole chick peas (Kacang Kuda in Malay) was not too bad and semi-thick versus the watery brown liquid you get at most mamak stalls.

On the way out, I managed to catch the Indonesian woman making a fresh batch of chapatis. Made from atta flour and water, the dough is kneaded till it is elastic and left to rest. Once ready, you take a small amount of the dough and roll it with the rolling pin till it's flattened. Atta flour is used on the pin and the lady will dip the dough in the flour to prevent it from sticking. Judging from the liberal amount she was using, that's probably why the cooked chapati had such a floury texture. The chapati will then be quickly placed on the hot plate. It will slowly puff up when cooked and the Indonesian lady will use a makeshift pouch from muslin cloth filled with flour to flatten it down. Once cooked and speckled with brown dots, it's ready to be taken off the hot plate. Although the Indonesians seem to have got the method down pat, I still have a niggling thought at the back of my head that it would have tasted better if Tiger Jit Singh was making it.



Besides chapatis and dhalls, they also have a pretty good array of curries. This caught my eye as it was an unusual dish - deep fried baby bittergourds stuffed with spicy sambal. Definitely something I wouldn't mind returning back to this stall to sample during lunch time.

Tiger Jit Singh Chapati
Jalan San Peng
Kuala Lumpur

(Halal. Closed on Sundays. Just further down from the San Peng Prawn Noodles and off Jalan Loke Yew.)

*Disclaimer: The opinions expressed here is entirely based on my personal tastebuds and may vary for others. The reviewer also declares that she has not received any monetary or non-monetary compensation from the restaurant/stall for writing this review.

Tagged with: Chapati + Malaysian Food