Portuguese Grilled Fish @ Petaling Street

steam arises from the hot foil packet once it is opened

Let us kick off the week with a little street food in particular this famous Portuguese grilled fish stall along the busy Petaling Street. It is a 20-year plus stall located at the Hong Leong Bank's perimeter that operates once the bank closes for the day (banks close by 3pm and it starts about 4.30pm onwards).

gloves, sauces, the master mixer and the menu

On hand, the menu offers a variety of fish including this weird sounding chicken fish (it is said to have a texture akin to chicken!). Options to pair the fish with various kinds of seafood is also available i.e. clams, prawns, squid and etc. Place your order and they start prepping up the food for you straight away.

step by step: banana leaf with grinded chillies and spices, fish, lady's fingers and the final dollop of sambal

What's interesting is how they prep up the grilled seafood parcels. The master mixer-stall owner simply known as Ah Dee is surrounded by his various sauces, all of varying heats. Just indicate how spicy you can take before your tongue burns off and he'll adjust the level. He even has a non spicy version made from chopped garlic and ginger mixed with soy.

fire burning bright, tucking into a one plate dinner

First, a large piece of foil is placed on his table and oiled. Then a piece of banana leaf is placed on the middle, topped with a "raw" sauce made from grinding chillies and spices. Next he layers the fish (a popular choice is the stingray) or seafood, topped with finely sliced lady's fingers, four angle beans and a final dollop of his sambal sauce, cooked until fragrant with lots of chilli oil. A quick fold and twist, a number made with a marker pen to tell who's order it is and you get a foil parcel that is passed to the grilling station.

Here a robust fire is going on with flames that lick the parcel. If you observe carefully, you will notice that there's varying levels of heat - the flame red coals on one side, sky high flames on other side. The parcel is placed on the tall flames and puffs up in no time, as steam is trapped within that cooks the food within. Once it puffs up, the foil packet is transferred to the coals and left to cook. Each packet can take about 15 minutes and if its a busy night, prepare to wait for your meal. Once it is ready, it's picked up and the foil packet is opened, plonked on your rickety wooden or plastic table with a plate of white rice. Eat it while the seafood is hot as it burns your tongue slightly with the spicy kick from the sambal. Absolutely delicious that will have you asking for more and more.

Portuguese Grilled Fish Stall

At Hong Leong Bank Berhad
Petaling Street/Cecil Street

Kuala Lumpur

Tel: 019-315 9448

(Pork free. Open from 4.30 to 11pm. Take away or eat at the tables and chairs placed around the stall. More pictures in the flickr set. )

*Disclaimer: The opinions expressed here is entirely based on my personal tastebuds and may vary for others. This review is time sensitive; changes may occur to the place later on that can affect this opinion. The reviewer also declares that she has not received any monetary or non-monetary compensation from this place for writing the review.

Tagged with: Portuguese Grilled Fish+ Petaling Street

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