Faux Cuisine

Laksa (a curry noodle soup) is a favourite of a lot of techy folks here in Canberra. There are two main types of laksa that I’ve been able to identify through research over the years:

• Laksa Lemak: contains curry paste, coconut milk and laksa plant (AKA Vietnamese Mint) as well as some kind of meat and/or vegetables, and
• Penang Laksa: basically Laksa Lemak without the coconut milk, usually contains fish.

I’ve eaten both sorts here in Australia as well as in Malaysia and Thailand. Being on a health kick currently, Helen and I prefer the Penang Laksa - contains more good stuff (the fish) and less fattening stuff (the coconut milk).

Real Penang Laksa involves a whole (sans guts) fish - usually mackerel - being boiled into a state of disintegration then further pounded/shredded into a paste (bones sometimes included - they go soft if cooked for long enough).

Here is my slack version. You will need:

• a small handful of spring onions or one whole onion (either way, chop finely)
• curry paste (something mild like Massuman works well - please do not use more than a tablespoon until you’ve tasted it)
• teaspoon of oil (peanut/olive/canola/whatever you have)
• a couple of small tins of sardines, drained
• Asian greens, like Sam Bok or Bok Choi, chopped
• a cup of water
• some kind of soup noodles - like Ramen, Soba or Hokkien (whichever you prefer), not more than 100gm when cooked (rehydrate/cook noodles per packet instructions prior to use)
• half a handful of basil leaves

In a saucepan, brown the spring onions/onion in oil and curry paste. Throw in the sardines, then add Asian greens and stir gently for a minute or so. Add water, cooked noodles, some basil, and serve.

This is a great recipe for experimentation - you can add any vegetables you might think are nice in this kind of curry soup, or use different curry pastes, different herbs, a heap of pepper, fresh fish (watch for bones!), you name it. Experimentation and sloth are at the heart of the true faux cuisine cook
Note: this recipe is adapted from one originally posted on Facibus Reviews.