A one-day special at local establishment, Mag’s Wine Kitchen, altered my evening plan from a big bowl of nothing to a parade of modern peranakan dishes, which tasted so familiar yet fit for any fine dining table.

The grand dame of a restaurant (all of 28 years) went local and presented “The Peranakan Affair” with Ian Tan who is the winner of 2023 World Young Chef Young Waiter Competition in Monaco. If you’re wondering why this four hands collaboration took place, that’s because Magdalene Tang, chef-owner of Mag’s Wine Kitchen, was one of the judges for the local round – turned – Ian Tan’s culinary mentor for the international finals. The chemistry was undeniable, at least for one night.

Here’s how the dinner went.

Snacks

Kamheong spring rolls – the punchy sauce, kaffir lime leaves and lemongrass in deep-fried spring roll

Chargrilled octopus pie tee – pineapple kerabu (salad) tossed with lemongrass & chilies, topped with chargrilled octopus in black kueh pie tee shell

Appetizer

Babi pongteh in-between a soft-fluffy bao – Chef Ian simmered pork jowl in its own jus, sugarcane, shiitake mushrooms, taucheo (fermented soy beans) and shaoxing wine. And a little radicchio for a touch of bitterness to complement the savory and sweet bites. The bao recipe was done in-house by chef Mag.

It was a weird second deciding on whether to pick up the bao with my hands, or cut it like a steak. I grabbed the knife. Then dragged a chunk of bao through the sauce. It was so tasty.

Main Course & Sides

Ayam buah keluak* came next. Chef Mag was inspired by her grandmother’s recipe, but plated it in a modern way – gently poached chicken roulade caramelized on the outside with rempah (spice mix), paired with what some Peranakan’s dub as “black gold” aka buah keluak. It’s a very tedious process of cleaning and extracting the paste, cooking it then stuffing it back in the kepayang seed. In this case, there was no seed so no need to dig for “gold” 🤣 I was really shocked that I really enjoyed the almost chocolate-y flavor of buah keluak, something I have not touched in many years because l don’t like the overpowering “woody” / “musky”-ness.  Safe to say, buah keluak is most definitely an acquired taste, like uni and moutai!

A champion’s dish followed. Chef Ian cooked nonya chap chye* with woodear mushrooms, cabbage, fatt choy (black moss) & tang hoon, to name a bunch. All the goodness was wrapped in beancurd skin, and steamed. Each meatless parcel was so juicy. This was such a treat because it was this very dish that the 27-year-old chef created and served at the international competition in Monaco – the same recipe and presentation.

Shin shank rendang* completed the rice table. The tender and gelatinous beef was cooked in the rempah and 24 other spices, then topped with kerisik (toasted, grated coconut). To pair with the meat, sambal belacan & green mango, fiddlehead ferns stir-fried with green sambal, and the marinade reduction paste. It’s not really a Peranakan dish, but it’s something that chef Ian tried his hand at cooking for the first time and wanted to share it with all of us. It was so delish even though the plating is western, the flavors are truly asian.

* All three dishes were served with blue pea flower-stained rice and sambal belacan.

Laksa (not so lemak) was so umami! It took an hour to fry the rempah, before frying it again after extracting oil from sakura ebi. It was then layered with Argentinian prawn heads’ stock, then coconut milk from Geylang Serai. The noodles were formed from mackerel fish. And a pan-seared scallop was added to the spicy combo.

Pengat pisang was made and presented by a surprise pop-up, Nicolette Lee. The vegetable medley, sago and gula melaka topped with caramelized banana were best eaten together with coconut cream. I’m gonna be real here. I really do not like bananas so was I glad when my husband walked in at this moment and licked clean the plate! And then he got his own plate too, so he had this twice…HAH!

It didn’t end there. There was petit four – well, two really. Pulot tai tai which is sweet glutinous rice topped with kaya (coconut-egg jam) and toasted coconut flakes, and steamed kueh kosui made with gula melaka, and coated with fresh shredded coconut. Both kueh were so soft and tasted as they should. I could dig into a big tub of them on any given lazy weekend on the couch.

I didn’t think I’d enjoy this Peranakan meal as much as I did. Maybe because my mama (grandmother) cooked her whole repertoire of culinary delights of this genre since I was a kid till my teenage years. You could easily ask any Peranakan who cooks the best spread. They’d most probably say homecooked is always the best food, not some stranger at a restaurant. But this meal was something else. It was one of those rare times I gave buah keluak a go, another chance to win my tastebuds over. And I was pleasantly surprised.

The portions were ample and the degustation menu was packed with familiar dishes. They paired well with wine too.

I’m happy that I just went with the flow, and it easily was a fun night, thanks to the cooking and making new friends.

Mag’s Wine Kitchen

55 Keong Saik Road, #01-06 KeSa House, Singapore 089158

Open daily (except Sunday)

Reservations are highly recommended.

Dinner : 6pm – 10.30pm (last seating at 9pm)

Phone : 6438 3836

Email : info@magswinekitchen.com

Cuisine : Modern European

Seating Capacity : NA

Dress Code : NA

Payment Mode : Visa, Master, Amex

Parking : street

Instagram : @magswinekitchen

Facebook : Mag’s Wine Kitchen