Kerabu Daging Mentah is a special dish said to influence the Kingdom of Siam or Thailand. It is food from the kitchen of the King of Siam’s Sultanate Palace that is brought to Padang Terap and around the area in the state of Kedah that borders Thailand. This menu is always served during palace functions or festival season in the olden days. High-quality meat such as batang pinang or harimau menangis are used as it does not have veins, and the texture is softer and tastier. The meat used in this dish is cleaned first and then finely chopped. It does not need to be cooked but is instead marinated with lime juice allowing it to cook naturally through the lemon’s acidity. Then, it will be mixed with other ingredients such as sugar, chilli, lime and fried rice that has been finely ground, as is always used in the braising process, apart from other ingredients to make kerabu. This Kerabu Daging Mentah is a delicious blend of spiciness, combining sourness, saltiness and sweetness to the meat.
Padang Terap
Padang Terap is located along the border with Thailand to the north. In 1821 AD, the state of Kedah was invaded by the Sukhothai army. During the Kedah forces’ counterattack under the leadership of Panglima Bukit Gantang and Raja Alang Alauddin against the Sukhothai army, this area became the gathering place for the Kedah forces. Another term used during that time was ‘padang terap’ which referred to the army assembling. Meanwhile, in the mid-1900s, the name Padang Terap was associated with a type of terap tree (Artocarpus elasticus) abundant in a field or at the field’s edges. It is said that the name Padang Terap originated from the name of this tree.
District Heritage Food:
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Kerabu Daging Mentah
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Gajah Berendam
Kerabu Daging Mentah
Gajah Berendam
Besides Kerabu Daging Mentah, another dish from King Siam’s Sultanate Palace is a menu called Gajah Berendam, mostly known as Gajah Berguling or Gajah Bergolek. This dish is believed to be the food of the royals from Yala, Thailand. Gajah Berendam is a dish cooked quite similar to kerabu. It is still stuffed inside a banana flower that is thinly sliced lengthwise in several parts. Then, the slices of lemongrass, shallots, chillies, and rice are mixed into a container, followed by spices like ground coriander and then the mixture is pounded together with sugar and salt. It is then stuffed into different parts of the banana flower and cooked with coconut milk for about an hour. The banana flowers used in this dish are taken from banana trees known as pisang berangan, pisang montel, or pisang awak by the locals. This name of this dish Gajah Berendam stems from the tradition of rolling the stuffed banana flower in a pot filled with coconut milk to ensure even cooking. This cuisine is hardly found now, and only those from King Yala’s lineage in the Padang Terap district are skilled in this field of cooking.
Recipe
Kerabu Daging Mentah
Ingredients
- Tenderloin – 350gm (sliced finely and chopped)
- Toasted coconut paste – 100gm
- Thick coconut milk – 1 cup
- Lime juice – ½ cup
- Shallots – 10 bulbs (sliced finely)
- Bird’s eye chillies – 10 sprigs (blended)
- Galangal root – 2-inch (blended)
- Ginger root – 2-inch (blended)
- Lemongrass – 3 stalks (blended)
Directions
- Wash the meat a few times until the colour turns white and apparent, then drain the water.
- Next, marinate the meat with freshly squeezed lime juice.
- Put all the ground ingredients into a container with the marinated meat and mix all the ingredients until well combined.
- Then, add toasted coconut, coconut milk, and sliced shallots into the same container.
- Mix all the ingredients until they are even and well combined.
- Finally, season with salt and sugar to taste, and marinate the ingredients for 20 minutes.
- Kerabu daging mentah is ready to be served.
Recipe
Gajah Berendam
Ingredients
- Banana blossom – 1 number
- Toasted coconut paste – 5 tablespoons
- Shallots – 10 bulbs (half was sliced finely and another half was blended)
- Red chillies – 10 sprigs (blended)
- Bird’s eye chillies – 10 sprigs (sliced finely)
- Lemongrass – 10 stalks (half was sliced finely and another half was blended)
- Thick coconut milk – 1 cup
- Water
- Salt and sugar to taste
Directions
- Boil the banana blossom until tender and then split it lengthwise at the front and back of the banana blossom.
- Leave a small portion of the banana blossom, about 1 inch in length.
- Next, mix the ingredients such as sliced shallots, lemongrass, toasted coconut paste, and bird’s eye chili until well combined.
- Stuff the mixture into the split banana blossom.
- Then, add the thick coconut milk, water, and the ground ingredients into the pot along with the stuffed banana blossom.
- Finally, season with salt and sugar to taste, and let it cook until it’s ready to be served.
