Weekend at ‘Lalah’ River...

In the year 2010, and in the month of June, it is commonly known in most Asian countries especially Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia and Brunei that during this time (and it only happens once a year) the KING of all fruits will descend from the high trees. If you know what I’m talking about ... shout it out with me! D-U-R-I-A-N!!

If any of you do not know what DURIAN is, here are some reviews from famous travel writers / chef:

Andrew Zimmern compares the taste to "completely rotten, mushy onions." 

Anthony Bourdain, a lover of durian, relates his encounter with the fruit as thus: "Its taste can only be described as...indescribable, something you will either love or despise. ...Your breath will smell as if you'd been French-kissing your dead grandmother." 

Travel and food writer Richard Sterling says:

"... its odor is best described as pig-shit, turpentine and onions, garnished with a gym sock. It can be smelled from yards away. Despite its great local popularity, the raw fruit is forbidden from some establishments such as hotels, subways and airports, including public transportation in Southeast Asia."

And you know what? I still remember watching Fear Factor and one of the challenges was eating durians. And none of them were able to do so! Man, I would’ve won that challenge easily!! Anyhow, almost every year my family invites relatives and friends to come over to our ‘dusun’ (orchard) for Durian Feast. We put up the barbeque, cook some dishes and have durians for desserts or appetizers, which ever you prefer. After deciding to do barbeque, I figured I should stay over at the orchard. I need to prepare the marinate, cut up the meats and set up the barbeque area. I use the recipe from Jamie Oliver’s cookbook which is truly the best marinated recipe!

BEST BARBECUE MEAT AND HOMEMADE BARBEQUE SAUCE

Ingredients

For the marinade:

1 heaped teaspoon cumin seeds

2 tablespoons fennel seeds

5 cloves

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Bunch fresh thyme or lemon thyme, leaves picked

Bunch fresh rosemary, leaves picked, a few whole sprigs reserved

1 orange, zested and juiced

1 bulb garlic, broken into cloves and peeled

4 heaped teaspoons sweet smoked paprika

6 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

1/2 cup organic tomato ketchup

8 tablespoons olive oil

10 bay leaves

1 (3-pound) free-range or organic chicken, spatchcocked or 1 (7-pound) leg of lamb, on the bone, slashed evenly 1/4-inch deep

Directions

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F and light your barbecue about 40 minutes later.

To make your marinade, grind the cumin seeds, fennel seeds and cloves in a pestle and mortar with some salt and pepper. Chop the thyme and rosemary leaves, orange zest and garlic together finely. Put into a bowl with the ground spices, then add the rest of the marinade ingredients and mix together.

Rub your chosen meat all over with the marinade, really getting it into all the nooks and crannies and, in case of the lamb, the slashes. Place the meat in a snug-fitting roasting pan, top with any leftover marinade and cover loosely with aluminum foil. Bake the meat in the preheated oven until sweet and tender. This will take 1 1/2 hours for the lamb (but if you like your lamb pink, it will only need 1 hour), and 1 hour and 20 minutes for the chicken.

Now you're going to finish your meat on a medium hot barbecue. Place it carefully on the bars of the barbecue and sear it well on 1 side, then turn it over. While it's cooking, use your reserved rosemary sprigs to baste the meat with the sticky juices from the bottom of the roasting pan. Keep turning and brushing the meat until you've built up a lovely sticky, charred crust, then take it off the barbie and rest it on a serving dish for a few minutes. Meanwhile, pop your roasting pan on the barbie or over a gas burner and let the juices reduce a bit.

Carve the leg of lamb into slices or tear the chicken into pieces, and serve with a bowl of the lovely marinade juices from the roasting pan.

My mom usually cooks her famous fried fish in dark soy sauce with onions and birds eye chillies, ‘ayam masak lomak cili padi’ (chicken cooked in spicy rich yellow coconut gravy) and ‘sambal ikan bilis petai’ (fried anchovies cooked in sambal paste together with petai). I do have to apologize; totally forgot to take pictures of my mom’s fantastic food *oops*. People start to appear just before lunch, and they went straight to the durians. Typical Malaysians! Bbq meats ready, dishes were placed, everyone enjoyed themselves. After lunch few went for a walkabout around the 'dusun'. My dad planted dragonfruits, mangosteens; he raised goats, goose and chickens. The children had fun (including the parents)! Some went back for a 2^nd round of durians, others couldn’t handle it but took few to bring back home. 


That’s Durian Feast at Sungai Lalah'!