Chef Damian D’Silva has cooked in many kitchens, but an unyielding dedication to preserving heritage cuisine remains throughout. His latest venture remains rooted in traditional flavours. Following the closure of Kin at Mandala Club (the old Straits Clan), chef Damian is back with a three-month take-out pop-up, Damian’s Cookhouse – an appropriate concept during this period of ever-changing dining rules.
The menu, of course, is based on recipes of the past to present a taste of the yesteryears. Everything is best sampled through a Heritage Feast ($180 for four), which lets you put together a spice-scented feast. Choose from starters of ngoh hiang, meaty parcels studded with prawn and water chestnut; and a salad of wing beans tossed with mangoes, pineapples, tomatoes, prawn floss, and chilli sauce for a bright, juicy punch.
Get the plate ready with rice – either turmeric or brown – and ladle up mains of the fiery ayam lemak chilli padi, braised with tender French chicken; or soak up the sauces from babi pongteh, with pork ribs and belly stewed till for-tender in a candlenut-infused sauce. Mackeral otah, baked in banana leaf, makes for an aromatic bite, while chap chai masak lemak is an amped-up version of sayur lodeh, fortified with prawn stock for plenty of umami. The belly will likely be full by now, but you’ll need to make space for some of Damian’s famous kueh kosui, made using a recipe that has been perfected over the years to yield a soft, custard-like texture that melts easily in the mouth.
The best part: the food line-up has even more lesser-seen dishes to choose from, including opor ayam, kari Belanda, dry lamb curry, singgang, and more. And they all serve as tasty teasers to what a big surprise the chef has planned in the pipeline.
To order, head over to qashiereats.com/damianscookhouse