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Motormouth From Ipoh

Wednesday, August 27, 2008

Rich Seafood Porridge from Matang, Perak

Matang ~ A Malay word for Matured. Cooked. Not naive. But also the name of a small town, (or rather, village) situated within the Larut, Matang dan Selama district in Perak, which covers Taiping as well. In that case, Matang is merely a stone's throw away from Taiping town.

Coming from Ipoh towards the north, exit at Taiping/Changkat Jering toll exit. Then follow the road sign to Taiping town, passing by Changkat Jering, and going along Jalan Simpang (Simpang's a small town before Taiping, btw) until you reach the traffic lights at a crossroad. Turn left towards Matang/Kuala Sepetang, and you'll soon cross an overhead bridge, overlooking the North-South Highway.

A short distance away, and you'll reach a 90 degrees right curve, followed by a turning on your left into Kampung Matang. Take the NEXT turning to the left instead, and you'll soon reach Matang town, with a Chinese temple on your left. Directly opposite the temple is our destination of the day, for ....


MATANG FAMOUS SEAFOOD PORRIDGE !!!

Light House Seafood Restaurant
There are at least 3 or 4 similar establishments around the same area, and we believed KCA when she said her mum recommended Light House Seafood restaurant instead of the rest .... Her parents are foodies, full-fledged personnels, searching for good food at every nook and corner ... =P

Humoungous claypot of seafood porridge, with shark's meat (yes, read that right), homemade fishballs, prawns, and enoki mushrooms

We ordered TWO pots of porridge, one with prawns, one without. Simply because KYT cannot "tahan" (stand) the overwhelming seafood flavours, proclaiming them as too fishy. Yet he managed to gobble tonnes after tonnes of sushi, sashimi, and all types of seafood imaginable, the night before at TAO. Hmm ... Contradicting statements, huh? =P

Here at Light House, you choose what goes into your pot of porridge. From types of fish such as tiger grouper, normal grouper, pomfret and shark's meat, to fishballs, prawns, and shellfish. We opted for shark's meat, fishballs and prawns, as the other species are pricier options. Moreover, boiling tiger grouper in porridge somehow sounds sooooo wrong, no?

Smooth, delightful grains of rice, boiled with the sweetness of the seafood-infused broth, complemented by the abundance of rich, succulent seafood. No soy sauce or pepper necessary, else you just 'kill' the flavours. One small reminder though, if you're not a big eater, ask for smaller portion. They tend to go overboard in stuffing your guts.


Steamed Clams (La-la) RM12

If you do not wish for all the ingredients to 'drown' in the porridge, you can order side dishes. We ordered the steamed La-La. Pleasantly surprised by the LARGER than usual clams, with thick, succulent meat, steamed to perfection. Yup, at RM12 for that large serving. Worth every cent.


Or Chien aka Oyster Omelette @ RM15

The Or Chien did not fare too well, though the fried egg was crisp at sides, and the 'wok hei' shone through. However, too much flour was used, rendering the omelette stickier than your average, and the oysters barely noticable.


Deep-fried Fish (Cai Yu Zhai) 16 pieces for RM13

Crispy, fried small fish that went really well with the wet, and sweet porridge. Provided much desired crispiness and texture. A good snack, nevertheless.

Total damage? RM127. The 2 pots of porridge cost RM72, each ingredients priced separately. RM42 for the shark's meat, RM21 for the prawns, and RM9 for the fishballs. Oh, did I mention that the fishballs are not your typical variety? These are larger, firm yet bouncy balls, homemade and tasty. Be sure to add them into your customized pot of simple food for the soul ...


UPDATED 9/9/08 - Location : Light House Seafood Restaurant @ No. 10, Jalan Cina, 34750 Matang, Taiping, Perak. Tel : 05-8475408, 05-8475649.

Opening hours : 11am - 11pm. Closed on Tuesdays.


Map to the Place

16 comments:

24HrMom said...

Wow... the pot of porridge really droll me into organizing a trip down there. I'll make sure to print this out to make my way there...

Anonymous said...

Just had Orr Chien tonite and it's the opp, not enough floor and not sticky enough....

Hey such a humongous pot with shark meat, my favourite. You are again on food trails with your kaki your work....every nook and corner too.

Little Inbox said...

How good if the porridge can cook long a bit. I prefer super soft rice instead. :P

Anonymous said...

To be fair, it's not too contradictory lah. I can't quite explain it, but there's something different about sashimi versus cooked dishes that may well be a tad fishy. Doesn't make sense, right? But I bet there are those who know what I mean, hehe.

PureGlutton said...

Wow, i love porridge, especially with seafood in it! Good for cold rainy days, like today! But that place Matang is way out of my radar la!

Anonymous said...

If you happen to go to Nibong Tebal, there's crab porridge, cooked the similar way.

古墓街第7号當鋪 said...

Omgz...Really muz come down to
Perak one day. Got so many interesting foods. ><
Make me feel " hungry " to dig out special foods ....

CK Lam said...

Wow... you sure makes me hungry with all these porridge and dishes. It would be nice if you can
arrange an outing for us from Pg.

mycroft said...

wa.. porridge look real good. use to eat seafood porridge in a shop in bercham which forgotten the name but did not look tis good

J2Kfm said...

24hrmom : do email me in case you need more directions. while I still rmbr them. haha ...

JENCOOKS : yeah, it's work and eat all the way ... :)

little inbox : still rmbr Penang's version of porridge, not so mushy but instead more like rice in soup/water.

life for beginners : know what? there IS a difference between unlimited sashimi (that you've paid RM50/pax for), and normal, plain fish that you order ala carte. LOL

PureGlutton : also out of MY radar. just that we go taiping often, and nothing special to eat la ... I need recommendation!

jason : YES ah? why you never tell one? rmbr that day I asked you bout what to eat in Parit Buntar?!

jeromefo : hahaha ... do drop by. but Perak's towns are miles apart, and no highway to connect ALL of them.

CK Lam : wow ...that's a gargantuan task! =) maybe someday, when I'm a full-fledged flogger? =)

mycroft : which one in Bercham? kindly tell so I can try?

Anonymous said...

'Her parents are foodies, full-fledged personnels, searching for good food at every nook and corner ... =P' ???
is it a compliment?? hehe... i muz inform them lo.. mayb they wil treat u BIG BIG... =P

yeah, pity KYT... 'poisoning' himself 2 days continuously.. but, he still looked OK only.. no swollen at all!! ban sai yei... =P

wei, i think nibong tebal one tat ur bro mentioned is the one i told u tat day when we crossed the flyover or bridge. Remember??

ei, ur bro so supportive ya.. my sis dun even read my blog... sad rite?? haha!!

Anonymous said...

OMG, u asked me about Parit Buntar ar?? I didn't remember!

J2Kfm said...

kca : no need tell your parents!!! nanti they unleash Jojo on me!

and btw, this Jason is NOT my brother lah ... U think every Jason is my brother meh?!

jason : did not remember!!! v_v
sigh ... it was before I went for the Juru/Taiping/Parit Buntar thingie ...

Maria said...

j2kfm, i'm heading down south from Penang next weekend, dont mind to drop by this place to try it out.

Is it open for lunch / dinner?

Can send me the map?

J2Kfm said...

hi penang's baby shop, I've updated my post with the address and contact number. and the map. hope that helps.

enqvist said...

wau...it look good, if xin kuala not open, then i will try this later...