Salt, fat, acid, heat... and smoke

Recently I was on an NLB panel speaking about Samin Nosrat’s New York Times bestseller Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat with Devagi Sanmugam. While the book demystifies four key facets of good cooking, we both felt that there are some elements predominant in Asian cooking that were not mentioned in Nosrat’s book. Sweetness is one. Think about how the sharp tang of lime is tempered with sugar in a sambal. Or how a touch of sugar rounds out a soy braising liquid. We also shared about the role of umami in the form of fermented products like caipoh (preserved radish) and condiments like taucheo (fermented bean paste).

Another element is smoke. On the Singapore Noodles podcast, I spoke with the founders of Lion Dance Cafe, an Oakland-based eatery that serves plant-based Singaporean food. Something that came up repeatedly was their harnessing of smoke, whether it is charring hardy vegetables like cauliflower in a pan, or incorporating ingredients such as smoked paprika or chipotle chillies to what they cook.

In Singapore, whether we are aware of it or not, so many dishes that we know and love are imbued with smokiness in one way or another.

1. Stir-frying in a wok

Literally translated as ‘breath of a wok’, wok hei is the prized aroma of food stir-fried in a well-seasoned wok. ‘Hei’ is Cantonese for the Mandarin word ‘qi’, which the Chinese use to describe the vital energy that flows through one’s body. Similarly, wok hei refers to the ‘energy’ that a wok ‘breathes’ into the stir-fry. When individual food pieces are tossed in a hot wok, the searing heat blasts away moisture on the surface of the food, drying it so that the elusive wok hei can be imparted to food. Washed without soap and seasoned with oil after each use, the wok develops a patina of hardened oil, preventing food from sticking and imparts even more charred aroma with each use.

2. Tandoori-cooking

While many people think that tandoori is a recipe, it is in fact a cooking method. Tandoori involves cooking ingredients in a tandoor, a traditional clay oven. The oven runs on wood or charcoal and, given that heat can only escape from the top, a smoky and extremely hot environment (up to 500C) results.

Tandoor cooking uses four distinct techniques. 1) Direct heat rises from the charcoal, a process akin to grilling. 2) The hot clay walls of the oven bake bread in a way similar to skillet-roasting. 3) Radiant heat in the belly of the tandoor, where skewers of threaded meat and vegetables lie, produces results similar to convection baking. 4) As the marinade and meat juices drip onto the hot coals, smoke rises, adding fragrance and flavour.

3. Dhungar

To replicate the smoky results of cooking in a tandoori oven, home cooks often employ the Indian cooking technique of dhungar in their kitchens. Hot coals are placed in a small bowl and set in a larger pot with food items. Ghee is poured over the coals and the pot is covered to trap the smoke and allow the food to be permeated with the smoky, buttery aroma. Because this is a cold-smoking technique, it can be done for cold dishes like raita, or as a finishing step for hot cooked dishes like dal.

4. Charcoal-grilling

Throughout Southeast Asia, charcoal-grilling is a delicious way to impart smoky flavour to meat. This could be done directly, or the food could be cooked over charcoal in a receptacle that infuses its own flavour into the dish. This includes leaves (betel, banana, lotus etc), sugarcane, and coconut. I remember once eating at Locavore in Bali where they cooked a moringa soup within a coconut husk over charcoal! An added benefit of wrapping something in leaves before grilling is that the leaves are able to release water, trap steam, and protect the contents within from drying out.

To make a spice paste especially fragrant, the Thais also grill aromatics such as chillies, ginger, shallots and garlic before grinding to a paste that is especially complex and vibrant.

5. Smoking in a wok

Smoking can also be done in a lined wok. The Chinese enjoy using tea leaves, sugar and rice – tea and rice for fragrance, and sugar for its caramelizing characteristics. The type of tea chosen depends on its strength in terms of flavour and colour. As the wok is heated, the sugar melts and caramelizes and begins to smoke, carrying with it the flavours of the rice and tea.

6. Smoky ingredients

A shortcut to getting the flavour of smoke into your dish easily is to use ingredients that are already smoked.

Black cardamom. Unlike green cardamom, black cardamom is dried over an open fire, creating a distinct smoky aroma and flavour.

Teepoh. This ingredient hails from Chaozhou, where fishballs are commonly made. The leftover sole fish bones would not be thrown out but sun dried and smoked. The result is a crispy dry fish bone that is full of smoky, oceanic umami. This can be used in soups or blended into powder and added to minced meat. I like adding it to my wontons!

Lapsang souchong. Traditionally smoked over pinewood fire, this tea is known for its unique rich flavour. One of my favourite ingredients to use in desserts, I imagine that it would be delicious with tea leaf eggs too.

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I first learnt about this dish from Nor Hadayah who was my guest on the podcast - she told me about how adding smoked chicken or beef to lemak cili padi gravy takes the dish to the next level. Smoking is such a great way to boost flavour and, rather than using charcoal, I like using smoking in a wok for its ease. The wok is usually lined with foil and a mixture of rice, sugar, tea leaves, and other ingredients like citrus peel or spices. When heated, the sugar begins to caramelize, and the resulting smoke is able to penetrate and flavour meat, tofu or vegetables. Since moving to Australia, my environmentally-conscious husband has decided that we should stop buying aluminum foil, and I learnt about using banana leaves in smoking from Nor. I skipped the foil and lined my wok with banana leaves before adding rice, sugar, and tea leaves and it worked even better. The flavour of charred banana leaves is absolutely delicious in this dish and I would cook this again and again!

Ayam Salai Masak Lemak Cili Padi
Serves 4-6

For the smoked chicken:
1.5kg chicken pieces
1 tablespoon turmeric powder
1 tablespoon salt
1 teaspoon white pepper
3-4 layers banana leaves
4 tablespoon raw rice
2 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon black tea leaves 

Pat the chicken dry and rub with turmeric powder, salt, and white pepper. Marinate for at least 1 hour. Steam the chicken for 25 minutes on low heat. Place a piece of foil at the base of the wok. Add the banana leaf, rice, sugar, and tea leaves. Heat gently until the sugar liquefies and you smell the smoke. Add the chicken parts and smoke on low heat, covered, for 15 minutes. Turn the heat off and let it sit for another 10 minutes. Tear off a bit of chicken and taste it – if it does not taste smoky enough for your liking, leave it in the smoke for longer. 

Lemak cili padi gravy:
90g peeled red onion, cut roughly
20g peeled garlic cloves
20g cut chilli or chilli padi
35g scraped turmeric, scraped to remove skin then sliced
25g skinless galangal
20g skinless ginger
30g lemongrass (white part only), sliced
4 tablespoons oil
800g thick coconut milk
500g water
5-10 kaffir lime leaves
Salt to taste
Sugar to taste
Water or coconut cream to adjust the richness, as desired 

Blend the onions, garlic, chilli padi, turmeric, galangal, ginger, and lemongrass until a spice paste forms. Heat the oil in a wok or pot and add the spice paste. Fry on low heat until it is fragrant. Add the coconut milk, water, lime leaves, salt and sugar. Stir and bring to a simmer. Add water or coconut cream to adjust the gravy to your desired richness and consistency. Add the smoked chicken and any juices from steaming, and allow to poach for 10-15 minutes on low heat to fully tenderize the chicken and absorb the gravy.

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Ikan lemak cili padi
(You can smoke the fish in this recipe if you like)
Feeds 4-6

½ red onion, cut roughly
5 garlic cloves, peeled
15 chilli padi, stalks removed
50g turmeric, scraped to remove skin then sliced
4 tablespoons oil
1L thick coconut milk
1 lemongrass, white part only, sliced
5-10 kaffir lime leaves
3 teaspoons salt (or to taste)
2 teaspoons sugar (or to taste)
Water or coconut cream to adjust the richness, as desired
750g fish fillets, cut into chunks (I used barramundi)
4 tomatoes, cut into wedges

Blend the onions, garlic, chilli padi and turmeric until a spice paste forms – Ahmir says that it doesn’t have to be too fine. Heat the oil in a wok or pot and add the spice paste. Fry on low heat until it is fragrant and “as paste-y as it can be”. Add the coconut milk, lemongrass, lime leaves, salt and sugar. Stir and bring to a simmer. Add water or coconut cream to adjust the gravy to your desired richness and consistency. Add the fish fillets and tomatoes and allow to poach for 5-10 minutes on low heat or until cooked – do not stir too much to avoid breaking up the fish. Serve with steamed rice.