Friday 28 August 2009

Resipi Kacang Pool

In the previous post, blogger Hliza asked about the taste of kacang pool. It is quite hard to describe. So I thought that if I posted the recipe, readers who are unfamiliar with the dish can sort of guess the taste by reading the ingredients used in its preparation.

While my whole family likes this dish, there are some people who do not. It is not widely available at restaurants or foodstalls. I know of only 3 places in Johor Bahru that sell it. When I previously lived in Kuala Lumpur for 3 years, I never came across it. After posting about this dish last year (click -> here), I received an email from a reader who says that he runs a cafe in Shah Alam that serves kacang pool. I haven't had a chance yet to drop by his place so I can't say if his kacang pool tastes okay. But if any readers in Klang Valley wish to give it a try, you can click this Facebook link for more information -> Fiescanto Cafe.

Kacang pool is originally a middle-eastern dish called foul medames (or variants of it, depending on region). The recipe I'm putting up here is of course, a local variation as modified by my mother. So here goes, the first ever recipe in Just Observations...

Ingredients (serves 4) :

1. Broad beans (a.k.a fava beans) - 250g. The dried beans are actually quite difficult to find in the local market. You can substitute with the canned variety.

2. Curry powder - 1 cup

3. Coriander - 5 tablespoons

4. Cumin - 5 tablespoons

5. Onions - 4 nos. (3 for cooking and 1 for garnish)

6. Garlic - 9 cloves

7. Ghee - around 3 to 4 tablespoons, for frying

8. Green chillies - around 3 to 4, for garnishing

9. Salt and white pepper - to taste

10. Eggs - 4 nos.

Method :

1. Soak the broad beans overnight until they soften. You can skip this step if you use the canned stuff. Boil in a pot of water until soft and cooked. Put in blender and puree for a short while until medium to soft consistency. Set aside.

2. Dry roast the coriander and cumin in a frying pan until brown and fragrant. Allow to cool and then grind to a powder. Mix together with the curry powder.

3. Puree onions and garlic in blender. Add to spice powder and mix evenly.

4. Heat up pot and melt the ghee. Saute the spice/onion/garlic paste until fragrant. Add the broad beans and cook over medium heat for 15min to 20min. Add some water if mixture is too thick. Add salt and white pepper to taste.

Serving :

1. Dice one onion and roughly chop the green chilles to be used as garnishing.

2. Fry the eggs in ghee, preferably sunny side up.

3. Place bean mix in a bowl. Put fried egg on top. Garnish with onions and chilles. Sprinkle with a bit of the melted ghee. Squeeze a bit of lime juice, if desired.

4. Serve with bread of your choice.

In the middle-east, foul medames is eaten with traditional flat bread. Personally, I prefer to eat it with french bread or baguette. Cut the baguette in 1-inch thick slices. Lightly toast them in an oven so that the outside is crisp but the inside still soft. Tear off a bite-sized piece and dip it in the kacang pool. Ummm... sedaaaap.

30 comments:

Chahya said...

Wow...
Oldstock can cook?
Or pinjam recipe Mrs Oldstock? hehhe...
Thanks for the recipe!

HLiza said...

Oooohhh..from the recipe I imagine rasanya macam kari dhal..betulke? Agak2 aje..nak try masak tak confident.macam tak jadi je. Anyway, thanks for this post. Mungkin satu hari kalau tersesat di Singapore atau JB bolehlah cari. Ada masa bulan puasa ajeke?

mamasita said...

I nak shortcut lah..restoran kat Shah Alam tu apanama yek? haha

Ahh thanks Oldstock..our mak's cooking is always the best..forever kan?

My mum is long dead and gone..I pine for her cooking sometimes and meleleh airmata at times..so you better enjoy yours whenever possible!

Aizan Suhaira said...

Reading this entry at 11am takes a toll on my ibadah puasa. Hahahahaha...

Kak Teh said...

Oldstock, great minds think alike, eh? I hope to be able to use this recipe for this evening's iftar, insyaallah. Will put it to the vote and see whether it is kacang pool or nasi tomato today.

Fadhil said...

Chahya,

Of course Oldstock can cook maa... recipe was narrated by the missus based on what she learned from my mother.

Fadhil said...

Hliza,

Nak kata macam kari dhal, tak juga. Lebih kepada rasa beriani atau masak kurma, if you know what I mean.

Kalau you tersampai ke JB atau Singapore, drop me a line. Kedai kacang pool itu dibuka setiap masa.

Fadhil said...

mamasita,

The restaurant at Shah Alam is called Fiescanto Cafe. Click on the link in my post and you'll have their address.

Yes, mum's cooking is always the best. Even my wife says she can't match my mum at all but she is trying her best to learn the recipes of my favourite dishes.

Fadhil said...

Aizan,

Tu kan dugaan namanya, heheheh.

Fadhil said...

Kak Teh,

Great minds think alike, or as Puteri Kamaliah puts it, fools seldom differ, heheheh.

Good luck in trying this dish. Nasi tomato pun sedap juga. How about a bit of both?

Saya... said...

Bang,

Kat Bangi Kopitiam KawanKU pun ade...

Anonymous said...

This looks absolutely delicious, esp with freshly-baked fresh bread. Thanks for the recipe.

D said...

Gee, I've gotta try this recipe - with curry powder and eggs! I simply love foul medames, and even that comes in many variations. My ex-roomie and I particularly favour the one with lamb - sangat sangat lazat!!! ;) And definitely, pass me the baguette with this! Thank you sir!

Queenie said...

Salam Ramadhan, org tua nak mintak izin tumpang lalu...

Lee said...

Hello Old Stock, this the first time saya read about this kachang pool. Funny but I never heard about it before.
But it does look good.
Must check out with my Middle East kawans here....
You have a beautiful Sunday and a happy hari Merdeka.
Best regards, Lee.

Nurie said...

YAY! Finally the recipe!! Thk u for sharing. Nak buat tu tak tau le bila...but one day I definitely will! If my hubby knows I know the recipe, sure he will ask me to do it tomorrow! heh... heh...

Ages ago pernah makan kat KL tapi rasa mcm ada mince meat sikit. Do people add mince meat stimes?

Fadhil said...

Saya,

I'll remember this next time I'm in the Bangi area. Thanks.

Fadhil said...

Andrea, good luck in trying. Take it easy on the spices if you wish to tone down a bit on the flavour.

Fadhil said...

D,

Yes, you can go ahead and add some lamb for the extra flavour. I'm sure it'll taste great too. If you can, try get QBB ghee. The other brands don't seem to have the same wonderful smell.

Fadhil said...

Salam QueenJah,

dipersilakan...

Fadhil said...

Uncle Lee,

If you mention foul medames to your Arab friends, I'm sure they will know about it.

Happy Merdeka Day to you too. Keep well over there in Canada.

Fadhil said...

Noor,

Yes, some people add minced meat. If you want to do this, add the mince meat while you tumis rempah tu. Kacau dan masak buat beberapa minit supaya daging menyerap rasa rempah dan empuk sedikit. Lepas tu baru masukkan kacang yg telah dikisar.

Also, you can add a bit of diced fresh tomatoes for the garnish. Selamat mencuba... semuga dapat pujian dari Lan dengan masakan ini ;-)

Anonymous said...

Oldstock..
This reminds me of M.Nasir's song. Bus no 13... Warong Wan Chu..which was very famous for the kacang pool back in the 70s & 80s in my home town..

miezara..

CS said...

Hi Oldstock *sambil melambai2*
I always thot it was kacang POL spelt with 1 'o', no?
I tak pernah masak but my late Mak kira handallah jugak, haha (just like the word 'handal' there for reminiscing sake).
Sesaper yg minat, there's one restaurant at USJ9 sells kacang POL n of course the infamous Victory's murtabak.

Fadhil said...

Zara,

M. Nasir orang Singapura, mesti tahu pasal kacang pool punya.

Sekarang ni kat mana jual kacang pool sedap kat Spore?

Fadhil said...

Hi somuffins *sambil melambai kembali*,

Kacang pool is also variously known as kacang pol or kacang ful. The name, of course comes from the original Arabic `foul medames'. The `foul' is pronounced as `fool'.

NURAINA A SAMAD said...

hi oldstock,

this is among my family's favourite fish. we have it for breakfast. dulu susah nak dapat kacal pol in KL/PJ. bila kita orang ke singapura, we buy it there. Or saudara mara bawa bila naik ke KL.
ini mesti makan dengan french loaf. in the last few years, kacang pol dah available in KL. Bila Rasta di Taman Tun (old location), ada gerai jual this dish.

Fadhil said...

Hi Puan Ena,

Anyone who has relatives in Spore would normally have heard of this dish. Glad to know your family love it too.

And thanks for the info about the gerai kat Taman Tun. Boleh pegi cari next time I'm around that area.

Anonymous said...

Kacang pool, Air Khatira, Tempe' & Asam pedas are in our blood, Oldstock. Thanks for the generous recipe and I tested once in a local restaurant but it's not same as the home-made. :)

Rina, Johor Bahru.

Fadhil said...

Salam Rina from JB,

You forgot to add nasi beriani, nasi ambang and mee bandung muar, among others, hehehe...

Welcome to Just Observations.