Food & Beverages
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My New Galley One of the things that had always annoyed me was the lousy galley. As we cook everything fresh on the boat, the galley of course is very important. But the original layout was such that the person who did the cooking also had to clean up the dishes or pots and pans at the same time, as 2 people could not fit into that small space. Additionally I always wanted to have a granite worktop, as that makes everything so much easier and more hygienic. |
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| So this year I have decided to give it a go and invest some money for my and my crews comfort and pleasure. Clement, my French-Canadian helper and friend is doing the job that normally Agus would do. He took the old rubbish out, removed the fridge and put it into the front cabin. Then he built the frame for the granite and the sink. That was all done yesterday, the 30th of December, a Thursday. As I had a charter by 2 pm we could not finish the job and had to improvise for that day. Today is New Years Eve and I have a big tour tonight starting at 6pm. So I called Fabilla, the guy who is in charge of supplying the granite. Yesterday he guaranteed to me that he would come and finish the job today, but when I called him, he said that today is a public holiday and his boys off-day. Shit! I have no water in galley. So I called him again and offered his boys a generous tip if they would come and finish the job. |  |
| Luckily they came and did it for me. 10 minutes before the guests arrived they left! For the New Years Eve party I had to cook at the highest level possible. I had 16 guests and when they were on the beach I did the cooking. Tiger-prawns, lamb, tenderloin and all together quite a big buffet, and I truly enjoyed working in the new galley. | |
My open bar Wine and Bubbly: Red: Jacobs Creek Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon, White: Hardy’s VR Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay, Morande, Chile, Sherry TioPepe Bubbly: Australian Omni Spirits: Marini dry, Martini Rosso and Martini Bianco, Gin: Gordon’s Dry, Bombay Sapphire, Tanqueray Rum: Bacardi Oro 8 years old, Captain Morgan Spiced Rum, Mountain Gay Rum, Bundaberg, Bacardi white, VaccariSambuca, Baileys and Kahlua, Jack Daniels, Cointreau, GrenadineSyrup, Bols blue Curacao and Bols Crème de Cassis. |
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Vodka: Below 41 and Absolute, Malibu, Pernod and Pastis, 12 year old whiskey from Scotland and Ireland, Jameson, Glenmorangie and Macallan, Tequila, Pimms Beer: Tiger, Carlsberg and Skol |
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I hope you are impressed by this. I try to make sure that all listed drinks are always on stock but here and there it might not always be possible if the supplier runs out of stock. If there is anything that is not on this list that you would like to drink during the tour, let me know it in advance. |
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My Recipes We peel and clean the prawns in my house and then marinate them with garlic, a mild red chili, good olive oil and a splash of honey. By the way; did you know that Langkawi’s wild honey is one of the best in the world? The bees’ nests are in 30 metre high fig trees and so not easy to harvest as you can imagine. The taste is wonderful. Sometimes you can buy this honey in the wet-market. The bottles have no labels and the color is from golden to dark brown. It is comparatively expensive but worth every penny. On the boat we serve the prawns either as lunch with local fresh noodles or fried at dinner. |
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Chicken When we buy the chicken we never let them cut the meat on the market as they just chop through the bones. Scotti, my previous crewmember won a Michelin star for his restaurant when he was only 25 years old. He taught me how to gut, clean and cut chicken it the best way. Sorry, I cannot explain it to you, but you will never find split bones on my chicken. I then marinate the pieces with an excellent Indian meat curry powder, mild chili, garlic and ginger. The spices are cut in relatively large pieces and before I fry the chicken meat, I remove them from the marinating ingredients which I reserve, as they would burn to quickly. I heat up the pan until I can see it smoking. For the chicken I use sunflower oil as olive oil is too strong in taste. Did you know that it is the only oil apart from olive oil, that is not gene-manipulated (in case you can prove me wrong, please send me an email!) and is neutral in its taste. |
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I fry the chicken pieces on highest heat possible all around until nice and brown and then put the fire low, for about another fifteen minutes so it will slowly simmer. Then I take them out, pour off the oil and deglaze the pan with a good vinegar. Next I add the remaining marinating ingredients plus some chopped carrots and peeled tomatoes. Salt, pepper and a small piece of butter. I hardly ever have leftovers! By the way: you might not believe this, but for more than 15 years I have been a strict vegetarian, 10 years at least a vegan and one year I lived on raw food only. Now, due to the job and even in a restaurant too I will enjoy a piece of meat. The best steak on the island you get for sure, is at the Bon Ton. |
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But here is my recipe for my Tenderloin. (Sure, this I do not serve if I have Hindus on the boat!) There is only one shop on Langkawi where I can get tenderloin from Australia. If I can’t get it there, I don’t buy it. And I never buy it frozen. I clean it up and marinate it with the fabulous meat curry powder from India that I also use for the chicken. You can buy it in most supermarkets. It is called “Baba’s Curry”. I only add lemon zest and a splash of sunflower oil. |
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| Again I heat up the frying pan to the maximum. Then I add only fresh butter. Before it gets burned I put the meat in. Add salt and pepper and fry it quickly, not more than one minute aside. Then I take it out, put it on a plate, a small piece of butter on top of each steak and cover with aluminum foil. Next I deglaze the frying pan with either good red wine ( NOT if I have Muslim guests!!) or with a good vinegar. I add a tiny bit of either honey or a good marmalade. This sauce goes on top and I tell you, my crew is addicted to it! | |
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Red snapper: Although it is a fairly expensive fish, I think it is worth it. Some guests have told me that they never had a better fish before in their life. The recipe is simple as long as the fish is good and doesn’t come from a fish farm. Sure enough I never buy from a fish-farm. Sometimes I am lucky and buy from a fisherman directly, when I am out with the boat. |
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| I clean the fish and cut into filets. With the bones I make a stock. I marinate the fish with “Baba’s Fish-curry” for a few hours or over night. | |
When the frying pan is super-hot I add butter or ghee. I put the fish filet in with the skin down first. With a spoonI make sure that it stays flat in the pan as it has the tendency to curl up. I add salt, a tiny bit of pepper, put the fire down. Before I turn it over, I heat up the pan again. I carefully flip it over and let it fry hot for about 30 seconds before I put the fire down again. Once the fish is done, I take it out. Now comes the secret: I deglaze the pan with fresh orange juice, the stock and add a good piece of butter. Ready! Melting on you tongue, I swear. Sometimes I have vegetarian guests – mainly from India. That is challenging for me as I love Indian style cooking. Mary, my Indian housemaid makes a superb dhal. But I make at least three to four vegetarian dishes myself. |
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A Day in
Paradise Cruise
Maximum 12 guests.
MYR 450 per person
Children below 14 years old, half price.
