 |
The making of chicken cooked in bamboo..
The above picture is half of the story...slices of chicken mixed well with other ingredients prior to inserting them into the bamboo |
 |
Bamboos like these can be bought at
'Tamu' or jungle produce market for
Rm 2 each in Bintulu. |
This is a very special dish popular among the Bidayuhs of Sarawak - the making of chicken cooked in bamboo. This method of cooking is called
'Pansuh', thus chicken cooked the Pansuh way. Here's how it is done step by step.
Ingredients:
You need young tapioca leaves, bamboo, lemon grass, garlic,
kantan (torch ginger) buds or flowers, shallots, chillies, salt, and slices of chicken meat.
 |
| Chicken sliced into small pieces |
 |
| Young leaves of the tapioca - these are mixed and cooked as vegetables and to cover the top of the bamboo to help indicate whether the chicken is well-cooked i.e. when the young leaves turned soft and yellowish |
 |
| Shallots and chillies are pounded into a paste |
 |
| Mix the pounded paste with the chicken meat, crushed lemon grass and garlic and flowers or buds of the kantan (torch ginger) |
The next process is most interesting because it involves inserting the chicken and ingredients into the bamboo and then to stand the bamboo over a fire to cook. Keep adding wood to the fire to allow for cooking about one hour. Within that hour, turn the bamboo around to avoid over-burning of the bamboo. The process of slow burning the bamboo is complete if you notice the tapioca leaves turning yellowish.
 |
| The bamboo needs to be turned around to allow for consistent heating and to prevent over-burning of the bamboo which may result in damage and thus leaking of the chicken 'soup' |
 |
Young tapioca leaves turn yellowish to indicate the chicken is well-cooked..
Remove the contents of the bamboo and served the cooked chicken hot.... |
 |
| Served Pansuh ....yummy,yummy,yummy... |
(Note : Compliments to the chef...my yours truly)
