'No need for chicken broth': Netizens chime in at TikTok users' first try at cooking laksa

If you follow Itstime2eatt on TikTok, you'd know that they are big on home-cooked food.

They don't shy away from culinary challenges, such as whipping up a dish they've never tried before.

A fan requested that they give laksa a go and the US-based TikTok page, run by Irene, Jenna and Ann, duly obliged.

On Oct 3, an 88-second long clip was posted of what went down in their kitchen as they attempted to cook this local favourite from scratch.

@itstime2eatt Replying to @Claudia Bankier LAKSAAAAAAA #laksa #noodle #noodles #asian #asianfood #homemade #homemadefood #homechef #chef #homecook #homecooked #homecooking #foodathome #noodlerecipe #laksanoodles ♬ Chill in a good mood, calm and fun(1263486) - zukisuzuki

At the beginning, Irene sounded rather tense and quickly noticed that the simple task of frying up the laksa paste seemed to be "getting a little out of control".

She likened the kitchen to be a "little bit like a war zone" with the paste splattering out of the pot. 

Jenna, who was the chef for the night, didn't seem particularly fazed as she continued to prepare the ingredients.

They made sure to include laksa essentials such as tau pok (tofu puff), bean sprouts and shrimps. Oddly though, they opted to batter and fry up their shrimps as opposed to the traditional boiled option. 

For the broth, Jenna poured what looked to be milk and organic chicken stock into the pot. 

Interestingly, they opted for yellow noodles to accompany their laksa broth. We'll get back to the choice of ingredients later.

To be fair, the completed dish looked pretty appetising and Irene confirmed that it tasted just as good, especially for a first attempt. 

The comments section were flooded with netizens hailing from Southeast Asia, many wanting to provide tips on how they could potentially improve their laksa.

A netizen claiming to be from Singapore simply stated that laksa is typically made with coconut milk and there was "no need for chicken broth".

Although not a common ingredient in laksa, some recipes for the dish do mention chicken broth in its ingredient list.

Another user mentioned that what they created did not look like laksa as the noodles used were "wrong".

In Singapore, laksa is predominantly made with rice vermicelli noodles instead of the yellow noodles used by the TikTok trio. 

Back in the comments section, there were also other users who were friendlier in their approach.

Deconstructed laksa?

For the most part, Itstime2eatt's first attempt did at least resemble a bowl of laksa.

The same can't be said about this laksa dish sold in a restaurant in Sydney, Australia.

Not only was there no rice noodles, there wasn't even a broth.

The diner received a plate of dry yellow noodles tossed in a creamy peach gravy topped with green onions, a meatball and a sad piece of tau pok.

After taking a bite of the meatball, the diner realised that it was actually a "crumbly ball of fish mince".

ALSO READ: Singapore spicy coconut soup? Canadian TikToker's food review triggers netizens

amierul@asiaone.com

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