Recipe: Smoked Pulled Lamb Pongteh By Hotel Jen

Hotel Jen Penang presents an alternative take on the classic Peranakan dish

Photo: Hotel Jen

Ingredients

• 1.8kg boneless lamb leg
• 150g Chinese parsley, chopped

Pongteh Sauce

• 1 medium white onion, peeled and chopped
• 5-6 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
• 3½ tbsp corn oil
• 300g bean paste
• ¼ tsp dark soy sauce
• 1½ tbsp palm sugar
• 1 tbsp concentrated chicken stock
• 1½ tbsp Hickory BBQ sauce
• 2 tbsp Hickory liquid smoke sauce
• 1½ tbsp five-spice powder
• 1 tbsp potato starch

Potato Wedges

• 750g potatoes, cut into wedges
• Vegetable cooking oil, enough for deep-frying
• Salt and five-spice powder for taste

Accompaniments for Serving

• 600g focaccia bread, sliced
• 500g garden tomatoes, sliced thinly for garnish
• 1 medium cucumber, thinly sliced for garnish

Method

Pongteh Sauce

1. Sauté onion and garlic in a casserole with oil for 5 minutes at medium heat.
2. Add bean paste, dark soya sauce and palm sugar.
3. Add chicken stock and bring to boil.
4. Lower to medium heat and add the two Hickory sauces and five-spice powder. Let simmer for 7 minutes.
5. Thicken with potato starch into a smooth sauce.
   

Smoked Pulled Lamb Leg

1. Marinate the meat in the pongteh sauce overnight in the fridge.
2. The following day: Pre-heat oven at 175°C and roast the lamb for 1 hour.
3. Lower the temperature to 100-110°C and let the lamb continue to cook for 5-6 hours.
4. Remove from the oven and pull the lamb meat into thin shreds with a fork or tong. Toss the shredded meat in the remaining pongteh sauce and chopped Chinese parsley.

Potato Wedges

1. Boil the potato wedges for 5 minutes. Drain well.
2. Fry the potatoes in hot oil. Remove and sprinkle with salt and five-spice powder.

To Serve: Top the focaccia bread with cucumber, tomatoes, smoked pulled lamb pongteh and chopped Chinese parsley. Serve with the five-spice potato wedges.

Executive Chef B Sivasegaran

Chef Siva’s culinary career began more than 31 years ago as a teenager growing up in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, where he learned the skills upon which he built his cooking foundation. Over the past 31 years, Chef Siva has worked at some of the renowned hotels in different states across Malaysia.

Along the way, Chef Siva has proven exceptional at expanding his knowledge of local ingredients and culinary techniques to create distinct flavour combinations celebrating authentic local and international cuisines.