How to Cook Nyonya Kapitan Fish
When I gave up my IT career back in 2002 to get into “this food thing” – as it’s disparagingly referred to by some in my family- it wasn’t out of any altruistic reason so much as it was a way for me to recreate my memories of Malaysia through its food.
A dozen years on, thanks in large part to no longer having to run a restaurant, I’ve managed to do more of the “fun stuff” associated with my work, including making numerous trips back to Malaysia.
In one of my recent travels there, I had the privilege, for the first time ever, to talk to local chefs and to get them to show me their cooking techniques and recipes. This was a big deal for someone like me whose cooking skills were self-taught years after I moved to Australia – how divergent are the flavours in my dishes from their Malaysian sources?
This blog is the first in a series – not in any particular order – covering my interactions with these Malaysian maestros.
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Location: Shangri-La Golden Sands Resort, Penang
Chef: Adrian Lim
Our stay at Golden Sands was something of a late change; we were originally hosted by its sister resort, Shangri-La Rasa Sayang next door.
When the filming schedule for the TV pilot we were making was extended by a couple of days in Penang, our sponsor, Shangri-La Hotels, offered for us to spend the extra days at Golden Sands Resort. This worked out great because Golden Sands Resort has some of the best pools and family-oriented facilities I’ve seen anywhere, and I had Noah travelling with me to Malaysia for the first time.

I found out just before the shoot that Executive Chef Adrian Lim would be doing Nyonya Kapitan Fish – we had filmed Chef Chai next door at Rasa Sayang doing Nyonya Kapitan Chicken the day before and I’d be lying if it didn’t cross my mind that we could end up with two very similar cooking demonstrations.
Chef Adrian Lim simultaneously dispersed my concerns and made me laugh when he said – “That’s okay – mine will be better!” Typical Penang bravado, I thought 😉

As it turned out, his recipe is vastly different to the one showcased at Rasa Sayang Resort, and the Mediaprima TV crew wasted no time in cleaning up the plate immediately after the filming wrapped, as further validation it was very, very good.
A few key points about the recipe –
– This is a modern take on a signature Penang dish – from the cooking technique, where the fish fillets are pan-fried separately to the sauce, to the plating and presentation.
– Ingredients such as chicken stock granules (which I use extensively in my cooking) and ketchup are used more often than you would expect in Malaysian cooking, and this is an example of it.
– I’ve recently discovered an importer for Bunga Kantan (torch ginger flower, or what Malaysians refer to as Lily Bud) – one of the ingredients for this dish, also used in Assam Laksa – and I’m trying to find out if I can get my hands on them here in Sydney (they’re available in Melbourne)
– The list of spices and herbs for this recipe looks extensive, but it’s not hard to cook – the technique basically boils down to sautéing all the spices and ground herbs, then adding coconut milk and adjusting the seasoning before serving it with separately-cooked fish.

– The flavour should be a balance of sour, sweet and spicy, so tweak accordingly.
– Don’t forget to apply the “agak-agak” (guesstimate) principle to the recipe below, supplied by the resort 🙂
NYONYA KAPITAN FISH
180g Sea Bass Fillets
½ tsp Salt
½ tsp Pepper
For the KAPITAN SAUCE –
20gm Ground Red Chillies
10gm Ground Lemongrass
60gm Finely chopped Onion
30gm Finely chopped Garlic
15gm Ground Turmeric
10gm Finely Chopped Lily Bud
3pcs Finely Chopped Bird’s Eye Chillies
Sugar to taste
Tamarind Juice to taste
Lime Juice to taste
20ml Thick Coconut Milk
30ml Tomato Ketchup
20gm Spring Onion



More re: baby Noah can be found at my www.SerembanGirl.com blog.
Oh yay! I love Golden Sands! Now that I’m an adult I stay at Rasa Sayang, but I used to love Golden Sands when I was a kid! I remember that swimming pool too… aah memories!! 🙂
Baby Noah is adorable, by the way! He looks so happy in the pool!!! 🙂
Haha yes I’m conflicted about Rasa Sayang vs Golden Sands – they’re both awesome in different ways 😀