Kofta Palak

My thoughts and remarks too Emaan’s Kitchen. This came about soon after a conversation about the dishes I like to eat, and this particular dish of Kofta Palak (Meatball Spinach) is not on the restaurant menu. We had a short discussion about the meal’s simple ingredients, agreeing that the Koftas would be a number of four, about the size of golf balls, and of Chicken, not too mild, but also not too spicy, the spice mix left at his ability and skills.
Two days later I would go to the restaurant and collect my meal! I asked one question “what are the specific spices”? The reply was “Emaan’s special blend”. That was a fair answer too my question.

My comments -

Your meals have most definitely bridged the gaps of otherwise that are cravings upon that normal empty void, the want and need for a meal to fill, but mostly to be able to say to oneself that was a worthwhile dish.
But even saying that, your food is actually a little different in some ways from good dishes I have had the pleasure to eat and savor over many years, and if anything, the Kofta Palak dish emulated this with the taste of a well-prepared meal, with a pleasant combination of meat and vegetable.
But the enjoyment overall, most definitely came from the infusions of spice, with each mouthful you are sure to be asking yourself what was that spice, only to be overcome on the taste of the abundant mixture of spice, too be possibility left wondering “even if the taste sensors are left in a state of temporary limbo” all due to the next and then the next spice kicking in. All can be said, is that the meal is wonderfully tasty and filling.

I started the meal with a simple Shami Kebab


Then the Kofta Palak dish




In Pakistan, where garam masala is used in most dishes, and the typical mixture of spices are of green cardamom, black cardamom, cinnamon, cloves, black pepper and bay leaf. The garam masala is simply added in the process at different stages of cooking, also how it is used to build layers of flavours and depending too on what ingredients of the dish, such ingredients have rice, meat, fish and vegetables.
Whole garam masala blends are traditional and added to hot oil to infuse the aromatics into the oil. Ground garam masala are versatile and can be added during cooking, and even at the end as a garnish; reviving, enhancing and preserving the flavours of the spices and also other ingredients in the dish.
Traditional Kofta Curry recipe:
The meatballs are formed with gram flour, often dry-toasted in a pan before using for extra oomph
This is what gives the dish it’s wow factor, the meatballs are spiced with a number of spices, but most notable poppy seeds (khashkhaas in Urdu). The poppy seeds are what give the kofta their distinctive flavours
The masala base of the curry is made from onions and yogurt – no tomatoes are used
Here’s something which may be new to you! Traditional Kofta recipes do not use fresh coriander as a garnishing, like most Pakistani curries are!

The difference between what I would say is a good restaurant owner and a good chef, in both aspects running a business is obviously the essential part, but also putting the customer in mind, and providing basically a good meal for the value, that sounds like a natural thing to do, but restaurants in the city are difficult to find with these simple qualities.

Another dish, beef curry from Emaan’s Kitchen.
Again, it's a delight to be able to get such a wonderful dish that is honest, cooked too a level of perfection so that the customer will enjoy the ingredients and taste of true Pakistani food.
The simplest of meat curry dishes, consists of such flavorsome tender beef, along with a well balanced spice level throughout.
With each and every ongoing mouthful that is scooped up with the hand via the soft light Roti, the tastes can be described in many ways.
I would just say the tastes are delicious, with that wonderful continued combination of flavored ingredients, and spice level, that just simply results in a perfect meal.

Pakistani Aloo Keema

Aloo Keema is made using curried, minced or ground meat (Keema) and potatoes (Aloo) in a dry gravy, and is in general a staple Pakistani meal. The Keema in this dish was that of minced chicken.

This dry curry is so full of flavours from the two main ingredients of the dish, but with the addition of the Pakistani spices, infused throughout, that takes a dish like this too that of another level of tastes, tantalizing the taste buds with every mouthful, I personally like the little bit of oil content of the consistency of the dish, and that is where usually the strongest taste of spice will be, and it is just a delight mopping up the mouth-watering curry juice with your bread (Roti or Paratha), and it’s equally tasty with rice (Plain Basmati, Brown or Zeera).

It’s here in these types of dishes, where I find the main differences with a Pakistani meal compared to some of its neighbours' dishes of India, although some areas notably that overlap, typically, such areas like the Indian Punjab, and again Interestingly with the same type of foods that share strong similarities to Pakistani dishes, overall, this is mainly due to a long history of different groups, cultures, and societies interacting with each other.

Then again if comparing Indian to Pakistani cuisine, there are some notable overlaps, however, over the years between the two, differences have developed, an example, Pakistan cooking will use meat in their dishes extravagantly, even more so on special occasions, and this would become more apparent, especially during festivals. Whereas vegetables and lentils, are hugely popular in India with the expanse of land, along with a good climate for growing a diversity of crops.

Even so, mentioning the differences, there are again some overlaps of flavours and taste, there are too that of regional cuisines and delicacies that are regularly enjoyed on both sides of the border.
It could be said that India’s spice palette is incredibly rich and intricate, whereas Pakistani food relies also on more simpler flavours to that of Indian dishes.
While there are certainly notable differences of the two, there’s one thing is that they both offer, that is a rich and flavoursome dining experience, with a delicacy of their aromas and a good balance of spices that make both Indian and Pakistani cuisine stand apart from other world cuisines.

On the other hand, I suppose not being in either of the two countries, there will be notable similarities in what foods are available too hand in this country, such has both Indian and Pakistani dishes in the western world where I am from, may not show of their vast differences between the two cuisines, with nowadays a type of fusion between the two, satisfying the tastes more of the customers needs, although there are some that stay in the traditional style and sense of preparation and cooking of their dishes, and mostly I could say I was lucky to live near the UK’s northern city of Bradford, and its past history of the times, with the productive textile mills throughout the areas of Yorkshire and Lancashire, for it was that of Pakistani migrant workers of the 1950s who sort work in those mills, mainly settling into communities of their own people and workers, who would open shops and restaurants catering for the needs and foods of their countrymen. So, I had, and was lucky having that opportunity being in the area to first taste and savour the delights of traditional Pakistani dishes.

It’s here once again that I will remark on another exceptional dish from the family run restaurant Emaan’s Kitchen.


The Pakistani dish, Aloo Keema, a meat and vegetable dish with excellent freshly sourced main ingredients of chicken (being then minced) and accompanying potatoes, that of a combination of foods that go well together and will surely result with a satisfaction, along with that comforting feeling and fulfilment of a wholesome dish.
But let us not forget the key ingredient of spices that distinguish the food to be that of a true Pakistani dish, it is something magical about that mix of spice that is indeed going to test, or dare I even suggest the possibility “to tease and play” tantalizing the dinners taste buds from the first taste “throughout” and that very last mouthful of such a satisfying and outstanding meal of the highest quality.

Pakistani Appetisers

That was my meal plans for Saturday evening, just two types of starters. Appetisers would be a more fitting and appropriate word used by many dinners, but both words are written on the restaurant menu, either of the two word’s result in the same, that being, they are both referring to food items served before the course of the main meal. On the other hand, we could just call them snacks, due to having no main course this sitting.
The opportunity of the two snacks actually came about more because of availability, the owner of Emaan’s said to me at the time of my previous visit that they were making Aloo Samosa (potato) and Seekh Kabab, and would be available on Saturday.
I collected my order Saturday evening. 2 Aloo Samosa’s and 4 Chicken Seekh Kabab’s plus 2 Paratha. Whilst waiting for the packing of the food I had a wonderful cup of tea all in good surroundings of a clean and well laid out restaurant.


I was not too be disappointed with both snacks, both of them very well made, the Aloo Samosa was wholesome with very little spice, just how I expected them to be. Also, I could not eat a portion of these before a main dish, due to them being filling on their own. The Chicken Seekh Kabab’s also lived up to my expectations with the tastes of the combination of meat and spice, and boy did they have a kick.
Seekh kebab (Urdu: سيخ کباب‎) - A long skewer of beef chicken or lamb mixed with herbs and seasonings; it takes its name from the skewer. In Pakistan kebabs trace back their origin during the time of the Mughals Mughlai cuisine, and their influence on the cuisine of modern-day Pakistan.

One of my favorite things to do in PP is a veg thali lunch at Taste Budz, near Score Bar. The Basmati rice cooked to perfection, as I recall!

It's South Indian fare, and mostly dishes from Kerala. The Fish Fry is excellent.

Hope it's still there!

rgrowden wrote: ↑Sun Dec 12, 2021 1:26 pm I'd been reading about Emaan's Kitchen, decided to try it, but according to the wbsite, it's been closed for the past week. What am I missing here? TIA.

https://www.yourphnompenh.com/order/foo ... kitchen-2/

That is an old venue. Now they have relocated to a new restaurant. The direct number is 0963260087



I hope you will try their food and please let us know the outcome of the dish you try on this thread.

i am more or less an indian-food-virgin, hardly know anything of it. Probably a lot o guys know the indian guy who sells watches on the riverside since eternity, no ?? I asked him where he would go for nice indian food and he pointed me to 148 street, next to the Hamrony hotel, its called BJMA, anyone tried thatone lately ??

Emaan's Kitchen also doesn't use the delivery service of food panda anymore, but it does use the services of Nham24 I believe.



The problem for myself is that I have been using the services of food panda since the short lockdown period we had (it has been something of a safety net). On the other hand Nham24 used to deliver to me then stopped abruptly due to my address having no street number or name.

Just lately I have been collecting my own takeaway food, with the country trying to get back to some normality, and also eventually getting my vaccinations sorted from initially being outright refused, then getting the first one, only to be refused on trying to receive the second, then starting the whole sequence once again.

The funny thing is I too first visited the old restaurant site of Emaan's Kitchen, finding it wasn't there anymore. But getting my own back on the other days visit their restaurant was closed. I knew why, because I had been in the exact same situation at one time closing my own restaurant at the time, let me explain, it's of no use opening when there is a large marquee filling the street outside your establishment. Unfortunately it was late evening and I was rather peckish, and more so for one of Emaan's dishes, so I knocked upon the bolted doors to ask if they would kindly accommodate me with one of their fine cooked dishes.

10 Street 456, Phnom Penh. Phone 096 326 0087

https://g.co/kgs/H94NBz

Chicken Jalfrezi

First point of call was the extremely busy Cham market running parallel to the Bassic River at Sangkat Preack Pra, Chber Ampov. The market lines both sides of Street 369, the main though road where traffic jams are just a normality due to the shoppers pulling up roadside to purchase their goods. Plentiful of fresh produce, such has vegetables, meats, fish.
It’s a good place to buy good cuts of beef, and fish from the ladies whom squat on the road edge with live fish on show in the large stainless bowls.
With my shopping over and not having to leave the seat of my motorcycle due to the market vendors doing the legwork on your behalf accommodating the buyer's needs, and I suppose this way it keeps the customers and the traffic flowing.
Shopping over and I now felt a little parched, a cup of tea would be nice.
Just at the end of the market opposite the Jamia Masjid, Mosque is the restaurant Bismillah, serving Halal-Food but today more convenient for a cup of sweet milky tea. I haven’t visited this place for some time, neither had any conversation with the owner, he is originally from Bangladesh while is wife is a Cham Khmer, it is she and their daughter who usually cook the food at the restaurant, curries and biriyanis, ingredients of the dishes being of vegetable or meat, Chicken, Beef or Lamb.
I don’t know if there are such set ways to how food is prepared and cooked for the communities of the Cham Khmer people, I imagine that there are, but intertwined overtime with traditional Khmer cooking. If anyone has any information on this subject, please share has I am keen to know.
I have dined at this restaurant on many past occasions, the curries resemble that of a mix cuisine to me, being there is an abundance of meats (such like Pakistani food) but typically most plates are served with bones (such like Khmer dishes and some Pakistan dishes) the curry dishes too have a consistency that reminds me more of a South Indian dish (thin gravy) but overall, a tasty and distinguished meal using in general less spice than that of other curry areas of Asia.
It was an enjoyable visit to the restaurant with a little pleasant conversation with the well needed cup of tea, being sweet and milky, overall, a very refreshing drink. It was time to leave now with the restaurant getting a little busier with customers coming from the Mosque, but not before I was handed my two Chapattis, I had ordered to takeaway with me, they would accompany the meal I had in mind, to prepare and cook back at the apartment.
On my return to home, I had a few small jobs to attend, washing the motorcycle wheels, then take out the rubbish, giving time for the wheels to dry off a little before taking it inside the apartment, safe indoors over the evening time. Then a sweep and mopping of the floor, now time to prepare and cook my food items bought earlier from the Cham market.
The result of my time Chicken Jalfrezi
The dish is simple, mainly being that of a stir-fried dish, I had diced the chicken in the early morning, leaving it chilled in the fridge, while beforehand preparing a spiced paste mix to cover the meat, thus marinating, so it will turn out to be a flavorful curry with tender, juicy chunks of chicken in a spicy tomato sauce studded with peppers and onions.
Chicken Jalfrezi doesn’t have a long tradition in India. It was a dish developed by cooks of the British Raj as a way to use up leftovers using a cooking technique of briskly frying together the ingredients.

Time to add the chapattis and tuck in.