Covid-19 stay-home guide: Aromatic kampung-style food

One thing good about food delivery is that you get to avoid the queues at popular food stalls such as Hjh Maimunah.

The eatery, which has outlets in Jalan Pisang and Joo Chiat Road, is listed in the Bib Gourmand section of the Michelin Guide for its kampung-style food, and usually sees a long line during meal times.

The flip side is that you need to chalk up an order of at least $30. If you order less, you still pay $30.

There is also a delivery charge, but since you save on transport, that is less of an issue.

The dishes turned out to be as good as what one would get dining at the restaurant. It helps that the food does not need to be piping hot to stay delicious.

Still, they arrived warm in their plastic containers and the aroma when I removed the covers was the most enticing among all the delivery meals I have had over the past week.

I ordered a Beef Rendang Set ($7), which was ideal for one person. Besides the rendang, the set included stir-fried kangkong and telor belado, a hard-boiled egg that is deep-fried and coated with red chilli sambal.

There was only one piece of the tender beef rendang, but that was all I needed. I had to leave room for the other dishes, which were delicious.

Terung Sambal Belado ($5) was fried eggplant topped with the same red chilli sambal that was spicy, but not mouth-burning. It was a perfect match.

And I love the fluffy omelette called Telor Dadar Padang ($4), though I wish I could have ordered just one slice instead of four.

From $5, depending on where you are.

Lemak Babat ($7), beef tripe cooked in a spicy coconut gravy, was excellent. The pieces of tripe were tender but still had some chew to keep them interesting texture-wise.

Only the Ayam Goreng Bumbu ($7) disappointed as the fried chicken was dry. Though chomping on it, I was rewarded with a pleasant aromatic flavour of herbs and spices.