Indus Indian Restaurant: South & North Indian Cuisine

I'm a Malaysian Indian and Indian food definitely makes me feel like home although I don't favor it that much. I still remember my trip to India a few years back where I actually got home sick because all I had for my everyday meals were curry and masala. Now that I'm living abroad in Ho Chi Minh City, Indian food has become one of the comfort food that I can find whenever I miss mummy's cooking.

I have to admit that I'm not that good in cooking Indian food because I usually enjoy cooking fusion Malaysian dishes. But whenever we are craving for Indian food, Indus Indian Restaurant would be our number one choice. The food here tastes authentic and its very much on the cheaper side compared to a few other Indian restaurants here in HCMC. It is located at 2G Thi Sach Street, District 1, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam and they also offer delivery with no minimum order. You can call them at +84.8.3521.0326 to place in your orders.

Egg Rava Thosai

Tandoori Chicken

Mutton Kottu Parotha

My husbands favorite would be the egg rava thosai. Not many restaurants here serve rava thosai and the combination of egg just makes it more flavorful! The tandoori chicken here is definitely the best out of the rest that I've tasted so far. Its tender, juicy, flavorful and not oily at all. My all time favorite would be the mutton kottu parotha. So far, I could only find this dish at Indus and not elsewhere. Kottu parotha is actually stir fried parotha , something similar to fried noodles but using parotha instead.

Chettinaad Chicken Curry

Chicken Curry

Plain Thosai

There were 2 different types of chicken curry on the menu. One was chicken curry and the other was chettinaad chicken curry. The flavors were similar but the chettinaad was a bit more spicier and used boneless chicken instead of chicken leg. The plain thosai was nicely cooked and crispy, not too sour but that's about it.

If you happen to be in Ho Chi Minh City and craving for Indian food. Head over to Indus Indian Restaurant for a scrumptious hearty meal!

* photography courtesy of Yogarajan Egambaram and Epicure, Manicure

Nasi lemak

Steamed coconut rice, sweet and spicy anchovy sambal sauce, fried anchovies, roasted peanuts, fried or boiled egg, and some sliced cucumbers. These are the basics for a plate of Nasi Lemak, Malaysian's national dish. 'Fatty Rice' is what it literally means and the fat is referred to the coconut milk cooked with the rice making it rich, fragrant and yummy. This dish is also usually served with beef / chicken rendang and stir-fried kangkung (water spinach).

The basic ingredients to prepare a good anchovy sambal sauce are ikan bilis (anchovies), shallots, onions, garlic, ginger, dried chili paste, belacan (shrimp paste), lemongrass, tomatoes and some salt and sugar to balance up the flavor. The key to cooking the perfect tasting sambal is to fry the chili paste in generous amount of oil until the oil separates from the paste and turn to a slightly darker color.

On the other hand, cooking the coconut rice is actually really simple. For 2 cups of rice, add 1 ½ cups of water and 1 ½ cups of coconut milk. Also add in some sliced ginger for the aroma and some salt to taste. Yes, its that easy.

Cooked this for dinner a few days back and the husband loved it. In fact he declared this, the best Nasi Lemak he had ever tasted, even better than his mum's! I also served this for brunch when my friends from Malaysia was over and it was a hit. Will definitely make this dish again when more friends and family are over!

A taste of home

I was craving for Malaysian food last night, so me and my husband decided to head out for dinner at one of the Malaysian restaurant, D'Nyonya. They serve authentic Malaysian cuisine and you can find almost any food you want here. D'Nyonya restaurant currently has 3 branches located in Ho Chi Minh City, Pnom Penh and in Perth. According to their website, they'll be opening another branch in Perth soon. They used to have a branch back in Malaysia located in Ara Damansara but I'm not too sure if they are still in business since they have removed it from their website.

The interior of this restaurant pretty much reminds me of home. Huge posters of the Baba & Nyonya family and the olden days of Penang pretty much creates a cozy atmosphere.

I can assure you that the food here is awesome and almost anything you order would taste delicious. I've tried their Nasi Goreng Kampung, Char Kueh Teow, Nasi Lemak, Curry Laksa and Prawn Mee. I would consider myself a difficult customer when it comes to food, but I approve all of the dishes above. I decided to go with Prawn Mee this time but Ram felt like eating rice so he ordered white rice, with fried tofu telur (egg tofu) and stir fried kailan (Chinese Broccoli / Mustard Orchid) with garlic. The fried tofu telur was amazing. It was deep fried and served in a special sweet and sour sauce. As for the stir fried kailan, it was nothing much to be screamed about.

Prawn Mee

Fried Tofu Telur (Egg Tofu)

Stir fried Kailan (Chinese Broccoli / Mustard Orchid) with garlic

Sirap Bandung (Sugar syrup with milk)

The drinks here can be a little too sweet, but you may choose to reduce the sugar level. They also offer a variety of Malaysian desserts. I've tried their Ais Kacang / ABC once and I liked it.

Char Kueh Teow (Picture taken a while ago)

Ais Kacang / ABC (Picture taken a while ago)

Overall, I would rate D'Nyonya as the best Malaysia restaurant in Ho Chi Minh City and I would highly recommend this place if you want a taste of authentic halal Malaysian cuisine.