Nyonya Ngiam May Ling discovers what fuels Cultural Medallion winner violinist Lynette Seah’s culinary passion.
Violinist Lynnette Seah needs no introduction in the world of classical music. Awarded the Cultural Medallion for Music in 2006, the co-concertmaster and founding member of the Singapore Symphony Orchestra (SSO) strives to inspire the musicians to play to the best of their ability.
While music provides Lynnette with emotional fulfilment and nurtures her soul, she also believes in nourishing her body, and she does this with her cooking. As a child, daily, Lynnette would be ensconced in a room with only a clock and her violin and piano for company, and would not be allowed out of the room until she had practised the violin and the piano for at least an hour each.
After this ascetic ritual, she would be allowed free rein in the kitchen. She started out with pounding chillies and graduated to more difficult tasks over time, her progress in the kitchen matched only by the rate at which her ability to play the violin and piano improved.
She gladly attributes much of her prowess in the kitchen today to the innumerable practice sessions, and to the influence of her Peranakan great aunt, a nyonya who had married into the Seah family.
Through Lynnette’s Kitchen, her private dining service, Lynnette has prepared dinner for scores of people. Friends who were enamoured with her cooking thought it deserving of a wider audience and had convinced her to start a private dining service. The Peranakan menu is a favourite amongst diners, typically comprising buah keluak fried rice, assam fish, babi pongteh and beef rendang.
Lynnette shares her favourite dish here.
Rebong Lemak
(Chicken with bamboo shoots and coconut milk)
I kg chicken, cut into pieces
500 gm organic fresh bamboo shoots
1 packet coconut milk
1 litre chicken stock
3 tbsp raw sugar
3 tsp sea salt
Rempah (finely pounded into a paste)
12 slices fresh galangal
1 thumb size fresh turmeric
15 shallots
7 cloves garlic
4 dried chillies (soaked in hot water, deseeded and chopped)
10 buah keras (candlenuts)
1 tbsp belachan
2 tbsp coriander powder
1/2 tbsp white pepper
2 stalks lemongrass (remove white part of stalks)
Heat a big wok, add 120ml rice bran oil. When hot, fry the rempah for 2 mins till fragrant. Stir in 1 tsp salt and 2 tbsp raw sugar, followed by chicken pieces and bamboo shoots (sliced). Add stock and coconut milk. Season to taste with salt and sugar. Stir and simmer for 25 mins.
