Mandy Yin, the chef and founder of Islington restaurant Sambal Shiok, has gained a cult following for her rich and sour laksa. It’s based on the style of laksa found in her dad’s hometown in Malacca, Malaysia. This “campur”-style laksa fuses the coconut milk-heavy take served in Kuala Lumpur and the fire of Penang’s signature assam laksa. Yin’s signature laksa paste is made with 15 ingredients, including three types of chilli – dried for colour, fresh for vibrancy and powdered for kick – and has a punchy shrimp base. You won’t find a laksa like this anywhere else in London – and Sambal Shiok sells its pastes so fans can make their own laksas at home.
Yin was born in Kuala Lumpur and moved to London with her family at 11. As she grew older, she realised how underrepresented her cuisine was in her adopted home, and about 13 years ago she opened a Malaysian street food stall. “I’ve always loved Malaysian food, and I knew I was a good cook,” she tells Broadsheet. “Back in 2012 and 2013, London’s street food scene was just magical.”
Soon, she noticed a nearby burger stall was attracting the most customers. In response, she created a Malaysian chicken satay burger, which soon saw queues forming, even in the rain. “The peanut sauce from that burger is still on the menu at the restaurant,” she says.
The street stall soon evolved into sell-out pop-ups, residencies and collaborations, and in 2018 Yin opened her debut restaurant, Sambal Shiok, on Holloway Road, Islington. “It launched with great fanfare, all the critics came, and it’s simply been a gift,” she says. Since, Yin has dedicated her practice to laksa.
The Sambal Shiok laksa is deeply personal and honours Yin’s father’s upbringing in Malacca. And while using a pre-made laksa paste might feel like taking a shortcut, “Nobody in Malaysia makes laksa paste from scratch day to day, because you don’t have to – you walk out your door and there’s a hawker stall or coffee shop selling it,” says Yin. This meant her mum rarely made laksa paste, so when creating the Sambal Shiok style, Yin used memory as her main tool. “I tweaked and refined it constantly until I was happy; it has a pretty high chilli kick and is richer and bolder than the Kuala Lumpur-style laksa, which is often more diluted. It’s very different from the Singapore version too, which is quite watery and mild, meaning you have to add a lot of sambal to give it flavour.”
Each week, Sambal Shiok goes through 40 to 50 kilograms of laksa paste. Making the paste requires dedication: you must stand over it religiously, stirring constantly to avoid burning, and cook it until the oil separates and the deep red paste erupts. “That’s how you know it’s ready,” Yin explains.
Yin’s decision to jar up the restaurant’s laksa paste has changed the game for customers and laksa-at-home creators alike. A vegan version, which uses miso rather than shrimp paste, is also available. You’ll just need coconut milk and stock or water to build it into a soup, because, in Yin’s words, “we’ve done the hard work for you”. Add noodles, protein and accoutrements like soft-boiled eggs for a warming wintery meal.
But not all Malaysian food is as intricate as laksa. With her new cookbook, Simply Malaysian, Yin hopes to show just that. “It’s about how we eat at home and shows that Malaysian food doesn’t always have to be as complex as laksa – I’m continuing to demystify Malaysian cuisine.”
London Pantry is a series celebrating ingredients made by London’s greatest producers.
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