You can search high and low throughout the land and beyond the shores for this particular dish. However, this one-of-a-kind concoction can only be found in Kuching.
On the outside, it resembles pesto pasta, but the flavour is quite different. This is due to the use of the indigenous herb kachangma, often known as Motherwort (leonurus sibiricus).
The chopped leaves and stem of the herb, which are sold dry, are traditionally used to make kachangma chicken, a typical recipe for post-natal care in Sarawak.
Originally popular among the Hakkas, it has since extended to all other ethnic communities, not just as a confinement food but also a dish for special occasions like potluck gatherings, where it is enjoyed by both men and women.
So, who came up with the idea of incorporating it into a creamy pasta? The herb has a sharp minty flavour and is not fragrant. Yes, who married the Italian pasta to Miss Kachangma?
The origins of such experimentation can be traced back to a group of youthful minds who also happen to be creative media professionals. Sarawak Eye is the brains behind KANTIN at The Granary, a prominent café in Kuching’s historic area.
I had the opportunity to meet Emily Yii, an award-winning video director who has won all three video categories in the Sarawak Hornbill Tourism Awards 2017/2018, Los Angeles Film Award Berjaya Short Film Awards. She’s also made a number of short films and promotional videos for Sarawak’s tourism and trade.
“Right now, the key operational managers are myself and Aya, and we’re both from the creative media field,” Yii said.
Aya is one of the state’s most creative and expressive art directors. She received one of the Gold Awards in MUSE Creative Awards, which are the design industry’s equivalent of the Oscars. Last year, she also served as the lead art director for STB Creative Agency.
Although none of their management team has the professional culinary experience, they all have a passion for food and excel at creativity.
Combining that with their knowledge of Sarawak, they worked with chefs from various backgrounds (Asian, Western, and Malay) to create signature dishes. One of these is Kachangma Pasta!
What inspired the creation of a Kachangma Alfredo Pasta?
“As Chinese, we are familiar with Kacangma. It’s great for serving women after they’ve given birth for health reasons. You can add as much wine as you want,” Yii said.
“We want to share the joy and taste of Kachangma with the Malays and Dayaks, but we can’t do it with wine, which the Chinese will find less appealing.
The problem here is figuring out how to make it into a wine-free dish while retaining its essence and making it an enjoyable for everyone,” she added.
Apparently, KANTIN is seeing an increase in Malay and Muslim customers purchasing Kachangma Pasta and enjoying it.
Was there a lot of testing done, and how do their customers feel about it?
As is the case with all of their meals, they spent a lot of time planning and undertaking research and development long before KANTIN opened.
There were a few sceptics when the meal was first introduced, but they soon became fans.
“The thing about Kachangma Pasta is that it appeals to both non-Kachangma fans and hardcore Kachangma fans, which I believe is the dish’s best success and what we set out to achieve. Now that we’re attracting more tourists, we always tell them that the food tastes unusual and slightly bitter in a good way, so they’re prepared. Surprisingly, the majority of foreigners enjoy the food,” said Yii.
I was interested as to how they achieved the desired texture of the pasta without making it too dry, creamy, or overly flavoured with the Motherwort herb. She replied with a smirk, implying that she is not willing to share their secret recipe.
With a sprinkling of fresh dill on top, the spaghetti did resemble a pesto. Each bite was bursting with kachangma flavour, and being a kachangma fan, I savoured every bite.
Apart from this one-of-a-kind meal, KANTIN serves a variety of delectable foods, as well as drinks that are a must-try. KantinKaffeine and Sarawak Teh C Special are two of their specialty drinks. For my Kachangma pasta, however, I opted for an iced lemon crush with preserves. It was fantastic!
KANTIN is located in the Granary, in the heart of Kuching City. It is located across the street from the Star Complex (Medan Pelita), and the entrance is immediately behind a row of stores on Wayang Street.
The Granary, designed by Rosemary Wong, is an old warehouse that has been rebuilt with raw and industrial elements. It’s somewhat rustic, with un-cemented concrete walls and wooden furniture, but it’s also quite huge, with industrial hanging lights and a massive ceiling fan.
In fact, it is located at the bottom of a little hill that leads up to the charming Marian Boutique Lodging House.
You can’t miss KANTIN at the Granary because there’s a gigantic mural on top of the shop next to it.
The mural depicting children’s faces, painted by Mohd Afiruddin (Dean R) and Amey Sheikh Ali, represents the future generation of all ethnicities who will shape the nation.
KANTIN celebrates its first birthday this month.
