Nasi Padang @ Restoran Azinur in Taman Ungku Tun Aminah (TUTA), Johor Bahru

Everyday at about 11:30am, a queue will form up outside Restoran Azinur in Taman Ungku Tun Aminah waiting to be the first customers of the day. Waiting isn’t so bad as the customers are treated to the aroma of cooking and spices emanating from behind the shut metal shutters.

Once opened, the waiting customers are treated to a wide array of delicious, freshly cooked Malay dishes.

Within minutes of opening, the restaurant will be full and customers will fill tables placed along the five foot way just outside the restaurant.

One of my favourites at Azinur’s is their stir fried bean sprouts. In fact, Azinur serves the best stir fried bean sprouts I have eaten anywhere, including at home.



Don’t be deceived by the unphotogenic, chaotic looking heap of bean sprouts. They were stir fried to perfection. The sprouts were expertly stir fried to just the right degree with a subtle sauce.

When I put a mouthful of sprouts in my mouth, my taste buds were first greeted by the delicate flavour of the sauce. There was just the right amount of light fragrant sauce coating the sprouts - unlike the limp, soggy mess we sometimes find elsewhere.

When I bit into the succulent, juicy sprout, a fresh and sweet taste bursts in my mouth. The sprouts were springy and crunchy. I could hear my teeth crushing the crunchy sprouts loudly through my ear bones. There were also slender shreds of carrots, chili peppers, chives and union slices knitted into the tangle of sprouts. The carrots and chili peppers had a slight sourly taste, adding both colour and interesting flavour to the whole dish.

Stir fried cucumber strips is another of my favourites. Fresh and crunchy cucumber strips coated with a light sauce and garnished with slivers of chili peppers. The cucumber strips are tossed and stirred briefly in a hot wok with a delicate sauce, so it retains its sweet natural juices which are enhanced by the sauce.

The beef rendang at Azinur’s is cooked in the authentic Minangkabau style. In this style, the beef chunks are first boiled in coconut milk and curry spices. When the coconut milk is mostly evaporated, the cooking method changes to stir frying the beef in the rich and thick coconut and curry sauce. After about 4 hours of boiling followed by stir frying, most of the water is evaporated and the essence of the coconut and spices is absorbed by the beef chunks. When cooking is completed, the beef is deep dark brown and slightly hard on the outside. Inside it is softer, dry and saturated with the unique fragrance and rich flavour of coconut and curry spices. Rendang is a delicious iconic nasi padang dish not to be missed.

I will definitely be back regularly at Azinur’s to try out their other dishes.

->> A people's favourite with plenty of delicious choices. 

Restaurant name: Restoran Azinur

Address: 12, Jalan Perwira 17, Taman Ungku Tun Aminah, 81300 Johor Bahru  
No. 38 Jalan Bendahara 12, Taman Ungku Tun Aminah, Skudai, Johor
Map: http://g.co/maps/znpf4    http://goo.gl/maps/FJnVS
GPS: 1.522628,103.660587     1.527977,103.665005

WAZE: Restoran Azinur

Hours: 12:00 noon to 2:00pm (Closed on Sunday)

Halal

Date visited: 10 Jan 2012, 20 Jan 2012

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