Ayam Penyet Sarang Lebah in Johor Bahru JB Perling

Buddy Russel was keen that we try out his latest good food find together in Johor Bahru. He first heard about this ayam penyet stall in Taman Perling from his neighbour Din. That's how food news travel in JB - 一传食, 十传百, the good old fashioned way 😃



We met at Ayam Penyet Sarang Lebah which is a temporary stall just beside the Petronas petrol station off Lebuhraya Sultan Iskandar at Jalan Layang 8. (The stalls will move back into the little food centre at the same location in a few months' time after renovations.)



Encik Arifin with his wife have been running Ayam Penyet Sarang Lebah for over 6 years now.



Encik Arifin's stall used to be called..... Arifin Ayam Penyet.... Then, at one of the Ramadan Bazaars, when Encik Arifin displayed his tepung (fried crispy batter) in a heap at the stall like a bee hive, the golden heap attracted a swarm of bees. So, customers started to refer to Encik Arifin's stall as Ayam Penyet Sarang Lebah or bee hive ayam penyet. The distinctive and auspicious name stuck ever since.



When you come to Ayam Penyet Sarang Lebah, you will see chicken hung up like at a Hainanese chicken rice stall.



We had one serving of nasi ayam Hainan - the Hainanese style chicken come chopped in large meaty chunks and splashed with a light brownish dressing.



The chicken was tender and juicy inside. Most of the flavours came from the gently savoury dressing with subtle underlying natural chicky sweetness (as Encik Arifin uses chilled fresh chicken).



To make ayam penyet, the same "Hainanese style" chicken is dipped in batter and then deep fried.



The deep fried chicken is crowned with Encik Arifin's signature "bee hive" and served with generous scoops of house made sambal chilli.



The crispy tepung and batter outside are light and crackly, and have a mild spice flavour. Inside, the chicken flesh is tender and juicy (the same as the "Hainanese" style version).

The pulpy sambal chilli is savoury and spicy with a rather sharp sting that dissipates quickly.



The fried tempe and tofu sides.



Ayam Penyet Sarang Lebah uses good quality rice - mostly whole long grains. The tender yet nutty rice has a mildly savoury flavour and slight aroma. It goes perfectly with the sambal chilli and fried chicken 😃



👉 If you like your ayam penyet tender and juicy inside, you will enjoy Ayam Penyet Sarang Lebah. The outside is crispy and comes with a heap of their signature "bee hive" fried crisps. The house made sambal chilli is excellent.



Restaurant name: Ayam Penyet Sarang Lebah
Address: Jalan Layang 8, Taman Perling, Johor Bahru (beside Petronas petrol station)
GPS: 1.473569, 103.670168
Tel: 019 790 1471 | 019 719 1471
Hours: 11:00am to 4:00pm (Fridays off)

Halal  

Date visited: 28 Nov 2016  

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