Well, most of you know that I love my meat. I don’t really like vegetarian food…or so I thought. I went to Kechara Oasis New Age Vegetarian Cuisine in Jaya One recently to meet up with Jamie (more on that later) and check out their vegetarian offerings.
Kechara Oasis is one of the high end vegetarian eating establishments in town – they take great pride in serving fresh and different styles of the usual vegetarian fare.
It was pretty packed when I arrived there for lunch. I was pleasantly surprised to see their menu – they offer vegetarian fare from all around the world.
I started with Tibetan Butter Tea. This comes in a flask and is slightly salty. However, I really loved the creamy mouth-feel and strong brewed tea that this concoction presents – the salty accent just highlights and complements the buttery goodness.
Tingmo is the Tibetan version of the Chinese man tau (steamed bun). It comes with a side of curry that goes very well with the neutral taste of the man tau. The Tingmos are also good for mopping up the gravies of the main dishes.
The deep fried Momos is a must-order item when you go to Kechara Oasis – it’s a unique Tibetan twist of the Japanese Gyoza dumplings and comes filled with potatoes, vegetables, herbs and cheese. It tastes lovely when dipped into chilli oil. I didn’t even realize there wasn’t any meat inside.
We also had two different types of curries. I particularly enjoyed the Vietnamese Curry Chicken – it has Seitan drumsticks with a cornucopia of vegetables and potatoes. The Seitan drumsticks tastes remarkably similar to meat – the texture is spot on.
The Kung Po Hedgehog Mushroom comes with a smattering of cashew nuts on top and comes highly recommended from me. It’s a very spicy dish of mushrooms, green peppers and carrots stir fried in Kung Po sauce. I’m a big fan of spicy dishes and this one did not disappoint – it finished my bowl of brown rice with the sauce alone.
If you prefer something less spicy, the Thai Butter Hedgehog Mushroom is one of Kechara Oasis’s more popular offerings. The way they cook the hedgehog mushrooms makes it taste like battered pieces of meat. The sprinkling of sesame seeds adds to the flavor and I loved the buttery taste of the dish.
However, the most remarkable dish is a fusion vegetarian pasta dish that tastes like nothing I’ve ever had. It’s made with spaghetti with thick green curry gravy and it’s the subtle touches like the sunflower seeds on top that adds a lot of texture and dimension to the pasta. I’ll definitely come back to this again. Delicious and creamy, it’s one of the best fusion dishes I’ve ever had – and it’s vegetarian to boot!
Anyway, I was at Kechara Oasis to meet Jamie, who is rather active in Kechara. She has published a book about her life as a rather spoiled kid and I’ve always been curious about how someone like her would end up as one of Rinpoche’s liaisons in Malaysia.
I met her though David (who has also written an autobiography) and what drew me to these people is that they’re people like me who somehow managed to give up their previous life of hedonism and become who they are today. It all comes down to Rinpoche’s teachings and although I haven’t had a chance to meet him, he’s this cool dude from the US who’s spreading the word of Buddhism through good deeds.
I’m sure you’ve heard of Kechara, especially their efforts in Kechara Soup Kitchen (KSK). I’m going to volunteer and help out – it’s a good cause to spend a few Saturdays on. However, it’s David and Jamie that got me reading Rinpoche’s blog – especially the bits about Animals & Vegetarianism.
I’m sure a lot of you know how badly animals are treated, but since you get your chicken from the supermarket, it’s not a very visceral reminder of the industry. It’s not easy being a vegetarian – I’ve heard personal anecdotes from David and Jamie on how they each achieved it.
I think Jamie puts it best when she said that it’s a struggle at the beginning but after a while you just get used to it when you think about the mistreatment of animals that happens in the industry. I’m not sure I can do it but it does give you food for thought (pun intended).
Rinpoche’s blog explains it very well in Animals & Vegetarianism. He’s the only blogger I know who’s been ordained by the Dalai Lama and writes about a lot of different things that you wouldn’t expect – everything from Food & Recipes to Current Affairs & News.
go hb! im a vegetarian trying to go vegan. thx for highlighting animal cruelty in the food industry. i know you still love your meat but hey maybe we will make a convert of you. 😉
Hello Jess! 😀
Heh! Yeah, it is actually quite difficult for me to go vegetarian, but this is one of the most interesting vegetarian places I’ve been too. I particularly liked the fusion pasta dish – it’s made with green curry instead of a bolognese based sauce and it works very well!
The blog actually belongs to Tsem Tulku Rinpoche – he’s ordained by the Dalai Lama and spends quite a fair bit of time at SunwayMas (near Dataran Prima, where I used to live). 🙂
HB, very nice place to dine. When I was in taipei there so many vegetarian restaurants that serve vegetarian dim sum all you eat and other dishes also. It very popular and enjoy it very much. They have also vegetarian sushis and tempuras.
Hey, vegetarian dim sum! I’ve heard about it over here but I’ve never tried it myself.
How is it Vickie? Yeah, I reckon there would be more vegetarian places in countries like Taiwan – it’s quite big in certain areas of Australia as well.
There’s a rather large organic only food community and a sizable portion of them are vegetarians or vegans. The awareness is higher in other countries. It’s a choice – a way of life for them. 🙂
At Kechara Oasis Viva Home Mall, they serve vegetarian dim sum daily and it’s delicious! You must try it!!
I would love to give this place a try. hehe
Hello Michelle! 🙂
I recommend the green curry pasta – it sounds weird but it works very well. I was amazed at how thick green curry gravy can be a substitute for the usual pasta sauces – the spaghetti is just lightly coated with the gravy and it tastes wonderful!
Kechara Oasis is in Jaya One. I’ll bring you there when you come back. 😀
So? Are you turning vegetarian? The food certainly looks good…but vegetarian cuisine and all the healthy organic stuff are so very expensive or in Sibu, at least. I heard on the radio also that turning vegetarian can help reduce the problem of global warming…as the animals release too much volatile gases… Gosh! I wonder how much I’m contributing to that! Muahahahahahaha!!!!!
Heh! I don’t think I’m ready to go vegetarian but it’s interesting to see how other people can based on principles or religion. 🙂
Yeah, I only know of one vegetarian place in Sibu!
Yup, methane from cows, I’ve heard that too. Interesting stuff. 😀
Seitan is a good meat substitute. The best tasting one. My family is vegetarian too. 🙂
I read about quinoa in Tsem Tulku Rinpoche’s blog. Where can I get it in Klang Valley? Thanks.
Yup, Seitan drumsticks tastes a lot like meat! 🙂
Quinoa? I’ve read that in Rinpoche’s blog too – apparently you can get it in health food stores so try the ones in malls like MidValley and 1Utama. I remember there’s a couple of heath food stores in there.
I think I’ve even seen quinoa in Cold Storage. Hope that helps Sharon! 😀
Kung Po Hedgehog Mushroom, now that’s something you don’t see everyday
Yeah, and it tastes really good too.
I love the kung po cooking style. I ate most of my rice with this – I’m a huge fan of spicy food. It goes very well with the mushrooms! 🙂
Po cha! Is it made with yak butter?
I’m going to Kechara Oasis to try. I can’t believe it’s available here. Man, that’s tasty stuff.
Hello there! It’s not made with yak butter, those things are hard to come by in Malaysia.
You’ll have to go to Tibet to get Tibetan butter tea with yak butter but the one is Kechara Oasis is delicious too!
It’s very rich, slightly salty and extremely buttery. I love it! It’s delicious piping hot! 🙂
Hi Huai Bin,
Kechara Oasis has another restaurant in Viva Home (formerly UE3) that serves vegetarian dim sum. The floor area and seating capacity are much bigger than the one in Jaya One. Check it out.
Hello Henry!
Thanks for the information! I’ll go check it out some day. 🙂
Cheers!
HB was Rinpoche in PJ last couple of days? I live near DP and saw something going on near Kechara. 🙂
Hello Jill!
Hey, I used to live at Dataran Prima Condo! I was there for about a year, when I just got here. 🙂
Yeah, it was Tsem Tulku Rinpoche’s birthday on Monday, they had a huge event going on that day at Kechara. Have you been there before? 😀
Hello Huai Bin
When are you available for a meatless dim sum at Kechara Oasis @ Viva Home, Jalan Loke Yew? I would like to have a date with you for meatless dim sum. Wait till you sink your teeth on em……..
Walked pass this restaurant a couple of times but never tried it cos it looks like fine dining from the outside 😛
Yup, vegetarian is a way of life, at least to me personally. Becoming a vegetarian was rather easy for me as my body decided one day that it didnt want to eat meat anymore.
Thanks for the nice blog, will drop by again!
Hi Huai Bin,
Thank you for blogging about Kechara Oasis.
Please visit our Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Kechara-Oasis-New-Age-Vegetarian-Restaurant/215106775542
Our branch at Viva Home Mall along Jalan Loke Yew can accomodate more than 50 tables, and ideal place for wedding and events. Past events and weddings are posted in the Facebook page.
Website: http://www.kecharaoasis.com
Cheers.