SEMENYIH, Nov 10 — It’s astonishing how infrequently we eat at home these days. Or at least home cooked meals.

After two years of the pandemic, perhaps it’s unsurprising that our hands will reflexively reach for our phones to order from food delivery apps.

Which is a pity, for there is a homey and comforting feeling that goes with a slowly cooked meal that fast food will never replicate.

Sticky, glazed fried chicken or a sloppy burger is great when watching a movie, when our attention is otherwise focused on the screen rather than what is on the plate before us or dripping meat juices and runny mayonnaise from our hands.

But when we have the time and quiet space to reflect, dining alone, or the simple joy of a meandering conversation with a good friend or a loved one, well, then there is a taste that we miss.

Something stewed and simmered, perhaps. The sharp or subtle tang of homemade pickles. The fiery sting of a sambal, made from far too many chillies and with a secret recipe. (There’s always a secret recipe.)

These are thoughts that come to mind as we make an impromptu stopover in Semenyih for lunch. The skies are cast with a sinister pallor, threatening to pour down viciously (and indeed, does make good on this warning a few minutes later).

The shop draws us for having a less garish façade than its neighbours. Gleaming white, with only a bar of blonde wood and a honey-hued illustration of a rice bowl (possibly a soup bowl) to entice passers-by.

The white and minimalist façade of the restaurant.
The white and minimalist façade of the restaurant.

We enter and are greeted by a spacious dining room with more tables and seats than there are customers. Can you fault us for thinking that this eatery would either have to find its footing soon or that it is we who have chosen unwisely?

The restaurant is called Thirteen Taste and after a brief perusal of its menu, the meaning becomes clear: there are thirteen main meat dishes, from nán rǔ cuì huā nǎn (Nam Yu Pork Belly) to xián yú zhēng jī (Steamed Chicken With Salted Fish).

The spacious interior, with plenty of tables and seats.
The spacious interior, with plenty of tables and seats.

Is there anything more redolent of home-cooked flavours than a bowl of méi cài mèn zhūròu (Braised Pork With Plum Vegetables) or collagen-rich dōnggū mèn fèng zhuǎ (Braised Chicken Feet with Mushrooms)?

Everyone orders their meal as a set — one of the 13 meat dishes, a soup, rice, some side dishes and a saucer of the restaurant’s signature chilli paste. Which might remind one of a fast food value meal, except this one would offer more heart and soul, we hope.

It doesn’t take long (but thankfully, not nearly as swiftly as in a fast food joint; this counts as Slow Food too, after a fashion) before our trays arrive, each with their own saucers of pickled cucumber slices, some braised peanuts and a dab of their shísān wèi mì zhì làjiāo jiàng (Thirteen Taste Signature Chilli Paste).

The fiery house specialty, Thirteen Taste Signature Chilli Minced Meat.
The fiery house specialty, Thirteen Taste Signature Chilli Minced Meat.

The house chilli paste is indeed spicy, which makes my order of làjiāo ròu suì (Thirteen Taste Signature Chilli Minced Meat) a bit of an overkill... unless you’re a fan of flamin’ hot foods, as I am.

In any case, my choice of soup — huāshēng dùn páigǔ tāng (Stewed Pork Ribs Soup with Peanuts) — helps lessen any pain from the heat. Sip slowly.

Warm up on rainy days with a bowl of Stewed Pork Ribs Soup with Peanuts.
Warm up on rainy days with a bowl of Stewed Pork Ribs Soup with Peanuts.

My companion opts for their Kèjiā zhū jiǎo cù (Hakka Black Sweet Vinegar Pork Trotters), an old family favourite that reappears as a most serviceable rendition here. Add the háo shì cài gān tāng (Dried Oyster and Vegetable Soup) and it’s a walk down memory lane.

For that is what some meals can offer us — sustenance for our bodies but also for our souls.

A Hakka classic — Black Sweet Vinegar Pork Trotters.
A Hakka classic — Black Sweet Vinegar Pork Trotters.

On a different visit, joined by my gym buddy, we have the Mǐnnán fēng ròu (Hokkien Style Braised Pork) and the yú xiāng kòu ròu (Fish Fragrant Pork Belly). The latter is especially aromatic and savoury, employing a classic Sichuanese seasoning of garlic, ginger and pickled chillies — no actual fish involved here.

This might be the true appeal of Thirteen Taste — the diverse sampling of different Chinese culinary regions, from the aforementioned dishes spanning Hakka, Hokkien and Sichuanese to Cantonese delicacies such as jiāng yá yā (Stewed Duck with Ginger) and Hong Kong style zhúzhī yáng nǎn bāo (Lamb Stew with Bean Curd Sheets).

More than a walk down memory lane, eating home-cooked food (whether in your own home or at restaurants like Thirteen Taste that still serve traditional fare) is a way of paving a path to our future, ensuring we never lose touch with our rich heritage and the wisdom of our past.

It is not 13 tastes, I realise, but one single taste — that of a good life and simple living.

Thirteen Taste 十三味

28, Jalan Eco Majestic 10/1D, Semenyih, Selangor

Open daily 11am-3pm, 5-10pm

FB: https://www.facebook.com/thirteentaste/

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