|
||||
| » Number of comments : 10119 - viewing 10 Per Page |
| Last Comment by Orange - Posted Date: February 2, 2012 7:02am | [ Post a Comment ] |
 Dimensions: 800 x 600 Views: 507 Filesize: 113kb |
Now if we crave for cendol, we no longer have to savour it by the roadside and under the scorching sun. Mr. Cendol (estd. since 1952) have kiosks in supermarkets and hypermarkets. Mr. Cendol is 'Perak Mali'. En. Kadir started his cendol stall at Lumut Jetty in 1952 and En. Wahab worked for him. When En. Kadir wanted to go back to India, En. Wahab's friends and relatives advised him to take over the trade and change the concept into kiosks in supermarkets and hypermarkets. Mr. Cendol has kiosks in Sg. Siput & Batu Gajah. At present, Mr. Cendol has 8 outlets in supermarkets and hypermarket. Mr. Cendol has a cabin-like kiosk at Tambun Giant Supermarket. They have just opened a kiosk at the newly renovated One Utama old wing and it's opp. Kenny Rogers Roasters. Their cendol strips are made fresh daily from their headquarters in Ayer Tawar. No colouring and without any preservatives. Their red beans are huge and fresh. They use pure coconut milk. The amount of gula melaka & palm sugar added into each bowl is according to individual preference. The best cendol I have ever tasted! |
| Photo Details: "2012 Year of the Dragon" by kayes - Posted Date: January 8, 2012 - Rating: n/a |
| Last Comment by Orange - Posted Date: February 2, 2012 6:12am | [ Post a Comment ] |
|
Dimensions: 800 x 600 Views: 507 Filesize: 113kb |
Hi Ken, With so many home-cooked Malaysian food, I am sure you are not missing out any of our local goodies. It is true about those artificial colourings. Recently some wise restaurant owners try to replace banana leaves with green-coloured paper for their banana leaf rice. What is banana leaf rice without banana leaves?! At home, we have pandan leaves, serai and daun kunyit growing in our back garden at any time. So pandan leaves are easily available whenever we want to make Seri Muka, Kuih Talam, Onde-Onde and when boiling Tong Sui. We used to have Bunga Telang lilit round the common fencing between our back garden fencing and our back neighbour's fencing. Since we seldom make Pulut Tai Tai and we need Bunga Telang for Chang only once a year, we pulled out the Bunga Telang and our immediate back neighbour, Mak Ungku suggested to grow Kacang Botol instead. So now whenever we want to eat ulam kacang botol, we have to use a ladder to pluck those kacang botol since Mak Ungku's land is higher than ours. But if Mak Ungku or any of her family members is around, we would play "throw and catch" game with the plucked kacang botol.  We are indeed very lucky to have very friendly neighbours.
|
| Photo Details: "2012 Year of the Dragon" by kayes - Posted Date: January 8, 2012 - Rating: n/a |
| Last Comment by Ken Chan - Posted Date: February 1, 2012 5:14pm | [ Post a Comment ] |
|
Dimensions: 800 x 600 Views: 507 Filesize: 113kb |
Hi Orange, We make chendol from scratch, using the juice from pandan leaves to get the green color and flavoring. Some people opt for the easy way by using pandan extract but it doesn't taste the same. As for the syrup, the choice is between gula melaka or gula java. Both are good but gula java tends to have a concentrated flavor, much like strong coffee. Recipes for home-made chendol are easily available on Malaysian food blogs. |
| Photo Details: "2012 Year of the Dragon" by kayes - Posted Date: January 8, 2012 - Rating: n/a |
| Last Comment by Orange - Posted Date: February 1, 2012 1:36am | [ Post a Comment ] |
|
Dimensions: 800 x 600 Views: 507 Filesize: 113kb |
The act of throwing citrus fruits into the sea is a waste of money. This makes the fruit importers richer and the Bandaraya workers poorer by contacting those numbers written on the fruits. Anyway, jokes aside! It's fun to keep the tradition alive. Something to look forward to for every 'Chap Goh Meh'! |
| Photo Details: "2012 Year of the Dragon" by kayes - Posted Date: January 8, 2012 - Rating: n/a |
| Last Comment by Ken Chan - Posted Date: January 31, 2012 9:42pm | [ Post a Comment ] |
|
Dimensions: 800 x 600 Views: 507 Filesize: 113kb |
Hi Blue Grass, I think your interpretation on the significance of the raised altar table makes sense. In trying to appease the deities, mortals are supposed to approached the Almighty with reverence. As a gesture of sincerity, offerings are placed on a lofty pedestal in order to reach out to the heavens above. This belief could have been influenced by ancient folklore that was the mainstay of Chinese culture for many centuries. Next on the pipeline is 'Chap Goh Meh', the grand finale of the CNY celebrations. Once again, my brief stint in Penang brought back a whole slew of fond memories about the highlights of this occasion. Images of the gaily decorated buses that ferry the Dondang Sayang troupes around town reappeared succinctly in my mind. At that time, popular Dondang Sayang singers like Baba Kim Teik would be the star attraction who serenaded the crowd with lively tunes of love. Single gals would throw oranges into the sea or rivers, hoping that the citrus fruits would be retrieved by the man of their dreams. I was told that this practice is still alive and well in modern day Penang! Are these traditions observed in a Cantonese city like Ipoh? |
| Photo Details: "2012 Year of the Dragon" by kayes - Posted Date: January 8, 2012 - Rating: n/a |
| Last Comment by blue grass - Posted Date: January 31, 2012 7:31pm | [ Post a Comment ] |
|
Dimensions: 800 x 600 Views: 507 Filesize: 113kb |
Hi Ken Yes indeed, "Pai Tee Kong" is even more significant to Hokkiens then first day of Chinese New Year. My in-laws used to do it in a big way with all the goodies you mentioned and huge joss sticks that burned till the next morning. The best part of the event was, of course, the cutting up of the roast pig and the feasting thereafter. I do remember the raised alter table but not the table with the offerings of food and fruits. I will have to ask the family elders for you about the raised tables, not sure why. Perhaps the reason may be that since the prayers and offerings are for the 'God of Heaven', they have to be placed above us mere mortals. Will let you know. The alter is always flanked by a pair of sugarcane which are very important to Hokkiens. It seemed that during warring years in China, the Hokkiens, hunted by another ethnic group, hid in fields of sugarcane. They were safe among the cane and when they came out of hiding, it was the 9th day of Chinese New Year. The Hokkiens thought 'The God of Heaven' had protected them with the cane and so every 9th day of CNY, they honour 'Tee Kong' with sugarcane! |
| Photo Details: "2012 Year of the Dragon" by kayes - Posted Date: January 8, 2012 - Rating: n/a |
| Last Comment by Orange - Posted Date: January 31, 2012 5:50pm | [ Post a Comment ] |
 Dimensions: 800 x 601 Views: 5725 Filesize: 159kb |
Selamat Menyambut Hari Wilayah Persekutuan 2012! |
| Photo Details: "Putrajaya" by kayes - Posted Date: August 22, 2008 - Rating: n/a |
| Last Comment by Ken Chan - Posted Date: January 30, 2012 7:32pm | [ Post a Comment ] |
|
Dimensions: 800 x 600 Views: 507 Filesize: 113kb |
Hi Blue Grass, 'Pai Tee Kong' was a ritual that brought back a plethora of fond memories about my younger days in Malaysia. Coming from a Cantonese family, we didn't celebrate this festivity but I had the opportunity to enjoy a lot of festive delicacies from friends and neighbors. As far as I can remember, the Hokkien families that I am acquainted with, prepared different specialty items for this occasion. Regular offerings like roast pig and duck, and chicken were standard fare but some of my hosts had itek tim (giam chye auck), jeu hu char, kuih topi and nasi kunyit with nyonya chicken curry on the offering table. For dessert, there was 'Pengat', the sweet and savory treat and not to forget 'achar chilli', the appetizer that sent ripples of spicy sensation through my taste buds. All these were old-world Nyonya favorites that tasted refreshingly different from the usual Cantonese food that was the staple in my daily meals at home. You can imagine how enjoyable these sumptuous treats were to a foodie like me. Indeed, I was asked if I am interested in writing a restaurant review for the college newspaper during my university days. I did not take a bite of the bait because at that time, I was working full time to pay my way through school. However, I did write regularly for the in-house magazine in one of my previous jobs. To me, Malaysian Chinese food, with the infusion of a variety of taste and flavors from different provinces and peppered with local Malay influences is far superior than the mainstream Chinese cuisine that is offered by restaurants in Hong Kong. By the way, why do some families raised the offering table to a higher than normal level when they 'Pai Tee Kong'? I noticed that this was done primarily by some Hokkien families in Penang. Is there any special significance to this practice? |
| Photo Details: "2012 Year of the Dragon" by kayes - Posted Date: January 8, 2012 - Rating: n/a |
| Last Comment by Orange - Posted Date: January 30, 2012 3:34pm | [ Post a Comment ] |
|
Dimensions: 800 x 600 Views: 507 Filesize: 113kb |
Last line of the first para should be read as: "praying altar during festival." Sorry for the error! |
| Photo Details: "2012 Year of the Dragon" by kayes - Posted Date: January 8, 2012 - Rating: n/a |
| Last Comment by Orange - Posted Date: January 30, 2012 6:09am | [ Post a Comment ] |
|
Dimensions: 800 x 600 Views: 507 Filesize: 113kb |
Hi Blue Grass, Coming from a very traditionalist family, there are so many traditions to follow. Besides traditions, there are other practices or ways of doing things to be observed like the way we prepare Wenchang chicken. The chicken wings must be folded INWARDS and tie with strings before poaching the whole chicken. This is very important especially when the chicken is meant to be placed in the praying alter during festival. On my way home this evening, I saw our neighbour across the street were busy preparing for tonight's celebration. Huge dragon joss sticks are placed in the front garden. To the Hokkiens, 'Theen Gong Daan' is 'Tai Kor Nian' (Theen Gong Daan is grander than CNY). |
| Photo Details: "2012 Year of the Dragon" by kayes - Posted Date: January 8, 2012 - Rating: n/a |
| Next Page » |