Raya-Induced Food Coma

My tummy is still on Hari Raya break. It's been jumping up and down with glee because it was filled to the brim with wonderful Malaysian Cuisine.

This is not good for my diet.

I'm going to start hitting the gym (faithfully) again, soon.

But like my Iranian officemate said last Friday, "Malaysian food is soooooo goooood." It is. And so I present to you some munchies which have been invading my tummy for the past few weeks or so.

1. Cendol

When I first came to Malaysia for a cultural exchange trip last 2008, my mother had only two directives: 1) Take lots of pictures; and 2) Try the Durian Cendol. I did both but Multiply has unfortunately made all the pictures I took back then disappear into oblivion. But the Durian Cendol... mmmm. I didn't try cendol with "stinky socks" at the time (I forgot that she specifically said it should be Durian Cendol) but I fell in love with the dessert nonetheless.

Cendol is made of green worm-like jelly, beans, coconut milk, and gula melaka (palm sugar). It's basically heaven in a cup. Though, at first glance, the "worms" do leave a lot to be desired.

2. Nasi Kerabu

Granted, I only ate the fish and not the nasi, but this Kelantan dish is a must try. Nasi Kerabu is blue rice (made blue because of coloring by butterfly-pea flowers) eaten with chicken, fish (usually cat fish), or beef, sided with fish crackers, red eggs, greens, anchovies, and sambal kelapa (coconut flaked fish). The combination of the different tastes and textures is amazing.

And top everything off with the sauce from Yati Ayam Percik - hallelujah.

3. Dry Chilli Pan Mee

Dry Chilli Pan Mee. Pork Chilli Pan Mee, please. Yes, pork. Though a majority of Malaysians are Muslims and halal eateries are mainstream, many Chinese restaurants still let pork-eating people like me satisfy their piggy cravings with various dishes like bak kut teh, char siew pau, etc. It was my first time to try Dry Chilli Pan Mee this Sunday. It was... yum. Twas a bit hard to eat the thick, savory noodles with chopsticks though. Good thing there were a lot of tissues at hand, because, if there weren't any, my face would have been a complete mess by the time the meal was over.

4. Raya Cookies

One of my officemates brought in Raya Cookies after the Raya Break last month! Wouldn't it be nice if we could eat them all year long? But that wouldn't make them special any more, right? Raya Cookies come in all shapes, flavors, and colors. Take your pick. You have the entire Raya Season to feast on them. Yum, yum, yum, yum.

I have to wake up from a Raya-induced food coma soon. 

Well, enjoy. Makan, makan, makan!