On Malaysian Food and Petai

When in Rome, eat Italian food. When in Malaysia, indulge yourself in nasi lemak, curry, chilli pan mee, char kuey teow, bak kuh teh, and nasi briyani. To do otherwise would be heretic. Well, not really. But your taste buds would be missing out on so, so many things.

I think my five-year-plus stay here has turned my palate Malaysian. If I suddenly had to pack my bags and say farewell to this country forever, one of the first things I'd miss would definitely be THE FOOD. Caps locked, italicized, underlined.

I could rave on and on about the food here in My. True, some of my friends aren't that affectionate about it ("Everything tastes like curry!", "Everything is so red!", "Everything is so spicy!") but I believe the adventurous will love it. Nasi Lemak (fatty rice) as the national dish is a must try. There are also a variety of noodle dishes (both dry and soup-based) that noodle lovers will surely enjoy. Malaysian food is good all year round, Malaysians eat all day round, but there's a season when it's particularly fun to enjoy a real good gorge-fest - Hari Raya Aidilfitri. After the Muslims go through a one month fasting period, everyone goes on an extended period of feasting. Hurrah for Malaysian food!

I'm not really a big fan of petai, though. Petai is a type of bean aptly called by some people as "stink bean". Some friends made me try it out while I was still a neophyte here. 

"Try this out, Mari. It's delish." Friend puts a piece of petai in Mari's dish.

"Okay." Mari pops whole thing in her mouth. Friends await Mari's reaction.

"It's... fine." Friends burst out laughing.

The thing is, petai is also called "bitter bean". It has a tart, bitter taste in addition to a smelly aftertaste. People don't usually eat it on its own. Nor do they put the whole thing into their mouth and chew it like an almond nut (it's even bigger than an almond, dear friends). I think it will be enough to say that the bean didn't make it to my top ten must eats in Malaysia. It did make it to my top ten things to trick newbies into eating or doing. Insert evil laugh here.

I found out that petai actually tastes okay when mixed with sambal or when it's eaten with some spicy dish. On its own its something that I'll say no to. But with something else... it gives that something else a unique flavor.

I think God throws in a lot of petais into our life and we tend to isolate these instances and regard them as stinky and bitter. But when we mix in some spicy chili, some shrimp paste - different flavors from different aspects of our lives, or different ways of thinking perhaps - we realize that life isn't really that hard to swallow after all.

Hmmm. Maybe I should try eating some petai tomorrow.

Beware.

Chilli Pan Mee

I have discovered two things: (1) I am a noodles person; and (2) I love chilli pan mee.

Noodles. I mean, I like rice and all, but you don't find me craving for fried rice, or a hot bowl of plain white one. Though occasionally I find myself thinking, "Hmmm, today, I want nasi lemak", it's not as often as the times I suddenly get the craving for char kuey teow, hokien mee, pesto, maggi curry and - wait for it - chilli pan mee.

The first time I had the dish was somehow accidental. A colleague tapau-d (took away) for us since we were doing OT.  "Do you want dinner?" "Yeah, yeah, type, type, type."

I have to admit, the thick noodles topped (then coated when mixed) with chilies, minced pork, poached egg, potato leaves, and anchovies was a happy thought that night, but it wasn't until a few months later that I suddenly found myself thinking over and over to myself, "I want chilli pan mee, I want chilli pan mee, I want chilli pan mee."

Does it help that there are two famous pan mee eateries near my house? Jojo's Little Kitchen and Restoran Super Kitchen are both close by. Noooo.

I mean, how could you not?

If your stomach's okay with spicy, non-halal stuff and you're around my neighborhood, let me know. And then we can perhaps enjoy a big bowl of chilli pan mee together, eh?

Slurp!

Cafe Hopping, Anyone?

So - 12 days later - happy new year! I am so sorry for this late "first post of the year". But things had been busy. Very busy. Plus, I needed some time to gain momentum. And to contemplate some more about what 2014 has in store.

There are so many things I want to do this year, really. Like write a book. Go to Legoland. Bake more sweet treats. Go on hikes. Volunteer. Discover more of KL. Go Cafe hopping.

Cafe hopping! Who knew there were so many cozy coffee shops here in KL, aside from the popular green, brown, and red franchises? Last year Partner-in-Crime and I went to this cute shop in Bangsar called "Poco Homemade" (note to self: write about that soon). This Saturday, the iPad GPS and I went on an adventure to find "Coffee Famille" in Kota Damansara (another note to self: write about this, too). When I went to the counter to pay, I saw one of these "maps" they had up for grabs.

Tada! Your handy cafe hopping companion! They also have an online version! Yey! (See how four exclamation points are used in succession?) This is bound to make the year more interesting. While discovering new places, I could enjoy the atmosphere and, at the same time, push myself to grab those moments to write, write, and write some more. And this would be a good way to bond with friends who are interested in discovering new coffee nooks, too!

Ohh, I'm getting so giddy and my heart is starting to palpitate already. Now, who wants to grab a cup of coffee with me? 

Mmm. Coffee Famille's "Sweet Dreams"
and cheesecake.

Christmas in October

Chestnuts roasting on an open fire, Jack Frost nipping at your nose. Sigh. Tis the season to be jolly again. But though Christmas is already in the Philippine air - here in Malaysia, it still feels like summer everywhere.

Gah. I am so bad at rhyming. But oh well. I tend to rhyme when melancholia decides to creep into my system.

I'm not going home this December. For the second year in a row. I'm not so sure if I should get used to that. Why am I not going home? Passport and visa issues, people. It's always that. If it were up to me, I could cough up some cash for plane tickets, but what good will flight tickets do me if I won't even be able to get past the check in counters anyway?

But, if it's any consolation, I did get to experience the Christmas cheer in my hometown. Tada! Christmas decors, yo!

It's so Christmassy!*

For those who have been to Baguio City, you'll recognize this as the perennial interior of the very cozy Forest House. The resto has been one of my family's favorite dinner spots ever since Ma and Pa stumbled upon the place last October 2010. We've been going there for special meals - like welcome meals, despedida meals, birthday meals - ever since. If you can't tell from Ma's photos page, we love that place very much.

I can never get the spelling right. FOREST House.

This Forest House dinner was extra special because it was the first dinner that I had with A and my family. And it was our first dinner together in my hometown. Wee. It was a nice treat. I mean, after being cramped inside a bus for eight hours with only one siopao and one mineral water bottle each, I should say it was a very, very, very nice treat.

Look, it's Finn the Human!

They ordered for us since we got stuck in traffic somewhere after Binalonan. We got out of the bus and into a taxi a couple of minutes before nine and it was a good thing the restaurant was gracious enough to let us stay though it was already near closing time. Ma had caldereta (lamb), Pa had ox tongue, Finn-the-human-slash-Johnny-Depp had salmon, A had chicken kebabs with herbs, and I had chicken in wine sauce. Everything was delish! We all shared food with one another. We didn't have our usual "donation plate" but that didn't stop us from letting the others have a taste of our orders.

Yummy food!

It was an awesome dinner. And it did feel like Christmas, with the freezing cold weather (I wanted to wear gloves!) and the festive decorations. They even had a Christmas tree with presents piled underneath!

With all these warm memories as my tapau, who am I then to feel sad and melancholy during this yuletide season?

Lezbe happy!

*Photo credit goes to Mother dear. ^_^

Get Your Cray On

Crayon Burgers. Who would have thought such things existed? Well, they do. You can find them in SS15 Subang Jaya, Selangor, a couple of twists and turns away from Sunway Pyramid.

My officemates one day decided to be more adventurous with food. I think we got too tired of eating the same old things from the cafeteria upstairs. Thus our journey to Crayon Burger, the first product of that decision.

Crayons!

Apparently, Malaysians have been caught up in a burger craze. Burger joints have recently been popping up all over KL, Subang Jaya, Petaling Jaya and who knows where else. Crayon Burger contributes color to the furor by giving foodies a range of naturally tinted, thick, mouthwatering burgers to choose from. Are you bored of plain brown burger buns? At Crayon Burger, you have the shades of white, black, green, pink, and - though we didn't catch it in the menu - red as your options.

With so many odd buns to choose from, where were we supposed to start? Well I started with what they said was one of the best sellers on the list: The Zombie Burger. 

Braaaiiinnssss...

Zombie Burgers come in charcoal carbs with black poppy seeds. This one had Swiss cheese, juicy beef patties, and - I'm really bad with food -  I forgot what else. It was a really messy meal! Tall with lots of sauce. But I thought it was yum, though some of my friends thought the bun was quite dry. The buns were thick so I guess that may be a reason why. Well I enjoyed the fries and the cheesy sauce.

The zombie made my hands shake
and made the picture blurred!

I had to hand it to Crayon Burger for their creativity. Their burgers had pretty bizarre names - Zombie Burger, The Boss, Diablo, Frying Nemo... Seriously. And guess what? Though they could have given it a more peculiar name, they even had Peanut Butter and Bacon Burger (peanut butter, jam, bacon, meat patties - wow). I might try that one next time. 

Aside from their crazy names and crazy creations, they also had crazy decorations. They have graffiti walls where people left their marks with colored chalk. It was cool and added character. Though I think it might fit the theme better if they had actual crayons. Perhaps the wall could be covered with plain white writable or peel-able wallpaper? Then the crayon thing could fit in more nicely.

But I did like the artistry and originality:

Where to write?

I used invisible chalk.

Crayon Burger is an interesting place. It's quite pricey though - RM15 and above for a burger and an additional RM5 to make it a set. I think people will keep coming back just to try what the other burger colors and combinations taste like.

So. Who wants to "get your cray on"?

Baking Adventures

A sweet friend has recently offered to teach us how to bake. She took up baking lessons last year and wanted to continue practicing the saccharine-filled craft. For some reason, she thought of us and felt it would be nice to ask if we'd like to learn how to make yum treats with her as well.

Hmmm. Baking. Cookies. Cakes. Cupcakes. I'm in! I am definitely in!

We've had two sessions so far. First we learned how to make Green Tea Financiers.

Aren't they yum?

Then, some weeks afterwards, we learned how to make Moist Devil's Chocolate Cupcakes.

Even yummier!

Before this, most of my baking consisted of adding eggs, water, and milk to ready-made cake and cookie mixes. But now I learned to make everything from scratch.

Our sensei taught us how to weigh individual ingredients. She taught us how to sift, to fold, to put dollops of whipped cream on top of cupcakes - I'd say that the past two sessions were chock full of fun learning experiences.

We're going to make Halloween treats this October (Or November, depending on how our schedule goes). I'm excited for that!

So now my list of dream house necessities is getting longer. In addition to having a music studio, library, and balcony, I'm going to make sure we get an oven as well. Here's to baking!

Batter up.

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!

Maginhawa Street Food Trip Part 2: The Icecreamist

After having lunch at Blacksoup Cafe + Artspace, A and I decided to go to The Icecreamist. It was warm  summer day. I have a sweet tooth. So hey - why not? A lot of friends also recommended the place so we thought we'd give it a try.

Pointing to the menu.

We ordered French Macaroons and Tiramisu (of the Dragon's Breath variety). We wanted Smores but they didn't have any that day. Well, the sugar lover in me still felt very happy.

So what's with the Dragon's Breath label? Apparently, you turn into a dragon after savoring those sweet treats:

Rawr.

Haha. Don't worry, that's not cigarette smoke coming out of my mouth and nostrils. The "smoke" is caused by condensation* - or is it vaporization? I've forgotten everything from my high school chemistry! Whatever. Anyway, you have to dip the treats into liquid nitrogen first which makes the macaroon/tiramisu extremely cold and crunchy. And when you start chewing - viola! Smoke comes out of your mouth the way it does in a cool winter day.

Sweets + Liquid Nitrogen.

Wasn't able to try their icecream though. Maybe next time? 

Like something out of a sci fi movie.

*Aha! So I did get the condensation thing right: 
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20061212022741AA4gb5H

Maginhawa Street Food Trip Part 1: Blacksoup Cafe + Artspace

I went back to the Philippines last May to attend a friend's wedding and to spend some time with my family, my friends, and my (*blushes*) boyfriend. Only had one week to kill so I had to make the most of it.

A and I made plans to food trip around Maginhawa Street on the 11th. I was staying around that area for the weekend and, since we're both into creative stuff, we both wanted to explore the artsy-fartsy sections of that neighborhood.

We ended up having lunch at Blacksoup Cafe + Artspace:  

"San mo gustong kumain?" (Where do you want to eat?)

"Sa ano... sa B-something and artspace. Nakalimutan ko na yung pangalan, basta may artspace." (In... in B-something and artspace. I forgot the name but I know that it has an artspace.)

Destiny and intuitive hunches led us there and we had a good feast for our eyes and for our tummies.

I really should take note of the stuff that I eat. That's one of my weak points. I'm not good at remembering the names of the new dishes that I order. I think I had the creamy spinach pasta though. It was good - somewhat like a cross between pesto and carbonara.

Well, we enjoyed the art - there were lots of pieces hanging on the walls, lots of pieces decorating the tabletops - the place is really cool and cozy. And they had suspended coffee, too. You get to order a meal or a cup of coffee for an unknown underprivileged person who could go to that cafe and claim that order at a later time. Unclaimed suspended items are meanwhile distributed to street children and their families.

Unfortunately, I only got to know about the suspended coffee details after doing post-blacksoup research - let's just say I was a bit pre-occupied that day to really absorb what the suspended coffee sign was all about.

I had my back to the sign. A took this picture as well as the other Blacksoup pics.

I'd love to order some suspended items though, the next time I pay that place a visit. Oh yes, there shall be a next time. :D Well, until that time comes, here are a few more pictures for us to enjoy:

Pretty cool wall clock, eh? Only realized it was a clock just now.

Cozy. No aircon, but cozy.

I love the colors!

Art on the wall. Art on the tables. 

Blacksoup Cafe + Artspace is open from Mondays to Saturdays at 12:00 PM - 3:00 PM and 6:00 PM - 11:00 PM. I wish I had taken note of that schedule - would have saved me from a lot of bloopers that day, but oh well. That's another story.

Visit the place and order some suspended coffee, maybe?

Kajang Part 1: On Nostalgia and Pecel Lele

We went to Kajang this Saturday. It was both fun and nostalgic.

Fun because we got to eat Pecel Lele once again. Yes, Pecel Lele - deep fried catfish in its crunchy, salty goodness.

Nostalgic because - 

Mygash. That was my territory for what? Two and a half years? I was with Kuya Tram and take note that Kajang was his territory for an even longer span of time. Like, six or seven years, I guess. So you can just imagine just how melancholy we both were.

We spent two hours at the Pecel Lele eatery. Yes, TWO hours. We ordered the famous catfish. And we also ordered tempe (fermented soybean) and gado-gado. Gado-gado is a mix of vegetables with this savoury peanut sauce. It was goooood.

Pecel lele

Gado-gado

Tempe

As we ate, Bas Minis zoomed by. Okay, they didn't zoom by. They rattled by. Rapid KL U40 buses - those zoomed by. They brought memories of my first few months of work with them. I used to wake up at 5:30 am just so that I could chase those buses. So that I could get the 6:40 train at the Kajang KTM station. So that I could catch the 7:10 KLIA transit at Bandar Tasik Selatan.

Aiyoh.  It's strange how a place like that could bring back so many memories.

So we decided to walk around the area afterwards to burn catfish calories and to see if our favourite spots were still there. Some were, some weren't.

But that will be for another blog post.

(To be continued...)

Penang Trip Part 3: Wantan and Coffee

January 3, 2013

Oh Best Beloved,

Another reason why I would love to come back to Penang would be because I would still like to try out more George Town food. Don't get me wrong - I loved the briyani, wantan, kuey teow, and kopi that we had there. But I have heard rave reviews about their hawker dishes. I resolve to try more stuff should I find myself wandering around the streets of George Town again.

The wantan and coffee (kopi panas) were my favourite orders from the trip. I ordered dry wantan mee but had some sort of a misunderstanding with the stall keeper so I got this instead:

I don't know what this is exactly. Dad gave me some of his noodles since it was mostly dumplings bathing in yummy soup.

The coffee was heavenly. It was thick, tasted of coffee, margarine, and chocolate at the same time and - you have to try it yourself. Oh, but wait. You can't drink coffee. :(

Well. Satisfy yourself with this photo instead.

That's all for the Penang Trip. We travelled from George Town to LCCT that afternoon (406 km this time - took me 6 hours and 30 minutes again) and now - well, now I have to sleep because I have to go to work again tomorrow.

I hope you liked the stories.

Sweet dreaming,

Mari