tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-69558415535014124102024-03-13T08:19:50.182+08:00 Kawan-Kawan KatongKatong Galhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02438588023292216575noreply@blogger.comBlogger177125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6955841553501412410.post-90448826230052860852019-12-31T19:10:00.002+08:002019-12-31T19:11:20.336+08:00The Peranakans in Phuket Town<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEham4Y_pEvYBCftyXqjvZYV4mhYCkbIB2macIpARrC_2K2TWNyAF4CmNh2qAfWVV0RSbXULr_aVnjlKnY0qSvW9rrJvNUfCUoGuu4KiMhW62iwsrnBk4fJSlu_E0RBoNa6L1ip0Mz5oq7c/s1600/IMG_3272.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEham4Y_pEvYBCftyXqjvZYV4mhYCkbIB2macIpARrC_2K2TWNyAF4CmNh2qAfWVV0RSbXULr_aVnjlKnY0qSvW9rrJvNUfCUoGuu4KiMhW62iwsrnBk4fJSlu_E0RBoNa6L1ip0Mz5oq7c/s320/IMG_3272.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Marriott Beach Scene</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kitchenette and dining area</td></tr>
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My friend invited me to join her for a stay in Marriott's Phuket Beach Club, where she is a member.<br />
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We had a lovely 2-bedroom apartment, complete with a little kitchenette, dining and living area. It was a cosy little place, and as there were only the two of us, we had our own rooms and our privacy.<br />
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The resort has a private beach, but as it is jellyfish season, no swimming was allowed. In any case, the waves looked pretty rough to me. But it was very pleasant to walk down the beach, looking at the horizon where the sea meets the sky. And to sit by the private pool, with the pool boys bringing around water and the occasional snack (like watermelon).<br />
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The resort runs shuttles to Phuket Town and Patong, so we visited both places. Phuket Town is the civic centre in Phuket, where the government buildings are and where the early Chinese migrants settled. I have been to Phuket before, but never to Phuket Town and so this was the first time I actually learnt that Phuket was a major settlement for Chinese migrants to South East Asia. According to <a href="https://www.windowonphuket.com/features/228/peranakan-traditions-in-phuket">this site</a>, they were drawn by the burgeoning tin industry. The Peranakan community prospered and apparently about 70% of Phuket's residents have Peranakan roots! Hence, here in southern Thailand, we saw Peranakan architecture, clothing and food similar to that of Singapore, Malacca and most of all Penang.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Night Market, Phuket Town</td></tr>
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But before exploring Phuket Town, we had to have a massage. We went to Kim's, which has a number of establishments in Phuket Town and I have to admit it was excellent. And much, much cheaper than the resort spa (of course). The ambience is not so serene and restful, but the massage itself really released all the tension in my muscles and back.<br />
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We then proceeded to the little "Chinatown". We had come deliberately on Saturday evening so as to be able to go for the Sunday Night Market in Phuket Town. I could just imagine myself in Malacca - the Peranakan shophouses either side, the food and souvenir stalls and crowds bustling around. Buskers sang and their music filled the air. We walked around, taking in the atmosphere and feeling the buzz.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">China Inn, Phuket Town</td></tr>
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Later on, we had dinner at China Inn - a restaurant in another old shophouse. The walls were decorated with old photos - I assume of the family who owned the restaurant - with the ladies all dressed in their Baju Panjang and the men in their western suits.<br />
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The food was not so much Nonya as Thai though - we had fish cakes, stuffed chicken wings (yummy), fried brinjal and green curry. We also had a coconut each - the flesh was young and tender, easy to remove, and the coconut water was so refreshing. We ended up having coconuts at practically every meal thereafter!<br />
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The next day we went off to Patong, famous for its beach and its sex show strip. We spent enough time on the beach to take a few photos and walked straight through the sex show strip. We were here for other reasons - like shopping and food! I bought quite a few packets of Thai sauces (there's a wide range) and my friend introduced me to crispy pork skins (truly addictive). <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Fresh fish at 99 Seafood</td></tr>
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But the main reason for our visit was to patronise my friend's favourite Thai seafood restaurant (99 Seafood)! We ordered so much food I'm amazed that we managed to finish as much as we did - tom yum soup, squid, prawns, a veg dish and this wonderful steamed fish which was then gently poached in a lime/lemongrass flavoured stock. All the food was very fresh and well cooked - I can see why she comes back here every year.<br />
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All too soon, it was time to go home. I'll always look back fondly on this short, leisurely visit filled with days snoozing by the pool, walking on the beach and eating yummy Thai food. And of course, discovering yet another little outpost of the Peranakans.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Little Nonya Mural, Phuket Town</td></tr>
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More photos <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/taking5/albums/72157710745930803">here</a>!</div>
Katong Galhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02438588023292216575noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6955841553501412410.post-19406886470649814162019-06-22T18:37:00.000+08:002019-06-22T18:44:07.569+08:00Party Time on Armenian StreetThe Peranakan Museum, subject of numerous posts on this blog (check them out <a href="https://katonglife.blogspot.com/search/label/peranakan%20museum">here</a>), has closed for a revamp eleven years after it opened in April 2008.<br />
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<a href="https://s3-ap-northeast-1.amazonaws.com/peatix-files/event/617614/cover-3w8VIM8kTmCjvujRTJmZ8TgXXUlVnEEt.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="195" src="https://s3-ap-northeast-1.amazonaws.com/peatix-files/event/617614/cover-3w8VIM8kTmCjvujRTJmZ8TgXXUlVnEEt.jpeg" width="400" /></a>But before it closed, it threw a party! The Armenian Street party, held 15-16 March 2019, was an opportunity for all to visit the museum (for free) before it closed its doors for renovation on 1 Apr 2019.<br />
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The event was held on Armenian Street itself, just outside the museum. The street itself has been recently pedestrianised and so was the perfect venue for a little night market, selling food (like laksa), snacks and knick-knacks, so there was a really nice buzz in the air.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Groom's beautifully embroidered jacket</td></tr>
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I have to say that it was a busy day and so I turned up a little late for the party. I didn't know (or didn't read) that it would start off with a wedding procession!!! The Peranakan wedding procession is just one part of the <a href="http://www.peranakan-kl.org/?page_id=571">very elaborate rituals</a> that make up the traditional Peranakan wedding. Of course, the wedding is a perfect opportunity to showcase the wealth of the two families which are being joined together. So it is a lot of pagentry and bling-bling, great fun for all concerned!<br />
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Whilst I was a little late for the start of the event, I was certainly rather well positioned at the end of it to take photos of the wedding procession as they made their way back to the museum from the outdoor stage located just outside the museum. Of course, this was definitely the photo opp moment for the event - as can be seen by the numerous photographers in action.<br />
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I was on the groom's side - would have preferred to get a close-up of the bride's outfit but at least it was an opportunity to admire the beautifully decorated jacket the groom was wearing, with the phoenix spread across the front, with flowers all around. A much more inclusive photograph can be seen in this <a href="https://www.straitstimes.com/multimedia/photos/wedding-fit-for-an-empress">ST article</a> and you can see the gorgeously dressed bride, with all her necklaces, kro-sang and elaborate headgear. I am fortunately not to be seen in this photo.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Baba and Nonya Fashion Parade!</td></tr>
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The procession was followed by a fashion show. Not models, but Babas and Nonyas themselves wearing their traditional outfits.<br />
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My friends and I too had decided to dress up - at least, to wear our <i>kebaya</i> tops even if these were worn over pants instead of the <i>sarong</i>. Sadly, we were in the minority.<br />
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We left soon after the fashion parade ended after doing a spot of shopping at the little night market.<br />
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Looking forward to the reopening of the Museum! In the meantime, my older photos of the museum are <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/taking5/albums/72157604750513918">here</a>.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Peranakan Museum in Party Mode</td></tr>
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Katong Galhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02438588023292216575noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6955841553501412410.post-87428545825141612182019-02-02T22:47:00.002+08:002019-02-02T22:47:45.712+08:00Remembering <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My Grandparents' Home</td></tr>
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It is hard to say goodbye to a beloved family home, and yet this is something I did twice this year.<br />
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The first goodbye was to my mother's parents' family home. My grandfather built this house, for his wife and family of five children. A simple single-storey bungalow, with a garage at the back, it was surrounded by an extensive garden. Here, his family grew up, and their pets ran in and out of the house as he nurtured his precious orchids in the garden. <br />
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My grandmother kept house. She pampered her grandchildren when they came to stay, cooked for her family and her clever fingers made the paper flowers which filled vase after vase in the house. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Here lie our little pets</td></tr>
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But now both have passed away. The house, which has not been substantively changed in the last 60+ years since it was built, was showing its age. It was time to say goodbye. <br />
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And so my mum and her siblings proceeded to put the house on the market, and cleared the house of its contents. <br />
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But some things could not be cleared. The garden itself, full of fruit trees, the graves of pets who had passed away. Our memories, of lazy weekend afternoons, having tea at my grandmother's large dining table. Of playing hide-and-seek around the house and garden. Of Christmases and New Years and Birthdays celebrated with the family. And more recently, of visiting my grandmother in her final illness.<br />
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It's not likely that any developer will keep this old house. So very soon, the house will only live on in our memories and photos. And, of course, this post.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj91I8Vk5iQFTk7PPt6gUaIJ4ygmkEAtv4jnzm1sdA8_bpT_WxHFirO6uR9WVhiedb4k2bvCUX_kUVquPoFDAJsZTjXWQKpznPtFA7AuJVRXJ2YHss_RQrTiJ1X3KEOOv6DvE9b4cD2HBQ/s1600/IMG_1223.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="676" data-original-width="1600" height="268" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj91I8Vk5iQFTk7PPt6gUaIJ4ygmkEAtv4jnzm1sdA8_bpT_WxHFirO6uR9WVhiedb4k2bvCUX_kUVquPoFDAJsZTjXWQKpznPtFA7AuJVRXJ2YHss_RQrTiJ1X3KEOOv6DvE9b4cD2HBQ/s640/IMG_1223.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Inside the house, looking out at the garden</td></tr>
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Katong Galhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02438588023292216575noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6955841553501412410.post-77089409393540655272019-01-06T16:47:00.005+08:002019-01-06T16:47:40.887+08:00Sugee cake variationsI know, I know - my blog last year was more like a Malaysian holiday blog than a Katong blog! It just so happened I visited Malaysia more than normal last year. But let me try and make amends this year with this post on my variations on sugee cake.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuKdYO7TJhpNwCb3zpvrDT4GcNvcIyoM3cp_T9tTWmqCQAcQ4DX8djubRJKko4NN3U0P5v-UQA-KrulUQm4N7bNSP0QqvFtx4uT2GXYociVex-tojdgdIBf0-sE8T6iuUUvs1jG9qwUcU/s1600/IMG_2128.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuKdYO7TJhpNwCb3zpvrDT4GcNvcIyoM3cp_T9tTWmqCQAcQ4DX8djubRJKko4NN3U0P5v-UQA-KrulUQm4N7bNSP0QqvFtx4uT2GXYociVex-tojdgdIBf0-sE8T6iuUUvs1jG9qwUcU/s320/IMG_2128.HEIC" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Almond-topped sugee</td></tr>
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Now I have been making sugee cake for quite a few years now and it has been getting a wee bit tedious. So I have been trying to tweak the recipe here and there to make it more interesting and also to see how I can enhance the original recipe. One easy tweak was to top it with almond flakes because my family find the marzipan and icing way too sweet, and to add almond flavouring so that we don't lose the almond flavour the marzipan brings. Now however, I'm starting to used coarsely crushed unpeeled almonds instead - gives a toasted almond flavour and the crunch of the nuts adds texture. I'm thinking of crushing them a tad more finely and using this to partially replace the ground almonds in the cake, for a more rustic sugee.<br />
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I have also tried <a href="https://katonglife.blogspot.com/2018/02/sinpopo-at-joo-chiat-road.html">making it with browned butter</a> - an interesting idea, but whilst doing so certainly enhances the buttery flavour of the cake, the nutty-ness of the browned butter doesn't really come through. In any case, butter should not overpower the almond flavour.<br />
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This year, I decided to try it with lemon. I mentioned it to my mother who reacted with shock and horror. Heresy! Lemon in sugee cake! But there are lots of "lemon almond" or "lemon semolina" or even "lemon almond semolina" cake recipes around, for those who want to avoid eating gluten. So why not?<br />
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In deference to my mother's feelings, however, I decided not to drop the traditional sugee entirely. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheIKWemSRvt-915Um4jq27i5y90ixhMrJMlQ7cahG99Ru614FIH8Nj9-_bktrHzqRdMGDHGS4sPXqOOzaz5R3HR6M0AuPcjm_D-PcihApBCKh31lOZhpBIzB_4MclaK2YpCHhhCje-eGc/s1600/IMG_2136.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheIKWemSRvt-915Um4jq27i5y90ixhMrJMlQ7cahG99Ru614FIH8Nj9-_bktrHzqRdMGDHGS4sPXqOOzaz5R3HR6M0AuPcjm_D-PcihApBCKh31lOZhpBIzB_4MclaK2YpCHhhCje-eGc/s320/IMG_2136.HEIC" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lemon sugee cakes (made in muffin cases)</td></tr>
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Instead, I set aside a little batter for two lemon semolina mini-cakes. I didn't add any almond or vanilla essence in this batch, but added maybe two tablespoons of lemon juice and a little zest. It was hard to calibrate the amount required for the small amount of batter, so whilst I could taste the lemony flavour, it could have been a lot stronger. But the bonus was that the cake really had a nice rise, so it is lighter than the traditional sugee. I suppose this was the citric acid reacting with the baking powder.<br />
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How was it received? My mother basically said that if I wanted lemon cake, to stick to Nigella's lemon drizzle cake recipe which doesn't require me to soak semolina in butter overnight. Likely she's right but I'm nonetheless glad to have tried this little experiment.<br />
<br />Katong Galhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02438588023292216575noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6955841553501412410.post-23549606837835494112018-12-31T22:30:00.000+08:002019-01-01T01:28:49.606+08:00Penang Peranakan food I was chatting to my colleague just before our holiday to Penang and she kindly shared with me a few restaurants which she had been patronising on her own frequent visits to Penang. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5Z1lRhJaQrEr7deNSRvqsO4_gomsc0b7jiMrg5HMkiOVfq5hSPNl_Pyhmh1Nj9FyCp7c-q_PMYjiSrQzYIf6zFhpkddgS4dbace5DGwCNWgItxh8Xq8Q-bjTBrJN7MbSN3vaDkJBQWnI/s1600/IMG_1004.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1204" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5Z1lRhJaQrEr7deNSRvqsO4_gomsc0b7jiMrg5HMkiOVfq5hSPNl_Pyhmh1Nj9FyCp7c-q_PMYjiSrQzYIf6zFhpkddgS4dbace5DGwCNWgItxh8Xq8Q-bjTBrJN7MbSN3vaDkJBQWnI/s320/IMG_1004.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Prawn Noodles at Malay Street</td></tr>
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As a result, we ended up going to quite a few restaurants this visit to Penang! Of course there is that seafood one which I wrote about in <a href="https://katonglife.blogspot.com/2018/12/fresh-seafood-on-mainland-tambun.html">my last post</a>. But because of this, we ended up going to fewer hawker stalls (except for the Malay Street coffee shop which we went to THREE times to eat the <a href="https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/leisure/2017/11/24/5-must-visit-char-kway-teow-stalls-in-penang/">famous Tiger Char Kway Teow</a> and our favourite lor bak and prawn noodles, washed down with "ampala" juice - also known as "umbra" or "kedongdong"). I have to admit I have also stopped writing up on my Penang hawker experiences - it was getting a little repetitive but maybe next trip we will have to make an effort to revisit all the old favourites.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwB049BYsuitAxOHHv3eqiLp6z6YGtXhNKZFU0HcFURlQCSZw5Obm5AqEtZ0DiHJR7i68DKhCDDk5eBKqnaq34aI78Dk9WZ_H0IgUGFvq4QgfUNwlcp80MbsvJJBnZcLTBiJduOzmQIEc/s1600/IMG_1002.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1065" data-original-width="1065" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwB049BYsuitAxOHHv3eqiLp6z6YGtXhNKZFU0HcFURlQCSZw5Obm5AqEtZ0DiHJR7i68DKhCDDk5eBKqnaq34aI78Dk9WZ_H0IgUGFvq4QgfUNwlcp80MbsvJJBnZcLTBiJduOzmQIEc/s320/IMG_1002.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Food - from left to right: jiu hu char, <i>inche kabin </i>chicken, <br />assam fish head, rendang, hee peow soup, acar/otak/hae bee</td></tr>
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Anyway, we are trying to work our way through the nonya restaurants in Penang and our first visit this trip was to <a href="https://www.tripadvisor.com.sg/Restaurant_Review-g298303-d2547972-Reviews-Ivy_s_Nyonya_Cuisine-George_Town_Penang_Island_Penang.html">Ivy’s Kitchen on Jalan Chow Thye</a>. This is a small family restaurant - Ivy’s the cook and her husband runs the front of house. The restaurant is not that big so it might be good to make a reservation.<br />
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The food was excellent - we had the assam fish head, the jiu hu char (bangkwang or jicama fried with cuttlefish, and wrapped up in a lettuce leaf before eating); a beautiful creamy otak-otak, fried <i>inche kabin </i>chicken, achar, rendang (nice and tender) and hee peow (fish maw) soup. <br />
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My favourites were definitely the otak - this was incredibly creamy and delicate, and the assam fish head - the gravy was so tasty and the dish was sprinkled liberally with bunga kantan (torch ginger). But everything was really very tasty and the portions were generous (sized for our group of eight). In summary, this is was authentic and yummy nonya food at reasonable prices. We're coming back here.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQhshyWqF6t67_5JM0nA51j4y-QgrdpvuIhrppb3-JzMlV1PUdnkOdQBAw6FhhwXI21Q9TfttFkEInVGl7kr58aolCtlwmY0SNQP0Zh2DYsanZ7ifymtyIGZNXnhnUJLC9Ye3ghpjvgm4/s1600/IMG_1003.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1539" data-original-width="866" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQhshyWqF6t67_5JM0nA51j4y-QgrdpvuIhrppb3-JzMlV1PUdnkOdQBAw6FhhwXI21Q9TfttFkEInVGl7kr58aolCtlwmY0SNQP0Zh2DYsanZ7ifymtyIGZNXnhnUJLC9Ye3ghpjvgm4/s400/IMG_1003.JPG" width="225" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Food (clockwise, from top right): Laksa,<br />Too-thor thng, assam fish, jiu hu char, <br />babi pongteh, fried mixed veg.</td></tr>
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The next restaurant we went to was quite different - <a href="https://www.tripadvisor.com.sg/Restaurant_Review-g298303-d12508045-Reviews-Richard_Rivalee-George_Town_Penang_Island_Penang.html">Richard Rivalee's</a>, in M Mall. Richard Rivalee is a well-known fashion designer in Penang but he learnt how to cook his grandmother's nonya recipes. He started off with a small cafe beside his boutique but has now expanded to a larger restaurant in M Mall. I didn't have time to visit the mall but from what I understand it is targeted at tourists and as such the shops mainly sell branded goods so I don't think I missed much! The restaurant itself is really very charmingly decorated, with lots of little Peranakan touches about the place such as the tiles on the walls, the kebaya clad mannequins and the Chinese couplets on either side of the doors. <br />
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Food-wise, I have to say that the rempah/ gravy for all the dishes were really tasty and authentic. But I was not too happy that a number of dishes were not available, for example the otak-otak, and the ikan purut (fish stomach), which I had been looking forward to! Also, when I ordered the fish dishes, they were the same selar fish whether it was achar fish or assam fish (what I ended up ordering after finding out that the otak and ikan purut were both not available). <br />
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Besides the two fish dishes, we had jiu hu char (again), babi pongteh (rather nice), and too-thor thng (peppery pig stomach soup). We also had a rather interesting mixed vegetable dish - with four angle beans, petai beans, fried together with onions, sambal and prawns.</div>
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But what I really enjoyed was the assam laksa! The gravy was rich yet piquant, and the helping was pretty generous too. It's not quite a "pure" assam laksa as I think they added coconut milk, which would make this "laksa cham" or a cross between assam and lemak laksa. Mmmm.... I could come back for this next year, too. <br />
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Can't wait!<br />
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If you want to look at all my Penang food reviews, they are <a href="https://katonglife.blogspot.com/search/label/Penang%20restaurant%20reviews">here</a>.</div>
Katong Galhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02438588023292216575noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6955841553501412410.post-35458467773470435462018-12-28T22:43:00.002+08:002018-12-28T22:43:53.380+08:00Fresh Seafood in Tambun, Seberang Perai<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeg-DZdrlFBYy0bngagJOWknzsZXqil13fKBsGUn_p18Hu0E6OuSYVOaRCS9-zwaq-mEMzqJic-Bp1_nC8w9mg8WHwudaLSeMsYdQSrl1qQgLsJ1u_zne51GyJnxa57XB2aoia9JYAQsk/s1600/IMG_0972.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeg-DZdrlFBYy0bngagJOWknzsZXqil13fKBsGUn_p18Hu0E6OuSYVOaRCS9-zwaq-mEMzqJic-Bp1_nC8w9mg8WHwudaLSeMsYdQSrl1qQgLsJ1u_zne51GyJnxa57XB2aoia9JYAQsk/s320/IMG_0972.HEIC" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Prawn Village, Tambun</td></tr>
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My family has started making little trips to the Penang mainland on our annual trips and this year we decided to go to a seafood restaurant in Tambun. Tambun is a little fishing village with just one major road running through it, and not much more. But because it is on the river (Sungei Jawi), it gets a lot of seafood and therefore, seafood restaurants.<br />
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My Penang Uncle recommended Prawn Village, Tambun, and since he is the local we followed his advice. <br />
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The restaurant is not much to see from the roadside (see photo on the right). But upon entering the restaurant, we were greeted by a wide expanse of water - the river runs just behind. We were happy to have a table just by the river.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The river behind</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmdzav8bbjdLRsL6iY473LMcqZW4KYMp7dpdJ6ktyfYtdsDw6JdqRKstMuLzFElyoBlChU08DElmz4R8BZ6WMBLHTpDjsk11jex6y784n_hcgmR-lKv2tLKp67KBgBJeXUImkeYe6aCFA/s1600/IMG_0980.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmdzav8bbjdLRsL6iY473LMcqZW4KYMp7dpdJ6ktyfYtdsDw6JdqRKstMuLzFElyoBlChU08DElmz4R8BZ6WMBLHTpDjsk11jex6y784n_hcgmR-lKv2tLKp67KBgBJeXUImkeYe6aCFA/s320/IMG_0980.HEIC" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mantis prawns</td></tr>
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True to its reputation, the restaurant wall is lined with tanks of water on the way in, each with its own inhabitants. I didn’t go and examine them closely (I don’t want to know my dinner that well) but if you want to see some photos of the live seafood you can check them out <a href="http://www.vkeong.com/eat/prawn-village-excellent-seafood-bukit-tambun/">here</a>.<br />
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We ordered a range of dishes - prawns, fish (cooked steamboat style in a hot pot), mantis prawns, clams, crab and the like.<br />
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I rather like the <a href="http://www.wildsingapore.com/wildfacts/crustacea/othercrust/stomatopoda/stomatopoda.htm">mantis prawns</a>, which I have never noticed on menus in Singapore. It’s not really a prawn per se, being more like a mini lobster/shellfish. It gets its name from its larger pincers which apparently resemble those of the praying mantis insect. As they are fast, and the pincers are sharp, these little shrimp are considered lethal predators, spearing or smashing their pray with the pincers before gobbling them up.<br />
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I had eaten it before on our previous trip to <a href="https://katonglife.blogspot.com/2017/07/the-other-side-of-penang.html">Nibong Tebal</a>, cooked in sambal. This time round, they were lightly battered and fried. I would liken the texture of the meat to being a little more like crayfish than prawn, tender and delicate, quite contrary to its "lethal predator" image. Just glad I didn’t have to deal with the big pincers!<br />
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Of course I also had masses of their delectable crab cooked with sambal chili but not smothered in sauce (which is Singapore style). They gave us huge wooden mallets to crack open the shell. Photos of the crab, and of some of the other dishes are below:<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Chili crab</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Clams in Chili and garlic</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-kYgQNxcrTQLtp0ic7FW7xsDbFYqnzwAlSTo3Q-8FBeKYgPh4krmE4i3os8_b2Pg8icIr7jfmQ3_2kjkXeOUVexLiuvrzYSdTdoOd3dV8Ofd6ojSlg1OqGjmUFlCxPgmq1MgVQIhBl_M/s1600/IMG_0987.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-kYgQNxcrTQLtp0ic7FW7xsDbFYqnzwAlSTo3Q-8FBeKYgPh4krmE4i3os8_b2Pg8icIr7jfmQ3_2kjkXeOUVexLiuvrzYSdTdoOd3dV8Ofd6ojSlg1OqGjmUFlCxPgmq1MgVQIhBl_M/s320/IMG_0987.HEIC" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lovely fresh fish, steamed Teochew style</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhLthPWwJzH3Xh-ODzSfcAWU1TmSH_VZoa4u2s9Uj5n2QOCB5b14klPs1R6n-silzPV6zY0G8ywY_sD5Rjl7LGyrbdXj37MyqczjZm_thSRU-wsFBHqry6c0g-MoRDfiFzTZIHQMpjyvM/s1600/IMG_0985.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhLthPWwJzH3Xh-ODzSfcAWU1TmSH_VZoa4u2s9Uj5n2QOCB5b14klPs1R6n-silzPV6zY0G8ywY_sD5Rjl7LGyrbdXj37MyqczjZm_thSRU-wsFBHqry6c0g-MoRDfiFzTZIHQMpjyvM/s320/IMG_0985.HEIC" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Prawns with garlic</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0kZWOLEBB_GxgggKFYE5r3nLUpW-7bH1_mXjReo_5OI8gauwyCXkn9oVPm1HcEek1qW5BjB4ypYbBnzeXrnL5fsETy40HqCJ259kxSZ8BHvwbFpnvZMgOEN9vhe-iGwjnbK2VlOum6sU/s1600/IMG_0978.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0kZWOLEBB_GxgggKFYE5r3nLUpW-7bH1_mXjReo_5OI8gauwyCXkn9oVPm1HcEek1qW5BjB4ypYbBnzeXrnL5fsETy40HqCJ259kxSZ8BHvwbFpnvZMgOEN9vhe-iGwjnbK2VlOum6sU/s320/IMG_0978.HEIC" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Stuffed Yu Tiao and Tau Hu</td></tr>
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<br />
And the price? I can tell you, that for a group as big as ours, the price can only be considered extremely reasonable, especially by Singapore standards. Not gourmet cooking but well-cooked, tasty, super-fresh seafood dinner. <br />
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We went back to our hotel, full and happy </div>
Katong Galhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02438588023292216575noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6955841553501412410.post-89634174592013509112018-12-25T17:50:00.001+08:002018-12-26T17:45:38.951+08:00Durian Daze in Penang<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjd7z6pNmURDZUXH7nRPqt2W7_Kp_w0YbCKcnSs42fYmxjBA8UlqcF_d1RyCjkST3fsMfKHLj_0LejOIgDIjBqPIVX8GUKwpoVdKSteA4qDM9cR720-opKtymkKzk1pXYRWAxYxV1Pr85w/s1600/IMG_0899.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjd7z6pNmURDZUXH7nRPqt2W7_Kp_w0YbCKcnSs42fYmxjBA8UlqcF_d1RyCjkST3fsMfKHLj_0LejOIgDIjBqPIVX8GUKwpoVdKSteA4qDM9cR720-opKtymkKzk1pXYRWAxYxV1Pr85w/s320/IMG_0899.HEIC" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">King of Kings</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Another year, another durian holiday in Penang!<br />
<br />
As is our family tradition, my extended family whipped out our schedules (on our respective phones), whilst eating our Chinese New Year lunch, to figure out when we could make our way to the Pearl of the Orient to feast on the fabled fruit (and other goodies) for four days, three nights.<br />
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By now, we have our routines down pat: the setting up of a common $ pot, the hiring of a van and driver to take us all around, the identification of a few nice peranakan restaurants for dinner, and of course our durian routines, which I summarise here in a few simple rules:<br />
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1. Go in the morning. Mornings are critical because these are when the durians which fall in the night are harvested and brought to the collection centres. Later in the day, the durians would be less fresh and more importantly, the good ones would have been eaten by the tourists who got there in the morning.<br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzdfC76WZPoCRRAaL09npNrB2rEozPdD5OYCu6FqPVKC63ULIc6MHOkTU-YMcxrPLsbWREpeU_ZNJU9kKQ5YzLsU5Sxcf9WbqmWY8o8yMY9TEioBiWSJiPYgpNAJVz3ymvvEFUjfxQHe8/s1600/IMG_0956.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzdfC76WZPoCRRAaL09npNrB2rEozPdD5OYCu6FqPVKC63ULIc6MHOkTU-YMcxrPLsbWREpeU_ZNJU9kKQ5YzLsU5Sxcf9WbqmWY8o8yMY9TEioBiWSJiPYgpNAJVz3ymvvEFUjfxQHe8/s320/IMG_0956.HEIC" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">At the durian collection centre </td></tr>
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2. Go to the farms and collection centres. Avoid the city centre. That’s where durian prices are jacked up in order to fleece all the tourists. No self-respecting local goes there.<br />
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3.Go with a knowledgeable local. Which could be a friend, family member or your driver. <br />
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Having said all that, be flexible should things go wrong or the durians run out. Our group was turning up in two batches - the main group on Thurs morning, then another two the next morning. As such, we decided to have our first batch of durian the afternoon of our arrival (breaking rule 1 above) as we would otherwise have to wait one whole day more before sampling the fruit.. <br />
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We went off first to a durian collection centre in Balik Pulau recommended by a friend. Unfortunately, by the time we got there, it was a little late as they had run out of durians after setting aside the majority of the day’s durians for a durian party at a local hospital (in other words they were probably quite a reputed supplier, just our bad luck to appear late in the day). So we had to go to a roadside stall we had passed earlier on, called Durian Kaki. Easy to find as there is a gigantic inflatable durian right outside. <br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhttE-HxmX6PaD1p1-z2DyGJaXf9WVDyNwgeAvgWOBZQFTiisO_pUW7doR0rLuz_9FPQ3BzayE4Ju5oW5UPA76sVU827clco5jUfO2HWfGE2qm1ALO9ATgPmIFvjNyqmR1vEsUj1TBDeSo/s1600/IMG_0903.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhttE-HxmX6PaD1p1-z2DyGJaXf9WVDyNwgeAvgWOBZQFTiisO_pUW7doR0rLuz_9FPQ3BzayE4Ju5oW5UPA76sVU827clco5jUfO2HWfGE2qm1ALO9ATgPmIFvjNyqmR1vEsUj1TBDeSo/s320/IMG_0903.HEIC" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Durian Kaki </td></tr>
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Here, we had a good time feasting on King of Kings (really creamy, slightly fermented taste - *yums*, lots of meat on the seed), a rather good XO durian (another one with that alcoholic note) and Black Gold (bittersweet flavour) and one last one which I can’t remember as it was not impressive. The King of Kings was really good so we ordered a second one - of course it is the most expensive of the lot but well, this is what we came to Penang for.<br />
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The next day was not a big durian day since we were waiting to meet up with our fellow travellers, but on Saturday we went off to a durian collection centre in Balik Pulau, followed by a durian stall. There were just three of us (everyone else had gone off to Ipoh for the day). My uncle was our "durian tour host". The durian collection centre had been recommended by a friend, but the selection was a bit limited (were we there a little late?). Anyway, we had Cheh Puay (green skin) and Ang Hae (red prawn) - both rather good. We then went to a small roadside stall where we had Hor Lor (gourd-shaped) which I found rather hard. We also had a kampong durian, which as everyone knows is hit or miss and in our case it was a miss.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinXdcoTKK72lusKLWbF5LIaBBgwAjNohf6lw-WbPo4s1sw8Qz8ocDtuJKNDsijWiBUqhl6WcI7CgIWLlpCEzbRxZMk7UnBGj_uIr_oIJBc7i78zRaIsxqbeBY0gdJ1FN-wzAshyelYJ2k/s1600/IMG_0958.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinXdcoTKK72lusKLWbF5LIaBBgwAjNohf6lw-WbPo4s1sw8Qz8ocDtuJKNDsijWiBUqhl6WcI7CgIWLlpCEzbRxZMk7UnBGj_uIr_oIJBc7i78zRaIsxqbeBY0gdJ1FN-wzAshyelYJ2k/s320/IMG_0958.HEIC" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cheh Puay (Green Skin)</td></tr>
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My uncle then drove off to a private house which was also serving as a durian collection centre. Quite interesting as the house was in the middle of a housing estate! I could just imagine the neighbours complaining in Singapore. <br />
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<div style="text-align: right;">
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Unfortunately "the boss" was not around and only one of the "couriers" was there. So we could not buy any durians. The house itself had a number of fruit trees (nangka I think) and one batch of rambutans had just come in. <br />
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We also went and bought more durian (mostly Ang hae ) to bring to the people who went off to Ipoh. They would eat it later, as dessert after our seafood dinner. (More on that later). <br />
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So that’s all the durians we ate during our little jaunt this year. I was quite amused subsequently to learn that my colleague was in Penang around the same time, staying at a durian farm (in a tree house at that). Maybe an idea to explore for another time :-)<br />
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Katong Galhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02438588023292216575noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6955841553501412410.post-66647898184049494392018-07-15T02:56:00.000+08:002018-07-15T02:56:37.656+08:00Up in the Highlands of Malaysia<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYWKR_DPLH0CFtIq6ZZ3a2gLApeZzbACPmGIoA8-tgvtZxPzTjsdg10rKrVpy1NZW3gxLzrd_iXqNLUB4iPol85WQBm3X3eg9PRxMKfZk_z0EncE3j1c5fM6KFS4f6r9k2zVxahVsPL-E/s1600/IMG_9819.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYWKR_DPLH0CFtIq6ZZ3a2gLApeZzbACPmGIoA8-tgvtZxPzTjsdg10rKrVpy1NZW3gxLzrd_iXqNLUB4iPol85WQBm3X3eg9PRxMKfZk_z0EncE3j1c5fM6KFS4f6r9k2zVxahVsPL-E/s320/IMG_9819.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">View from the top of the farm</td></tr>
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My family didn’t go on holiday much when I was a child. We’d been to Penang (and Penang Hill), and to Genting Highlands. But, we had never gone to Cameron Highlands. The British, of course, had built holiday chalets in the Cameron Highlands which remain the most developed of these highlands. But thanks to continued development over the years, this area has grown rather congested and busy, especially during peak periods.<br />
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Fortunately, we would be in a much more secluded and peaceful part of the highlands - specifically the Sigar Highlands' <a href="https://moonriverlodge.wordpress.com/">Moon River Lodge</a>. Beside the lodge is the farm, which provides all the vegetables used in the meals provided in the lodge, using sustainable farming methods. It was indeed an opportunity to spend some time out of busy Singapore, to breathe the cool fresh air and look out to the magnificent scenery, where the clouds roll down the mountainsides even as the sun still shines on the distant hills. At night, the stars looked down on us and the sound of water flowing just beyond my room lulled me to sleep.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi86Kz5jKBvcfKmjYtTHDDYJyGYYOAAlo-az1XPGgi1l39kuiZ6M6cldwna9uWTyc2Q36krR3jesnoijquutBiBF6mtF0tnFUf98tJ-XX8e7XXLuWWkCUCA9jpJcDQMQA4dfDYyrC83RP8/s1600/IMG_9749.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br class="Apple-interchange-newline" /><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi86Kz5jKBvcfKmjYtTHDDYJyGYYOAAlo-az1XPGgi1l39kuiZ6M6cldwna9uWTyc2Q36krR3jesnoijquutBiBF6mtF0tnFUf98tJ-XX8e7XXLuWWkCUCA9jpJcDQMQA4dfDYyrC83RP8/s320/IMG_9749.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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We woke bright and early the next morning, to go for mass at the <a href="https://www.facebook.com/Church-Of-Our-Lady-Of-Mount-Carmel-Cameron-Highlands-709653462548135/">Chapel of Our Lady of Mt Carmel</a> in the little town of Tanah Rata. It's only an hour's drive away from the lodge!<br />
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It is a pleasant little church, bright and cheery (it has been newly rebuilt). I was amazed when the mass was celebrated by Fr Philip Heng, a Camerons native who of course is now the Rector of the Cathedral of the Good Shepherd in Singapore! Just goes to show how many and how close the ties are between Malaysia and Singapore. ubsequently tried to drive around the area a little more but unfortunately the traffic was starting to build up and we ended up just going for a steamboat lunch with lots of fresh vegetables, fish and meat.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiktYLINMocwCCqpP_K0uKL3kHVZF1R1sdu6BQO68LHB3V3K8HjzLFtqNLcmfT5rgdeKvqzxvPrslV_qzcyuJJ39YREL_zBDTF3LJULTUZmuzHLNk1-G33GK5wRFk6iNxmEdjTuADc8hzk/s1600/IMG_9878.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiktYLINMocwCCqpP_K0uKL3kHVZF1R1sdu6BQO68LHB3V3K8HjzLFtqNLcmfT5rgdeKvqzxvPrslV_qzcyuJJ39YREL_zBDTF3LJULTUZmuzHLNk1-G33GK5wRFk6iNxmEdjTuADc8hzk/s320/IMG_9878.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Rafflesia</td></tr>
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The next day, we went on the "<a href="http://www.ecocameron.com/the-giant-rafflesia-of-cameron.html">Rafflesia Trek</a>", to search for the elusive Rafflesia flower (another milestone to mark our Big 50 year). One would have thought the largest flower in the world is not that difficult to spot. But, you have to walk through the cloud forests first! And for that, you definitely need a guide familiar with the forest, who knows where the flowers are likely to be found. Fortunately, our guide had managed to find the flower (probably he had marked out its position some time beforehand on previous trips to the forested area) and after an hour's walk or so, slipping and sliding on the slippery trail (trying to stay clear of pesky leeches), we found the Rafflesia flower!<br />
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Some say that this is supposed to be a smelly flower - but I didn't really think so. Yes, there was a smell but I had to go quite close up to detect it. I did see a few insects trapped in the liquid which had collected within the flower though - this reminded me that the Rafflesia is a carnivorous plant, relying on the foul stench to attract insects to it.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVqv251Z6DP7EF-ama_Mo5LYt1TJwc3V3DJ8s0hm1wHCIVdG4wxjiRt3NFNsgksj-4veTPnyzLJr9T2pLxP_KEMohUD97CMBnodr649RAMpkfh1dvKinvHwAPN0mYQ7_ii6QTTrU0k9k4/s1600/IMG_9885.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVqv251Z6DP7EF-ama_Mo5LYt1TJwc3V3DJ8s0hm1wHCIVdG4wxjiRt3NFNsgksj-4veTPnyzLJr9T2pLxP_KEMohUD97CMBnodr649RAMpkfh1dvKinvHwAPN0mYQ7_ii6QTTrU0k9k4/s320/IMG_9885.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rafflesia and bud (left, beneath some leaves)</td></tr>
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I was glad to see a few more buds of various sizes near the flower, so presumably the flower will continue blooming away in this area. The flower blooms for about a week, and ours was apparently about 3-4 days old, so it was probably starting to wilt. Subsequently, we also spotted a wilting Rafflesia. <br />
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Of course, the trek was not over. 1+ hours in, and 1+ hours out! As is often the case, the way back seems faster than the way in, as we spotted landmarks and other familiar spots along the way.<br />
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The sad thing is that there is much development going on in the Highlands. Farms are expanding, many growing flowers and fruit for export. I hope that there will still be sufficient forest to sustain this majestic flower for many more years to come.<br />
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After the trek (and after showering off all our mud) we drove off to Ipoh, where we would be <a href="https://katonglife.blogspot.com/2018/06/big-food-night-in-ipoh.html">spending our last night in Malaysia</a> before going back to Singapore. But it was indeed a happy and memorable interlude out of our busy lives. Good friends, good food, happy memories. What could be better.<br />
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All photos of the trip <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/taking5/albums/72157692018384450">here</a>.<br />
<br />Katong Galhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02438588023292216575noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6955841553501412410.post-82368019415204912932018-06-23T18:47:00.002+08:002018-06-23T18:47:22.097+08:00Big Food Night in IpohWe spent one night in Ipoh, just before going back to Singapore. Of course it was a big foodie night, where we had a huge dinner followed by supper.<br />
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For dinner we went to Restaurant M<span style="font-family: inherit;">un Choong (or Mun Zhong) at <span style="background-color: white; color: #333333;">57-65, Jalan Horley, Kampung Jawa. It's </span>also apparently known as Pusing Public Restaurant (or under this group). It's one of the most popular Chinese restaurants in</span> Ipoh, as attested on various websites including this one <a href="http://zafigo.com/stories/zafigo-stories/what-to-eat-in-ipoh/">here</a>.<br />
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Indeed, it was very busy on the Monday night we were there, so we were grateful that we had gone early. We ordered a sumptious meal, befitting our last night on the road:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicK5QEVSIu7Lyb__O0XwJ2Gx2mNbnADACmP2jiiyD_G1pmR7i-50xR0Cu9YJerU-dlOEtRAh5bsQLOyKLT_8w4x9Mz4uyBx8gJJX0hy-tQ9n28LfQubGh-Xgt-lrNBqvr56Nkc3tXdZ0k/s1600/IMG_9897.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicK5QEVSIu7Lyb__O0XwJ2Gx2mNbnADACmP2jiiyD_G1pmR7i-50xR0Cu9YJerU-dlOEtRAh5bsQLOyKLT_8w4x9Mz4uyBx8gJJX0hy-tQ9n28LfQubGh-Xgt-lrNBqvr56Nkc3tXdZ0k/s320/IMG_9897.HEIC" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Shark's Fin (evil I know but just this once) - really flavourful</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Roast Suckling Pig (pork fat is good fat!)</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Qing Long (青龙) Vegetables (unusual, we hadn't tried it before)</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Fried Prawns - big and fresh! </td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Red Bean Soup - with that hint of orange zest</td></tr>
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We also had some noodles to complement the dishes. All in all, a truly excellent meal. Indeed, Malaysia has so many good Chinese restaurants to visit!<br />
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For supper of course it was taugay chicken accompanied by oh-so-smooth-and-slippery hor fan! There are many famous spots for <a href="https://www.hungrygowhere.my/dining-guide/best-of-malaysia/best-spots-for-ipoh-chicken-rice-aka-taugeh-chicken-*aid-4a533101/">Taugay Chicken in Ipoh</a> but we went to Onn Kee. As we were slurping down the hor fan and chomping away on the crunchy sprouts, one of my friends (a native Perak boy) suddenly exclaimed that one of the opposition candidates was walking towards us! (Don't forget that this was during GE2018 in Malaysia). Well, he greeted the candidate as though they were good friends, and introduced the rest of us as his friends. We on our part nodded politely and the candidate walked on, probably guessing (correctly) that our lukewarm reception was because we were tourists.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Supper at Onn Kee</td></tr>
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(After eating at Onn Kee, go over to Lam Fong Biscuit Shop around the corner, for traditional Malaysian Teochew biscuits. I found t<a href="https://katonglife.blogspot.com/2017/07/the-other-side-of-penang.html">he <i>ark-am </i>or duck's neck biscuit which I bought in Penang last year.</a> I really like the texture of the crunchy peanuts against the soft paste of the biscuit. )<br />
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P.S. For those interested, we stayed at another of those hip new hotels in Ipoh - <a href="https://mroof.mboutiquehotels.com/">M Roof Hotel Residences</a>. Recommended. The hotel coffeeshop is run by Old Town, which means you get a great coffee for breakfast. We went back to Singapore the next am, with stops at Bidoh and Seremban for our second breakfast and lunch respectively.<br />
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Katong Galhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02438588023292216575noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6955841553501412410.post-60238128162853425852018-06-16T20:47:00.001+08:002018-06-16T21:34:20.762+08:00Malaysia Road Trip - Caves of Gua Tempurung <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Caves of Gua Tempurung</td></tr>
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When you reach a milestone in your life's journey, you want to commemorate it. My friends and I decided to celebrate our Big 50 by going on a road trip to Malaysia together. If ever you want to pretend you’re 18 again, there is no better company than the people you were 18 with in the first place. It was an adventure like no other, a chance to remember the years we have spent on the journey of our lives together, as we climbed through the highlands of Malaysia and into the limestone caves at their centre.<br />
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We departed from Singapore in two groups - one by car and the other by air, to meet in Kuala Lumpur where we would spend the night before our trip proper began. Our plan was to spend two nights in the highlands, before moving to Ipoh for the night, then making our way back to Singapore. Food, fun and friendship were all on the agenda.<br />
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But first, we drove off to Gopeng, the launch point for the caves of Gua Tempurung. There's a pretty good write-up on the caves and their origins <a href="https://www.malaysia-traveller.com/gua-tempurung.html">here</a>, so I'm not going into all that detail. Suffice it to say that these limestone caves were created many thousands of years ago, discovered by man and used to mine tin, hide during wars and during the Malayan Emergency period, before becoming one of the major tourism draws in the state.<br />
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Indeed, the caverns are magnificent. Soaring caverns, stalagtites and stalagmites can be seen in this cave and I can confidently say I’ve been to the top and bottom of the caves. There are four alternative treks, ranging from the easy one to toughest. We were on the third option, considered "Exciting and Challenging". The first part was the “easy” part, where we walked into the huge cavern, bigger than any cathedral. Stairs - lots of them - take us up to the top of the cavern, so near we could *almost* touch the ceiling. Water drips slowly, and we see where stalactites/stalagmites are forming slowly, over millions of years and slowly meet, thicken and become massive pillars. <br />
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Then we walked down all the stairs to reach the bottom of the cave. Here we squeezed through little tunnels, to where the underground river flows through the "caverns measureless to man". We had to crawl through in places, on elbows and knees through the water-filled tunnels to reach the larger caves beyond. And then we came to a point where we had to slide down the side of the cavern. Shall we say that I was exceedingly grateful that the guide was there to catch me at the bottom. We finally got through the last tunnel, to emerge back into the huge cavern from which we emerged back into the main campsite of the caves - wet, dirty, scraped and bruised, but with a pleasing sense of accomplishment. <br />
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We’d gone with Radak Adventures, and the guide took us back to their campsite near the caves to clean up before we went back to Gopeng. The campsite is by a large river, where we rested and waded (and had a snack). If you ever think of going to Gua Tempurung, some practical stuff to remember - bring a torch, wear old clothes, preferably a long-sleeved top and pants which cover the knees (I wore leggings) and shoes you don't mind getting totally soaked (and which dry fast). I wore my Crocs sneakers and they were perfect. If you want to bring a camera, make sure you have a waterproof bag. I left my cameraphone behind - hence the lack of photos in this post; the one above was taken by a friend of mine.<br />
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More photos of our KL hotel, and of the caves <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/taking5/albums/72157692018384450">here</a>.Katong Galhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02438588023292216575noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6955841553501412410.post-83210728685563112492018-05-12T18:10:00.001+08:002018-06-16T21:42:59.277+08:00Teochew Food in Malacca - Teo Soon LoongWhen you have a group of two, it's harder to have a good variety of food when eating at Chinese restaurants. So with our group of four, it was a good time to go try out the food at Teo Soon Loong, a well-known Teochew restaurant in Malacca. It used to be in a tiny coffee shop on Jalan Hang Kasturi, just round the corner from Jalan Hang Jebat, but has shifted out of the Old Town to a newer, much larger restaurant in a newer part of the city (on the reclaimed land area).<br />
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Our hotel got us a car via Grab - a modest RM6 only. We drove well out of the old town, through undeveloped plots to a small cluster of buildings. I was not really expecting a large crowd but when we got there, the restaurant was packed! Good thing that we had a reservation (via our kaki in the jewellery shop). We had to wait for our table to be ready (we were a little early) and so had ample time to review the menu.<br />
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We chose a mixture of recommended dishes (off the internet) - the pork ribs with bittergourd (really tender, highly recommend), the braised Teochew duck (it was good but not as good as the pork), cai por hor fun (good <i>wok hei </i>but not enough cai por for me), braised noodles with oysters (I know, two carbs but we couldn't resist) and sweet potato leaves cooked with ginger (to be honest this was a revelation - I really enjoyed the freshness of the vegetables and somehow the gingery flavour complemented it well). Indeed a suitable dinner for our last night in Malaccca.<br />
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Katong Galhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02438588023292216575noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6955841553501412410.post-45196738382238003762018-05-05T21:06:00.000+08:002018-06-16T21:43:32.740+08:00Buying Manek Potong ShoesEvery time we visit Malacca, we end up visiting this little Kasut Manek (Nonya beaded shoes) shop down Temple Street called Lim's Trading.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Down Temple Street</td></tr>
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But it was always an exercise in window shopping. For myself, I was determined not to buy another pair until I had finished making my own. And that took <a href="https://katonglife.blogspot.sg/2016/06/up-in-clouds-my-sparkly-pink-pair-of.html">years</a>! As for my dear friend, she makes her own shoes most of the time!<br />
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But this year I was determined that I would buy a pair of "Manek Potong" shoes. For the uninitiated, "Manek Potong" represents the utmost pinnacle of beaded shoe craftsmanship. The beads are smaller than the standard machine made beads, and even the better quality Japanese Beads. Apparently they are made somewhere in the former Czechoslovakia, cut by hand such that the facets of the beads are less regular and reflect the light differently as a result. Because the beads are smaller, the patterns on the shoes are more intricate as a result. The beads are also difficult to get, because the Czech factory which made them has discontinued the line... ... at least that's what we are told but somehow there are rumours that there is a new source ...<br />
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Anyway, Mr Lim is well known in Malacca/Malaysia for his beaded shoes, as t<a href="https://www.nst.com.my/lifestyle/jom/2018/01/328616/go-beads-love-nsttv">his New Straits Times article</a> can testify. (The article also gives a little more background on beaded shoes, which I'm not going into here as I've done so on a number of times on this blog already). In 2012, he received the Unesco Seals of Excellence for Handicrafts in recognition of his work. What is so unique is that rather than just use the "traditional" patterns, he designs his own beautiful designs, of goldfish swimming with water and seaweed rippling around them, of birds and flowers amidst the foliage. You can choose yourself a pattern, and he will sew it up for you, get the cobbler to make up the shoe and post it to you. I have to say that I was tempted to do that but fortunately I found the perfect shoe in terms of fit, design and style so I bought it on the spot (for a pretty penny, I should add). Here it is:</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Birds and flowers - my Manek Potong shoes</td></tr>
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In my humble opinion, they go nicely with my <a href="https://katonglife.blogspot.sg/2017/09/peacocking-around-in-blue.html">new turquoise kebaya and orange sarong :-)</a><br />
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Katong Galhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02438588023292216575noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6955841553501412410.post-36075409242347614232018-04-07T23:30:00.000+08:002018-04-08T00:48:31.032+08:00Malacca Bunga Raya<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It's the Year of the Dog!</td></tr>
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For someone who goes so often to Malacca, is there anything left to write about? Indeed, I am quite embarrassed sometimes that I seem to be going to the same old places year in, year out. But this year was slightly different. First, we were going with a group of four instead of a small little group of two, with their own added set of interests and priorities. It was nice taking them to our favourite spots but equally, it was great to find new areas we had not been to. Before this, we were getting into a "Malacca-shaped rut". Second, it was just before the Chinese New Year and so the shopping opportunities opened up were quite different! New Year goodies galore (as though Malacca wasn't filled with foodstuffs for greedy Singaporeans to buy already)!<br />
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So this year, our new discovery was Jalan Bunga Raya, just north of the Malacca river and near all the Kampong Jawa cooking equipment shops <a href="https://katonglife.blogspot.sg/2011/05/pie-tee-and-love-letter-makers-and.html">we discovered on a previous trip</a>. Bunga Raya was the old shopping street of Malacca, but the tourists deserted it for Jonker Street's charms and the locals were drawn to the newer malls with all the supermarkets and chain stores. So today there is a sort of quietness about the place, where the shops seem to hark back to yesterday and their proprietors slowly greying together with it. There is some rejuvenation, however, with new businesses starting up even as the main Jonker area gets more crowded and the benefits from the UNESCO status spill over out of the old town into the surrounding areas. So there are newer restaurants and hotels starting up here. We will see how it goes. </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lanterns along Jalan Bunga Raya</td></tr>
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We were, however, here in search of New Year lanterns and other decorations, which my friend wanted to deck her home with for CNY. A local (I think it was either our hotel concierge, or our jeweller) recommended Jln Bunga Raya and so we walked over. It was evening, the street was dark and many shops were closed or closing. But as we proceeded, suddenly a few brightly lit shops appeared, all the better to show off the beautiful lanterns, of silk, paper or a felt-like material (made out of recycled cloth). </div>
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We wandered in and out of a few shops. Most sold fabric and other haberdashery or craft items, but during the CNY period, pushed all these day-to-day goods to the back of the shop and instead stocked up on the decor for CNY. Not just lanterns, but banners, tassels, paper cut pictures, and (since it is the year of the dog) lots of little stuffed dogs too. Business was reasonably good for the few shops which remained open; I suppose either locals or well-informed tourists made their way here to get their CNY decor. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Down the Malacca River</td></tr>
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Bunga Raya isn't exactly a short walk from our hotel in Heeren Street, so I didn't really expect to <span style="text-align: right;">walk back the next day in the hot sun for lunch. But that is what we did. We were going to <a href="https://www.facebook.com/manisjnyonya/">Manis J</a>, the restaurant owned by the proprietor of the shoe shop, J Manik (of course at her suggestion). It was a pleasant stroll by the river, lined by the old buildings (and some new extensions), which were decorated to catch the eye - some with brightly coloured murals, and others with fun/gimmicky items such as this one which featured old cars - Minis and Beetles.</span><br />
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<span style="text-align: right;">Lunch itself was really quite good. We had all our old nyonya favourites - Ngoh Hiang, Ayam Buah Keluak, Chap Chye, Hee Peow soup etc. And for the hypercritical Singaporeans we are, there were no complaints. Everyone ate happily. And I don't think it was the long walk.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lunch at J Manis</td></tr>
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Katong Galhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02438588023292216575noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6955841553501412410.post-44448960177738534802018-02-24T22:45:00.003+08:002018-12-25T22:53:35.384+08:00Sinpopo at Joo Chiat Road<a href="https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=6955841553501412410" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a><br />
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In Singapore's highly competitive restaurant scene, it is quite difficult to write about food because somehow they get outdated quite fast! <br />
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Fortunately, unlike some other establishments I've written about, <a href="https://www.sinpopo.com/">Sinpopo</a> is still going strong. Although, it looks as though they expanded the menu since I went...<br />
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Sinpopo is run by the folks behind Awfully Chocolate but this is completely different in concept, serving "old style" Singaporean food with a twist. I came here with two lady friends and we had a good gossip, over luncheon meat crisps (terribly unhealthy), deep fried wantons (scarcely less so), the crab meat bee hoon (my fave) and for dessert, gula melaka cake and brown butter sugee cake. Washed down with Katong Jelly drink (red agar agar jelly in a 7-Up and soda mix). <br />
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Whilst I did feel that the gula melaka cake really brought out that gula melaka flavour, I was not sure that the brown butter flavour was really that prominent in the sugee cake. Rather, the brown butter flavour was more obvious in the thin layer of butter cream icing the cake. I was intrigued however by the whole idea of "updating" sugee cake using brown butter and so I was inspired to make my own version of brown butter sugee cake!<br />
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First of all, I had to learn how to brown butter. Fortunately there's a pretty good guide <a href="https://www.seriouseats.com/2015/01/how-to-make-brown-butter-technique.html">here on Serious Eats</a>. Briefly, butter is melted and then boiled over the stove till the water evaporates. As the melted butter continues to boil, tiny little particles of milk solids emerge and as these brown, they impart a nutty, caramel flavour to the butter. However, you need to watch it carefully to make sure that the little flecks of milk solids don't burn! <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My Brown Butter Sugee Cake</td></tr>
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Having browned the butter, I then went on to make my sugee cake, which I've written about <a href="https://katonglife.blogspot.sg/2012/09/celebrate-with-sugee-cake.html">here</a>. I soaked my semolina in the browned butter and then made my sugee cake as per normal. As usual, I did not put any icing or butter cream on the cake which enabled me to taste the "natural" flavours of the cake.<br />
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The verdict? The colour of my sugee cake was a little darker than in the past - not so much a bright sunny yellow but a slightly browner shade. As for flavour - well, I enjoyed the buttery flavour of the cake, but again the brown butter flavour did't really emerge. I suspect that with the traditional marzipan and royal icing, the buttery flavour would be overpowered by the strong almond flavour. It's probably better to take it to a different flavour profile altogether, add brown sugar in place of some of the white, and top with buttercream made with browned butter.. hmmm, seems to be what Sinpopo has done :-)Katong Galhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02438588023292216575noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6955841553501412410.post-8121998589513375132017-09-30T21:17:00.000+08:002018-06-16T21:44:10.485+08:00Peacocking around in blue<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Peacocking</td></tr>
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How I love a new <i>kebaya</i>!<br />
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When I visited Penang last year, I paid a visit to the lady who made me my first kebaya all those years ago. I didn't order anything then - my cousin was theoretically the one buying the <i>kebaya </i>and we were in a hurry so I didn't have much time to shop on my own account. But after leaving Penang, and a number of WhatsApps later, I had asked the proprietor to bring over a few blue <i>kebayas </i>when she next came to Singapore. <br />
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It was a tough choice, with dragonflies, floral patterns and ducks all fighting for my attention. But my interest was first piqued by a turquoise blue <i>kebaya </i>with a brilliantly coloured pair of peacocks on the front in golden yellow and orange. I wore it around Christmas, over pants. And to the Peranakan mass on Chinese New Year eve over my most favourite green sarong skirt. But somehow they didn't quite go... <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My blue and red combination</td></tr>
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So this latest visit to Penang, I made another visit to the shop and came away with an order for a <i>sarong</i> to match my <i>kebaya. </i>It's most CNY appropriate, all reds and oranges. It is also very different from my rather staid and boring <i>sarongs</i> of the past, which were green or purple.<br />
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And fortunately enough, my aunt gave me a pair of shoes which her Mother-in-law gave her and which she didn't really feel went with her own clothing. But it went very nicely with my peacocks and sarong skirt!<br />
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As many people have admired my <i>kebaya, </i>what has also been happening is that I have been giving the name of my <i>kebaya</i> contact to various friends and relatives, and even a few colleagues. And because she comes down to Singapore quite frequently to "deliver" to her customers, you don't even need to visit Penang! As such, a lot of them have ended up making purchases and so now I have now indeed acquired "most favoured customer" status. Indeed she is quite well reputed, as her designs are quite unusual and different from the rather standard designs you get in the mass manufactured <i>kebaya </i>shops. Of course, you pay a little more but I think it is well worth it. You can find out more about County Fair Boutique on its <a href="https://www.facebook.com/County-Fair-Boutique-187126618025937/">Facebook page</a> and also on <a href="https://www.timeout.com/penang/things-to-do/penang-straits-chinese">Time Out.</a><br />
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I have to admit that my last visit, I didn't just buy a kebaya but also a chili hot cheongsam with beautiful embroidery below. So maybe come Chinese New Year, there will be another photo update of my embroidered purchases.Katong Galhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02438588023292216575noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6955841553501412410.post-37259810448770796412017-08-31T23:30:00.000+08:002018-12-28T17:17:05.389+08:00Mum's Nyonya Cuisine, Penang<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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For a Peranakan haven like Penang, it can be surprisingly difficult to get good Peranakan food. As my uncle said, "home food is best". <br />
So Penang Peranakan families don't go out that much and it is not so easy to find a good Peranakan restaurant in Penang! Last year, we visited this <a href="https://katonglife.blogspot.sg/2016/09/a-penang-nonya-meal.html">interesting restaurant</a> near our hotel, in Nordin Street with its unique home environment, genial host and personal demonstration by his mother. This time round, we were fortunate to have a good, authentic nyonya meal at <a href="https://www.timeout.com/penang/restaurants-and-cafes/mamas-nyonya-cuisine">Mum's Nyonya Cuisine</a> which my relatives took us to.<br />
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This is my third food post out of the three posts on this Penang trip, and actually I could go on since I've not really completely covered my hawker food experience (aside from the "Balik Pulau" laksa mention). But then, I've a few earlier posts on this subject from previous visits too, and it is getting a little bit same-same. I have however put up the shots on <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/taking5/albums/72157602392626608/page2">my Penang album on Flickr</a> - so if you are interested, do hop over to take a look for what I ate at Jelutong Market, Kimberly Street and the eternal favourite, New Lane Coffee Shop.<br />
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But since I haven't that many restaurant reviews, I'm pleased to devote this post all to Mum's Nyonya Restaurant. Many Singaporeans are confused by Penang nyonya food because it has marked differences from the Singapore-Malacca brand of Peranakan cuisine. For example, the use of "assam" flavours rather than "lemak" flavours (its a question of degree; of course Penang food has coconut as well just less so) and the more extensive variety of herbs used. The influences are Thai, rather than Indonesian (so <i>buah keluak </i>lovers, I am afraid that your favourite dish is not so common here), although some all time favourites like beef rendang find their way everywhere!<br />
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Anyway, this is a good place to enjoy the Penang specialities, such as the acar fish (see the recipe <a href="http://rasamalaysia.com/acar-fish-nyonya-pickled-fish/">here</a>) which is a deep fried fish in a vinegary sauce (which pickles it, hence the name "acar"), and <i>Ju Hu Cha </i>(Cuttlefish strips fried with turnip/carrot/mushroom and rolled in a lettuce leaf) etc. I also was introduced to a new dish, <i>ikan purut</i> or a fish belly dish cooked with lots of herbs and vegetables. It is a Penang specialty, which is rather fiddly to cook so it is not surprising that many restaurants don't serve it. ( See a recipe for <i>ikan purut </i><a href="http://rasamalaysia.com/recipe-perut-ikan-nyonya-fermented-fish/">here</a>.) These are indeed unique dishes which are not really served in the Singapore Nonya restaurants here, so please do give them a try when in Penang. After all, what's the point of going to Penang and then trying to look for all the Singapore-style dishes!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAOahUsc5_mCIeixf8bSW9pqUV9-XznSnGmp1IR9a5SPhFH0BAYwBgz2dYcxS73aq75sU1yU1l1C3hCoZZAY018ABMBNhDHsHtPtuGk2YUEHTGJB0qA4FaM_QPxbEJyQZbau8VfjzNXLE/s1600/IMG_8084.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAOahUsc5_mCIeixf8bSW9pqUV9-XznSnGmp1IR9a5SPhFH0BAYwBgz2dYcxS73aq75sU1yU1l1C3hCoZZAY018ABMBNhDHsHtPtuGk2YUEHTGJB0qA4FaM_QPxbEJyQZbau8VfjzNXLE/s200/IMG_8084.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Ju Hu Cha</i></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4BEYb8GioI2J96xuWG4nJqYjT9xAGw3dgCcKekas5DeOSoKkFRT71xuD0wYmaxhqychTil-SrH8oUFJgnaLpQEUFFpJdSvnyg8K8DZ77b4KIn4OwmG0nJ-fzvK4LiqmjlGXeUkPh8QuI/s1600/IMG_8086.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4BEYb8GioI2J96xuWG4nJqYjT9xAGw3dgCcKekas5DeOSoKkFRT71xuD0wYmaxhqychTil-SrH8oUFJgnaLpQEUFFpJdSvnyg8K8DZ77b4KIn4OwmG0nJ-fzvK4LiqmjlGXeUkPh8QuI/s200/IMG_8086.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Achar</i> Fish</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOZdkJNQ6TxMsEWLnjtEdjQShSqxvjyOtm3skAfu9PuSqTvrILGS23R208TRDN6h-2hlN_JChomcvQM79SFQoZ1iQ3KZzv42iYicpFPbIWtVUxAqvPVIN8T6WX_QaTFgYdKp5eNdHpuA8/s1600/IMG_8082.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOZdkJNQ6TxMsEWLnjtEdjQShSqxvjyOtm3skAfu9PuSqTvrILGS23R208TRDN6h-2hlN_JChomcvQM79SFQoZ1iQ3KZzv42iYicpFPbIWtVUxAqvPVIN8T6WX_QaTFgYdKp5eNdHpuA8/s200/IMG_8082.jpg" width="150" /></a><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Ikan Purut</i></td></tr>
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But every dish was yummy and I truly enjoyed the meal. The slight let down was dessert - not much choice and quite unmemorable (I don't remember what I had and didn't take a photo, which just goes to show how unmemorable I found it). <br />
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Better than the food was the company. The Singapore delegation and our Penang relatives filled two large tables of the little restaurant. One of my Penang uncles told us little stories about our family during the meal. How our distant relative, who had been expelled from Indonesia during Confrontation and went back to China, managed to find his way to Penang and to our family home in Malay Street. Although it had been so many years since his last visit, he remembered the name of the street in Hokkien (apparently, it is called "Thai Gu Hang") and once there, he recognised the house. He waited outside for some time till my uncle returned and finally he was able to reunite with this branch of the family. Since then, my Penang relatives hosted a family reunion in Penang and also visited their family members in China. Because some used to live in Indonesia, they speak some Bahasa and still retain their Hokkien (in addition to Mandarin). So they are able to communicate with my relatives (who don't speak Mandarin, only English, Bahasa and Hokkien!) According to my uncle, they remember his great-grandfather (my great-grandfather) very fondly due to the assistance he had rendered them in their times of need. <br />
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After dinner, we went back to the family house. My sister and brother-in-law had never visited before so for them, it was indeed a special experience. My uncle showed us the improvements he had made since his last visit (he is a self-taught home restorer) and it is indeed impressive to see the progress he makes each time we visit. Indeed it is the chance to reconnect with our Penang relatives which make each visit back so special.<br />
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<br />Katong Galhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02438588023292216575noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6955841553501412410.post-45162305826971890002017-08-05T15:04:00.002+08:002017-08-05T19:54:50.273+08:00Not such a slow durian seasonAs was the case last year, our visit to Penang was timed to coincide with what we hoped would be the peak of the durian season. Unfortunately, as related my previous post, the lack of rainfall had caused a late and small durian harvest. This had prevented us from feasting on Orh Chi or "Black Thorn" durians when we visited Nibong Tebal. Does this mean however that we were totally deprived of durians? The answer, fortunately, is no.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkX4Jp2GP00AKGg-1Tz9gqhEGCnMCNIq3VH5ZiM1UCnLJN2H2ftHCgSCToeLtO9P8kM33gaKP0HgHEAlAdf8USJDe0E7_1JM4kZ3o_65umOXkjUYZJ5HtsaFkDAk04vBqU5abvdnK3uUc/s1600/IMG_8072.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkX4Jp2GP00AKGg-1Tz9gqhEGCnMCNIq3VH5ZiM1UCnLJN2H2ftHCgSCToeLtO9P8kM33gaKP0HgHEAlAdf8USJDe0E7_1JM4kZ3o_65umOXkjUYZJ5HtsaFkDAk04vBqU5abvdnK3uUc/s200/IMG_8072.jpg" width="200" /></a>It was a slow start. We found a roadside stall on our way back from Nibong Tebal which sold "kampong" durian and a small selection of other durian varieties, which we brought back to my uncle's place for a light snack. The "kampong" durian is really from one of those wild roadside durian trees which people then pick up to sell. They were not the creamiest nor richest in flavour. But nonetheless we dug in enthusiastically and within minutes the durians were all gone amongst our large group. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiq-ksyG4t9dGd3dHZatWXP1S8UrG0CF2jduUgmk79lU-LbbASoZawU0VIrPWIzclDchJKBFAmqptRkvU1cCbNf4Y1c-weCyKOZcl3N0vbZiuSih6-MlK4WydpIs9CVCwT9a7Exw_6R7bI/s1600/IMG_8076.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiq-ksyG4t9dGd3dHZatWXP1S8UrG0CF2jduUgmk79lU-LbbASoZawU0VIrPWIzclDchJKBFAmqptRkvU1cCbNf4Y1c-weCyKOZcl3N0vbZiuSih6-MlK4WydpIs9CVCwT9a7Exw_6R7bI/s200/IMG_8076.jpg" width="150" /></a>We also had the chance to savour other yummy goodies as well, including the fermented rice snack called <i>tapeh</i>. It's not easy to get in Singapore (unless you go to the Katong Antique House on East Coast Road which sometimes sells this on a Sunday morning) and is also not that common in Malaysia these days. But of course my relatives know where to find it in Penang. I have to say it is an acquired taste, but since my Father has been buying it off and on for years, we have somehow acquired it. (My sister remembers him feeding it to her as a little girl!). <br />
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I also did not mention earlier that the other motivation behind our trip to Balik Pulau was of course to eat durians! The hills behind the town apparently provide a conducive environment and geography for durians - the right amount of sunshine, drainage, etc. Here, we could forget all about the late and small harvest. The durian trees grow in the wild on either side of the road, as it wound through the hills. My aunts kept telling me that there were durians all around but obviously you need to develop an eye since I only saw the very obvious ones where they were clearly visible against the sky behind. <br />
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The durian plantations on the hill typically have their own little stalls on the roadside where customers can sit and eat. This is what we did last year. This year, we ended up in the Bao Shang Wang durian plantation stall because my uncle's cousin's Friend owns it. We drove down this really steep road to get to the sheltered terrace where we would eat our durians. Wow! It was the first time I've ever eaten durians with such a gorgeous view in front of me!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCoh8tabZ7Jg0Yuz8qfqw_O4_wJvNSxlSxaL-VFVyJlyOFn6fDFw8udKM3pK83Nz6EsOVRU_pCLDf-HmGoq08gJyQ1no_bVQZQGDv7pWfuc8quVNTlvBk485hUujd7Yn6IzRsva5W3wns/s1600/IMG_8110.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="782" data-original-width="1600" height="312" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCoh8tabZ7Jg0Yuz8qfqw_O4_wJvNSxlSxaL-VFVyJlyOFn6fDFw8udKM3pK83Nz6EsOVRU_pCLDf-HmGoq08gJyQ1no_bVQZQGDv7pWfuc8quVNTlvBk485hUujd7Yn6IzRsva5W3wns/s640/IMG_8110.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">View from Bao Sheng</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQQ8R6eHTY-xOvYCF-4uJlk89WE5psIgM38-Dy6Hwp5hB1aSK_ExfDOoyL-80yX9AybSC06dK1AmkIwlZBhXQZ2CPP7ceJSP3m3OoBn7dMdrE3aLt59WTQ2LqcuMKMRxQL48lhoLPjoPc/s1600/IMG_8113.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQQ8R6eHTY-xOvYCF-4uJlk89WE5psIgM38-Dy6Hwp5hB1aSK_ExfDOoyL-80yX9AybSC06dK1AmkIwlZBhXQZ2CPP7ceJSP3m3OoBn7dMdrE3aLt59WTQ2LqcuMKMRxQL48lhoLPjoPc/s320/IMG_8113.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Khun Po durian</td></tr>
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What was truly very different, however, was the clientele. Here, in the hills on the other side of Penang, a long car journey from the nearest town, was a bunch of skinny, tanned, Ang Moh Lang dressed like hippies! Helping sort and clean durians, eating the durians, helping clear away the durian skins and seeds! Apparently the Bao Sheng durian folk also do some homestay and somehow these chaps found out about it and come to stay. It was a strange, somewhat surreal experience as I would never have expected to see so many non-Asians so far away from the main tourist spots and eating durians to boot! It certainly bust the stereotype of the Ang Moh who can't abide the sight nor smell of durian.<br />
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Besides human beings, there were a number of dogs wandering around the place. One or two were the "house dogs"; collared, sleek, plump. Others were strays; skinny, dirty. Somehow they seemed fairly tame too.<br />
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So what did we eat? We ate (in order of ascending sweetness) : D604; Xiao Hong (a rather orangey colour rather than red); and Khun Po (named after the gentleman who first cultivated it). The folks who didn't eat durian (yes there were some in our party) were given watermelon and bananas. We washed down everything with tea.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJuWKLHeh68i2mUUyqEDma9viQ5tMwQ3aMEQlNLDoPlk9aMFMgwovf6wh_WehgEYegwfpofsTbeLA61qgMGFmDTkVczDs3bfKj1o4zMkOCdOCXHcbR16dXlH3bA1oFaMijQrxIt6D7ypA/s1600/IMG_8149.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJuWKLHeh68i2mUUyqEDma9viQ5tMwQ3aMEQlNLDoPlk9aMFMgwovf6wh_WehgEYegwfpofsTbeLA61qgMGFmDTkVczDs3bfKj1o4zMkOCdOCXHcbR16dXlH3bA1oFaMijQrxIt6D7ypA/s400/IMG_8149.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">More durian sampling</td></tr>
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And that was not all. Apparently my uncle's cousin went somewhat overboard and arranged for us to visit a second plantation. Ummm.... instead we got him to deliver the durians back to my uncle's place and he took them to our family home in Georgetown. Where we ate them the next day! Washed down with Chinese tea, to cleanse and refresh the palate, to better savour the next different durian variety. Alongside, for the non-durian eaters were <i>chiku, </i>pomelo, and other tropical fruits. Plus another unusual Penang kueh-kueh called "Ee yah kueh". <i> </i><br />
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So small harvest aside, we still managed to have a most satisfying durian holiday.<br />
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Katong Galhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02438588023292216575noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6955841553501412410.post-26499140444775099672017-07-23T01:47:00.002+08:002019-01-01T01:32:12.265+08:00The Other Side of PenangEarly this month, my extended family went back again to Penang for our annual visit. This year, we had our largest group yet - my Dad, my uncle and two aunties, and five of us from the next generation (including two spouses)! We met up with my Dad's Penang cousins, and went for our normal, extended foodie experience.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibgK3VhGuB9Q7N2jbDCT7eGeXje4DmXxLwC-IySxH3bRSMoW6J3kmtp3cZ3FrCbHF1f4s0dHHLtv-AFW6SGxoBttApmSSSB-jmvs-TEoUlbNuMCwhEXZYkDxoHuVLN5DxRQpoTkkzx9JI/s1600/IMG_8044+%25281%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1139" data-original-width="1600" height="227" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibgK3VhGuB9Q7N2jbDCT7eGeXje4DmXxLwC-IySxH3bRSMoW6J3kmtp3cZ3FrCbHF1f4s0dHHLtv-AFW6SGxoBttApmSSSB-jmvs-TEoUlbNuMCwhEXZYkDxoHuVLN5DxRQpoTkkzx9JI/s320/IMG_8044+%25281%2529.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The family house</td></tr>
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This year, however, we did things a little differently. i.e., not just the Penang hawker food binge. For the first time, we went to "the mainland". For the uninitiated, the State of Penang is not just one island (Pulau Pinang) but extends also to a small region on the mainland, historically known as "Province Wellesley" in the days of the British and now called <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seberang_Perai">Seberang Perai</a>. <br />
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It turned out to be quite an interesting drive. We took the new second link to the mainland - an impressive causeway which is much longer than the first link, and with much less traffic too. It's always nice to get a feel of the place, driving through the country and seeing what there is to see - not just the normal palm oil plantations but also factories, reminding me that Penang is one of Malaysia's manufacturing hubs.</div>
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We had a clear mission for our visit to the mainland. First, to see if we could visit the family home of my great grandmother (father's mother's mother) in the little town of <a href="http://www.penang-traveltips.com/nibong-tebal.htm">Nibong Tebal</a>. At the same time, to eat durians - the elusive "<a href="http://www.yearofthedurian.com/2015/11/is-black-thorn-next-musang-king-faq.html">Orh Chih</a>" or "Black Thorn", which apparently was first grown in Nibong Tebal and where therefore the best of this variety is found. Lastly, we were going to eat yummy seafood in one of the well known seafood restaurants in the area. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrcTKhk1BY942_actxHd2LdejaXRcTMQHQ8esB96rhzqkJ4dvvdl0zbfVnhPTz7dgTeqp4O-WZyAr-YzNb3sToiknAx61AVcBPTyCwTLXRwVX2WzCskmaC6hIRCREM7kKtrq_8EYbaf3E/s1600/IMG_8067.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrcTKhk1BY942_actxHd2LdejaXRcTMQHQ8esB96rhzqkJ4dvvdl0zbfVnhPTz7dgTeqp4O-WZyAr-YzNb3sToiknAx61AVcBPTyCwTLXRwVX2WzCskmaC6hIRCREM7kKtrq_8EYbaf3E/s200/IMG_8067.jpg" width="200" /></a>Well, at least we managed one out of three! This year's durian season is a little late. There was not enough rain and so the harvest is also small. So there was no "Black Thorn" available. As for the family home, it turns out that it is hidden behind a row of shophouses. Access is through a gap in the shophouses but it has now been blocked by one of those shuttered grilles across the entrance. As we had not called ahead or attempted to contact the residents earlier, we could only peek at it from between the grilles. Fortunately, the house looked quite well preserved (at least from the outside).<br />
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So we were left with lunch. Fortunately this did not let us down. Law Cheang Kee is well known for its excellent seafood and as we were early (due to the lack of durian and lack of access to the house), had no problem getting a table. The restaurant filled up whilst we were there and people were waiting. This is really a small town so the patrons must have driven from the surrounding areas to get here on their lunch hour. Our pomfret was beautifully fresh, steamed to perfection and the other seafood dishes were really tasty and flavourful. Everything was well cooked and I have to say that it was worth the lengthy drive.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvB2JSZNfbjJZnD7AKGbxPCV3ymV8Qg3Fu-FSiEuYDFRkYMmPY1Hk9Y-tEYezoa6SptKHkUq7mJKBJFGC5c4vF2KqYsg9K4YKsx-6AGeBmu9sjFtIsFd_luL6Nq4qD8FGTtb_4GOUedr4/s1600/IMG_8051.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1142" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvB2JSZNfbjJZnD7AKGbxPCV3ymV8Qg3Fu-FSiEuYDFRkYMmPY1Hk9Y-tEYezoa6SptKHkUq7mJKBJFGC5c4vF2KqYsg9K4YKsx-6AGeBmu9sjFtIsFd_luL6Nq4qD8FGTtb_4GOUedr4/s320/IMG_8051.jpg" width="228" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Removing the peanut skins</td></tr>
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Neither did we walk away empty-handed. Nibong Tebal is well known, it appears, for its traditional Teochew biscuit shop Chop Chuan Guan, where biscuits are still made by hand every day. It is like a factory, with a row of biscuit makers sitting in a row in the main shop. In the shop next door, a girl was removing the peanut skins from the roasted peanuts. It was quite fascinating, watching her skilfully and efficiently toss the peanuts on a large flat basket, till the skins separated from the peanuts.<br />
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The shop is famous for its <a href="http://www.themalaymailonline.com/print/eat-drink/artisanal-biscuits-and-sweets-teochew-style">unique and rare "duck neck" biscuit, or "<i>ark-am</i>"</a>! This biscuit has a crunchy peanut core, with a soft outer layer, and covered with a layer of peanuts. It is rolled up into a thin roll and cut into long pieces, hence the name. Certainly, no ducks were harmed in the making of this biscuit :-) It is really quite yummy so I can understand the brisk business - visitors were coming in whilst we were looking around it, just to get a package of their favourite <i>tau sar piah </i>or<i> ark-am.</i> Which is what I did, too. I should have bought another packet! Ah well, hopefully there will be a next time.<br />
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The next day, we went to Balik Pulau. Balik Pulau literally means "back of the island" or "go back to the island". It's literally on the opposite side of the island from Georgetown and there's a totally different, laid back atmosphere here. But things are changing, as new developments are encroaching on this little town. There's even an international school, the "Prince of Wales Island International School" which boards students whose families are presumably working in the region.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCie0vircCgpZSOfuNuBzOAjPo3Xx_AEqgSur1shq6TRbJpI4bfk6AFGOvL_40XKeiTfTZHGUy_Z29Vcp2mQodjbTBq_JLD2foF0oiGUCo2dNIP3dMGvU_uzI1QLrH3sXSBqsZY0VJJLU/s1600/IMG_8121.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCie0vircCgpZSOfuNuBzOAjPo3Xx_AEqgSur1shq6TRbJpI4bfk6AFGOvL_40XKeiTfTZHGUy_Z29Vcp2mQodjbTBq_JLD2foF0oiGUCo2dNIP3dMGvU_uzI1QLrH3sXSBqsZY0VJJLU/s320/IMG_8121.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Laksa cham"</td></tr>
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We came here to eat the famed Balik Pulau laksa at Kim Seng Kopitiam. But I have to admit that I did not eat the traditional laksa. Instead, I had Penang Assam Laksa mixed with the lemak curry laksa (which we get in Singapore). Here, they call it "laksa cham" and you can ask for it in stalls which sell both laksa varieties. I really like the way the lemak gravy is livened up by the tangy assam gravy. <br />
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I was expecting to eat in one of those small street stalls but it was in a rather modern coffee shop. We went for another bowl at a nearby hawker centre, where we also drank ampala and ate pasembur (the Indian rojak of Penang). It was similar to our Singapore hawker centres. Not so "balik" after all!<br />
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Overall, I enjoyed our visits to Nibong Tebal and Balik Pulau. It took us to a very different side of Penang, outside Georgetown and away from the beaches where the tourists congregate. A sense of what Singapore used to be like, and indeed what the bigger cities in Malaysia used to be like. Hopefully, even as Penang continues to grow and develop, these little towns will continue to retain some of their charm and unique little gems like Law Cheang Kee and Chop Chuan Guan. Looking forward to going back to Nibong Tebal for more food treats and of course, to see my great-grandmother's home in all its glory...<br />
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More photos (including food shots) on my <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/taking5/albums/72157602392626608">Penang album </a>on Flickr.</div>
Katong Galhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02438588023292216575noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6955841553501412410.post-62891974526732801992017-05-13T18:06:00.000+08:002017-05-13T18:06:00.750+08:00Celebrating the 100th Anniversary of Fatima at Ss Peter & Paul<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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For some reason, it's a positive avalanche of church posts recently! Purely coincidental :-)<br />
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13th May 2017 is the 100th Anniversary of the first apparition of our Lady at Fatima, to three shepherd children. Pope Francis is marking the event by canonising two of the three children, Jacinta and Francisco (they passed away, victims of the Spanish Flu of 1918). The third child, Lucia, passed away only in 2005 and is still undergoing the sainthood process. This <a href="https://www.ewtn.com/fatima/our-lady.asp">website</a> has more on the apparitions at Fatima. <br />
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Churches in Singapore are celebrating this event, whether through screening movies, or holding special masses. St Peter and Paul held a candlelit procession after their evening mass on 6 May. <br />
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I just happened to be visiting <a href="http://sppchurch.org.sg/">St Peter & Paul</a>, and so was able to view the procession. One of the oldest parishes in Singapore, it serves largely the Chinese community and many, including those who have moved out of the area, still return to the church regularly for mass, and there's a vibrant community here. (It was a 96-year old lady, daughter of the former Sacristan of the church, who put the Crown on Our Lady's statue before the procession). What's impressive is that besides the Mandarin mass every Sunday, there's even a Cantonese Mass! The Carmelites are now administering the parish on behalf of the Diocese. I wonder who the Cantonese-speaking priest is! The church underwent a massive restoration programme last year and it is so lovely to see it restored to its splendour. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">At the back of the church, facing Waterloo St</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Altar</td></tr>
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The candlelight procession itself took place after the Saturday evening mass. The congregation processed out of the church behind the statue of Our Lady, and said the rosary as they walked around the church and back in again. It was a joyful event, with the little children walking in front of the statue, throwing flowers into the air (and on / at the bystanders). <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixDkUD1QJ_Ex_Hj5OSSeAM-972m5qLD392-AZCHNZJO0DP_qFh063W8K99wjaHDf6gpFBDKYTGMTREI0h7SFwcvjutyMZzssOinLPdBtN8pg66qrquY1AqDbivq4sMUUWdUob2t1hVo2w/s1600/SsPeterPaul_7687.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixDkUD1QJ_Ex_Hj5OSSeAM-972m5qLD392-AZCHNZJO0DP_qFh063W8K99wjaHDf6gpFBDKYTGMTREI0h7SFwcvjutyMZzssOinLPdBtN8pg66qrquY1AqDbivq4sMUUWdUob2t1hVo2w/s320/SsPeterPaul_7687.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Leaving the church</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">And back again</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvmwx06sBvdXemVOCy02B8pCRfZZEERLcOTPv9HY-RoaBGDKe8bbRpPvpEmaIBjX5p_Gc57LQbCKY7gD_4WYAbXr-SXGZl_6Gfpf-ynAE7twSYTuxbbpRMV7nOLyRAxFg01xYAXp3CQb8/s1600/SsPeterPaul_7704.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvmwx06sBvdXemVOCy02B8pCRfZZEERLcOTPv9HY-RoaBGDKe8bbRpPvpEmaIBjX5p_Gc57LQbCKY7gD_4WYAbXr-SXGZl_6Gfpf-ynAE7twSYTuxbbpRMV7nOLyRAxFg01xYAXp3CQb8/s320/SsPeterPaul_7704.jpg" width="209" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">By the Altar</td></tr>
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More photos <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/taking5/albums/72157629831060494">here on my Flickr page</a>. <br />
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Indeed, it was an evening well spent. Following my visit to the Cathedral and also after the Holy Family 80th Anniversary celebrations, it is indeed a walk through the history and heritage of the Catholic church here in Singapore. It is up to us, living stones indeed, to take this into the years ahead.<br />
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<br />Katong Galhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02438588023292216575noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6955841553501412410.post-17958553711834338382017-04-16T11:57:00.003+08:002017-04-17T09:06:58.950+08:00From Stones to Living Stones - Holy Family 80th Anniversary<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzIkBLBquBpd_pNxSWqkzFreFL4uLt_OipMaO5qQ6PqpaMg1vDsJg9i3WTgeIenJn8y9ZJxaflxfGCBwSzq0MNgLQl8vAQl7NQl4hMpfXi8h6SoM7PKlmaJY8eW-1NIP3WfqSJ8KfA6m8/s640/blogger-image--982035782.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzIkBLBquBpd_pNxSWqkzFreFL4uLt_OipMaO5qQ6PqpaMg1vDsJg9i3WTgeIenJn8y9ZJxaflxfGCBwSzq0MNgLQl8vAQl7NQl4hMpfXi8h6SoM7PKlmaJY8eW-1NIP3WfqSJ8KfA6m8/s400/blogger-image--982035782.jpg" width="281" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Holy Family 80th Anniversary Book</td></tr>
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Late last year, my parish celebrated the <a href="http://www.holyfamily.org.sg/index.php/news-events#church-of-the-holy-family-80th-anniversary-celebrations">80th Anniversary of the Church of the Holy Family</a>. Holy Family has featured a few times on this blog, like these posts on <a href="https://katonglife.blogspot.sg/2016/04/holy-week-and-easter-sunday.html">Easter celebration (with hot cross bun recipe!)</a> and the <a href="https://katonglife.blogspot.sg/2007/02/selamat-taon-baru-babi.html">Peranakan mass on CNY</a>. So how can I omit mention of this most special occasion? <br />
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The parish celebrated with a few events, including a fun fair and our 80th Anniversary Mass held on the Feast of the Holy Family, 30 Dec 2016. It was a joyful Mass, with the Archbishop con-celebrating with eight other priests including our three parish priests (really nice photo <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/100110420@N04/31261283933/in/album-72157677236190560/">here</a>). The other five priests had connections to our parish too - our former parish priests or assistant priests, and a young priest who was a parishioner here before being called to the priesthood. <br />
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The Parish also released our 80th Anniversary book at the Anniversary Mass. Entitled "From Stones to Living Stones", it is a story of our Parish. Of course, this is my excuse as to why I am only putting up a post on the 80th Anniversary in 2017, when the Anniversary was in 2016! How am I supposed, after all, to write a post on the book in 2016 when I only receive it on the evening of 30 December. <br />
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But as I said, this book marks the origins of our Parish - when the worshippers went for mass in a small little hut set up by the La Salle brothers. But as our Catholic community (one of the oldest in Singapore) grew, the need for a proper church building was felt and a charitable landowner donated the tract of land along East Coast Road. Here, the first church building was erected, and has been rebuilt twice since to accomodate an ever-increasing congregation. Apparently, the Parish had to shift our masses to a cinema hall whilst the old church building was being replaced for the first time! Of course, I was fully aware that masses had to be held in St Patrick's School whilst the current beautiful church building was being built. I well remember those days of going for mass in St Pat's large school hall and not having kneelers for a few years - really toughened up those knees :-)<br />
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It was also a real pleasure to hear the "voices" of Holy Family in the book - contributions from past priests, including Fr Michael Arro and Fr Rene Nicolas (who served in Holy Family in 1957!). It was good to see a little profile on Fr Alfred Chan, a true Baba of Singapore, and Holy Family's longest serving parish priest. No one has said the Peranakan mass quite like him since. Each parish group had its contribution - all the choirs, the lectors, wardens, Eucharistic Ministers, RCIA etc etc. Individual parishioners told their tales too. I saw many familiar names and faces in the book. Indeed, we are the "living stones" of our little Parish.<br />
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In short, this was a book well worth reading, well worth keeping. Many thanks to those who worked on it, and the many contributors to it.<br />
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Happy Easter everyone!<br />
<br />Katong Galhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02438588023292216575noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6955841553501412410.post-41448377272266155652017-02-25T23:32:00.000+08:002017-03-04T23:22:04.370+08:00Cathedral of the Good Shepherd<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIxgS0kOWeEf1xU06vIp2NNK65kYD7AgabYtFDgtp36E14aryXlcg7xcLrwcNaSvf1lefV7_-nXfiyg_aBsxkwBW5NsbRLEP6ElHAn5Tdi2FoDlBBwnxPTXAPHs8Fbq_dSqs5J7A2WeMg/s1600/Cathedral+4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIxgS0kOWeEf1xU06vIp2NNK65kYD7AgabYtFDgtp36E14aryXlcg7xcLrwcNaSvf1lefV7_-nXfiyg_aBsxkwBW5NsbRLEP6ElHAn5Tdi2FoDlBBwnxPTXAPHs8Fbq_dSqs5J7A2WeMg/s400/Cathedral+4.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Good Shepherd Cathedral</td></tr>
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On Sunday 19 Feb, I was at the <a href="https://cathedral.catholic.sg/">Cathedral of the Good Shepherd</a> for the Social Mission Day celebration, to mark the Re-dedication of the Cathedral. The Cathedral had been closed for about three years, as it was undergoing a massive renovation and restoration programme. It was re-dedicated on 14 Feb 2017, the 120th Anniversary of its Consecration (the original church was completed in 1847). Over the following 12 days, Catholics in Singapore celebrated the dedication with a series of events ending with the closing mass on 26 Feb 2017.<br />
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Social Mission Day was the day when all the Church's social mission organisations (mine included) shared their work with the Catholic Community. It is a platform for raising awareness and outreach to the Community (aka getting volunteers). Of course (let's not kid ourselves) most people were there for the Food Fair. There were also souvenirs on sale - the bricks from the old pillar which collapsed, a praying lamb (it IS the Good Shepherd Cathedral after all) and commemorative books (I got one, a lovely hardback book with chapters written by ST journalists). <br />
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I was there primarily to man the booth but I went for mass first. The church was packed and I had to stand throughout but it was worth it. The Cathedral Choir of the Risen Christ sings at the 10.30am mass, and it was truly uplifting and inspiring to hear their voices lifted up in song throughout the mass. Mgsr Philip Heng's sermon at mass can be found <a href="http://www.jesuit.org.sg/html/prayer/homilies/2017.yeara.ordsun07.php">here</a>. After mass, he also made a short presentation telling the congregation about the gardens and facilities of the newly reopened Cathedral and invited us to pay them a visit.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihUUU7sV6RuUBOUQNIq6gxXs8Rtqhclt7UY7yFbfLky_ixJPL-UULPyUPgz3BA4viS0XSxhyXgOHrAOHeP31BKKtmQCYOojfI3Ud4AyTXOPg_okIE0nTGLrgj12DbySoqtHrUD1QdYSf4/s1600/Cathedral_7497.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihUUU7sV6RuUBOUQNIq6gxXs8Rtqhclt7UY7yFbfLky_ixJPL-UULPyUPgz3BA4viS0XSxhyXgOHrAOHeP31BKKtmQCYOojfI3Ud4AyTXOPg_okIE0nTGLrgj12DbySoqtHrUD1QdYSf4/s400/Cathedral_7497.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Homeless Mission</td></tr>
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Which, of course, is what I did. I managed to spend some time walking around the gardens of the Cathedral. In particular, I really liked the Garden of the Resurrection - which featured the statue of the <a href="https://cathedral.catholic.sg/homeless-jesus-sculpture/">Homeless Jesus</a>. This is a replica of a statue by Canadian sculptor Timothy Schwartz. Christ, covered almost completely by a blanket, is lying on a park bench. Only his exposed feet, market by the nails of the cross, reveal his identity. One with the homeless, one with the poor, he reminds us that "so long as you do it for the least of my brethren, you do it for me". <br />
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Within the Cathedral itself, I was moved by the little memorial to St Laurent Imbert who was said to be the first MEP priest who said mass here. He was subsequently martyred in Korea, during a time of persecution, giving himself up so that the young congregation of believers could be spared. Fr Imbert wrote to his fellow priests, reminding them of Christ's words that he is the Good Shepherd who gives up his life for his flock. And it is in reference to that letter, that the Cathedral of the Good Shepherd was named.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgflPZ2dROLz09e8_NajrVn2EZN3K2Iu171q_x9tJE8PbkaLuPRJeR7nQNYPEUv_MxEv5KCOWF7jnLoIMBUGziD6eylMm5DF9gbJtia1CSLo8dcn0w-9VIvGvoN1dnrRW2qcAbCbDvGUYw/s640/blogger-image-1815689427.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgflPZ2dROLz09e8_NajrVn2EZN3K2Iu171q_x9tJE8PbkaLuPRJeR7nQNYPEUv_MxEv5KCOWF7jnLoIMBUGziD6eylMm5DF9gbJtia1CSLo8dcn0w-9VIvGvoN1dnrRW2qcAbCbDvGUYw/s400/blogger-image-1815689427.jpg" width="323" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Old coins and trading markers found in the time capsule</td></tr>
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Beside the Cathedral is a new building containing a small Heritage Centre. Here, you can see the original foundation stone of the building, and a time capsule containing items put there when the foundation stone was laid.<br />
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I read a little more about the history of the Cathedral (from the commemorative book I had purchased) when I got back. It was a compelling, fascinating story of how the Church first set up in Singapore and how the French priests from the Mission Estrangers de Paris (MEP) contributed to building the Catholic community here. In particular, I read about Fr Jean-Marie Beurel who not only raised funds for and built the Cathedral, but also brought in the La Salle brothers and IJ sisters to start up Catholic Schools in Singapore. Of course, the first IJ convent was set up directly opposite the Cathedral (and SJI nearby). So, my family including myself are indebted to him for our education. Through reading the book I was better able to appreciate why the Cathedral is truly the "Mother Church" of all the Catholic Churches in Singapore. And why the Cathedral also sees it as its mission to celebrate the rich heritage of the Catholic Church in Singapore. From this Church sprung all the parishes in Singapore, now over 30 in number. It brought in the teaching orders into Singapore, and helped provide nurses to the "Sepoy Lines" Hospital, and later set up Mount Alvernia Hospital. If so much can spring from the efforts and faith of just a few pioneers, imagine what all of us can do!<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzzpAIXOco51xmIZJJhcTlNakWdVYQUFFZek42XpJsRdh2C0juyZPodlmJdk15Y7DNzJ7R_y_i5GNt_2N8A-2AIVOGXw1SzYV3DrXjqHaVbA-m0LbPyWadETaUxoE0fMao-8XGe2MU0FA/s1600/Cathedral.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzzpAIXOco51xmIZJJhcTlNakWdVYQUFFZek42XpJsRdh2C0juyZPodlmJdk15Y7DNzJ7R_y_i5GNt_2N8A-2AIVOGXw1SzYV3DrXjqHaVbA-m0LbPyWadETaUxoE0fMao-8XGe2MU0FA/s400/Cathedral.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The banners representing all the Parishes in Singapore</td></tr>
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For more photos, check out my <a href="https://www.flickr.com/search/?sort=date-taken-desc&safe_search=1&tags=cathedralofthegoodshepherd&user_id=58375502%40N00&view_all=1">Flickr page</a>.Katong Galhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02438588023292216575noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6955841553501412410.post-86627394113940874422017-02-18T23:35:00.003+08:002017-02-18T23:47:51.452+08:00Pot of Patchree<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
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I have had a busy few months, going on my year-end holiday, then preparing first for Christmas followed by Chinese New Year. Then the start of the work year meant less time for my various pastimes, including updating this blog. Well, time to make up for the quiet few months!<br />
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I decided this year to make Patchree for our extended family Christmas meal and followed that up with the traditional curry devil on New Year's Day. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5TojJrei7gptweCtEep2bN8ecZfYrgJIJ6Q6bzBRT8Lad6IrRZNnOfcWPCS2h0kwW_pMh7jaND8LZxWqeK5pe7b2hy2wVOV8kiqJRWT4xT_O-A_HehUFOc6N1EpR-1hCGIgVHtTBYjr8/s640/blogger-image--1360197837.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="228" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5TojJrei7gptweCtEep2bN8ecZfYrgJIJ6Q6bzBRT8Lad6IrRZNnOfcWPCS2h0kwW_pMh7jaND8LZxWqeK5pe7b2hy2wVOV8kiqJRWT4xT_O-A_HehUFOc6N1EpR-1hCGIgVHtTBYjr8/s320/blogger-image--1360197837.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Brinjal Patchree</td></tr>
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Patchree (also spelt patchri), it seems, is not a well known dish. In fact I could not find many references to it online. Fascinatingly, however, I found one, of all unlikely sources, in the archives of the Washington Post, embedded in a 1984 <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/food/1984/03/28/cooking-by-color-the-fine-touch-of-singapores-prema-suppiah/1a35665d-ed20-41e8-8979-3e76f783b7e2/?utm_term=.d350a08a667f">article about the chef from the Singapore Embassy in Washington DC</a>! So I am truly adding something new to the universe of information found online by adding this simple recipe here!<br />
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Anyway, patchree is a Eurasian vegetable dish, probably Portuguese in origin given its hot and sour curry base, and the complex mixture of spices which go into the dish. It's traditionally made with pineapple or brinjals, but I suspect the pineapple one is more popular, albeit called by the more common name of "pineapple curry". Variations on how to prepare the dish exist - one recipe from "Robin's Eurasian Recipes" fries the brinjals, and then ladles the sauce on top. Others cook the brinjals in the gravy. This year, since I love lots of gravy, especially with loads of chili, I decided to go with Mrs Handy's recipe, which cookes the brinjal in a tamarind-based gravy. I was glad I did - my Grandmother used to refer to Mrs Handy quite a bit and so the flavours of this dish brought back memories of her cooking. And I think my family members felt the same way, for the dish was mostly finished with only three small pieces left at the end of the meal.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhO4pgjg4qQ_eCez6DHv4vtQCinfxH-rwhDWn7A8JAkOLsXvt5U5AcE4C_rEh9nntDHkLM6fg6iEiSihQYjnOos94Lngob6DIYYtpOFqlx8R9JgKbFBRnGiy7npL0-XXDg3G8U5a8ErXMc/s640/blogger-image--1362001467.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="247" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhO4pgjg4qQ_eCez6DHv4vtQCinfxH-rwhDWn7A8JAkOLsXvt5U5AcE4C_rEh9nntDHkLM6fg6iEiSihQYjnOos94Lngob6DIYYtpOFqlx8R9JgKbFBRnGiy7npL0-XXDg3G8U5a8ErXMc/s320/blogger-image--1362001467.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Devil Curry</td></tr>
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One of my aunts brought a pot of devil curry for dinner, which sort of whet my appetite for more. So, I whipped up another pot for our New Year's Day meal. I basically used the same <a href="https://katonglife.blogspot.sg/search?q=devil">devil curry recipe</a> which I have already included in this blog, but added potatoes and tomatoes into the mix. And since we had some rather nice expensive bratwurst (or whatever "wurst") I put that in too, rather than the tiny little cocktail sausages. <br />
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Just the memory of the dish makes my mouth water. Which is why I've added in the photo into this post as well.<br />
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Anyway, here's the brinjal patchree recipe from Mrs Ellie Handy's "My Favourite Recipes" (I added in the English names of the spices, and quantities of the spices in powdered form):<br />
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<b><u>Ingredients</u></b><br />
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4 tablespooons oil<br />
10 shallots, finely sliced<br />
6 cloves garlic, chopped<br />
1 cm fresh ginger, chopped<br />
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<b>Curry Paste</b><br />
1 dessertspoon Ketumbar (2 teaspoons coriander powder)<br />
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1 dessertspoon jintan puteh (2 teaspoons cumin powder)</div>
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1/2 dessertspoon jintan manis (1 teaspoon fennel powder)</div>
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Piece of turmeric, size of two peas (1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder)</div>
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8 dried chilies, soaked</div>
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2 cups thick tamarind juice from 1.5 dessertspoon tamarind</div>
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2 tablespoons sugar, or to taste (I used 4!)</div>
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Salt to taste</div>
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4 brinjals</div>
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3 green and 3 red chillies, split halfway up</div>
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2 sprigs curry leaves, optional (for garnish).</div>
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<b><u>Directions</u></b></div>
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1. Cut the brinjals lengthwise into half, and then cut each piece into two. Make two diagonal slits in the flesh of each piece and soak in water for about half an hour.</div>
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2. Make the curry paste, by blending the spices and chillies together (of course you can pound it all together if you wish). May need to add a little oil to the mixture if you are using all powders. </div>
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3. Fry the onions, garlic and ginger in the oil till soft. Add the curry paste and fry till fragrant. Then add the tamarind juice, salt and sugar to taste. Then add the brinjals and chillies. Cover the wok (I always use a wok) and leave to cook. Garnish with the curry leaves.</div>
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That's it! Simple but yummy. If you're interested, more recipes by Mrs Handy <a href="https://katonglife.blogspot.sg/search/label/Ellice%20Handy">here</a>. </div>
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Katong Galhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02438588023292216575noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6955841553501412410.post-33294881068924172032016-11-12T20:47:00.001+08:002016-11-12T20:47:17.876+08:00Michelin Meal at Candlenut RestaurantEarlier this year, the Michelin inspectors made their way to Singapore and awarded their very first Michelin stars to our local restaurants! Singaporeans being the hypercritical, food-loving people we are, we derived a lot of pleasure critiquing the Michelin inspectors' choices (a <i>soy sauce</i> chicken restaurant to get a Michelin star??) and commenting that obviously they didn't do a proper survey. But nonetheless, it remains a source of pleasure and pride that a Peranakan restaurant made the list! <br />
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Now, I have been going to <a href="http://www.candlenut.com.sg/">Candlenut</a> Restaurant, off and on, for the past few years. It used to be in the Duxton area, then moved to Dorsett Hotel, right on the border of Chinatown. And now, since 1 Nov 2016, it has shifted all the way to Dempsey Hill. I assume that the loss of accessibility will be made up for by the increase in publicity from that Michelin star.<br />
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Anyway, my colleagues and I decided to to try it. So we wended our way to Dempsey Hill to sample the Michelin star cuisine. <br />
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As there were a number of us, we were able to sample a variety of dishes. I think that where Candlenut shines is indeed in its <i>rempahs</i> - or spice mixes - which are aromatic and flavourful. Their rendang was delicious, with the tender beef and rich gravy complementing each other well. I also loved their wing bean salad, with the subtle flavours of lemongrass and lime in the tangy dressing. Their charcoal grilled sea bass was perfectly cooked, although I really did find the serving rather small. I found the <i>sayer lodeh </i>ordinary though (even though it came with a large prawn) and the ladies' fingers quite boring. In general, I must admit that the plating is of a much higher standard than the typical Nonya restaurant, where the food is just scooped into the dish with maybe a little coriander or spring onion sprinkled on top.<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Pictured below (from top-down): <i>Ayam buah keluak</i>, beef <i>rendang, sambal sotong</i>, charcoal-grilled fish, wing bean (<i>kacang botol</i>) salad.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1FM96pIKE84XxLe0wnqtWa_G0KU0J1btGsi_IEjmLk8OkUi8qrOOpjR5xvL08qV7rFtRfugkuJnKaxgcFhtyPDi-oo8NW-Xz08aDzdV6RxJSNai5MB6b44Dim0SK4KlLJByPSinI7d4Y/s1600/Candlenut_6430.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1FM96pIKE84XxLe0wnqtWa_G0KU0J1btGsi_IEjmLk8OkUi8qrOOpjR5xvL08qV7rFtRfugkuJnKaxgcFhtyPDi-oo8NW-Xz08aDzdV6RxJSNai5MB6b44Dim0SK4KlLJByPSinI7d4Y/s320/Candlenut_6430.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjF611fjpgh0qh2M_DWFbDa7erFza0GsULGduRY0Sa41VzeUqNx8Q0_UqW1OclbeyC0x60ytJdKcKvk-BiH6UJuxezkzGRBsS2DYno0pj2VYREf2VPVGcsVfTF3vyYR2BPBncKGajZ7D6Q/s1600/Candlenut_6431.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjF611fjpgh0qh2M_DWFbDa7erFza0GsULGduRY0Sa41VzeUqNx8Q0_UqW1OclbeyC0x60ytJdKcKvk-BiH6UJuxezkzGRBsS2DYno0pj2VYREf2VPVGcsVfTF3vyYR2BPBncKGajZ7D6Q/s320/Candlenut_6431.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTdLmHlXc_yiOu8KzqnX9T0U0QitnA3yALUehhAUXFxy0gnPxKQa1mIk_r3Ic7KijW0DjbBqdqEZYnh_r5ZjaYG6AggdRsC6mNL1C51qWwsvqi1AAatV2ylr30szCaXwUEOg1j8Tte5KY/s1600/Candlenut_6432.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTdLmHlXc_yiOu8KzqnX9T0U0QitnA3yALUehhAUXFxy0gnPxKQa1mIk_r3Ic7KijW0DjbBqdqEZYnh_r5ZjaYG6AggdRsC6mNL1C51qWwsvqi1AAatV2ylr30szCaXwUEOg1j8Tte5KY/s320/Candlenut_6432.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgy3hjg5KkyIrGA4bkPPEM9UgujGDhO7blZU6jkKX8xw6vnMD5WBHZDZNUu0WrfQ6Y44eSCnN4mmWMencZSsDu3ITssNFMQBr7-uKFqxRg8HmBLZJKppfNyjax7yYAHhaC6zxZkxQEwXtI/s1600/Candlenut_6434.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgy3hjg5KkyIrGA4bkPPEM9UgujGDhO7blZU6jkKX8xw6vnMD5WBHZDZNUu0WrfQ6Y44eSCnN4mmWMencZSsDu3ITssNFMQBr7-uKFqxRg8HmBLZJKppfNyjax7yYAHhaC6zxZkxQEwXtI/s320/Candlenut_6434.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Not forgetting dessert.... .... I think my favourite dessert remains the "Textures of Coconut", with the coconut sorbet sitting on a base of coconut jelly, topped with coconut cream and desiccated coconut. It's so fresh and light, yet rich and creamy at the same time. Sorry no photo - I was too greedy and forgot to take one (just tucked right in).<br />
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Is this a Michelin worthy meal? To be honest, I don't see it as being so superior to other good Peranakan restaurants (and others are "better value" aka cheaper). But it is a very nice restaurant and it was a truly delicious meal. So yes, I would definitely go there again. <br />
<br />Katong Galhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02438588023292216575noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6955841553501412410.post-39093977402662250182016-10-29T19:29:00.000+08:002017-02-18T23:49:56.324+08:00Nyonya Needlework<br><div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEib21DuQl-Jl6dUvUf6QO8Jce6_Lr7PTU0vKaQrAZKUpa8NJpua2kHdtcFw5wJBminrema91gQX5ANLn24yMfMnbvKplCKW9UyWdhaAqoNonir36baSmHDV2yBoSntCoG_T8ba0CYB4Hgk/s1600/Nyonya+Needlework+Exhibition_6295.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEib21DuQl-Jl6dUvUf6QO8Jce6_Lr7PTU0vKaQrAZKUpa8NJpua2kHdtcFw5wJBminrema91gQX5ANLn24yMfMnbvKplCKW9UyWdhaAqoNonir36baSmHDV2yBoSntCoG_T8ba0CYB4Hgk/s320/Nyonya+Needlework+Exhibition_6295.jpg" width="320"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">On the Curator's Tour</td></tr>
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The latest exhibition at the Peranakan Museum Singapore is on "<a href="https://www.blogger.com/%3Ca%20href=%22http://peranakanmuseum.org.sg/exhibitions/nyonya-needlework%22%20rel=%22nofollow%22%3Eperanakanmuseum.org.sg/exhibitions/nyonya-needlework%3C/a%3E">Nyonya Needlework</a>". I had the pleasure of going on a Curator's Tour of the exhibition the other week, and learnt so much about the history of this beautiful craft as well as about the numerous beaded and embroidered exhibits! <br>
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The curator was at pains to explain two key points. First, that "needlework" here was used as a generic term to cover embroidered and beaded items. Second, that the exhibits may <u>not</u> have been personally made by the nyonyas themselves for their own use or that of their families. Just like today, they may have been made by seamstresses/ shoemakers, or beadworkers/embroiderers who do this job for a living. (There was one piece which was apparently worked on by the nyonya herself and the quality, according to the curator, was not so good). I do tend to agree that the intricacy and scale of some of these pieces may have been beyond the scope of a normal household. <br>
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The exhibition is divided into 5 main sections: the first looks at needlework techniques and materials; <br>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Phoenix in flight - detail from bed hanging</td></tr>
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the second, on the auspicious symbols and elements which are often incorporated into the needlework pieces; the other three sections covered exhibits from Indonesia, Malacca/Singapore, and Penang. Our curator showed us one of the oldest known examples of Peranakan embroidery - a simple bed hanging from Indonesia, which had been sent to a Dutch museum. The date of acquisition, in the mid 1840s, had been recorded by the museum - it was really wonderful to see that even after all these years, the bed hanging was still in such good condition.<br>
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My favourite piece was another bed hanging, a very intricate bed hanging for a wedding bed which used a threading technique to thread the beads together. It was a truly spectacular piece, designed to hang from the top of the bed. The curator noted that it was likely used only for the wedding itself, given that it was rather heavy and not practical for everyday use. Again, I marvelled that such a delicate item had survived for so long and in such good condition, that we could continue to admire it even today.<br>
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Aside from the intricate threading work (the technique has been lost in the mists of time), I really like the cute little boatmen, the animals (birds, a little dragon, and some other strange creature), and the beautiful, beaded fringe.<br>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAg0WFrob_WUHDOSmB8N9nRo-KNRVyCyMWxtnpjJR-c-VwCfDyzIaOFrkkWeeIj2t-2UCfmHFMraOt8yMvtgUyxvMmAeWRbodywtUr9bvqGAz0uW0SuCwStkmke5FuelXy4MwvrN3vvPY/s1600/Nyonya+Needlework+Exhibition_6299.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="292" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAg0WFrob_WUHDOSmB8N9nRo-KNRVyCyMWxtnpjJR-c-VwCfDyzIaOFrkkWeeIj2t-2UCfmHFMraOt8yMvtgUyxvMmAeWRbodywtUr9bvqGAz0uW0SuCwStkmke5FuelXy4MwvrN3vvPY/s640/Nyonya+Needlework+Exhibition_6299.jpg" width="640"></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Threaded Wedding Bed Hanging</td></tr>
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The exhibits also helped illustrate the practices and way of life of the Peranakan community. Use of European motifs (e.g. light haired children, dogs, cats etc) showed how the community sought to emulate the western way of life, but adapted to suit their own preferences. It showed how the community thought of itself as still very Chinese, as can be seen in the use of Chinese symbols and motifs as well. The Penang section, according to the curator, presented the items used in the wedding chamber, such as a lovely embroidered silk tablecloth, wall items and clothing items. <br>
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I am just a very amateur beadworker (and I am not too sure that I want to embark upon a second pair of shoes at this point in time). But somehow, I did feel that sense of connection to nyonyas past who had painstakingly worked on making this beautiful items to delight the eye.<br>
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There are many more photos of the exhibition to be seen at my Flickr site: https://www.flickr.com/search/?sort=date-taken-desc&safe_search=1&tags=nyonyaneedlework&user_id=58375502%40N00&view_all=1Katong Galhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02438588023292216575noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6955841553501412410.post-65329296876477246782016-09-25T17:58:00.000+08:002017-02-18T23:49:56.328+08:00The Long Table<br />
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The "Tok Panjang" is a Hokkien/Malay "portmanteau word" which means "long table", or a table liberally covered with lots of yummy dishes where the family serves itself, buffet style, on special occasions such as Chinese New Year or birthdays, etc. <br />
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It's also the name of a new restaurant on East Coast Road, which ironically serves a limited menu meant for individuals/ small groups having a quick meal. Dishes like <i>mee siam</i>, Penang laksa, Nonya Lam Mee, etc. There are a few mains such as <i>babi pongteh, rendang</i>, and sambal prawns, which can be purchased <i>a la carte</i> or as a set (which comes with rice and a serving of <i>chap chye</i> and <i>itek tim</i>). It has also a selection of appetisers for sharing, such as <i>kueh pie tee, ngor hiang</i>, etc.<br />
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In general, the food is tasty and good as one would expect of restaurants under the <a href="http://houseofperanakan.com.sg/our-restaurants-2/">House of Peranakan </a>group. I enjoyed the <i>mee siam</i>, which was sharp and tangy, and the Penang Laksa tastes like the real thing. Even my father (who compares every bowl of Penang laksa to his grandmother's family recipe) said it was "quite good". On another occasion we shared a <i>babi pongteh</i> set and sambal prawns amongst two people and it was probably just right for two light eaters. <br />
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Prices are reasonable too - though obviously a little more expensive than hawker centres. But I did find the appetisers a little on the expensive side, as portions are small.<br />
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In the highly competitive restaurant scene, it's really a struggle for all these small restaurants to survive and thrive. All I can do is publicise my favourites as best I can on this blog. <br />
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So here's wishing Tok Panjang well!Katong Galhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02438588023292216575noreply@blogger.com1