Tepee

Since I'm now at my mother's home (she used to sell these), I asked her how she made it. And, lo! The recipe is exactly the same as the one posted above. The only differences are she used raw prawns and kneaded the dough very thoroughly, after which she formed into long rolls and steamed them for around an hour. Cool and put into the fridge. When it's hard, it's easier to slice thinly. The slices are arranged on a very big plate, and are sunned until very dry. They didn't have an electric oven back then. I'm still trying to get over the fact that American prawn crackers are basically the same as ours.

I decided to fry rice for lunch...a quickie. I use Sarawak black rice, which after cooking looks more purplish brown. Marinated some Aussie topside with teriyaki and worcestershire sauce before leaving the house. I seared the beef and then thinly sliced it. The insides are still pinkish. My mother (an incredible chinese homecook) made some sweet pork meat for me, so I cut up a big slice. Saute onions, add above 2 ingredients and carrots and fry in the wok for just a minute or two. Lastly add apples and cut-up wakame. This is my trusty 13-year old cast iron wok. Voila! Lunch is served. The girls like to fill butterheads with rice and pop their packages into their mouths. Drink: A very refreshing jug of coconut juice, with young flesh. Gotta go....it's storming...don't want my computer to fry too!!!!

We never have breakfast at home on Sundays because mommy is not a morning person and we leave early for church. Our church has volunteers who provide refreshment (my turn is on Apr 10) after service. However, the term 'refreshment' is a misnomer...it's more like brunch! Today, the 'refreshment' table had Radish cake/Lo Bak Go Vegetable dumplings filled with jicama and kuchai/chives at the back. The skin is made from tang meen fun flour/ a non-gluten flour. In front is a roll made from rice noodle sheets. The filling is chilli, jicama, pickled veggie/choy po, and dried shrimp. We also had cookies and this pandan cake roll filled with kaya. Eek, I never buy such rolls...too much coloring. I prefer to make them myself.

Just to add a little bit to Kew's, I had a chat with a Malaccan friend this morning, and he said that Penang Peranakan food has a wider repertoire. For example, a true blue Malaccan nyonya will not be familiar with ju hu char (jicama strips fried with cuttlefish) which is basically a Penang innovation.

Why, thank you, Mizducky. Ask away....you have 9 more hours to do so before the Msian segment ends. Just kidding! Snap a pic any time you need to know something and start a thread or pm us. We'll be happy to help. edit: Pan beat me to it.

Yeah, I figured that out. Good one. Between you and Tepee, the photos in this foodblog are among the best of any. Yet the proprietors are almost always sourpusses about taking photos? Why do you suppose that is? ← 'cause it's like capturing, stealing, dissipating...our souls/spririts.... ← Frankly, I think proprietors who distrust cameras have a "kiasu" (scared to lose) attitude. They may be afraid you'll steal some of their business secrets. Ummm, the 'capturing of soul part' is more a pantang/taboo for chinese (don't know about Malays) women who are pregnant. I didn't respect that, though.

For dessert, there were ice-cream for the kids and kid-at-heart. Oops...on the left is a local Lychee ice-cream (new product...I've to try them all) and on the right is Sara Lee's Strawberries and Cream.

I forgot to mention that the tea is sweetened with durian-flower honey from Cameron Highlands. Very fragrant. Fragrant = don't think durian....just some fragrance you can't put your finger on.

Dian, in these containers dwell yummy rendang daging, lauk sotong, kari ayam (chicken) and sambal ikan bilis. Kew, do tell us more about lemang. I only know how to eat. By the way, there's one good lemang stall on the way down from Genting Highlands. Really lemak.

Like Kew, I don't 'work'(cook)during weekends (at least I try not to think too hard ). Tonite, we tried a new Yeong (Fish Paste Stuffed) Tofu (YTF) place on the recommendation of DH's colleague. Boy, oh, boy, it was the BEST YTF I've ever tasted. It wasn't the shrivelled-up commercial stuff which are already heaped on trays for you to choose. The lady only starts making them after you give your orders. I realize I should have taken each stuffed stuff individually, but the camera's battery was on its last legs, so here they are. There are fish balls, stuffed brinjals, lady's fingers, bitter gourd, tofu skin, tofu (of course) and deep-fried tofu balls. The soup was very good too, and it didn't leave you thirsty afterwards like those heavy on MSG would. Both the chilli sauce and sweet gravy were well-bodied, not watery and insipid like so many others. Really good stuff (no pun intended).

Pan, the pasar is in Overseas Union Garden (OUG), Kuala Lumpur.

I didn't take pics of our lunch. DH made rice porridge with the roast pork and served it with cruellers. Was too tired editing the pics to size and posting them. See you at dinner!

Next door is the famous Indian restaurant Steven's Corner. Here's a step-by-step on how to make roti canai. Here he's doing the roti pisang/banana. Chopping the bananas Don't blink...watch the roti grow! Add bananas Fold very quickly into 4 Here's the roti pisang at home I like my roti shredded and with tea. This is local Mayang tea, tea leaves from Kinabalu, Sabah. They sell various deep-fried meat too.

This housing estate (DH's homeground) is bursting with chinese medicine halls, all of them seem to have roaring business. We go to this one...prices are not fixed, the regulars get good discounts. What's ailing you?

Local fruits: bananas, papayas, guavas Jambu air (I've got a tree at home) I didn't venture into the wet market because the littlest one was with me. DH went in to buy the chicken and veggies. Sorry, no pics.

Here comes the GOOD part.....FOOD! Char Siu and Siu Yoke man. Bought some for lunch. Tau foo fa with white sugar syrup flavored with pandan leaves and ginger, gula melaka and soya bean milk. Chinese cruellers and sesame dough balls with red bean fillings etc. Pickled vegetables/acar, grilled glutinous rice with dried prawns, chilli and coconut filling/pulut panggang, zoong zi, kaya (original and brown sugar) Meen chang kueh (thick with peanuts/sugar and thin with shredded coconut/peanuts and sugar) Mmmmm...lemang (smoked coconut glutinous rice in bamboos) and rendang This nasi lemak stall has been here for 15 years. We're one of their faithful patrons. Very, very reasonable...their daging rendang is goooooooood!

Can't find a fitting room? Not to worry, bring them home to try. Hmmm...I think I must replenish my supply of canes Booster seats, anyone? Cute rocking horse. Bowls, soup spoons, chopsticks Fortune(if you believe it) Bracelets

To market, to market, to snap pics for eGulleteers.... Oodles of Noodles Sausages and imported dried stuff Dried squid (for soup), dried chrysanthemum (for drink), gei zi/boxthorn berries(for soup), dong sum (soup) More dried stuff: Mushrooms, anchovies of different sizes, some cleaned, some whole Crackers and biscuits, what's your favorite? Chinese herb sold in the open are sometimes of slightly inferior quality, caveat emptor Red and Yellow, Black and White Beans...that is. I think I see soy beans and groundnuts too

Thanks, Pan!

Answers to above questions: #1. Shiewie: The pandan leaves will not disintegrate when you whisk the eggs and sugar. Just fish it out when you're through. To be on the safe side, strain mixture. #2. Kew: Thanks for the brown sugar reminder. I actually used brown sugar, but I was kinda sleepy when I typed the recipe out last night. You thought it was a chinese dessert? I thought it was a Malay dessert because I first saw it in Jelita magazine! #3. Abra: Soccer ball refers to the size. Spent a very fruitful morning at the open air market. The photos are being downloaded. Will post asap.

TMI!!!!!!

Hello! Now I'm thinking nobody reads my posts. *emphasis added* btw, will you share the pumpkin kaya/egg custard recipe please? ← Thanks, Kew, you're Da Best!

It also occurred to me to ask for the recipe, but I wonder if it's better to ask what it'll take to have a pie fedexed to me? Did you say you bake professionally now? I don't recall... If not, now's as good a time to start as any, right? ← Come, come, my friend with the spicy name, you're asking ME for a western dessert when you're living where??? BTW, I didn't make this particular tart. My friend Sandra gave it to me. She knows how much I appreciate her bakes. All, and I mean, ALL, her pastries and cakes are AWESOME! She buys flour all the way from the UK or uses organic flour for all her cakes. Apparently, the local flour doesn't work for her recipes. Pumpkin kaya recipe(an example of a deceptively simple recipe) One pumpkin slightly smaller than a soccer ball 6 medium-sized eggs 3 pcs pandan leaves (cut into 2-inch lengths) first pressed milk from one coconut (approx. 200 ml) 150 ml gran. sugar/brown sugar/gula melaka pinch of salt Decapitate soccer ball pumpkin. Remove seeds and stringy stuff. Wash, dry. Beat sugar together with eggs and pandan leaves till sugar has dissolved. Remove leaves. Stir in coconut milk (with salt added to it earlier). Set the pumpkin in a heat-proof bowl. Pour mixture into cavity. Steam for an hour or so. Test with fork to see if the custard has set. This baby takes a looooong time to cool down. Give it some help. It tastes very good when chilled. Enjoy! Edit to add: Laksa, please also be very gentle as you transfer it to a plate to do the slicing. Treat it like you treat Ms Congeeniality. 2nd edition: Included other sugars.

You had coconut with the cheese tart? Find coconut (santan) in pumpkin kaya below.Actually, I made this last evening, so that we can serve it chilled tonite. Where is this new cake supplies shop? It's another branch of Bake with Yen...in Bandar Puteri Puchong, double/triple the size of the Taman Megah one. ←

Dinner tonight was, Salmon Potato Cutlets, where I added the kaffir lime and kadok leaves, big dollop of mayonnaise, fried shallots and finally rolled in egg, wholemeal breadcrumb and rolled oats. The children can't take spicy so the chilli part goes into the dip. I can't take too spicy either so instead of chilli padi, I used regular red chillies. Other ingredients are bunga kantan (hello, interpreters?), lime and calamansi, sugar. This would actually go very well with a glass noodle salad, but I didn't have any g. noodles and I was too tired to get some, so I did a fusion thing, by frying spinach fettucine with lots of garlic and EVOO, and spinach (<--- girls need iron.) Dinner was deliberately light because the dessert is very rich. Pumpkin kaya/egg custard. I love this dessert; good to make impression. Once I made it for a family potluck and a SIL was so impressed, she spent the whole night figuring out how I made it. Watermelon served as slices and a drink (see those happy faces?).