Malaysia and Milo

[JustKay]

interesting: "kandha" is hindi for shoulder; "kaandh" in bengali

It's very likely that the Malay word kandar came from the Indian language/s.

I think the theory that it was used to conceal the flavour of powdered milk sounds most plausible to me.

Sorry, but I have to disagree.

And Kew, thanks for the Nasi Kandar explanation

You're most welcome.

Edited June 15, 2004 by kew (log)

[JustKay]

One other thing: I didn't realize Malaysia produced cocoa. Where in Malaysia is cocoa grown?

I think it's currently in 3rd place after palm oil and rubber in the order of agriculture importance. We even have our very own cocoa board now. Malaysia Cocoa Board

Sabah is the largest producing cocoa state, followed by Sarawak. In the Peninsula, cocoa trees are planted along the coastline and usually as a 'buffer crop' - not too sure if that's the correct translated term (I mean to say it's planted in between rubber trees, for instance)

Unfortunately, the quality of chocolates and chocolate products produced in Malaysia is left much to be desired.

[Adam Balic]

Many Australians that grew up in the 70's/80's will have been raised on a diet of Milo, meat and tinned peaches. Don't know if it was ever popular in the UK, but it seems to be an ex-colonial thing as the Milo sold in Edinburgh is only availble from the Chinese grocer and is made in Kenya. Doesn't taste as good as 20 year old memory of Australian Milo. I liked mine on icecream.

[Laksa]

horlicks was strictly for the grandma set.

What?! As a great fan (but an erstwhile drinker) of Horlicks, I am deeply offended. What could be better tasting and more nutritious than a steaming mug of rich malty goodness that is Horlicks?

Drink it before bed to guarantee yourself a night of blissfull slumber and dreams of warm blankets and puppy dogs.

In fact, I'm going to have one right now... Mmmmm... delici...zzzZZZZZZ

[Laksa]

I know this thread is abt Milo, but I've often wondered similarly abt the strange appeal of Spam in E Asia. (I don't think it's as popular in SE Asia, am I right?)

By East Asia, do you mean Japan and Korea?

Can't speak for Siberia, but I've never known SPAM to be all that popular in Japan or Korea.

Are you perhaps thinking of the popularity of SPAM in Hawaii and islands of the South Pacific, where it's considered a delicacy? I believe they serve spam in sushi and maki rolls.

Don't really care for SPAM myself, but when I need to get my fix of Sodium Nitrite, Ma Ling luncheon meat does nicely. Or those Chinese produced little cans of cubed pork meat in spicy bean paste....or canned "kou rou", which are fatty slices of pork belly fried and then stewed with preserved vegetables... ohhh yummm...

Canned meat SHOULD NOT taste this good! It's a clear violation of the Geneva conventions, and goes against everything my mother taught me!

[Laksa]

I think the theory that it was used to conceal the flavour of powdered milk sounds most plausible to me.

Sorry, but I have to disagree.

I think I have to second kew here. I believe the success of Milo in Malaysia is due primarily to incredibly savvy marketing that was probably ahead of its time. Large trucks going around the country dispensing free ice cold Milo to kids? Ingenious! Add to that sponsorships of sports and promoting itself as a health food drink and you've got a winner.

And it doesn't hurt that the product tastes pretty good too. It was served more often with condensed milk (or just sugar) rather than milk powder or UHT milk anyway. Although I have no clue what went into those big trucks. Might be some enhanced version of Milo you could never reproduce at home, for all I know.

[Tepee]

All this Milo van talk is making me yearn for the secret recipe behind it...so, I've written to them...let's see if they will reveal all. Anyway, check out the Milo site and story. Very interesting read...bits about the Milo van and some Milo recipes.

Edited June 15, 2004 by TP(M'sia) (log)

[mongo_jones]

horlicks was strictly for the grandma set.

What?! As a great fan (but an erstwhile drinker) of Horlicks, I am deeply offended. What could be better tasting and more nutritious than a steaming mug of rich malty goodness that is Horlicks?

Drink it before bed to guarantee yourself a night of blissfull slumber and dreams of warm blankets and puppy dogs.

In fact, I'm going to have one right now... Mmmmm... delici...zzzZZZZZZ

hey grandma!

don't get upset at me--i was just talking about india.

mongo

[Mooshmouse]

I drank both Milo and Ovaltine during my early childhood in the Philippines, though I did prefer Ovaltine. And yes, I did like dipping a teaspoon into the tin and then eating the powder on it's own.

ecr, to answer your question about Spam, Filipinos thrive on it and other tinned processed meats like corned beef. Haven't eaten it in years but would probably polish off at least half a can myself if my Mom made it at her house...

[JustKay]

All this Milo van talk is making me yearn for the secret recipe behind it...so, I've written to them...let's see if they will reveal all. Anyway, check out the Milo site and story. Very interesting read...bits about the Milo van and some Milo recipes.

They'll probably give us the 'recipe' on the can! But who knows ...? Nestle's customer service is quite good. I bought a pack of the Milo in the box packets and 2 of them were bad. I called them and not too long after I received RM5 in cash in the mail. (But in the case of Drinho Soya Milk - the Manager himself came to deliver a box of 24 1L packs!) Anyways, the Milo rep told me that with the tetra packs sometimes that happens because it's almost impossible to detect very minute holes.

Anyways, I came across a blog of someone who went in search for the 'perfect Milo Ais' and I think he found a very close clone at one Mamak stall in PJ. I can't remember the blog site though.

It was served more often with condensed milk (or just sugar) rather than milk powder or UHT milk anyway. 

I was gonna point that out too, but ....

I don't seem to notice that milk is a problem in Malaysia. From when I was little until now, it has been and is always easy to get milk - in whatever form except maybe the "non-fat dry milk powder" which some American recipes calls for. When I was little, there was always the Benggali guy who delivered fresh milk (which had to be boiled/cooked before consuming) every day.

Edited June 16, 2004 by kew (log)

[Shiewie]

Has anyone tried cooking with Milo - Milo cakes, agar-agar, ice-cream?

[Tepee]

Sure, I've made Milo agar-agar before. Children love them. No specific recipe; just winged it with milk and milo. However, there'll be some residual speckled Milo at the bottom.

Hmmm, Milo cakes and ice-cream? That's a thought.

[JustKay]

However, there'll be some residual speckled Milo at the bottom.

True dat.

I make 'ais krim malaysia' with milo. But that's nothing special - just like frozen Milo.

[yunnermeier]

Guess what I found out? Apparently Milo originated from Germany

Milo is not chocolate exactly.. It's uh..malt. Kinda like the filling in Malteasers.

And you're right, the best Milo comes from those trucks. Ah the good ol days...

That said, the Mamak's version isn't so bad although it is a tad sweet. And lord forbid you come across a Mamak which sells diluted *gasp* Milo. I HATE diluted milo!

Ahem, the Milo as I know it, is made up of condensed milk. Milo with powdered milk/fresh milk is not milo

p/s: maggi mee goreng is yummy. It's just like normal mamak mee goreng (spices everything). The only difference being the noodles

[BastilaShan]

I love Milo!!

When i was a kid, i would drink tons of Milo, especially the cold ones since the weather was tropical year round.

[His Nibs]

Hmm.... Milo and Jabob's Cream Crackers! Yummy! That's comfort food! Make a good bowl of Milo (with condensed milk, not milk and sugar!). Get a coupla of Jacob's cream crackers, break crackers into pieces and dunk it in the Milo

Edited August 29, 2004 by His Nibs (log)

[LaurieA-B]

Milo was all over Bangkok when I visited a couple of years ago. The McDonald's restaurants offer Milo (on ice) as one of their soft drinks. There were little Milo bars (like candy bars, only good for you!) in the groceries, and Milo ice cream bars (chocolate-coated, I think). I tried all of the above and the only one that I found delicious was the ice cream bars. Here in Seattle, the Asian grocery stores sell jars of both Milo and Ovaltine.

[JustKay]

Sadly .... Nestle has again changed it's recipe for Milo. The recent can I bought taste so bleh. And if the boxed/canned ready-to-drink Milo was the closest one could get to the much loved iced-cold-Milo-from-Milo-trucks, it is no longer so.