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The famous Red Prawn (Ang Heh) durian at Balik Pulau, Penang

Desserts, Durians, Exotic food, Food reviews, Stalls 25 Responses »

Aug 012012

red prawn durian

This should be called The Hunt for Red ~~October~~ Prawn. Red Prawn or Udang Merah is known locally in Hokkien as “Ang Heh” – it’s a breed of durian only available in Penang – there’s too much local demand (and exports to countries like Singapore I imagine) for it to come down to Klang Valley.

Thus, after 4 meals before 12 pm we finally drove to Balik Pulau (it’s where the orchards for Ang Heh are) where I ran down to stall after stall only to be told the same thing:

There are no Red Prawn durians. The season just ended.

One stall sold his *very last* Red Prawn durian to a customer just before we came.

balik pulau durian stall

I had almost given up at this point when the next stall claimed to have Red Prawn. In fact, there were 4 of these luscious durians.

red prawn penang

Red Prawn is characterized by it’s red colored flesh and small seeds. It’s not bright red like the Sarawakian local ones, although some can have an orange hue, with just a tinge of red, or striped. I paid RM 45 for one durian – it’s RM 25/kg after a bit of bargaining.

ang heh durian

The durian only had 5 seeds!!!

red prawn

That works out to about RM 10 per seed. It was delicious though, definitely worth it for durian lovers. :)

Suanie got another one to take away, this has more seeds and it’s heavier, cost RM 50. There’s also various other Penang-only durians on offer – you can listen to the proprietor talking about it.

Koh Tsu Koon durian

Koh Tsu Koon is also another famous durian strain but I couldn’t afford to part with another RM 50 for a tiny durian, despite it being famed for having miniscule or no seeds at all, which is a running joke about the ex-Penang CM.

udang merah

All in all, it was a good durian hunt – I got to eat Red Prawn and even though it wasn’t as red as what I tasted on a previous excursion, it’s good. It tastes like Red Prawn.

durian udang merah

Sarawak also has a bright red colored durian (as does Penang, which has several). Red Prawn is pretty good, and at that price point, a bargain compared to overrated durian strains like Musang King.

eating red prawn durian

We sapu-ed two out of the four Red Prawn durians left – it was the end of season for that strain, D15 is still going strong though. :)

Donald's Durian SS2

Desserts, Food reviews, Stalls 30 Responses »

Jul 102012

durians

Durian runtuh!

durians water

It’s durian season again. :)

donalds durian ss2

I went to Donald’s Durian which is just beside SS2 durian over the weekend to binge on the King of Fruits. The price has gone up since I last went – it’s now RM 10 for the durian buffet…but there’s heaps of people even at midnight!

ss2 durians

You don’t get the good durians like Musang King/Raja Kunyit/D197 at that price though – it’s sold separately, was quoted RM 22/kg here which is quite cheap. Musang King apparently means Elvis Presley, an interesting name to call a strain.

eating durians

The RM 10 durian buffet is everywhere in SS2 now and you can eat to your hearts content on various lower grade durians. It’s a very good deal, and you get tissues and water to go with it. ;)

selecting durian

There’s a lot of the common but relatively premium D24, D101 and Holo/Labu/D163 durians for sale too. Funny thing was, we almost forgot to pay, we were leaving and then I suddenly remembered that we haven’t paid and went back to do so. No one stopped us, probably coz of the crowd. Heh.

eating durian

I’m looking for Durian Botak (D172) and the Sarawakian durian called Kepala Babi (D170) – anyone seen them around? :)

Currywurst in Berlin

Berlin, Europe, Food reviews, Germany, Stalls, Travel 16 Responses »

Jul 022012

currywurst germany

You’ve gotta try this when you’re in Berlin! The word “curry” in currywurst might make it sound like it’s not an authentic German dish but it’s 100% from Berlin. It was invented in 1949 according to Wikipedia by a lady called Herta Heuwer.

The Volkwagen Autostadt in Wolfsburg produces it’s own currywurst but but we unfortunately did not manage to try it coz it was raining heavily and we had a train to catch.

organic currywurst

Thus, we had the one in Berlin – it’s a takeaway food and currywurst is made of pork sausages drowned in ketchup and a healthy sprinkling of curry powder before being cut into slices. The proprietor told me that the steamed currywurst originates from the former East Berlin while the currywurst that’s steamed, dipped in batter and fried are from the former West Berlin.

currywurst

I tried both and I preferred the ones without the skin. It’s delicious, I was really full from lunch but ate both types anyway and despite being a tad salty (which is really something coming from me), it was absolutely fabulous!

currywurst berlin

It’s one of those local snacks that you just have to try. It’s sweet, tangy and salty – the Germans make good sausages. The currywurst stand in Berlin that we went to serves organic pork sausages for 3.30 Euros. :)

Deep fried battered burgers!

Food reviews, Stalls 18 Responses »

May 252012

battered burgers

This is one of the most sinfully delicious finds that I’ve had the pleasure of eating recently. I was at the Langkawi pasar malam and chanced upon this deep fried burger stall.

deep fried burgers

Let me reiterate the awesomeness of that sentence just in case it didn’t quite sink in.

fried burger

It’s an entire burger that’s been dipped in batter before being deep fried in glorious churning oil until it’s golden brown.

deep fried burger

It’s just RM 1.50 but the patties seem to have been sliced in half.

artery clogging

This burger will clog your arteries faster than you can eat it. :)

Chan Sau Lin fish head

Chinese, Food reviews, Stalls 24 Responses »

Mar 232012

fish head

I remember having really good fish head in 2005. I was working in Kuching at that time and one of our partners brought us to the famous Chan Sau Lin fish head during a business trip here. As luck would have it, we went to the very same place yesterday.

chan sau lin

It’s now moved from Jalan Chan Sau Lin No 3 (thus the Cantonese moniker) to Jalan Chan Sau Lin No 5. The place is huge, with a semi-outdoor (meaning it’s ventilated but covered) court and an air-conditioned area.

tai sam lou

This is what’s left of the famous hot and sweltering fish head at Tai Sam Lou with the famous tree – a faded photo. The tree stump is apparently still there.

chicken steamed

I don’t go around to these parts pretty often and a lot of people say that the fish head has deteriorated. They do serve a pretty mediocre plate of pak cham kai (steamed chicken).

curry fishhead

We ordered two fish heads – one is the curry version which I didn’t like at all. The curry gravy overpowered the fish. I like my fish to be as close to natural as possible.

fermented soy fish

The other one we had was the fermented soy sauce fish head. This is delicious! The way it’s cooked left the fish head relatively unmolested and there’s bird’s eye chili on top to add that additional zap to the palate. Succulent and tender, it left me digging into the head for stray pieces of fish.

me fishhead

Here’s a cheesy shot of me. The new place is at Jalan Lima off Jalan Chan Sau Lin in Sungai Besi. Don’t ask me for the GPS coordinates coz I broke my phone in Phuket but you can call 017-224 2133 for Hoi. I gleaned all that from the card I took from the place.

Lunch cost us RM 99 for four people, including a dish of bean sprouts I didn’t bother to take. ;)

Babi Guling in Bali

Bali, Food reviews, Indonesian, Stalls, Travel 34 Responses »

Jan 012012

babi guling bali

This is probably the most famous Balinese cuisine – babi guling.

babi guling denpasar

It’s suckling pig cooked over a fire with herbs and spices and contrary to popular belief, the best and freshest babi guling can only be found in the morning since that’s when it’s prepared.

babi guling stall

I wanted to go somewhere that isn’t commercialized like Ibu Oka so I asked to go where the locals went.

babi guling queue

This turned out to be somewhere in working-class Denpasar, far from the touristy areas and full of people in bikes waiting their turn to take away a packet of pork goodness.

babi guling

A full babi guling meal comes served with several pieces of pork, crispy pork skin, pork crackling, pork sausage, pork satay, deep fried pork liver and a side of bird’s eye chilli. There’s also a bowl of hearty soup that contains huge chunks of pork fat.

bali guling me

I loved it! We had this in the morning and it was so good that I finished everything. It costs IDR 30,000 which works out to about RM 10. It’s the most satisfying meal I had in Bali. Goes very well with a bottle of Bintang beer. :D

Bakso in Bali

Bali, Food reviews, Stalls, Travel 30 Responses »

Dec 292011

bakso beef

Bakso is a dish of noodles, meatballs and other assorted stuff served in a soup. It’s usually found on the streets – this particular variant comes with a *huge* fist sized beef ball. It’s homemade and the meat is slightly pink and tender on the inside. IDR 7,000 which is about RM 2.40 – it’s worth it for the gigantic homemade beef ball alone. :)

bakso

However, the best bakso that we had was outside the Legian beach – it’s one of those portable stalls that allows the vendor to carry his wares behind his motorcycle and literally set up shop there. Nothing beats a hot bowl of this on a rainy evening by the beach.

bakso bali

We just had a very chill afternoon of swimming and lounging on the beach before it suddenly started raining. I really wanted to try the bakso and the guy who owns the stall was quite pleased to have our business and took several photos of us with his stall. He insisted.

bakso stall

The setup is pretty similar but the stall had run out of noodles and egg so it’s just plain bakso (meatballs).

bakso meatball

The meatballs are held in a side area which is constantly heated but surprisingly retains the tender and juiciness of the meatballs.

bakso spicy

You can choose whether you want it spicy or regular (highly recommend the spicy) and it comes to you in a piping hot steaming bowl of goodness.

bakso locals

We sat down on a little nook right on the sidewalk just like the locals – it was that and the cold, wet and drizzling weather offset with a nice bowl of heartwarming spicy bakso that made this the best one we had in Bali. IDR 5,000 (RM 1.70).

bakso motorbike

Fresh raised a very good question though – where does the guy wash the bowls? :)

Braised pigeon, roasted meat (siu mei) and waxed meat (lap mei) in Hong Kong

Chinese, Food reviews, Hong Kong, Stalls, Travel 30 Responses »

Dec 072011

hong kong siu mei

Siu mei shops can be found all over Hong Kong. These places specialize in Cantonese-style roasted meat – they have everything from plain steamed chicken to roasted goose. They also serve up a gamut of pork dishes – I’ve even seen an entire pig being displayed at one of these restaurants.

roasted meat hong kong

It was a rainy night when we stumbled upon one of the best siew mei (roasted meat) places in Hong Kong. We weren’t really hungry, we just wanted a place to sit down.

eating pigeon

We had spent the best part of the night browsing at Temple Street and I noticed this hole-in-the-wall place which is dirty, slightly dodgy, very loud, and thronged by locals.

lap mei

It serves waxed meat (lap mei) as well! I’m quite fond of the stuff so I decided to check it out.

hong kong local siu mei

The interior had a couple of tables and chairs thrown together and it’s full of old men. There’s definitely no English menu – it’s a place catering to locals. Perfect, that’s just the way I like it. :)

eating pigeon hong kong

Anyway, we ate about five meals a day while on vacation in Hong Kong so we decided to order a braised pigeon to share. The pigeon is served whole so you can see the small head and beak perpetually frozen in a mid-squawk of dismay. ;) It doesn’t have a lot of meat on it, but it’s very tasty. The meat is slightly tough but the flavor is excellent. I absolutely loved it.

braised pigeon

The lap cheong (waxed Cantonese sausages) in Hong Kong is pretty good too. The flavor is almost neutral. I know, that doesn’t sound very appetizing but it’s great! It’s not as salty as the usual lap cheong we get over here – this one is slightly sweet and has a good ratio of pork fat and meat.

hong kong siu yoke

I had worked up an appetite eating the pigeon so I ordered a plate of siu yoke as well. Besides, it was still raining outside and I got the distinct impression that you’re supposed to leave when you’re finished with your meal coz there were people waiting and the tables are shared. Heh.

siu yoke hong kong

Now, Hong Kong siu mei shops takes great pride in their product and although I was pretty full by then, I couldn’t resist eating it all. The siu yoke tends to lean towards the fatty side () and has a crispy layer of skin on top. You get the whole experience of crispy skin, fat and meat and it’s very tender and juicy – positively orgasmic when you eat it with the mustard it’s served with.

siu yoke takeaway

Hell, it was so good I ordered a portion to take away and eat in the hotel for supper.

temple street siu mei

I also noticed that they serve steamed fish with rice, which a lot of people ordered. It’s an unassuming shop specializing in roasted meat, waxed meat and the odd fish somewhere near the fringes of Temple Street. It’s one of the best discoveries we made in Hong Kong, totally loved the pigeon and siu yoke. I wish I had tried the fish though, it looked very promising.

eating siu mei

However, it wasn’t very cheap – the dinner and takeaway cost HKD 340 (about RM 142) for the two of us. You can’t say much about the presentation but it’s the best siu mei we had in Hong Kong and it was worth every single red cent. :)

Curry Fish Head at Sin Kim San Cafe

Chinese, Food reviews, Penang, Stalls 26 Responses »

Oct 262011

meng curry fish head

I was in Penang a couple of days ago and met up with Cheryl and Kah Wheng for dinner. They brought me to Sin Kim San at Macalister Road for a really good curry fish head meal.

sin kim san

Sin Kim San Cafe is this sprawling coffee shop with a wide range of stalls offering everything from monitor lizard soup to peh pah duck. There’s another coffee shop beside it which you can order from too.

curry fish head penang

The curry fish head stall is rather well known among the locals. You can opt for fish slices instead of a fish head and there several other seafood items like squid, prawns and catfish on offer. It’s cooked Chinese style with a really spicy kick ass gravy.

bbq chicken wings sin kim san

We also had an order of the BBQ chicken wings. Cheryl mentioned that this stall used to be manned by a dude with Goku hair but that night, an elderly man took his place. No idea whether it’s the same owner – I put forth the theory that it could be the dad but then again I’m not from Penang so I wouldn’t know for sure. Heh.

bbq chicken wings

The BBQ chicken wings is pretty good too – it’s glazed with honey and the BBQ process doesn’t toughen the meat. In fact, it’s quite tender and juicy.

curry fish head

However, the curry fish head is the highlight of the meal. The prawns we added on came partially de-shelled and there’s also tomatoes and pieces of okra inside. It’s topped with mint leaves and what I really like about it is the fact that it doesn’t have tofu products or other nonsense like that. smirk

sin kim san curry fish head

It’s served in a plastic bowl and our combination costs RM 33 for two. I would prefer using a claypot so it retains the heat but other than that I have no complains. The gravy is superb – thick, sweet and flavorful to the point that you can eat an entire plate of rice with just that.

sin kim san dinner

Penang is wonderful – it’s really a place where good food can be found in every corner. I’ve been there a lot of times and I still haven’t eaten all it has to offer. Hell, I’m half tempted to move there. :)

Che Jai Meen in Hong Kong

Chinese, Food reviews, Hong Kong, Stalls, Travel 25 Responses »

Oct 142011

che jai meen noodles

Che Jai Meen is one of the great hawker delights of Hong Kong. It’s literally translated as “small cart noodles” but commonly called peddler noodles.

small cart noodles

These wonderful push carts carries a mind boggling array everything from pork, eggs, veggies, beef, offal and of course, the all important fishball.

che jai meen

You choose the ingredients you want and it’s served up in a huge bowl with noodles and hearty beef-flavored broth.

che jai meen hong kong

This is one of the local delights that you just have to try out. I first saw it in a Stephen Chow movie. Heh. The shop that we went to has very limited seating but that’s part of the deal – it adds to the ambiance.

che jai meen hk

This is Jeanie’s bowl – it has a fish slices, meatballs, sausages, stomach and some vegetables. Each ingredient you choose adds to the total price of the dish.

che jai meen bowl

My very own che jai meen is much more opulent. I think I ticked half of the options that were available and would have gone for more if the cook had not stopped me and said it won’t fit into the bowl. You can barely see the noodles as it is. smirk

peddler noodles

It makes for a very hearty breakfast – the piping hot broth is flavored with a stock that tastes as if it’s been boiling for a long time. However, the beef balls is hands down the highlight of the che jai meen. The huge beef balls practically squirts its juices when you bite into it and it’s springy and chewy. Superb!

meen

Hong Kong does beef balls really well – it seems to be a cultural thing and a pride of the nation…but don’t quote me on that as I gleaned the information from Stephen Chow’s God of Cookery film. ;) However, it is one of the most delicious bowls of noodles I’ve ever tasted in my life – it ranks up there with the best!

che jai meen us

Don’t forget to order the beef balls when you’re eating from a humble che jai meen stall in Hong Kong – it’s delicious and probably one of the best you’ll taste in the world.

toothpick

…and if you’re up to it, you can do like the locals do and stick a toothpick in your mouth after the delicious che jai meen meal to clear any pesky debris sticking to your molars. I’ve never seen Jeanie use it before but she seems to have gone native during our trip there. smirk

Older Entries Newer Entries

The famous Red Prawn (Ang Heh) durian at Balik Pulau, Penang

Donald's Durian SS2

Currywurst in Berlin

Deep fried battered burgers!

Chan Sau Lin fish head

Babi Guling in Bali

Bakso in Bali

Braised pigeon, roasted meat (siu mei) and waxed meat (lap mei) in Hong Kong

Curry Fish Head at Sin Kim San Cafe

Che Jai Meen in Hong Kong

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