I was told that during World War II, tapioca was a staple diet in Malaya and helped to feed many families at that time. It is no more a staple diet now but tapioca (or “ubi kayu” as what it is known in Malay) remains a favourite snack for tea time. It can be steamed and eaten by dipping it into gula melaka or plain sugar. The adventurous might try honey instead. However, it is more common for it to be found sold in markets in the form of a yellow-tint cake. Not the cake as in cheesecake but more a local delicacy.

The yellow-tint comes naturally from the yellow flesh variety of the tapioca. Unlike the white coloured variety, the yellow flesh variety is harder to find. Grab them from the market if you are able to find them. I suspect the market vendors have taken big orders from the kuih vendors knowing that the yellow fleshed tapioca is in high demand. On its own, the tapioca is pretty much tasteless. It is also odourless and hence, you have to add flavouring to it when cooking.

The tapioca kuih or kuih ubi kayu or “chiu cze kuih” (in hokkien) is one of my favourites when I am in the mood to eat kuihs. I never knew how they were made until mum started making them recently, and regularly. So, there’s a good supply of tapioca kuih at home. I thought it must have taken lots of preparation or work but was I surprised when I found out how easy this kuih is to make. Truly, I don’t see anyone having any difficulty making this good looking tapioca parcels at home, save and except maybe trying to perfect it in texture and taste.

This is mum’s recipe for Golden Tapioca Parcels Read the rest of this entry »

If you live in Malaysia, you know that you are very lucky where FOOD is concerned. Malaysians are known for the special relationship that they have with food which is evident from the variety of savory dishes and sweets that one can easily find at every corner. This is especially so during the many festive seasons, one of which was only recently celebrated – Deepavali.

One of the favorite Indian sweets eaten during Deepavali is Sugared Ghee Balls, which is also popularly known as “Neyyi Urundai” or “Payatham Urundai”. True, compared to the other more gloriously colored sweets found during this festival, Ghee Balls do not get full points for looks. In fact, its unstimulating colour and simple shape may even be a “put off” for some. But, for many who have tried it, this sweet has easily become a favorite.

Making it from scratch is relatively easy. The only tricky part is pouring the hot ghee into the flour mixture and molding the balls into shape. One may find that the first few balls take a longer time to make than first anticipated. Don’t let your spirits down if you find this happening to you. Persistence pays off and it won’t be too long before you start getting the hang of it.

Once cooled, pop a ball into your mouth and enjoy the taste as it slowly crumbles into a wonderful sensory delight. You won’t regret it!

This is my recipe for Sugared Ghee Balls. Read the rest of this entry »

This is another dessert recipe which I was unable to find the right name for it. So, I will call it the 8 Treasures Dessert because in the dessert, you will find 8 ingredients, though only 6 are visible. Anyway, the name is not all that important because what is more important is the deliciousness of this dessert – especially when eaten cold.

This dessert is really cooling, and I don’t mean just because it is served chilled. With a combination of white fungus, ginkgo nuts, lotus seeds, honey dates, red dates and sea coconut served in a chrysanthemum  and sugar-based soup, you will clamour for bowl after bowls of this nutritious dessert. I would recommend that you cook a substantial portion to share because it saves you the effort and your guests are likely to ask for seconds. This is a dessert which is great for parties and hot days.

A point to note. The gingko nut and lotus seeds need to be prepared for cooking by removing its inner core. For the gingko nuts, you will see one end which may show a tiny shoot just about to sprout. Poke the other side using a pointed toothpick. Do not poke at the end which the shoot can be seen. As for the lotus seeds, the technique to remove the inner core is similar.

This is the recipe for 8 Treasures Dessert Read the rest of this entry »

Dragon Fruit, also known as Pittaya, is commonly found in South East Asia especially Vietnam and Malaysia. This nutrition-packed fruit is believed to be native to south Mexico but has found itself to be a firm favourite over here in Malaysia. There is the white flesh variety and the other being the red flesh variety. Both come with tiny edible seeds not unlike kiwi fruit seeds. The dragon fruit is actually the fruit from a cactus plant and it has a bright red skin which can be peeled easily. I have previously written a post to document my visit to a dragon fruit farm (with pictures to boot!) and you might want to read that to know more about this fruit. Paris also took some beautiful dragon fruit pictures. Check it out if you are curious how these little dragons look like.

The dragon fruit is best eaten chilled but do take care with your clothing because the red coloured dye drips easily due to its juiciness. With its beautiful looks, it is no wonder that the dragon fruit is also used extensively to decorate cakes and in this instance, to add colour and taste to jelly (agar-agar). You don’t have to use a lot of dragon fruit to make one recipe of dragon fruit jelly. Nice to impress, easy to make.

This is my wife’s recipe for Dragon Fruit Jelly Read the rest of this entry »