Intoxicated in His Ocean of Mercy

Apong @ Nipah @Sea Coconut

This, my friend, is an 'apong' tree... 'apong' to the Sarawakians, 'nipah' to the West Malaysians.


Remember those crystal jelly you had for desert? This is where you harvest them. Sarawakians call it 'buah tematu'. This fruit can grow to the size of a football.



Below, is what it looks like at its juvenile stage. And the corn-like thingee is the 'mayang' or flowers.


So, what do you do with an apong tree? You harvest the 'air sadap', a clear sometimes slightly murky sweet liquid .

You harvest it with a recycle plastic bottle, than you pour it into these bamboo containers.



You boil it, and stir till the liquid thickens



And you 'll get this gooey muddy substance, poured in tins, or clear containers




So... what do you do with 'gula apong'?


Sarawakians make various deserts with it, such as this kuih celorot...

or fried gula apong-coated kuih cincin

or this kuih perahu...

or you can order "teh c special satu"! This, is Heaven.

Ngoang

If you ever visit the coastal areas of Sarawak, you might encounter patches of small 'volcanoes'.

These are the abodes of the local 'ngoang', or crayfish.

Locals believe it is a cure for athma patients.

al Fatihah

Ustad Awang Pon, 17 July 2009.

His posts will still echo thru muallimawang.wordpress.com as advice for us and generations to come.

We'll be missing a family friend...

What 1 may find in the Sri Aman's Sunday Market

Where is Sri Aman? It's Sarawak's second out of 11 Division.


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Don't miss the Sunday market. One may find:

Local yellow spotted catfish... tasted better than the commercialized African breed.


Varieties of Sarawak local riceLocal pineapple... this 1 weighs 3+kg tagged at RM4 (not the dude)

Original Sarawak terubuk hailed from Lingga

Edible buntal or pufferfish (yellow)... the Empirang (orange) is a local delicacy

Keluangman! Selling at Rm18 each. Goreng pun sodap.

IAT 2009

These are some snapshots on some kek lapis sold during the Expo Industri Asas Tani (IAT) in Kuching Waterfront last Friday. Kek lapis entrepreneurs have gone a long way from just taking orders for Raya to now exploring market in Semenanjung and abroad. A 6 figures annual income is common to the main players. With improvements on packaging and armed with the manufacturing practise and food safety certification, kek lapis entrepreneurs have carved a niche of their own.

snippets

some update on kek lapis soon!