Don’t Start Another War – Not Over Food La!

It was only like yesterday that Indonesians wanted to ‘ganyang’ (crush) Malaysians after accusing the latter of robbing them off their cultural and national heritage.

Malaysia has recently been accused by Indonesia of using the Balinese ‘pendet’ dance to promote itself in a television advertisement. Prior to this, Indonesians claimed that Malaysia’s national anthem was copied from the Indonesian song Terang Bulan.

After the tension between the people of Indonesia and Malaysia over the pendet dance has somewhat eased, another issue emerged. This time, the war is raging on over the internet between Malaysians and Singaporeans over food. Both claim that nasi kandar and pasembur are theirs.

This came about after Malaysian Tourism Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ng Yen Yen’s statement that Malaysia would lay claim to dishes such as laksa, nasi lemak, bak kut teh, chilli crab and Hainanese chicken rice.

To our Singaporean friends, nasi kandar and pasembur definitely originate from Penang. Both words are pronounced in the Penang Malay dialect (nasi kanda’ and pasembo’). As long as I can remember, both have always been associated with Penang. Have you heard of Singapore nasi kandar or Singapore pasembur?

According to Wikipedia, nasi kandar is a popular northern Malaysian dish, which originates from Penang. The word nasi kandar, came about from a time when nasi (rice) hawkers or vendors would kandar (balance) a pole on the shoulder with two huge containers of rice meals. The name has remained and today the word nasi kandar is seen on most Malaysian mamak restaurants.

The most famous nasi kandar stalls are Kassim Restaurant and Line Clear in Penang and the Pelita chain. Pasembur is also listed in Wikipedia as peculiar to northern peninsular Malaysia and especially associated with Penang where the best pasembur can be found along Gurney Drive.

It is a Malaysian Indian salad consisting of shredded cucumber, turnip, potatoes, beancurd, bean sprouts, prawn fritters, spicy fried crab, fried octopus, etc served with a sweet and spicy nutty sauce. In other parts of Malaysia, the term Rojak Mamak is commonly used.

I agree with Malaysian celebrity chef Redzuawan Ismail, better known as Chef Wan, who felt that food lovers should not get too excited over the “ownership” of food as “we are all from the same roots.”

“Where are our roots? We are satu rumpun (from one creed),” said the Singapore-born chef, adding that everyone should just eat and let live.

Singapore is more aggressive at branding. Go to any Singapore food website, and see how it has branded a host of famous delicacies like Singapore fried bee hoon, Singapore rojak, Singapore murtabak, and even Singapore satay!

Satay, according to Wikipedia, may have originated in Java, Indonesia, but it is also popular in many other Southeast Asian countries, such as Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam as well as the Netherlands, which was influenced through its former colonies.

Satay was supposedly invented by Javanese street vendors, based on satay becoming popular after the influx of Arab immigrants in the early 19th century.

So, Malaysians and Singaporeans better watch out. Don’t claim satay as yours as the “food fight” on the internet may draw Indonesians to join in. Perhaps, Malaysia can start promoting Nasi Kandar and Pasembur as Penang Nasi Kandar or Penang Pasembur.
Or you can sell Malaysia by labelling it as Malaysian Nasi Kandar and Malaysian Pasembur.

In the spirit of Syawal, let’s have an Open House with food galore of Malaysian, Singaporean and Indonesian food (halal food of course), with Malaysia hosting the event. How about it Dr Ng?








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When Your Parents Are Dead and Gone

I used to look forward to the long holiday break for Hari Raya when my parents were still alive. It has been 15 to 20 years now and our family home in Seberang Jaya in Penang is still vacant as all members of the family are in Kuala Lumpur, with only my younger sister settling down in Melaka.

Me and my elder sister want to keep the house as we feel that we don’t have to worry about staying in a hotel when we go to Penang or Seberang Jaya for our holidays. At least we can get together in our family home during Hari Raya. The rest don't agree as they want the house sold.

My late parents are buried close to each other at the Muslim graveyard in Permatang Pasir. My eldest sister also lost her husband due to cancer more than five years ago. As she is a housewife with three school going children – all girls – I offered my home to her and the girls.

My eldest sister and her kids are now staying with me in Kuala Lumpur. After their recent graduation, the second sister of the siblings got a job as a reporter in a Malay tabloid, while the eldest finally was offered a bank job this week.

That leaves the youngest, who has a degree in graphic design, without a permanent job. She was working as a customer service assistant at a new petrol station during the fasting month for two weeks until it had to go for a temporary shutdown for reasons which she could not explain.

But Hari Raya has always been spent in Seberang Jaya, with or without our parents. As I have been single all these years, it was much easier for me to spend my Raya with my elder sister and the girls. The rest of my family – brothers and youngest sister – have their own life and family.

In Seberang Jaya, the first day is spent going to the nearest mosque for Aidilfitri prayers, and followed by visits to the graveyards of my parents in Permatang Pasir and my eldest sister’s late husband in Seberang Jaya.

As our Malay tradition, we would either exchange our salam and seek for forgiveness (Maaf Zahir Batin) from each other after prayers or at home after our visits.

I don’t really look forward to going back to Penang as most of my friends are in KL, unlike my sister and the kids, who still have friends in Seberang Jaya. After all, they have been residing in this new township for many years, while I have been away far too long, having spent studying in UiTM, Shah Alam and working in Kuala Lumpur all these years after graduation.

Hari Raya preparation then, that is, when your parents were still alive—was elaborate. It was not so much of the décor -- well, we made it a point to change our curtains every year -- but the furniture’s still the same. But food preparation was elaborate unlike today.

My late mother used to go through the tedious and hard way of preparing her food. It was worse 20 to 30 years ago when we had to use the ‘primitive way’ of ‘grinding’ chilly using the ‘batu tumbuk’ or ‘batu giling’ compared to the present blending machine. Coconuts are also grinded manually using the ‘kelapa parut’ or the so-called wooden horse machine.

The machine is no longer in production and has made way for an electric grinder which has a round cover. Still, this is done manually. All you need is to place half of the coconut on the grinder. You have to do it standing as there is no wooden platform for you to sit like the old wooden horse machine. These machines are available in kampongs and sundry shops.

Many housewives in the city have found the short cut to all these laborious jobs. Coconut milk are usually available in wet markets, but the bad news is you need to queue up and mind you, it’s a long long queue at these markets in the morning, that is one day before Raya.

Modern housewives have even resorted to packaged coconut milk which are equally good. My sister has resorted to this for her rendang and it tastes as good with or without fresh coconut milk.

My late mother used to make the best kuah kacang or peanut gravy on the eve of Raya. We usually eat this with nasi himpit (ketupat nasi) and kuah lodeh. This is our yearly Raya menu. Nasi himpit is usually done the traditional way by placing newly cooked rice into white cloth.

Batu giling (flat stone with a cylindrical stone) is placed on top of the white rice which has been properly tied and flattened. The batu giling adds pressure onto the white rice. Thus, the name nasi himpit. (himpit means pressed or crushed).The nasi himpit will be ready to be sliced the next morning.

Today,my late mother’s kuah kacang recipe has found its way into Matt’s corner, a Malay restaurant in Taman Melawati, which sells kuah kacang and rendang, which are its specialties. Of course at home, you need to pour the kuah kacang gravy in a pot mixed with water and stir it well. It will be ready for serving once you have blended the mixture thoroughly. You can rest assure it tastes home made, and my family and close friend Fatimah, are satisfied customers!

I have not gone back to my family home for Raya over the past few years. I don’t see why not when home is where my heart is – Kuala Lumpur. And Kuala Lumpur being the centre, is now the meeting point for my family members during Hari Raya.

Selamat Hari Raya maaf zahir batin to all Muslims.

Anti-Malaysia Sentiments in Indonesia – Why?

I don’t understand why Indonesians love to hate Malaysia. ‘Ganyang’ seems to be their favourite word when it comes to expressing their anger or dissatisfaction towards their neighbour, Malaysia.

And every time Indonesians cook up a storm in their homeland, their government would assure the Malaysian side that it has nothing to do with the protests, which among others would include burning Malaysian flags.

Malaysia-Indonesia ties have taken a very sharp turn recently. Malaysians would have recalled Sukarno’s ‘Ganyang Malaysia’ (crush Malaysia) declaration in the 60s. According to reports, this growing anti-Malaysian sentiment is spreading all over Indonesia like wildfire.

As far as I remember, Malaysians have not gone overboard as to burn Indonesian flags in Malaysia. Not that I heard of.

It appears that Indonesians are an emotionally-charged and disgruntled lot.

Recently, there was outpouring of anger, including a heated protest outside the Malaysian embassy in Jakarta, over Malaysia’s supposed theft of the Balinese ‘pendet’ dance to promote itself in a television advertisement. It was revealed that no Malaysian government agency had a role in the advertisement.

The Singapore office of cable television station, Discovery Channel, however, quickly acknowledged that it was responsible for mistakenly featuring the dance in a promotion for its documentary programme ‘Enigmatic Malaysia.’

Earlier, Indonesians also took to the streets venting their anger at Malaysia, with allegations that the Malaysian national anthem – Negara Ku – had been copied from the Indonesian song Terang Bulan.

According to Wikipedia, Negara Ku was selected as national anthem at the time of the Federation of Malaya’s independence from Britain in 1957. The tune was originally used as the state anthem of Perak, which was adopted from a popular French melody composed by the lyricist Pierre-Jean de Beranger.

Another controversy erupted in 2007 after the Malaysian Tourism Board suddenly released the Rasa Sayang commercial, an advertisement used to promote Malaysian tourism industry. Indonesians claim that Malaysia unfairly claimed ownership of the song.

Anti-Malaysia sentiments raged on, with cyber attacks on Malaysia on Sept 1 (Tuesday). According to reports, Indonesian hackers claimed they hit 120 websites in Malaysia on Tuesday.

The hackers said they were acting in revenge against what they perceived as Malaysia’s alleged theft of Indonesian cultural items and abuse of migrant workers, reported the Jakarta Globe.

A statement on a Blogspot blog titled “Terselubung” says that a number of Malaysian websites have been hacked and defaced to “celebrate” Malaysia’s Merdeka Day.

“Today, August 31, 2009, an uncreative country, a country who likes to steal Indonesian culture, a country whose citizen is the mastermind of bombings in Indonesia, a country who harassed Indonesia on the Internet... a country which received their independence from Britain, is celebrating its anniversary,” the website stated.

The site then listed in excess of 120 Internet addresses, including domains for Malaysian educational and tourism pages, reported the Jakarta Globe.

Each link, when clicked, opened to a page with flashing graphics of the Indonesian flag and a statement that the site has been “hacked by Indonesia”.

What next Indonesia?

Indonesia exports human capital in the form of maids. More than 300,000 Indonesian women work as maids in Malaysia. Around 3,000 new maids head for Malaysia every month, most of them placed through specialized employment agencies, according to the manpower ministry here.

Maids file up to 150 complaints every month with authorities in Indonesia alleging ill treatment, overwork, unpaid salaries and physical abuse in Malaysia.

With all these hate sentiments, will Malaysia look elsewhere for maids?

A Tribute To Tai Cheong

Who would have known Tai Cheong workshop before the tragic fire in Ampang on Aug 29 unless you are his satisfied customer?

Three groups of people would have been shocked by the pre dawn fire at the Tai Cheong Car Workshop in Jalan Hulu Kelang on Aug 29. Twenty five cars were destroyed in the blaze.

First, its owner Tai Cheong, his family and workers; second, the 25 car owners; and third, my family who are regular customers of the workshop.

According to news reports, firemen took about three hours to douse the flame in the incident which took place at about 6.15 am.

As in many other cases, tragedies occur when we are in dreamsville. The fire took place during Subuh prayers, about half an hour after Imsak. Some would have chosen to sleep after Subuh, especially on a Saturday.

Damages are estimated at RM950,000 but there were no casualties.

For me and family, Tai Cheong, a few minutes’ drive from my house in Bukit Antarabangsa, is one of the best workshops we have had. We have tried a few others before, but none can match Tai Cheong in many aspects.

It has first class service – The minute you take your car to the workshop, its mechanics, including its owner, will always be there to receive you. I don’t remember the names of the mechanics though, but they know me and family, especially my eldest sister, who loves to haggle for discounts.

Me and my family are Tai Cheong’s satisfied customers. The price’s affordable, and you can expect your car will be in tip-top condition after the service. Its mechanics never let you down. No charges for a small job.

Tai Cheong is no ordinary workshop. Unlike some workshops that I have been too, Tai Cheong will not make you pay for every “dent” in your car or “leak” in your engine!. Unless, your car is really in a bad shape, the mechanic will advise you accordingly, and that too, he will find ways to work within your budget.

Today, as I pass by the workshop, Tai Cheong is in a sorry state. It was only a week before the tragedy that I told my family that my car needed a service. And now, where shall I take my car for the next service?