Zespri Kiwifruit: Ever wonder where your food comes from?

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Team Zespri Singapore on top of Auckland Harbour Bridge

The mention of New Zealand conjures up thoughts of crazy adventure, untouched mountain peaks, bungee jumping and succulent lamp chops. I have always wondered how a country with the same population of Singapore could achieve so much. They have the All Blacks, managed to produce a movie like "The Lord of the Rings", three nobel laureates and control one third of the world's dairy trade. Then of course there is Kiwifruit which was developed in New Zealand who now produces 80% of the world's supply of Kiwifruit.

New Zealand is a country which is still very much unspoilt and the Kiwis have the wisdom to want to keep it that way. Mention all the really fashionable environmentally friendly words such as "sustainability", "renewable energy", "organic", "carbon footprinting" and you can probably tag the word New Zealand at the end of it.

I would be the first to admit that I had never really thought about where my food comes from in the past. I guess like most Singaporeans, food comes from the supermarket. Being a non-agricultural country, most of us grow up not knowing what a farm is except from TV or the farm stays you would do once or twice in your life.

But of late, I have taken an interest in how our food is cultivated and grown. I guess it was partly due to the recent melamine milk scare which really brought the issue of food safety and quality to bare. Yes, we can buy that chicken or fruit from the supermarket shelf, but how nutritious it is really depends on how it has been grown. I recently managed to watch "Hugh's chicken run" where the differences in farming methods between mass produced chicken verses free ranged chicken are shown graphically. Even though I still buy whatever is on the supermarket shelves, at least now I am starting to consider paying a little more for chicken of a better quality. You can really taste the difference if you are using it for Shabu Shabu or chicken rice.

With fruit and vegetable production there are a few things to consider as well. The obvious things are the overuse of chemical pesticides and genetic modification of fruits. But perhaps what is not really well known is how the growing conditions actually affect the nutritional value of the produce. Let's take for instance Kiwifruit. Magnesium is one of the trace elements which is found in high concentration in Kiwifruit. It is responsible for energy metabolism, muscle contraction, and nerve impulse transmission, and bone mineralization. Men might want to make sure that they have adequate magnesium in the diet because it is a vasodilator and you need good vasodilatation if you want to be able to father kids. But where do you think the Kiwifruit gets its magnesium from? It's from the soil of course. So if you have unscrupulous farmers who overfarm the land, the soil is bound to be deficient in minerals and the result is a Kiwifruit that is less than optimal.

Thankfully, the farming in New Zealand is very well regulated. You can see from the slideshow just how organized the farms are. The tall hedges that you see are Canadian pine trees which are grown as a shield for strong winds which may disrupt the Kiwifruit vines. The growers are very much into sustainability and are united in supporting programs like Kiwigreen which is an integrated pest management system that reduces the requirement for artificial inputs and pesticides.

In the past, I never really paid much attention to the brand of Kiwifruit that I bought. Most of the Kiwifruit are unlabelled. So I have ended up buying quite a few Kiwifruits that were better used as paperweights. However, having visited the Kiwifruit farms and the packhouses. I can safely say that when I pick up a Kiwifruit with the Zespri label on it, I am assured that I am getting the very best Kiwifruit in the world.


Transporting freshly picked kiwifruit to be packed

As a company, Zespri controls the whole supply chain of the Kiwifruit with the exception of the growers who basically grow their Kiwifruit according to their strict guidelines. Besides having pristine conditions for growing the fruit, it is interesting to note that when they grade their Kiwifruit in the packhouses, they only select the best Kiwifruits to be exported. Most of the lesser grade Kiwifruits are sold at home or fed to the cows (really, no kidding). For the Singapore market, they have Kiwifruit in two different sizes. The smaller ones are sold at the big retailers like Cold Storage and Fairprice while the Mom and Pop shops usually sell the larger ones. So, if you find that Kiwifruit at the supermarkets are cheaper than the ones at the Mom and Pop shops, there is a good reason for it.


Wharenui - The Maori Meeting House

Another interesting note is that our Kiwifruit comes from one specific packhouse which are managed by the indigenous Maori people. As you know, the indigenous people of many countries in the world were often displaced when new migrants take over the country. It seems to me that New Zealand is one country where the indigenous affairs are quite well managed.

During our trip, we were invited to the Wharenui (meeting house) to meet the elders of the Maori community who own the farms that grow the Kiwifruit. During the half hour ceremony, lots of things were said in Maori where there was no translation. So we can only gather that they were somehow telling us about their history and welcoming us into their community. It was only after we rubbed noses that I found out that the Maoris of the past were cannibals who would eat the heart of their enemies! Anyway, the meeting was a way of introducing the Maori kids to the people (us) who were buying their Kiwifruit and supporting their community.


The red Kiwifruit might hit our shelves in a few years

There are actually many varieties of Kiwifruit. The familiar one which we all know of was the Hayward cultivar which was developed in New Zealand in the 1920's. But Kiwifruit can come in all shapes and sizes, some are hairy, others are not. (Like humans really and incidentally, I wonder about the Gold Kiwifruit. Is it just a coincidence that they are yellow on the inside, not hairy on the outside and its scientific name is Actinidia Chinensis?). The Zespri Gold Kiwifruit was a cultivar which was developed by Zespri which is why they are the only brand that offer the gold variety. It was basically developed to suit the Asian palate who prefer fruits that are sweeter, typical of tropical fruits. One of the possible cultivars which might make it to our supermarkets shelves in the next few years is this red colour one which is currently being developed by the Zespri scientists. The flavour is even smoother than gold, but it would be a big hit with the Pastry Chefs as it is a beautiful fruit to decorate with.


Sunrise over Lake Rotorua

Conclusion

As the world grapples with the problem of food shortage, farmers worldwide need to be able find the balance between producing food in greater quantities but at the same time not compromising on the quality and safety. Unfortunately, it doesn't always work that way. So, as consumers we do need to be a little more aware about the source of our food when we shop.

Fortunately, there are countries like New Zealand who are growing safe, sustainable and nutritious produce for the world. So, the next time you pick up a Kiwifruit with the Zespri Label on it, just remember that there is a difference in quality and taste and that you are also paying for a sustainable future and equitable farming methods.

Click here to read about the nutrional value of Kiwifruit

Here is a very recent clip from Channel News Asia highlighting the issues of food safety, sustainability and how Kiwifruit is being grown in New Zealand.

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Penang Food Trail 5: Penang Vs Singapore Part 2

OK, the current score is Singapore 2, Penang 1. We are going to compare three more dishes in this post. The first one is the Char Siew and Sio Bak. When it comes to Char Siew, there is one undisputed champion of Char Siew and Sio Bak in Penang and that is the one at Sky restaurant. I was told by our resident food blogger, CK Lam that they start selling their Char Siew at around 11.30am and it gets sold out by around 2pm.

The thing about Malaysia is that the people aren't as health conscious as Singaporeans, so they don't bat an eye about eating strips of belly pork that has been BBQed to a crisp with lots of charred bits. If you are expecting juicy Char Siew then you will be dissappointed because eating the Char Siew here is like eating Bak Kwa. It's really very tasty but I think I still prefer a Char Siew which is juicy and tender on the inside. But if you are in Penang, this is definitely one of the stalls to visit. 4.25/5



The Sio Bak on the other hand is very similar to Singapore and is very good. As good as my current favourite which is Fatty Cheong's at ABC brickworks. 4.5/5


Sky Restaurant along Chulia Street

Ok, I think this one has got to be a draw, so it's Penang 2, Singapore 3.



You know how they always have the Penang Hawkers fair at York Hotel every year where Hawkers from Penang and flown to Singapore to demonstrate their skills? Well, this particular hawker that operates this Lor Bak stall is one of those who make the pilgrimage every year. In case you don't know, Lor Bak is what the Penangites call our Ngoh Hiang and refers to a variety of deep fried items which are eaten with a chilli and sweet sauce dip.



I don't think that the Penangites have commercialized their Lor Bak manufacturing just yet, so many of the the hawkers here still make their own items. I might be wrong since we only went to eat at the most famous stalls. Once again, all their items which feature their prawns are really good. Their prawns are really tasty and when fried together in a fritter, it just tastes like Keropok! 4.5/5

I think their Lor Bak wins our Ngor Hiang so its Penang 3, Singapore 3.



The last item on our list is the Chicken Rice. This Chicken Rice Stall just happens to be in the same coffeeshop as the Loh Bak stall, so it is one coffeeshop that you might like to visit in Penang. The Chicken Rice here is very well known around Penang.



The Chicken here definitely beats the ones we have in Singapore. I think somehow they have better supply of free range chicken, so the chicken really has that extra chickeny flavour. However the rice here was rather dissappointing. I think Singaporeans are spoilt by having quality Jasmine Rice in most of our dishes. Over in Penang, they still use rice which is very light and lacks a good gummy bite. So overall, their Chicken is better than ours, but our rice is better than theirs. 4.25/5


Penang Lorbak & Hainan Chicken Rice at Kheng Pin Coffee Shop along
Penang /Sri Bahari Road - near to Cititel Hotel

Conclusion

OK, so the final score is Penang 4, Singapore 4.

You might have guess that I purposely chose these stalls so that I can make it a draw between Penang and Singapore and you are absolutely right. I could have easily "Kelonged" it so that one side wins.

But the point I am making is this. Many people might say that Penang food beats Singapore's hands down, others might say that Penang food is overrated. Both are correct depending on what they managed to try. So the conclusion is this: Penang is a food paradize and so is Singapore. Isn't it wonderful that there is so much great stuff just waiting for you to try?

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Penang Food Trail 5: Penang Vs Singapore Part 1

We are not done with Penang just yet. There are still quite a few stalls to recommend for those who are planning to head up to Penang.

The next two posts will cover the foods that are very similar between Singapore and Penang. So unlike Penang Laksa and Penang Char Kway Teow which are quite unique to Penang, we will be covering stuff like Char Siew Rice and Chicken Rice in the next post. In this post, it is Penang vs Singapore in Prawn Mee, Beef Kway Teow and Oyster Omelette.



I think I have to conclude that the prawns in Penang are just more fabulous than Singapore, and probably much cheaper too. So anything that they cook with their prawns is sure to beat Singapore hands down.

One of the things that you really need to try when you are in Penang is their Hokkien Prawn Mee Soup. My first mouthful and all my umami receptors were turned on to the max. It was just one of those oomph moments. The secret to the supershiok soup is the fact that they slowly boil these small little prawns till they are almost dried. At first I thought they were hae bee (dried shrimps) until they told me that they were actually fresh prawns cooked till they became these powerpacked little morsels of protein. 4.75/5


Green House Prawn Mee and Loh Mee along Burma Road 8pm to 4am

It's Penang 1, Singapore 0.



Our local foodie, CK Lam actually brought us to a few places for beef kway teow and on the last day, she brought us to this stall which is considered to be the best in Penang.

The special thing about the stall is that they serve this bit of gristle which you can't find in Singapore. You can see it in the middle of the bowl in the photo above. At first, we were told that it was the bone marrow, but when I saw it, I identified it as part of the spinal cord right away. Now, you know about Mad Cow disease right? Well, this part of the cow cannot be sold in Singapore because the virus responsible for Mad Cow disease actually resides in the brain and spinal cord. So for a time, even the Porterhouse steaks were banned from sale in Singapore because this cut of the beef also includes part of the spinal cord.



So if you like these type of forbidden fruit, you might be pleased to know that they are available in Penang. It tastes ok but it's not something I would order again. Overall, I think the beef we use in Singapore is better, so our beef soup tastes more robust than the ones in Penang which tends to be more sweet than beefy. 4/5


Located at the junction of Chulia and Lebuh Pantai

Although the prawns are great in Penang, I don't think I can say the same of the oysters. Mind you, the oysters in Singapore are not great either and I heard it is becoming difficult to get Korean oysters now, so the quality is also suffering.



The oyster omelette is almost identical to the ones that we get here in Singapore, except that the oysters were smaller. We were told that this stall is the most popular in Penang. So if that is the case, I would say that I have tasted better ones in Singapore. The omelette was well executed, there was some gooey bits and other crispy bits so the texture is alright but somehow the taste just didn't cross the threshold into sublime shiokness. 4/5


Coffeeshop at the junction of Carnovan Street/Kimberley Street

Conclusion

So there you go and surprise, surprise, its Singapore 2 to Penang 1 at the moment. Guess at the moment, the grass looks greener on our side.

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Food, Food, Food, Downunder

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Snow and Egg Cavier - Tetsuya's

It is really too bad that I only starting blogging about food recently. I should have started back when I was living down under. OK, blogging wasn't around then and neither was the internet so I guess people in those days must have kept a food diary of sorts. Gosh, those where the days when you had to ring your friends to ask for recommendations about where to eat! And sometimes you couldn't reach them cos mobile phones weren't readily available too.

Australia used to be quite a one dimensional country when it comes to food. I am talking about the days before they started their immigration policy back in the 50s. It was then that the first wave of migrants come from Southern Europe, predominantly Italians and Greeks to escape the ravages of a war torn Europe. Now it is said that half of every Australian has some Italian blood in them and that Melbourne has the largest population of Greeks outside of Greece. Then there came the wave of Hong Kong migrants in the 80's and 90's who made their home in Australia due to uncertainty of what was going to happen after the territory is returned to China.


Seafood by the Sea without the humidity

What all this immigration means is that Australia is truly a foodie's paradise with authentic cuisines from all parts of the globe. These migrants congregate together and literally take over whole suburbs. So in Sydney for instance, Leichardt is the area where there is a lot of Italians and consequently, a lot of great Italian food. The best pasta dish I ever ate was right there in Leichardt in a restaurant called Portofinos. I remember it was a really simple Penne with Chicken in cream sauce but somehow, there was something in that dish that makes me think about it 15 years later.


Fresh Seafood from the Fishmarkets

The thing about Australia is the wonderful and fresh produce, be it seafood, meats or veggies and fruits. So when migrants from Hong Kong got there, they combined their wonderful culinary skills with the produce and cooked up dishes that rival or even surpass that of Hong Kong. How is this possible? Well, imagine what a Hong Kong Chef can do with a Tasmanian King Crab. This is definitely one of those things which you have to eat when you are in Australia. The crab is huge and can weigh up to 13 kg. That is a lot of succulent crab meat! I don't know how much it is now, but when I graduated from Med School, the first thing I did with my first paycheck was to bring my family to eat Tasmanian King Crab at a Chinese Restaurant in Sydney. The Crab was cooked in three courses and my Mother-in-law even brought the arm length pincer back to Singapore. At that time, it was going for about $30 per kg, so that meal sort of wipe out half my paycheck. I am serious! As a houseman I used to earn $1800 per month. Fifty percent of it was taxed, so I took home only $900. That crab cost me $330 (You never forget such an expensive crab) and the rest of the dishes came up to almost $500. So that meal really did cost half my paycheck!


Tetsuya Wakuda

I have two regrets when I think back about my time in Sydney. The first is that I never took my classmate, Terence Kwan's advise to go eat at Tetsuya's when the reservation list was still in the weeks rather than in the months. Tetsuya's is probably the most well known restaurant in Sydney which is run by a Japanese born chef who migrated to Australia, worked his way up from a kitchenhand to become one of Australia's best known chefs. Tetsuya's menu is like every other really famous restaurants. You don't get to choose what you want to eat, you just go there and get served what the chef thinks you should eat.


Harry's Cafe de Wheels

The other regret that I have is that I never went to Harry's Cafe de Wheels. This is probably one of the most famous pie restaurants in Australia and its still like a little makeshift shop by the road. Pies are to Australians what a plate of Chicken Rice is to us Singaporeans. It is what every Aussie craves to eat when they get back home. (Ok, maybe not every Aussie, but when I get back to Australia, I usually make sure I get to eat some meat pies). The thing with Harry's is that they have been around for over 70 years and is a bit of an institution. The next time I am back in Sydney, I am going to get down to Woolloomoolloo and get me one of those pies with mushy peas piled over it.

Now, you might not think about eating Thai food in Australia, but I tell you that I first fell in love with Thai food while I was living in Australia, a love which I maintained when I lived in Thailand, but which I eventually lost when I came back to Singapore. Believe me, the best Thai Food in the world (in my world at least) is in a little restaurant in the suburb of Epping in Sydney called Tom Yum Thai. Until today, the best green curry chicken and red curry beef that I have eaten is made by the Thai chef in this little restaurant. When you eat here, one bowl of curry is all you need to down three bowls of rice. It is really that tasty. If someone were to offer me to fly anywhere around the world to eat Thai food, I'd sooner fly to Sydney than Bangkok!


Grape harvesting

If you are planning a food tour to Australia, then a Wine and Cheese tour of the wine growing regions is a must do. There are wine growing regions in most of the Southern states of Australia. Among the most well known are the The Hunter Vally near Sydney, Barossa Valley near Adelaide and Margaret River near Perth. Now, a Wine and Cheese tour really does fulfill the deepest desire of every Singaporean which is to be able to go to somewhere and just eat all the cheese and drink all the wine for FREE! Just remember to be "Jee Dong" and buy some bottles to bring home yeah? If you are just getting into wine or are planning to, then a trip to a vineyard is a necessary step towards vino enlightenment.



Oh, before I forget, I want to tell you that you get really good sushi in Australia as the Coast of Australia are the natural habitat of the bluefin tuna and other seafood delicacies. So a visit to a Sushi restaurant is a must, as is a visit to the fishmarkets. At the Sydney fishmarkets, you get to handpick your fish and lobster and sit down by the water to enjoy your meal. They sell plenty of sushi right there at the fishmarkets too.

Speaking of Japanese food, you really must try Teppanyaki in Australia. Over there, the Teppanyaki chefs really have lots of fun with the patrons. It is not uncommon for the chef to hurl eggs into the air for patrons to catch with their bowl or using their scrapers to shoot pieces of fried egg into the mouths of patrons. Expect them to throw bowls of fried rice into the air for you to catch!

One of the great things about being a food blogger is that we are part of a fraternity with instant friends from all over the world. So I contacted the bloggers at eatshowandtell.com, one of Sydney's most popular food blogs and they have very kindly listed their Top eats in Sydney for us. They have also very wisely divided them into gourmet and cheap eats category. Thanks very much to Teresa and Howard of eatshowandtell.com.

Top 10 gourmet restaurants (Tetsuya's is in a class of its own)

In no particular order:

• Marque, Surry Hills (French)
• Pier, Rose Bay (Seafood)
• Berowra Waters Inn, Berowra (French)
• est, Sydney (Seafood)
• Becasse, Sydney (French)
• Longrain, Surry Hills (Thai)
• Grand National, Paddington (European/french)
• Fish face, Kings Cross (Mod Oz)
• Azuma, Sydney (Japanese)
• Four in Hand, Paddington (French)

Top Cheap Eats

• Mamak, Chinatown (for Malaysian)
• Ryo's Noodles, Crows Nest (for ramen - great fish stock ramen)
• Gusto's, Paddington (for cafe style food)
• Danks St Depot, Waterloo (for brunch - creamed eggs in truffle oil)
  
• Bills (for brunch. they have very nice breakfast foods)
• Thainatown, Chinatown (Quickest, yummiest, and cheapest pad thai and food in general)
• Chat Thai, Chinatown (Very popular Thai food)
• Campos, Newtown (Best affogato and coffee)
• Single Origin Coffee (One of Sydney's best coffee joints. Only open on weekdays)
• Toby's Estate (Another great coffee joint. Lovely coffee beans)
• Jasmine's, Lakemba (Lebanese food)
• Juju's, Kings Cross (Authentic Japanese)
• Masuya, Sydney (Japanese. Fresh raw fish and very polite service)
• La Disfida, Haberfield and Rosso Pomodoro (Authentic italian pizzas)
• Prime, Sydney (for steaks)
• Adriano Zumbos, Balmain (Desserts/macaroons.)
• Lindt Chocolate Cafe, Darling Harbour/Martin Place (Chocolate lovers!)

For more places to eat, check out their excellent food blog: eatshowandtell.com

So, if you are thinking of a food trip to taste food from all over the world, all you really need to do is head downunder. Its a great time to fly now when Qantas is offering to fly to two cities for as low as $869!

Check out the great Come Walkabout in Australia offers at www.australia.com or call 1800-GO-TO-AUS (1800-46-86-287) to speak to an Aussie Specialist travel agent now.

For more information about the special promotion, please visit www.qantas.com.sg

All photos are copyright Tourism Australia

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Penang Food Trail 4: Breakfast Time in Penang!

Roti Canai

Ah Breakfast. Of the three main meals of the day, this is the most special one for me because I seldom have the time to sit down for a nice slow meal. So when I am on holiday, I especially enjoy the luxury of sitting down to a breakfast of bacon, sausages, eggs and toast which is usually part of the hotel package. But since we were in Malaysia, I was willing to forgo the bacon and eggs (which I can make at home) for my all time favourite breakfast food, Roti Prata (Roti Canai in Malaysia).


Roti Canai along Transfer Road

This famous Roti Canai stall which is basically set up along the side of an old abandoned warehouse is just the thing that makes your heart pump a little faster -- the thought of eating an authentic no-nonsense Roti Canai that is designed to fill your tummy and tillilate your tastebuds. These guys just don't really care about how the Prata looks or whether the amount of oil they use is going to clog up your arteries. They are just there to make the Prata quick, get it on your plate, get it down your stomach and get you out of there.


Highly irregular but strangely attractive Roti Canai (Prata)

Everybody says that when it comes to Roti Prata, the Malaysians beat Singaporeans hands down. I could never understand why. Afterall, they are all made by foreign workers from Southern India nowadays. So why can't Singapore Roti Prata be better than Malaysian Canai? Or is it the environment where you eat the Prata that really adds to the flavour and enjoyment of the meal?


Roti Canai the way most Penangites eat them

We all found the Prata to be very tasty but a little chewy. I guess in Singapore we are used to Prata being more crispy. The curry was nice but I found the dahl to be a little burnt (was it meant to be that way?). Overall, I enjoyed the meal but it wasn't the holy grail I was looking for. 4/5 Perhaps the problem was that we did not eat the Prata the way it was meant to. Most of the people there ate theirs drowned with Dhal and chicken curry.



Taste aside, I would still come back here for breakfast just simply to soak in the atomosphere and enjoy the slow pace of life in Penang. There is no address for this place, so I wonder how they would be able to receive their mail, but you can easily spot it if you travel along Transfer Road.



If Kopi and Kaya Toast is more your kind of breakfast, then, I am told, that the place you have to visit is the Toh Soon Cafe which is located along Campbell street, off Penang Road. This little coffeeshop, which really is more like a coffee-alley, really, even has its own bakery where they bake their own bread.


Napalese man toasting bread over charcoal used to boil the water

With the resurgence in the popularity of Kopi and Kaya Toast in Singapore over the last decade or so, we Singaporeans are really spoilt for choice when it comes to getting our Kaya Toast. With competition, the different stalls are always thinking of ways of being more efficient and churning out the Kaya Toast quickly.

Not so in Penang. Here, things still get done the traditional way. Well, I say traditional, but perhaps it is just one of those things that never get fixed because it works. You know how sometimes you just put some scotchtape over a piece of your household furniture and tell yourself it is just a temporary fix and that you would do a proper job later? Well, the way they toast their bread here reminds me of that scotchtape phenomenon.

Here is a bustling coffeeshop, having to churn out hundreds of toastbread each morning and they do it by employing a foreign worker to squat at the base of the boiling water to use that charcoal to toast the bread! I guess maybe they feel that the extra proximity to the earth would impart an earthy flavour to the bread which makes theirs special. OK, I haven't visited any other Kaya Toast places in Penang so I can't tell you if this is the norm in Penang.


Bread with butter and sugar

As I mentioned earlier, I think we are spoilt for choice in Singapore and the standards of our Kopi and Kaya Toast is better as a lot of stalls use quality butter and homemade kaya to make their toast. However, if you want to have a simple cup of kopi, boiled eggs and eat bread with butter and sugar while relieving the good old days, this is the place to be. The bread here is very old school. It's very dry but airy with little taste on its own. It's a good vehicle for absorbing all that melted butter. 4/5

It's a good thing that our hotel stay does not come with the complimentary breakfast. I hate to be tempted to eat a typical hotel breakfast when there are great breakfast places around Penang where you can have your meal and enjoy the cool morning hours just watching time moving at a really slow pace.


Toh Soon Cafe, along Campbell Street off Penang Road

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Penang Food Trial 3: The Iconic Penang Hawker Dishes!

Everyone talks about Penang Laksa. You either love it or hate it. But it is one of those things you have to try when you are in Penang and one of the most famous stalls is the one at Ayer Itam market which is just at the base of the trial to Kek Lok Si Temple.



If you love pungent stuff like stinky Toufu, you might like this. As you approach the stall, you will feel as if you have walked into a sauna with a bucket of rotting prawns.

One thing about Penang I observe, is that their prawns are very good. So any of their dishes with prawns in it is good, be it fresh prawns or stinky prawn paste. And because they produce their own prawns, it is cheap and they have no qualms in using lots of it. So the Penang Laksa is no exception, they use so much Belachan here that you'd stink of Belachan for the rest of the day after a visit to the Assam Laksa stall.



Suffice to say that this is one dish that I don't need to try again. Damien tells me that although this is probably the most famous stall, it is not necessarily the best. I wonder if better ones mean even more stinky Belachan? 3/5 for me but it might be 4.5/5 for lovers of Penang Laksa.


Laksa at Ayer Itam market, near Kek Lok Si Temple

Now, there's dried fermented prawns paste (Belachan) and then there's prawn paste (Hei Gor) which is a sweet sticky paste that is used for rojak. In Singapore, any rojak seller will tell you that the best Hei Gor comes from Penang. So I had to hunt down some serious Penang Rojak.


Penang Rojak RM5

And if you want the King of Rojak, you have to visit Hock Seng Rojak, the self declared Rojak King of Penang. (Actually after eating this Rojak, you might crown him Rojak King yourself). Penang rojak is different from Singapore rojak as they don't have You Char Kway (fried doughstick) and just has fruits in it. At least traditionally, that is how it is. But nowadays some stalls are putting You Char Kway in Penang rojak, although they don't freshly toast it over charcoal like what we do in Singapore.



Hock Seng Rojak is anything but your typical Penang Rojak. The Rojak Uncle believes in eating "Ho Liao" (good stuff) and would keep chanting "Jia Ho Liao" (eat good stuff) over and over again. He does not stinge on anything and you can see just how much Hei Gor he avalanches his rojak in. On top of the Hei Gor, he puts a light tan coloured powder which I found out later was ground roasted cuttlefish. On top fo that, he adds a cupful of whole roasted peanuts and dried shrimps!


Dipping a cube of fruit in Hei Gor, Cuttlefish powder and finally dried shrimps (Tasting sample)

If you have never had this before, then you have never eaten rojak. This was actually our final stop after 8 hours of eating and although we started off ordering only one plate, we ended up with 3 plates and everyone packing home the sauce and condiments. Singapore Rojak really got no fight. I just wished I had some freshly toasted You Char Kway to go with it! 4.8/5.


Macallum Street at the junction of "five ways" Open 1.30pm to 5pm

Another dish that Penang is quite famous for is their curry noodles. Like their laksa, their curry noodles is also very different from the curry noodles that we have here.



Instead of a thick coconut based curry gravy, the noodles are served in a very light, but sweet and pungent prawn stock and it is up to you to add the sambal to make it inot a fiery curry. They also have all the other goodies like cuttlefish, cockles and congealed pigs blood to add to the dish. Too bad I was down with a bit of diarrhoea that morning so I did not get to really enjoy the dish. The soup was really good but somehow I still prefer our thick and rich coconut gravy version. 4/5



If there is one stall that you absolutely must visit while in Penang, it is the famous Penang Road Teochew Chendol. This hawker is featured everywhere. I even saw him in our Hotel's recurring video clip on the highlights of Penang. Some even go as far to say that he is even better than the Chendol in Malacca.


Chendol from the famous Teochew Chendul

There always seem to be a perpetual crowd around the stall at any time of the day. What is interesting is that there is a stall on the opposite side of the road which is much less popular. Our tour guide (Mr Yap) chose to eat at the less popular stall because he didn't want to wait for his chendol. He said the chendol is almost as good.


Chendol from the competitor directly opposite

So I had to do my usual, unrandomised, unblinded, uncontrolled trial to see if both chendols are indeed compatible. As you can see from the picture, the chendol (green stuff) is different at both stall. Whilest the one at Teochew Chendul (sic) is pale green with a softer, more powdery texture, the one opposite is a little more springy to the bite but with less pandan flavour. Actually the coconut and gula melaka is quite similar, so if you are just going for the soup, both stalls are compatible. However, what really made the difference for me was the taste of the red beans and kidney beans. This is where Teochew Chendul wins hands down. Theirs is very nice, well marinated, sweet and very "pang". So it is no wonder that people still flock to his stall.



To me the Chendol is very good, but the shaved ice was not very fine and there was very little of it. I like my Chendol with the ice still in its shaven form so that I can still taste the gula melaka and coconut milk separately. I haven't been to Malacca recently, but I suspect that Chendol can still be better than this. 4.25/5

Conclusion

So are you a fan of Penang Laksa? I have just been told by a Penangite that the one I featured here is famous but the locals actually to go a better one near the Airport as they feel that the one at Ayer Itam is not as good as before. The Rojak is definitely a winner but the Chendol I am not so sure until I get to eat the famous ones in Malacca.

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