Food In Johor : Mandella Seafood ~ Tanjung Bin, Pontian

Few months ago, i went for a site work in Tanjung Bin Johor. Well, honestly i don't know what in stored for me there especially the foods. As usual, i started talking around where can i get good food especially near Tg Bin where i had to work. Some of the local recommended me to go to Mandela Seafood.

Actually i've noticed the signboard while I'm on my way to the plant. The name of the place doesn't attract my attention because it gave me an impression that its an African Restaurant or a bar in the middle of the estate. After several recommendation I've told myself to give it a try.

The journey from the junction took quite a while. The restaurant surprisingly located in the middle of the palm plantation. It took around 10 minutes drive from the main road. But the journey paid off when finally i arrived at the decent restaurant surrounded by several houses & palm plantation.

I arrived around 6:00 o'clock. There's a small old Surau nearby with limited amenities. Well at least i can do my Asar prayer there. As usual i ordered my favourite dish which is 'Ikan Siakap Masak 3 Rasa' (3 Flavoured Fish) & sotong goreng tepung (deep fried squid). Together with some vegetables & their famous dish which is 'Tomyam Udang'.

There were two of us & at 1st I've planned to order one tomyam each. But luckily the waiter told me that the portion of 1 Tomyam was big enough for 3 person to eat.

The food was good. I really like the squid & the tomyam. Its quite a lot. I think next time if I'm planning to come here i need to ensure I'm really hungry due to its large portion of food.

Restaurant Name :- Mandella Seafood.

Place :- On the way to Kukup at Tg Bin Area be aware of Mandela Seafood signboard yellow in Color. Its on the left of the road. Don't be surprise the journey from the main road going inside will be quite challenging especially if you are travelling at night.

Price :- Quite cheap considering large portion of tomyam & large fish given.

Setback :- Make sure you go at night. Surrounding areas not really eye catching.

For Muslims, there's a Surau nearby.

By anaklangkawi

Food In Melaka : Umbai ~ Ikan Bakar Seafood

This is among my favourite place to have great seafood with quite cheap price. Umbai is situated 30km from Bandar Melaka. If you're coming from Johor/ Singapore you need to go out from exit Jasin or Tangkak. Its about 20-30minutes or 35-30km from the toll exit.

Its a worth while exit for a great cheap tasty dinner. Umbai is famous of its 'Ikan Bakar' + with a touch of small nasi lemak. Among my favourite place is Muara Ikan Bakar. Its the 1st shop near the souvenir shop. If you can see the picture i attached, the wholesome meal with 3 of us only cost about RM 120.00 inclusive of drinks.

I can say its value for money meal, plus its not that far from Bandar Melaka. If you like to taste great food. Better try & find this place.

Restaurant Name :- Muara Ikan Bakar

Place :- Umbai - Exit Tangkak, you'll have to meet Merlimau first. Its a small town near the sea.

Price :- Quite cheap with such a fresh & great meal. Make sure you go empty stomach.

For Muslims, there's a Surau nearbys & RM1.00 parking fee.
By anaklangkawi

How to go there? Its near to Melaka town. You need to go through a small road opposite Esso Station. Need to park with a fee of RM1.00 collected by the local village.



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Potato Bread

Always love Giant's potato bread. Very soft and delicious.. Found a recipe by Alex Goh and tried it one evening.
The turn out was delicious, and as I love custard, I put extra on top of the bun before eating it.. yumyum...
The best part of it was when my youngster couldn't wait to get his hand on the buns.. my loyal fan.. hehe..
















Potato Bread:
(A)
600g Bread Flour
70g Sugar
1 1/2 tsp Salt
1 1/2 tbsp Milk powder
4 tsp Instant Yeast

(B)
1 Egg
270ml Cold Water

(C)
120g Mashed Potato (I used potato flakes+hot water)
60g Butter

(D) Custard

Method:
1. Mix (A) till well blended. Add (B) and knead to form a dough.
2. Add (C), continue to knead to form a smooth and elastic dough.
3. Make the dough into a ball. Put it in a bowl and cover with clear film. Put in a warm place to prove for 45 min.
4. Make the dough into a ball again and let it rest for further 15 min.
5.Divide the dough into several 30g pieces, mould them into balls and put then on 2 greased 23cm square baking pans. Makes 16 pieces per pan.
6.Cover and leave to prove for 40 min or till double the size.
7. Brush with egg wash and pipe the custard to make a cross on top.
8. Bake at 180 degree C for 25 min on the low shelf of the oven.















I used my BM, so I just dumped (A), start the machine, then (B). Add (C) when it's well blended and already form a dough. Let it sit in the BM for the 1st prove.

** As the dough is a bit sticky, you can put some flour on your hands before you starts to make it into balls.

Food In Pahang : Cameron Highland 2009

We spent a night at Cameron Highland on the way back from Raya holiday to KL. As it wasn't our 1st time visiting, we planned our visit this time really well. Went there on Thursday, so luckily we got a chance to experienced the night market. There were a lot of deep fried snack such as, calamari, prawns, mushrooms and lots more at the night market. After finished shopping at the night market, we went to a crowded small restaurant near our hotel called 'Orchid Restaurant' or something.. As it was full house, so we decided to go for something simple, we chosed 'Bihun Hong kong' (rice vercemilli). Suprisingly, the food taste excellent and the Teh tarik was great either.

The next morning, after we went for a tour around the highland, we stopped at 'Raju's Hill" for a Strawberry treats. We had Strawberry Ice Cream and Strawberry Milkshake. It was delicious, but had trouble finishing them as the weather was a bit cold.

On the way back down from the highland, we stopped for tea at the Cafe at the side of the road. There was 2 cafe there and we chosed the 1st cafe as the 2nd cafe was really packed w people. We had Scones (which costs us RM12), Chicken pie (RM4), Curry puff(RM3), Chocolate cake (RM8) and teh tarik (RM4 each). The food were expensive, but the scenery was breathtaking..
Can't wait to go back there again...

Food In Kedah : Kedah Royal Club

We went for dinner at The Royal Kedah Club on the 2nd raya night.. As usual, the food was great. The food arrived quite late as it was a full house that night.. I ordered Salmon, my husband ordered the Oriental Chicken Chop and Adam ordered Fried noodle.. hehe.. I love the Strawberry juice here, because it made from fresh strawberries.. Next to it is the Strawberry milkshake for my husband..



Overall, the food was ok, the service was excellent and will visit the restaurant again..

Hari Raya 2009

This yr is Ammar's 1'st Hari Raya/Eid.. He had to wake up early in the morning as the hari raya routine starts at arnd 9am+.. So... he was a bit off that day...

After had breakfast, we're off to the Istana Anak Bukit (Kedah Palace).. They served Sate, Spaghetti Bolognaise, Ketupat Palas, Lemang, Rendang, Mi Rebus, Kuih raya (cookies n biscuits), and Adam's favourite for that day... cupcakes. After that, we got to meet the Sultan and Sultanah..

That night we had family and friends over for a barbeque.. everybody had a great time. We had Ketupat, Ketupat Palas, Lemang, Laksa, Bihun Sup, Rendang, Barbequed Chicken, Sausages and Kambing Golek / Lamb. My sis in law made her famous Dragonfruit jelly and Dadih...

p/s: look forward to the next bbq event...

Food In Pahang : Restaurant Nurin ~ Sungai Ular

This is among my best spot for having my dinner on the way back to KL whenever i'm outstation in Terengganu. The restaurant situated on the roadside of the road before the gebeng highway. Its quite a simple Malay Restaurant & i think the owner origin from Pattani.

The best dish is the Siakap 3 Rasa. The taste was sweet, sour & spicy. All three flavour together with crunchy deep fried fish. It comes together with a set which includes Siakap 3 Rasa (3 flavour fish), telur dadar (fried egg), ayam merah (chicken with red sauce), sup tulang (beef bone soup), kailan (some sort of vege). My family have been there quite a lot until the owner of the shop know us already. Hehe.

Restaurant Name :- Resteron Nurin

Place :- Before entering gebeng Highway on the left.

Price :- Very cheap. Order set of dish (siakap dish, soup or tomyam, egg (telur dadar) vegetables, chicken or beef masak merah) only RM 30~40.00. This set is for 2-4 person.

For muslims info, the restaurant is equip with Surau as well.

By Anaklangkawi

Where is it? On the left site of the road on the way to Kuantan..

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Food In Vietnam : Ho Chi Min City ~ 4 Season Restaurant (Halal)

Last year during fasting month I've travel to Vietnam for a course conducted by my company. It was a great experience considering its fasting month & i need a place to 'break' fast at the unknown territory. Luckily before i depart i received a good tips on where to go & where to eat.

There's a place called Four Season Restaurant which is just a walking distance from my hotel. Its a halal Restaurant with excellent Beriani Rice + Selection of Chicken, Prawn or Meat. Marvelous meal especially when you are hungry. But i can tell you that its not that cheap but its value for money. You also might bump with Malaysian in the restaurant.

If you were there don't forget to drop by the nearby market to buy a pair of Vietnamese shoes. Do offer 1/2 of what they offered.

By Anaklangkawi

Sup Tulang Ketuk a.k.a Bonesteak

This is one of the dishes that reminds me of my mom's hometown, Singapore.. We used to eat this dish at the Beach Rd Hawker Centre. Yum.. I made this for dinner as it now became my husband favourite as well. I got the recipe from few aunts and cousins, and in the end with all of different versions in hands I got confused.. which one to follow.. which one is the most delicious... hehe... So, I decided to simply follow one recipe and adjusted it to my taste.. (thank God, it came out good). Here is the recipe (for 2kg):

Tulang kambing / Bonesteak 2kg

Rempah Sup / Soup Powder 5 tablespoons

Tomato sos / Ketchup <>1kg

Cili kering / dried chilli RM1

Bawang besar / Onion 5 (half blend & half cubes)

Bawang merah / shallots half a kg (blend)

Bawang putih / garlic 5 (blend)

Buah tomato /tomatoes 1kg (half blend & half cubes)

Rempah Beefsteak / beefsteak powder 3 tablespoons

Kicap manis / sweet soya sauce 2 tablespoons

What I normally do is, I cook the bonesteak with the soup powder and some ginger the night before. So in the morning all the excess oil and fats will floats, so it's easier to be removed (my husband's task). Then just add in all the ingredients, add sugar and salt to taste. As this recipe is a family recipe, I dont really have the exact measurement for each ingredients..

If you go to the mamak's at the Beach Rd, the bonesteak is very red in colour, as the use red colouring. So if you like, you can add some. If you dont, it will look like this ...

For decorations, you can add fried potato and shredded 'kobis'. For the remaining gravy, you can store in thye fridge for the next day, and add any type of mee in.

p/s: If you go to the Beach Rd Hawker Center, try Nasi Padang Seema and the sugar cane juice.. yum.....

Food In Labuan : R & R Japanese Surrender Point

Few months ago, i went on a work trip to Labuan. After having a hectic day, i went with my friend to visit The Surrender Point.

The Surrender Point is where the Japanese army formally surrendered during WWII. Three months after the Allied forces landed on 9th Sep 1945, Major General George F.Wooten, commander of the Austarlian 9th Division presided & witnessed the formal signing of the letter of surrender by Lieutenant General Masao Baba, commander of the 37th Japanese Army. In the ensuing two years until 1947, this area served as the HQ for Australian 9th Division army & the command center for Allied forces in British Borneo. It was also a detention center investigating the heinous crimes & immoral conducts commintted by the Japanese army during the war. War tribunals were regularly held here to trial & execute Japanese army personnel suspected of war crimes.

I spend nearly an hour wandering around reading & trying to figure out what is the history behind the contruction of the big wall. Thank god for all the history lessons written at various point of the places. At the end of the visit we came across a small R&R (rest & relax) area. There's a small snack shop with an open space concept where there's a quite number of crowd gathered.

We managed to get a seat & started to order small evening snack which consists of a bunch of Sate, Chicken Wings & Teh Tarik. Excellent meal indeed with a calm breeze of wind gasping the ears. We end up ordering 10 chicken wings & 20 sticks of sate (beef & chicken).

I must say it was among the best evening snack i've ever had.

Place :- The Surrender Point ~ Labuan

Price :- RM 0.50 per stick for Sate, RM 1.50 for Chicken Wing & RM 1.00 for a Teh Tarik

By Anaklangkawi

Where is it? It overseeing the beach..

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Ammar's 1st Birthday Dinner

We had our family (my husband's side) come over for a simple dinner that night (July 29th). I prepared some simple dishes, and I started cooking in the morning then on and off, continued whenever the kids were busy playing or watching tv (when they forgot abt me). I consult my cooking expert a.k.a the head chef.. my mother by the phone the day b4...

So here are the dishes I prepared, my version of Ikan Siakap tiga

rasa and ikan bawal putih(ponfret) asam pedas, bok choi a.k.a sawi jepun (as my mom call it), urap pegaga (Johor style, yes... I'm a Johorean), sup tulang and udang geragau goreng (you can only get this prawn, fresh not dried, in Malacca, as far as I know ..).

For those who wants to try the urap pegaga, here's the recipe:

*ulam pegaga with roots

*Fresh red chilies

*dried prawn/anchovies ( i used dried prawn)
*shallots/onions
*garlic
*fresh grated coconut

• Blend all the ingredients except the coconut.


• Cook on a medium heat, add the coconut and salt.
  
• You hv to keep stir it around until the coconut dried up a little bit, actually the wetness or dryness is up to u. I dont really like the coconut to be too dry.. so it's up to u really. turn off the heat and remove it into a bowl.


• Cut the pegaga and just toss it in the coconut.
  

Recipe for 'fried udang geragau':

Actually it's really up to you how you want the udang geragau to be done. For me, one of the way that I like is:

onion/shallots, spring onions, chopped cili padi/ red chilli, egg, udang geragau.

Combine everything in a bowl, put in the udang last, add salt and pepper to taste. Fry them.

That night, my eldest son kept making excuses for wanting to open his lil bro's presents (it's getting late, he's going to sleep soon.. hehe..), at that moment I realised that he IS getting bigger and smarter.. hehe.. As for the birthday boy, he had fun that night, playing with his cousins and his new toys ( thanks to his aunts & uncles)... he went to bed around 1.30am that night .

On Saturday, we had our family (JB side) gathering at my parent's for Ammar's bday.. This time we had tea, so my mum and I decided to prepare 'bihun soto' (basically it's chicken bihun sup with bergedel, beansprout, spring onion, cilantro andf ried shallots... yummy), my sister made 'dadih' and 'pengat labu' and some orange cupcakes with cream cheese frosting I made the day before.

For the kids, we fried chicken nuggets, onion rings, keropok lekor and fries. I did bake my fav bread again, but this time I used my new rectangle pound cake mould. Nowadays, as the kids eats more than they used to, I hv to bake the bread (1/2) recipe twice a week..

The cake was beautiful (thanks to my sister), and my mother told me that while we were singing birthday song to Ammar, instead of saying 'Hppy Birthday to Ammar' he said slowly 'Happy Birthday to Adam'.. hehe... why I'm not suprised... Ammar got a bicycle from his grandpa and today, I caught him standing on the bike while both hands holding the armrest of the sofa... Kids... scarry...

On the evening the day before (Friday), my husband took the kids and my kid brother to Danga Bay. There was nobody else around, so they make full use of the place. The kids enjoyed the trip so much esp my eldest, that when it's time to go home, my husband had to carry him away from the place (he cried, of course..).