Saturday, January 22, 2011
Saturday, January 15, 2011
Appam/Apam/Apong - Penang pancakes
What is appam/apong?
From wikipedia:
Appam, Aappam (Tamil: அப்பம்,ஆப்பம், Template:Lang-sinhala, pronounced [apːam]), Paniyaram or hoppers, are a type of food in Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Sri Lankan cuisine. It is called chitau(ଚିତାଉ)Pitha in Oriya, Paddu or Gulle Eriyappa in Kodava and Appam in Telugu. It is known as ආප්ප (Appa) in Sinhala. It is eaten most frequently for breakfast or dinner.
Appum or aapum - pronunciation varies between regions - is a term equivalent to bread. A bread made of rice batter on a stone griddle is in certain parts of the country called kalappam, where kal (Tamil கல்) means "stone". Another form of appam is "Kallappam", where "kall" (Tamil கள்) means toddy, which is used for fermentation. This type of appam is prepared in an appa kal (mould). Kallappam looks like a pan cake.
The presence of Tamils in Malaysia has over the years led to the popularity of the apam. Apam is the term used for a steamed cup-cake sized dessert made from rice flour that is eatened with shredded fresh coconut. The string hopper (local name: putumayam) is also popular among Malaysians. Sold by street vendors on modified motorbikes, the string hoppers are eaten with grated palm sugar (gula Melaka) and shredded fresh coconut. Malaysian Indians tend to make their own and eat it with either curry or dhal dish.
(source: wikipedia)
In Penang, it is called Apom, Apong, Apam manis or Apong Balik.
Types of Appam
Apam or Apong is originally an Indian food from Tamil Nadu; in the old days only Indian Tamil will sell apong in Penang. The locals called it Apom Manis. This fluffy dessert is made of the simplest of ingredients: sugar, egg, coconut milk and flour. The mixed flour batter is pour into small clay pot(but now some use mini woks) to form thin and crispy sides encircling a thick and puffy center. There are three types;
(i) The one that normally found as street food in Penang. It is thin and crispy, sweet and normally folded into a roll. Penang people always call it apom manis. There is no fillings. This is original Penang apom. It is make from pouring the batter into small clay pots with charcoal fire. It can only be make pot by pot.
(ii) This type is normally sold in banana leaf Indian restaurant. It is thicker and bigger. It served with coconut milk. It is not folded, and without fillings. This is Indian appam.
(iii) This type called Apong balik, is normally sold by Chinese hawker. It is smaller, thicker, with filling of banana, maize, some more innovative one filled it with peanut butter and other jams. But the original one is the one filling with only banana. Some call it nyonya apong, developed from the Penang apom, and it was originated in Penang, I think in the 60s. The inventor must have taken the idea from ban-chan-kuei and appom combined, developed into a hybrid. It is called Apong balik because after putting the ingredient of banana, the apong is fold back into half, thus call apong balik. Initially it only make pan by pan as ban-chan-kuei, but later the clever hawker develop a bigger pan which contain smaller pans, which make the process faster. Like Apong Guan, it has 9 small pans.
The other type called Apong balik by the Malay is actually developed from the ban-chan-kui in Penang.
How to make apong balik?
360g rice
2tbsp cooked rice
2 tbsp plain flour
2 tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup thick coconut milk & 11/2 cups think coconut milk, from 1 large grated coconut
1 dsp baking powder
brown sugar
Wash and soak rice for 5 hours. Strain. Put strained rice, cooked rice, flour, sugar, salt and 3/4 cup of the thin coconut milk into a liquidiser and blend to a fine paste. Pour into a pot and add remaining thin coconut milk. Leave to ferment for 12 hours preferably overnight. Refridgerate the thick coconut milk.
The next day, add baking powder into fermented mixture and stir well. Heat and lightly grease a small kuali and pour 2 tbsp of batter into the centre. Swivel the kuali to spread batter into a thin pancake. The centre of the pancake should be thick. Quickly add 1 tbsp of the thick coconut milk. Cover the kuali and let it cook over low heat until sides of appam are lightly brown.
From wikipedia:
Appam, Aappam (Tamil: அப்பம்,ஆப்பம், Template:Lang-sinhala, pronounced [apːam]), Paniyaram or hoppers, are a type of food in Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Sri Lankan cuisine. It is called chitau(ଚିତାଉ)Pitha in Oriya, Paddu or Gulle Eriyappa in Kodava and Appam in Telugu. It is known as ආප්ප (Appa) in Sinhala. It is eaten most frequently for breakfast or dinner.
Appum or aapum - pronunciation varies between regions - is a term equivalent to bread. A bread made of rice batter on a stone griddle is in certain parts of the country called kalappam, where kal (Tamil கல்) means "stone". Another form of appam is "Kallappam", where "kall" (Tamil கள்) means toddy, which is used for fermentation. This type of appam is prepared in an appa kal (mould). Kallappam looks like a pan cake.
The presence of Tamils in Malaysia has over the years led to the popularity of the apam. Apam is the term used for a steamed cup-cake sized dessert made from rice flour that is eatened with shredded fresh coconut. The string hopper (local name: putumayam) is also popular among Malaysians. Sold by street vendors on modified motorbikes, the string hoppers are eaten with grated palm sugar (gula Melaka) and shredded fresh coconut. Malaysian Indians tend to make their own and eat it with either curry or dhal dish.
(source: wikipedia)
In Penang, it is called Apom, Apong, Apam manis or Apong Balik.
Types of Appam
Apam or Apong is originally an Indian food from Tamil Nadu; in the old days only Indian Tamil will sell apong in Penang. The locals called it Apom Manis. This fluffy dessert is made of the simplest of ingredients: sugar, egg, coconut milk and flour. The mixed flour batter is pour into small clay pot(but now some use mini woks) to form thin and crispy sides encircling a thick and puffy center. There are three types;
(i) The one that normally found as street food in Penang. It is thin and crispy, sweet and normally folded into a roll. Penang people always call it apom manis. There is no fillings. This is original Penang apom. It is make from pouring the batter into small clay pots with charcoal fire. It can only be make pot by pot.
(ii) This type is normally sold in banana leaf Indian restaurant. It is thicker and bigger. It served with coconut milk. It is not folded, and without fillings. This is Indian appam.
(iii) This type called Apong balik, is normally sold by Chinese hawker. It is smaller, thicker, with filling of banana, maize, some more innovative one filled it with peanut butter and other jams. But the original one is the one filling with only banana. Some call it nyonya apong, developed from the Penang apom, and it was originated in Penang, I think in the 60s. The inventor must have taken the idea from ban-chan-kuei and appom combined, developed into a hybrid. It is called Apong balik because after putting the ingredient of banana, the apong is fold back into half, thus call apong balik. Initially it only make pan by pan as ban-chan-kuei, but later the clever hawker develop a bigger pan which contain smaller pans, which make the process faster. Like Apong Guan, it has 9 small pans.
The other type called Apong balik by the Malay is actually developed from the ban-chan-kui in Penang.
How to make apong balik?
360g rice
2tbsp cooked rice
2 tbsp plain flour
2 tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup thick coconut milk & 11/2 cups think coconut milk, from 1 large grated coconut
1 dsp baking powder
brown sugar
Wash and soak rice for 5 hours. Strain. Put strained rice, cooked rice, flour, sugar, salt and 3/4 cup of the thin coconut milk into a liquidiser and blend to a fine paste. Pour into a pot and add remaining thin coconut milk. Leave to ferment for 12 hours preferably overnight. Refridgerate the thick coconut milk.
The next day, add baking powder into fermented mixture and stir well. Heat and lightly grease a small kuali and pour 2 tbsp of batter into the centre. Swivel the kuali to spread batter into a thin pancake. The centre of the pancake should be thick. Quickly add 1 tbsp of the thick coconut milk. Cover the kuali and let it cook over low heat until sides of appam are lightly brown.
Friday, January 14, 2011
Monday, January 10, 2011
No post cards received...
I sent a few post cards from China; namely Guilin, Yangzuo, Dali, Lijiang, Kunming. Not even one card arrived, what happen to my post cards and postage stamps paid?.... I have returned home for nearly two weeks, yet there is no sign of my post cards....
?????
China Post
China Post (Chinese: 中国邮政), which is the name used by the State Post Bureau of PRC in business, is the official postal service of the People's Republic of China. China Post is operated by the State Post Bureau of the People's Republic of China. The State Post Bureau, commonly referred to as China Post, is both a regulatory authority and government owned enterprise. Thus it is responsible for the regulation of the national postal industry and the management of national postal enterprises(source: wikipedia).
Is it coincident? or inefficiency or .....
Pos Malaysia
Pos Malaysia Berhad is a post services company in Malaysia. The company was corporatized in 1992 from the governmental owned Malaysian Postal Services Department or Jabatan Perkhidmatan Pos Malaysia.
Pos Malaysia provides postal and related services, transport logistics, printing and insertion, counter collection and payment agency services for a range of financial transactions, such as bill payments, remittance, insurance and unit trusts.
The company holds an exclusive concession to provide mail services through its network of over 850 branches and mini post offices in Malaysia.(source: wikipedia)
.... or is the cards with the beautiful stamps lost at Malaysian Post?....
There is no answer.....
I have similar experience only with Jordan some years ago, where the post cards sent with postage fully paid were not arrived at the destination, all were missing and may be going to the hands of some unauthorized stamps collectors or post cards collectors?
?????
China Post
China Post (Chinese: 中国邮政), which is the name used by the State Post Bureau of PRC in business, is the official postal service of the People's Republic of China. China Post is operated by the State Post Bureau of the People's Republic of China. The State Post Bureau, commonly referred to as China Post, is both a regulatory authority and government owned enterprise. Thus it is responsible for the regulation of the national postal industry and the management of national postal enterprises(source: wikipedia).
Is it coincident? or inefficiency or .....
Pos Malaysia
Pos Malaysia Berhad is a post services company in Malaysia. The company was corporatized in 1992 from the governmental owned Malaysian Postal Services Department or Jabatan Perkhidmatan Pos Malaysia.
Pos Malaysia provides postal and related services, transport logistics, printing and insertion, counter collection and payment agency services for a range of financial transactions, such as bill payments, remittance, insurance and unit trusts.
The company holds an exclusive concession to provide mail services through its network of over 850 branches and mini post offices in Malaysia.(source: wikipedia)
.... or is the cards with the beautiful stamps lost at Malaysian Post?....
There is no answer.....
I have similar experience only with Jordan some years ago, where the post cards sent with postage fully paid were not arrived at the destination, all were missing and may be going to the hands of some unauthorized stamps collectors or post cards collectors?
Saturday, December 25, 2010
Haba Snow Mountain, Lijiang, Shangrila, Yunnan, China
This is a youtube video fro Dr Kevin Soh of Singapore. A beautiful recording of his trip to Haba Snow Mountain, Shangrila, Yunnan, China.
Watching it, is just like travel with them to Haba Snow Mountain during Christmas day.
Watching it, is just like travel with them to Haba Snow Mountain during Christmas day.
Winter in Yunnan, China
Just come back from Yunnan, China. An early winter at Shangrila, it snow the first day we arrived. Beautiful journey crossing the Yunnan and Guangxi Province, but missed the Asian Games in Guangzhou, Guangdung Province. Just happen to see the video at youtube. Beautiful winter isn't it?
Hope you enjoy it....
Hope you enjoy it....
Merry Christmas 2010
Merry Christmas to all Christian friends round the world
Peace be with you, wherever you are.
Hayyo Ya Mhuyumne, or Come All Ye Faithful, sung in Chaldean Neo-Aramaic. A traditional Christmas hymn. Aramaic is an ancient language spoken during Jesus's time, hearing song in Aramaic in Christmas day will be more meaningful to remember the birth of Jesus Christ. Aramaic was the language spoken by Jesus Christ. In several countries in the Middle East (Iraq, Syria, Armenia) the Catholic faith is practiced by, amongst others, the Chaldean Church and the language they use is Aramaic.
Christmas day is the day to remember the birth of Jesus Christ, is not like an ordinary birthday, it is not Santa Claus day, it is not Christmas tree, it is not Christmas Song, it is not Christmas Turkey dinner, it is not Christmas drama, it is not Christmas gifts; it is just a day to remember Jesus Christ. He is the focus, every second, every hour and the day of Christmas. Many celebrate Christmas,it is a public holiday, but fall short of the knowing what is the meaning of the day. This year, my Christmas is merely walking back to the time when Jesus said in Aramaic language....the time Jesus walk and talk to many...and many come to know him....do you know HIM?....
The Lord's Prayer in Aramaic
The language of Aramaic still remain....
Have a merry Christmas and blessing year for 2011.
Peace be with you, wherever you are.
Hayyo Ya Mhuyumne, or Come All Ye Faithful, sung in Chaldean Neo-Aramaic. A traditional Christmas hymn. Aramaic is an ancient language spoken during Jesus's time, hearing song in Aramaic in Christmas day will be more meaningful to remember the birth of Jesus Christ. Aramaic was the language spoken by Jesus Christ. In several countries in the Middle East (Iraq, Syria, Armenia) the Catholic faith is practiced by, amongst others, the Chaldean Church and the language they use is Aramaic.
Christmas day is the day to remember the birth of Jesus Christ, is not like an ordinary birthday, it is not Santa Claus day, it is not Christmas tree, it is not Christmas Song, it is not Christmas Turkey dinner, it is not Christmas drama, it is not Christmas gifts; it is just a day to remember Jesus Christ. He is the focus, every second, every hour and the day of Christmas. Many celebrate Christmas,it is a public holiday, but fall short of the knowing what is the meaning of the day. This year, my Christmas is merely walking back to the time when Jesus said in Aramaic language....the time Jesus walk and talk to many...and many come to know him....do you know HIM?....
The Lord's Prayer in Aramaic
The language of Aramaic still remain....
Have a merry Christmas and blessing year for 2011.
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