Malaysia will be celebrating the 49th birthday, or 49th National Day on 31 Aug 2006. 31st Aug of each year, is a significant day for Malaysians to remember the eventful journey we have gone through since the day we stepped into a free and independent nation on 31 Aug 1957.
In the history of Malaysia, Melaka is indeed one of the most historically remarkable states in Malaysia, not only that Melaka was the first state to be colonized by foreign power, Portuguese, in 1511, but also the fact that Melaka was Tunku Abdul Rahman’s (Malaysia’s first Prime Minister and Father of Independence) first stop in his nationwide tour in 1956 to gather support in his quest for the country’s independence.
Do you know where was the place Tunku made his first official public announcement on the success of securing independence for Malaya from the British Government? The answer is, Dataran Pahlawan (diagonally opposite the Porta de Santiago and Mahkota Parade) of Melaka, which is currently being transformed into a new commercial complex.
When the independence delegation returned back from London to Malaya, the team led by Tunku Abdul Rahman first touched down at the Melaka Batu Berendam Airport, the first airport in Malaysia, and headed to Dataran Pahlawan (about 16 km away) for the official historic announcement will full of supports from the massive number of participants.
Merdeka Everywhere
If you are a foreign tourist visiting Melaka or Malaysia in this August, the word “Merdeka” is surely frequently appearing to you everywhere. For your information, the word merdeka means independence in Malay language.
On 31 Aug 1957 at Dataran Merdeka, Tunku Abdul Rahman cried out “Merdeka” for a total of 7 times.
During this Merdeka season, the Malaysia flag is also flying everywhere in the public places. The sea of flags is easily one of the most photogenic scenes for photographers.
Further References
History of Malaysia:
AllMalaysia.info has also published a site themed Merdeka@49 dedicated to the celebration of this 49th Malaysia National Day. This site is featuring pool of comprehensive and interesting information for your further knowledge. Besides, a photography contest is also going on at AllMalaysia.info.
August 29th, 2006
Yong Tau Foo (also known with other variations such as Yong Tau Fu and Yong Tau Hu), is a kind of delicacy mainly made with fish paste and vegetables, and commonly found in Malaysia and Singapore. While Yong Tau Foo is especially well-known in Ampang region of Kuala Lumpur, Melaka is also blessed with a few specialties offering the tasteful and authentic Yong Tau Foo.
The Yong Tau Foo stall in Malim Jaya Food Court (Medan Selera Malim Jaya) is one of my all time favorites. Believe it or not, every weekend I spent in Melaka is never complete without filling my tummy with the Yong Tau Foo here, for at least once a week.
What is Yong Tau Foo?
To the uninitiated ones, I’m dedicating a few short paragraphs to introduce the Yong Tau Foo.
Yong Tau Foo is essentially a term referring to fish balls and fish paste stuffed into items like bean curds (tofu), bitter gourds, chilies, lady’s fingers, sliced brinjals (eggplant), and thin soy skins. These items are commonly cut into bite-size pieces and cooked briefly in boiling water to be served as soup, or fried in oil to be served with complementary broth.
The diner can choose to consume the Yong Tau Foo items just by itself, or with filling alternatives like rice noodles and bee hoon.
Yong Tau Foo in Malim Jaya Food Court
In Malim Jaya, there’s a food court located next to the wet market and opposite the busy rows of business shop lots. There, look for stall M5a and M5b strategically positioned at the entrance, and you will find yourself ready for indulgence of authentic fish paste.
This is a non-Halal food stall.
This Malim Jaya Yong Tau Foo is using Wolf Herring fish (locally known as Ikan Parang) to produce the fish balls. Thus, the meat is firm and springy. All the fish balls and fish paste are freshly prepared in raw, and preserved in fridge to maintain its tastiness. All the Yong Tau Foo items are prepared and cooked on the spot to deliver the highest degree of freshness and deliciousness.
From top left: Fish paste stuffed in lady’s fingers, chilies, bitter gourds, fried bean curds, and soft bean curds. Lastly, pork balls are also available.
Sliced brinjals to be stuffed with fish paste.
Bitter gourds stuffed with fish paste.
Fried brinjals.
What makes me like it so much, is that the fish pastes are authentically prepared. If you are picky in fish, you will surely taste the difference. The fish balls are enriched with the fresh taste and natural sweetness. Besides, no preservatives are used. In contrast to the ready made Yong Tau Foo items sold elsewhere, it’s like the difference of distance between earth and sky. Homemade is still the best in healthiness and tastiness perspective, comparing to the mass production by automated machinery.
In addition, the soup is also cooked with soybeans to gain natural sweetness from Mother Nature instead of totally relying on other cookery flavoring.
The Yong Tau Foo is often considered as a healthy food and diet, with exception to the fried items.
Pricing
Each Yong Tau Foo item is sold here at RM0.50, which is pretty reasonable considering its quality.
In addition to dine-in, prior booking of the Yong Tau Foo items for take-away is also available. My mum likes to purchase the Yong Tau Foo items here, and bring it back home to cook with other cuisines.
GPS Coordinate: N2.23913 E102.23356
August 15th, 2006
