Terengganu Delights

  • Roti Paung Pandan Kelapa

    Roti Paung Pandan Kelapa

    Some years back, Gardenia released a new fancy bread: Roti Pandan Kelapa. I’ve tried imitating this bread by modifying King Arthur Baking’s Japanese milk bread recipe, and while I was quite happy with the results, it still wasn’t as fluffy and perfect as I would have liked. Having fairly recently perfected my roti paung…

  • Roti Paung Terengganu

    Roti Paung Terengganu

    When I was younger, afternoon tea was pretty much a daily routine.  Mummy would drive out (practically every place in Kuala Terengganu was only a 5 minutes’ drive away) and buy cakes or snacks for our afternoon tea, such as banana fritters, traditional Malay kuih, and occasionally, freshly baked roti paung.  A favorite place for us to buy…

  • Breadmaker Kayu Keramat

    Breadmaker Kayu Keramat

    Growing up in Terengganu, one of my favorite afternoon tea snacks was kayu keramat. Literally translated as ‘sacred stick’ (don’t ask), it is basically a lightly sweet fried dough. A local doughnut, so to speak.

  • Red Bean Cookies – Grandma’s Legendary Recipe

    Red Bean Cookies – Grandma’s Legendary Recipe

    My (mysterious) Grandma made red bean cookies that were practically legendary in my family. Unfortunately I was not blessed with the opportunity to savour the real deal, but Abang Fauzi definitely remembers watching her make the cookies, and among my siblings I think he loved them the most.

  • Grandma’s Red Bean Filling (Inti Kacang Nenek)

    Grandma’s Red Bean Filling (Inti Kacang Nenek)

    If you are attempting the gauntlet that is my late maternal grandmother’s legendary kuih kacang, you can either fill it with store-bought red bean filling to significantly cut the prep time, or you can make it from scratch following her recipe which has been passed down through the ages.

  • Pulut Lepa Terengganu

    Pulut Lepa Terengganu

    Being from Terengganu, I grew up thinking fish is a natural, common ingredient in so many local favorites; nasi lemak with sambal ikan tongkol, karipap, pulut panggang (we call ’em pulut lepa)… but *of course* fish is the main ingredient! Wait… you guys have nasi lemak with chicken rendang and *gasp* paru (beef lung)? Karipap kentang? What is this orange coconut nonsense in this pulut…

  • Weekend Cooking: Mak Long’s Baked Macaroni (Makaroni Bakar)

    Weekend Cooking: Mak Long’s Baked Macaroni (Makaroni Bakar)

    I usually make my casseroles truly “Western-style” – full of ground meats, dried herbs like oregano, thyme and parsley, and a lot of cheese.  A while back Kak’mbang asked me to try making baked macaroni casserole “Malay-style,” which uses common local spices and eggs as the primary binding agent.  Every now and then I’d surf…

  • Weekend Cooking: Kak’mbang’s Chicken Rice

    Weekend Cooking: Kak’mbang’s Chicken Rice

    Others may have their own personal preferences, but Rudy and I both agree that Kak’mbang’s chicken rice is really, really good.  This was another recipe that simply must be preserved for generations to come, but again I’ve always had trouble catching her in action (she’s such a ninja in the kitchen; dishes just magically appear and you…