Saturday, February 5, 2011

Happiness is.....

1. Drooling at the sight of catfish grilled "village" style.....yummm.... 
2. Salivating at live ikan haruan (snakehead fish) being cleaned....and then grilled to purrrfection.... 
3. The thought of these tasty shellfish (can someone help identify these delightful morsels?) stirfried with chili and lemongrass..... 
4. Sumptuous lunch spread - fit for a queen (and some humans). 
The Menu: 
Grilled catfish
Grilled snakehead fish
Fried chicken
Unidentified shellfish, stirfried with chili and lemongrass
Young tapioca leaves in coconut milk
Boiled young papaya leaves
Kacang botol (a type of legume, eaten raw)
Sambal belacan (hot chili with shrimp paste)
Air asam (chili and onion in tamarind juice)
White rice
Loads of laughter
Plenty smiles


5. Visiting the ancestral home - Mama's late Grandma's house.
6. Getting to know the native trees - this is a papaya tree, Mama told me. Don't munch the leaves, they're bitter.
7. This is a tapioca plant - the roots (tubers) are edible, as well as the young shoots. Oh...we had them for lunch.
8. This is a longan tree. The locals call the fruits "buah mata kucing" (cat's eye fruit). Surely no cats were harmed in the planting of this tree?
9. Amazed at the beauty and serenity of the village....it's off season for rice planting I was told, hence the bare fields.
10. I did justice to the fish. Burp! 
Angelina's note: We spent the weekend at Mama's maternal home village. It was awesome! purrrr....meow!

50 comments:

Monyet King said...

A meal without a banana cannot be a real meal ......

Cat-from-Sydney said...

Unfortunately, none of the banana trees around Grandma's house was fruiting. purrrr....meow!

mokja said...

Dell : Adoi,tersangatlah sedapnya sampai meleleh air liur.Keli bakar...mamason's favourite.

Cat-from-Sydney said...

Dell, jom duduk ngan kita. Mak Long kita ada keli farm! purrr....meow!

i amsterdam said...

Ikan keli..(yumm yumm),ikan haruan..(yumm yumm), pucuk betik..(yumm yumm), pucuk ubi..(yumm yumm), kacang kelisa & sambal belacan..(yumm yumm)... all are yummylicious!!! Will you bring me too Angelina.. purrleasee!!

Al-Manar said...

It is all peace and beauty in a natural environment. Added to that is the memory of something, someone long gone. Enjoy it whichever lens you choose to see through, cats' or otherwise.

rohaizahabas said...

that shellfish nama nya Mentarang...sedap nyaaa.....

nurmisnan said...

oh dear cat.. why tak ajak makan ikan??
dah tinggal tulang tuh...
Burrpppppp...

i liked keli2 u.. hu3

Unknown said...

Really awesome post!! Thanks for sharing the memories and wonderful pics!

Nana said...

Drooling...
All the food looks so good!!
Yummm...even the ulam looks tasty. Fresh looking vege there! Yummy. Angie, how many fish did you have?

tireless mom said...

Hmmm young papaya leaves, you know what they can do right? --> create "musim mengawan". For you no lah, you better settle with the ikan keli, for your mom ok!

Cat-from-Sydney said...

Mother of Ilham,
Jomlah balik kampung kita. Best tau! Macam-macam ada. purrrr....meow!

Cat-from-Sydney said...

Dear Pakcik,
We're thinking of moving here when Mama retires. Then Angelina can become kucing kampung.... purrr.....meow!

Cat-from-Sydney said...

Aunty Ezza,
Oh...ini namanya mentarang ye? Ooohhh...sungguh sedap dan manis. Mama beli masa dia hidup lagi gitu kat pasar Sekinchan. Murah je - 3 pinggan RM5. purrr....meow!

Cat-from-Sydney said...

Aunty Nur,
Ingat nak tinggalkan sikit untuk aunty tapi sebab punyalah sedap...sampai luoa. Sorry.... purrrr....meow!

Cat-from-Sydney said...

Aunty Paula,
We really love this Malaysian concept of balik kampung. Lovely food, lovely company, lovely feeling.... purrrr....meow!

meowwmania said...

amboii sonoknya balik kampung...

terliur tgk hidangan lauk pauk itu slupppp..

Cat-from-Sydney said...

Aunty Nana,
All the veges were freshly picked from the backyard. That's why it's so fresh. Errr....I ate so many fish I lost count.... purrrr....meow!

Cat-from-Sydney said...

Aunty Yatt,
Ish ish ish...what are you suggesting? Young papaya leaf is good for our digestive system, you know. purrr....meow!

Cat-from-Sydney said...

Aunty Meoww,
Kampung kita tak banjir. Best panjat-panjat pokok. purrr....meow!

TK said...

Everything is so delicious. I love kampung food macam tu..yummy!
If I were to go there I would love to have longan. I don't eat canned longan. I want fresh longan petik kat pokok... bestnya..

Cat-from-Sydney said...

TK Sensei,
Longan tu putik lagi lah. Sabor ye? purrrr.....meow!

Pi Bani said...

Grilled catfish huh?

Nobody grilled the cat?

Nipponaiki said...

Org sarawak panggil Mentarang tu Siput Naga

Anonymous said...

Hey, where's the dipping sauce for the grilled fish?

Cat-from-Sydney said...

Aunty Pi,
If someone grilled the cat, siapa nak update blog? har har har *evil laughs*

Cat-from-Sydney said...

Nipponaiki dear,
Thank you for the alternative name. Siput naga? Hmmm....it doesn't look like a dragon at all. purrr....meow!

Cat-from-Sydney said...

Andrea dear,
There's the air assam and sambal belacan for humans. Cat don't need dipping sauce. purrrr....meow!

Anonymous said...

Hello Ange, if no dipping sauce tak shiok la. Recommended ratio is 1 big bowl of dipping sauce per grilled fish + 1 big plate of rice. Burp!

Cat-from-Sydney said...

Aiyo Andrea! You're such a glutton. Oh...but you're human not a cat. purrr....meow!

=^..^= said...

Those look totally yummo! You've made our Mommy drool all over the keyboard. She's off to hunt down a Malaysian lunch.

~Slash & Bronzy

Cat-from-Sydney said...

Slash & Bronzy,
Tell your mom, happy hunting. purrrr....meow!

Sandy said...

ooohh .. it's such a beautiful hometown ! The scenery is probably making the food 10x yummier ! :D I love catfish ...

Cat-from-Sydney said...

Tante Sandy,
Imagine the breeze from the rice fields fanning you while you have lunch....aaahhhh.... Yes...I love catfish too. You have this dish - pecel lele - in Jakarta, right? Yummmm.... I love that too. purrrr.....meow!

Ellen Whyte said...

Thanks for your kind words. Au is eating a little several times a day so I'm crossing paws he's getting better.

Cat-from-Sydney said...

Au, would you like some catfish? purrrr....meow!

anneaziz said...

Angelina meowmeow,

Wah your mum is having a nice time tucking into the yummylicious grilled catfish and masak lemak pucuk ubi...sambal belacan...ulam kacang kelisa...orang Kedah kata ~Kena gu! (meaning right combination!!)

Tell her...I have it everyday... hehehe! so is it any wonder if my BMI is fast approaching red alert?

Mentarang memang sedap!

Cat-from-Sydney said...

Aunty Anne,
Alah....sekali sekala balik kampung.... purrr....meow!

Lady of Leisure said...

Wow yr mama s village is sooooooo beautiful ok.. Sejuk mata memandang.. Shell tu in malay nama nya mentarang hehe

JK said...

Hi there!

Just want to share my view on the clam ID: It's called angel's wings (nice name, eh?) and more scientifically, Pholas orientalis.

Cheers,mate!

Cheqna said...

wow..beautiful place, can we have one reunion there? plus all those dishes (pretty pls..) but I leave that catfish to you, never eat them...that one I cannot..

but another "cat" is my fav...that buah mata kuching..hehe..

:-)))

Cat-from-Sydney said...

Lady of Leisure,
Come join us next time. We'll get more mentarang for you to cook, OK? purrr....meow!

Cat-from-Sydney said...

Hie JK! Welcome to my crazy world. Angel's wings you say? Wow! What a romantic name for something edible. purrr.....meow!

Cat-from-Sydney said...

Cheqna,
Oh dear, between you and TK Sensei, habislah my grandma's pokok mata kuching!
Reunion there? Boleh! We camp in the rice field, eh? purrrr....meow!

JK said...

Sure thing, mate! Beautiful name=Delicious! :D

~CovertOperations78~ said...

The kampung house is beautiful and picturesque! The meal looks fit for the King of Cats! As for the bivalves, I think I know the name but have forgotten it -- it is not kima, remis, kupang, lokan or tiram. Is it a "kijing"? It looks like a kijing to me. Elongated.

Cheqna said...

Camping? aunty Ayu would love that..but I book in advance the comfort of ur living room, I'll bring my own sleeping bag..hehe..

let me know when the season of mata kuching comes..

:-)))

Cat-from-Sydney said...

Oh yeah. Thanks JK. Beautiful and delicious. What a combination.

Cat-from-Sydney said...

CO78,
It's been established by so many commenters that it's called mentarang or angel's wings (complete with scientific name). Yeah...we'd like to take you to grandma's house some day. I think you'll enjoy climbing the coconut or breadfruit or jackfruit or mango trees with me. purrr....meow!

Cat-from-Sydney said...

Cheqna,
I think you'll change your mind when I mail you the pix of the outhouse. purrr.....meow!