Penang today is very much an amalgam of the old and the new – a bustling port, a heritage city and an industrial base. Perhaps it has more to offer per square mile than any other place in the world. For sheer variety of locales, cultures and foods, Penang is hard to beat. Here are stories about Penang and more.
In Penang and across Malaysia the lemang is available all year round. Nonetheless, it has become a special dish during the Hari Raya celebrations – Hari Raya Aidilfitri (Eid al-Fitr) and Hari Raya Aidiladha (Eid al-Adha). Although its preparation seems simple enough, cooking lemang requires an open area with ample ventilation – which is why most people just prefer to buy lemang rather than attempt to make it themselves.
On two separate afternoons, I stepped into a cosy bar-counter style dining room along Beach Street in Penang. The setting felt like a culinary theatre. Warm lights illuminated the counter, where Chef Chong Chian Fung was in his element, preparing works of art on every plate.
Words, like spices, travel.
They wander across oceans and time, changing and evolving as they cross from tongue to tongue, until they reach us bearing history and memory. One such word is "bāzār". Persian in origin, it is preserved in the records of Middle Persian during the age of the Sasanian Empire, when cities across the Iranian plateau organised their commercial life along vaulted corridors of exchange. In those ancient urban arteries, goods flowed from caravan to stall, from stall to household, and ideas, languages, recipes, and ambitions flowed just as freely. In cities such as Isfahan, the bazaar became its breathing lung, and to enter it was to enter a world of enchantment and wonder filled with goods from distant lands.
Kuih Bahulu (also known as Kuih Baulu or Kuih Bolu) is a perennial favourite among Malaysians of all ages. In Hokkien, it is called Kay Nui Koh. It is a mini light and fluffy sponge cake made from eggs, flour and sugar. It has a slightly crusty outer layer with a soft and fluffy inside, quite similar in taste and texture to a French Madeleine. However, when compared to many western cakes, Kuih Bahulu is much lighter in texture and has a subtle sweetness.
The Kapitan Keling Mosque along Jalan Kapitan Keling (once Pitt Street) is a monumental structure crowned by copper domes. This is the largest historic mosque in George Town, founded around 1800.
The name of the mosque was taken from the Kapitan Kelings, people who were appointed leaders of the South Indian community by the British.
A charming Chap Goh Meh tale tells of a lonely young bachelor who, on a moonlit outing, was spellbound by a fleeting glimpse of the most beautiful girl he had ever seen. Radiant in her finery, she passed before him like a vision, leaving him breathless and desperate to know her name. Heart pounding, he hastily noted the number of her car.
At first light, buoyed by hope, he traced her address and implored his mother to dispatch a matchmaker to the home of the girl he was certain he would marry.
The most popular types of ketupat found in Malaysia are ketupat nasi (made with plain rice) and ketupat daun palas (made with glutinous rice). While both varieties are wrapped in palm leaves and then boiled, they use different types of leaves: ketupat nasi is typically wrapped in young coconut leaves (daun kelapa muda), whereas ketupat daun palas is enclosed in Licuala palm leaves (daun palas). It is said that ketupat daun palas originated from the northern states – Penang, Kedah and Perlis – while ketupat nasi is more popular in Perak.
The introduction to Eleanor McEvoy came when my dear friend Maggie Territt asked if I could design the streamer, posters and tickets for a concert she was organising. The show was to take place at Healy Mac's Irish Bar & Restaurant, part of a series of Irish cultural events around St Patrick’s season.
Once again, Ramadhan, the holiest of months for Muslims, is almost upon us. The ninth month of the Muslim year is strictly observed by all Muslims as a month of fasting (and abstinence) during which they would abstain from the pleasures of eating, drinking and carnal desires and actions from sunrise to sunset. Ramadhan usually lasts from 29 to 30 days, after which Muslims celebrate Id-al-Fitr (Hari Raya Puasa in the local language). Fasting is one of the five basic duties of Islam.
The history of the Acheen Street mosque (also known as the Malay mosque), began in 1792, which marked the arrival of its founder Tengku Syed Hussain Al-Aidid who had come from Acheh to settle in Penang. A member of the royal family of Acheh, Sumatra and descendant of a sovereign Arab family, Hussain became a hugely successful entrepreneur and one of the wealthiest merchants and landowners in Penang.
In Malay, “bubur” means “porridge”. As for “cha cha”, some say it echoes the Hokkien phrase “che che”, commonly linked to abundance. Many locals in Penang associate bubur cha cha with the island’s Chinese Peranakan kitchens, and oral tradition says it was first made there over a century ago. However, written records tying the name and its origins to a specific person, date, or text are scarce, and scholars of food history have not reached a firm consensus on the etymology of its name.
Written by Adrian Cheah and Josephine Choo
Cover design and book layout by Adrian Cheah
Designing a 204-Page Book Celebrating a Century of Healing and Care
Taking the Challenge
When the Penang Adventist Hospital 100th Anniversary book project came to me, I was tasked with designing the publication, while Josephine Choo was responsible for researching, collating information, and writing the stories that would take readers on an epic journey through a century of healing and care.