To Market, To Market!

How far I have come! I used to hate markets. Dirty, smelly places, sloshing with fishy water and blood. 

Now, as I progressed much further into food, I realize that you need markets for freshness. For choice, for flavour, for growth as a foodie. 

I’m glad for being Malaysian in this case as I can choose the market at which I am best able to communicate. One good thing about Malaysia is that we have a national language. Not everyone can write an essay in it, but I dare hazard that if someone can count from one to ten in Malay, they can trade in Malaysia. 

The SS17 or Jalan University morning farmers’ market is held each Thursday. There is a plethora of great stuff to be had. Traditional grass roots stuff such as herbs and frilly little ferns to be eaten raw with sambal. Cool clams of different smoothness and colours. Lots of fresh fruit. Even some hamsters and rabbits. NOT to eat! This guy just capitalizes on the kids tagging along with their parents! 

I brought my mum in law and her Indonesian maid to shop there after dropping Erin off to playschool. I wanted a good dinner –something traditional, and bursting with real kampong flavour, and Nas, MIL’s maid, had said she would do it as long as she could find the ingredients.

My biggest bargain on this trip was three amazingly sweet, golden yellow Josapine pineapples for RM2! I am not kidding! They were priced at a Ringgit each, but it was late and the trader threw in one free. Oh, the taste of sunshine! 

After all the shopping, this is what was served! 

Fresh long beans, baby eggplant and winged beans with spicy tomato sambal. 

Jering rendang with tempeh. Jering is a pod-like vegetable with a taste somewhat like petai.

Seabass with turmeric marinade and stuffing, grilled in banana leaf.

Josapine pineapple.