Nekbat Terengganu: A Sweet Dessert Common In the Month of Ramadan

Nekbat is another sweet dessert available in Terengganu especially during the fasting month of Ramadan. Nekbat is made of mixing rice flour and eggs and bake in a special container (bronze container which  come with mould).

The mixed ingredients is poured into the bronze mould and  covered with its lid. The heat is coming from the top and below. They use coconut husk as fuel to heat. Once the nekbat is cooked,  the fire is removed and the lid is open. The plain nikbat is taken and cool in another container.  The cooked nikbat turns spongy and cream in colour (due to eggs). No artificial colour  or sugar is added. At this stage, nekbat is plain without sugar (tasteless).

On the left is before they are being dip in the sugary water. On the right is the nikbat post immersed in sugary water. Note that it expanded in size.

You may wonder about its size and shape. Its size depend on the container. Some container has 12 moulds in it. It is better to have a small nikbat (one inch) as it may expand  double the size when you soak it the the boiling sugary water later. Most Terengganu nikbat is oval in shape.

In  Terengganu, it is not complete to eat nekbat without sugar.  So the next stage is to immerse the plain nikbat in the boiling sugary water for a few minutes. The liquid must be enough to immerse or soak all  the plain nikbat. You can control the amount of sugar. If you want  your nikbat to taste less sugar, so put little sugar in the boiling water. To make nekbat taste better, you may put pandan leaf to get good aroma. If you wish, you can put a few cloves (chengkih) and cinnamon stick (kayu manis). Do not over cook the nikbat as it will make it too soft and it is difficult to hold or scoop.

Nekbat is usually served during the break of the fast. If you like, you can chill the nekbat in the fridge. To some people chilled nekbat tastes better.

You can buy this nikbat (the plain) or the sugary nikbat from the markets or Ramadan markets all over Terengganu. Happy travelling.

Round Abouts in Kuala Terengganu: Ladang remains a tourist attraction

Round about, a circular junction is designed to slow down the traffic (traffic calming) and it allows vehicular traffic from the right to be given priority. In the 1960's there were at least 5 round abouts in Kuala Terengganu i.e. Bulatan Batu Buruk, Bulatan Ladang, Bulatan Chabang Tiga Tok Kaya, Bulatan Gong Wan Abas and finally Bulatan Batu Enam.

Now, the ones at Batu Buruk and Chabang Tiga Tok Kaya had been turned into junctions with traffic lights leaving Ladang, Gong Wan Abas and Batu Enam remained as roundabouts. You may wonder where Gong Wan Abas is. Gong Wan Abas round about is at the junction of Jalan Cherung Lanjut and Jalan Sultan Omar ( formerly known as Jalan Gong Wan Abas in the 1950's).

Ladang Round About, remains a tourist attraction. It is very unique and it is the only one in Malaysia.

I remember, in the centre of a round about normally it has fountains, trees or clock tower. Round about at Ladang was once had a replica of leather back turtle. Now it was replaced with a replica of  "Batu Bersurat". (Terengganu Inscribed Stone that was recognised by UNESCO as Memory of the World). Batu Bersurat is a stone found in Kuala Berang which had writings on it concerning the arrival of Islam to this place. It dated back 600 years ago.

Another small round about near Pasar Kedai Payang  was dismantled in the late 1970's to make way for road widening. This roundabout had a clock tower. Now it is no more.  Should it remained there, I would propose it to be a heritage monument.

For the tourists, perhaps Ladang Round About is the best of all  because of the Batu Bersurat replica. You can take picture there. It is the only roundabout with Batu Bersurat in Malaysia. It is so unique. So take your picture there with the roundabour at the background. If you are interested to  visit this Ladang Round  About, take  the town bus to Chendering. When you see the roundabout with Batu Bersurat, step out from the bus. Happy travelling.

Tupat Sutong: A Stuffed Squid in the coconut milk

Tupat Sutong is a  traditional Terengganu cuisine where the cleaned squid is cooked in the  thick coconut milk. The squid is stuffed with cooked gluten rice (pulut) and  later cooked in the coconut milk (mixed with onions, ginger and halba).

 Tupat Sutong is garnished with red chillies, fresh tomato and salad.

To make tupat sutong, you need to undergo three processes. One , you need to prepare the ingredients: the squids, coconut milk, onions, ginger, sugar, salt, gluton rice and halba. Two,  you need to cook the gluton rice and stuff it inside the squid. Third, you need to cook the stuffed squids  in the thick coconut milk with onions, grated ginger, salts and sugar (according to your taste) and  halba.

Once cook, you can serve as a side dish or serve with other food. Stuffed squid already had a carbohydrate (rice). I found the gravy that is special. Tupat Sutong is not available freely in the markets compare with other food or dessert. If you can not find in the market, you can make special order from the restaurants. Happy travelling.

Akok Terengganu: A sweet dessert

Akok is a traditional dessert made of rice flour, eggs, sugar and coconut milk. Those days, Akok is served during the feast or party. Now, you can get akok everywhere. There is no season for this dessert. Since it is sweet, it is advisable you drink sugarless tea or coffee after eating the akok.

Akok is ready to be served. Note it is divided into two for easier handling.

Akok is made with mixing those ingredients and put into the bronze container (special mould for cooking akok). Traditionally,  the mould (containing the liquid akok) is heated from the bottom and top using the firewood and coconut husk.  When it is cooked, the the fire is removed and the cooked akok become solid and were being put into the other container for cooling. Then, it can be served. 

You can buy this akok in the markets. In Kuala Terengganu, Pasar Chabang Tiga has permanent stalls that sell this akok. Happy travelling.

Pulut Gaur Nyior : A Terengganu Breakfast

Pulut Gaur Nyior is a cooked glutonous rice, shaped like a tennis ball and sprinkled with grated young coconut. It is a breakfast menu for Terengganu folks. It is eaten with fish. The fish may be fried fish, fried salted fish, or boiled mackerel then fried. It is very tasty. Gaur is a Terengganu word for mixing.

 The Pulut is served with grated coconut and fried fish.

The ingredients for making this breakfast are gluton rice (soak overnight in water), young coconut, fish, pandan leaf, pinch of salt and sugar. The soaked rice is drained  and was put in the steamer. Add some pandan leaf (for good smell), steam until cook. When it was cooked, shape the rice into  several tennis balls and put them  in the container. Young coconut is grated and add a pinch of salt  and sugar and spread over the rice. The pulut is served with the cooked fish or fried fish.

This food is sold in almost all food stalls in Terengganu. You can find this in Pasar Kedai Payang and Pasar Chabang Tiga in Kuala Terengganu  (in the morning). Happy travelling.

A Terengganu Heritage Pura Tanjung Sabtu: A Place You Must Visit

Pura Tanjoung Sabtu is a collection of Terengganu architecture traditional houses which existed in Terengganu some 200 years ago. These original houses (around 100 years of age) were brought in  from other areas and were rebuilt on a 14-acre site at Kampung Tanjung Sabtu. They are arranged or modelled in a typical palace environment in the 18th century. Those days, this kind of large timber houses only the royals and the rich can afford it.

Located 14 km from town centre of Kuala Terengganu, Pura Tanjung Sabtu is a classic example of  Terengganu traditional houses which is becoming extinct by days due to it is costly to maintain timber based structure as they tend to rot over times unlike the brick structures. This pura (a sanskrit word) is also located near  Nerus River, a tributary to Terengganu river.

The traditional house with airy veranda. The ground floor is for different purpose.

The two houses are attached to each other where you can walk from veranda to veranda.

The roof is unique in design.

What is special to this Pura? It is a traditional palace architecture of Terengganu Sultanate. It  has Royal Family Heirloom and Songket Weaving Demonstration area. Since it is close to the river, you can experience Bot Penambang (water taxi) from here to the Central Market of Kuala Terengganu. It is really a good experience where you can see riverine villages and its activities along the river like people bathing by the river banks, washing clothes, fishing, etc.

This pura belongs to an individual who has passion to this kind of heritage building. He is also an expert in songket design. He gave his name card to me which stated The Owner-Hosted Home Stay. The explanation went on as " Pura Tanjung Sabtu, a complex of centuries-old Terengganu Malay timber houses reassembled , restored and preserved in the style of a princely palace of 18th century Terengganu. It is a private residence of Tengku Ismail bin Tengku Su, which is now open to paying guests who would like to experience the courtly living of Terengganu's past. Your patronage will help to preserve the architectural heritage of Terengganu".

There are many houses here, one of them is occupied by the owner. Two houses are reserved as guesthouses and available for paying guests. Every house has its name. For further information of this pura, click to http://www.puratanjungsabtu.com/

The address of this pura is 5728, Kampung Tanjung Sabtu, Mukim Manir, Kuala Terengganu. How to get there there? Just drive to Batu Enam roundabout and turn to the direction of Manir. Turn right when you reach the second traffic light. Continue driving towards Jeram until you reach Tanjung Sabtu Mosque on your right. Turn right and follow the narrow road for 50 metres and turn right until you reach the end. You will pass through Malaysian kampong houses. Pura Tanjung Sabtu is at end of the road.

If you are interested to rent, you can contact 609-6153655 or email to puratanjungsabtu@gmail.com  Happy travelling.

Traditional Boat Building of Terengganu: World's Unique Craftsmanship

Terengganu, being a maritime state is blessed with so many companies and individuals that involve in boat building. What I am going to tell you is about the traditional boat building in Pulau Duyong, Kuala Terengganu. Pulau Duyong is located right in the middle of Terengganu River estuary. Being a traditional village, this island is famous for its boat building activity.

Early stage of boat making.

The fisherman's boat nearing completion.

The boat viewed from the front.

I found there are at least three individuals who crafted traditional boats for their clients. There is a community here  that produce boats without any formal plan. It has been the practice for generations  meaning it has been passed on from generation to generation. The trio are Pok Awi, Pok Hassan and Pok Loh. Pok Loh is specialising in making yachts. Pok Loh whose real name is Abdullah Muda owns a company by the name of Custom Made Wooden Yachts.

The sign board.

The boats that they made are without the use of metal nails. They use wood nail and stainless steel bolt and nuts. They do not have any formal training in naval architecture or other carpentry works. They belong to a few family members and they recruit the new ones, trained them on the job.

They make boats and yachts for fisherman and enthusiasts. They also get the order from many boat enthusiasts from all over the world such as Canada, New Zealand, Australia, etc. Some of their clients did bring the plans or picture to show their intention. 

The workshop area.

The boats ready to use.

The boats in the water. The far end yachts is worth millions.

The new generation of traditional boat builders. They are very committed to see this craftsmanship sustainable.

The traditional boats are made of  hard timber (chengal wood). The timber is specially ordered to make boats of high quality. When you say you want them to make 80 feet long, they knew already what is its width and height and how many tons of tin ore  is needed to make the boat steady and stable in water.

The interior finishes normally done by another firm. It means once the boat is ready, they will be sent to other firm to make the finishes like bedding, kitchen, toilet, dining etc. I was told the boats are big and normally the cost is around RM2 million. The time taken is 18-24 months depending on size and finishes.

During my visit, I was lucky, I was briefed by Mr. Saiful on every process of boat making at the workshop. The more I listened, the more I learnt. I feel this traditional boat making needs real attention from the authority because of its heritage. You can not rely on memory alone. You need to document all the traditional boat making processes. They need a better space to operate with facilities. I believe it is a Malaysian Heritage that  need to be preserved and promoted.

In order to make this tradition and craftsmanship survive and sustain itself, I feel there is a need to establish a traditional boat builders school here. It should rope in all experienced boat builders as paid trainers before the experience dies with them.

If you are interested to see this traditional boat building, go to Pulau Duyong either by boat or bridge. Look for the boat making area. Ask around. Custom Made Wooden Yachts can be contacted at this number 609-6314743. Happy travelling.