It's been quite a few years (since 2018) that we have not made our annual balik kampong trip for Chinese New Year (CNY).....and it's basically for two reasons, the elderly and the prohibition of interstate travelling. Even though interstate travel in 2022 is now permissible, we won't be making the trip either this year as I've a senior citizen to take care of! >_<
So, what better way than to roar into the
Year of the Tiger with some CNY munchies to keep me company.
Sorry, my Prosperity Cat (piggy bank) is the closest thing I have to the Year of the Tiger (besides Cookie!)....lol.
As usual, we start with my must-have every year....my own freshly fried
Keropok Udang (prawn crackers)! The price went up again this year (no surprises there!)...from RM30 to RM33 for 600g. Last year, I doubled up on the portion...and this year, it was tripled. Yesssss, I bought 3 portions of uncooked crackers this year.
Well, if I can't use up all, I can always keep some for frying later (after CNY since they can be kept for 6 months at least, not that it'll last that long). Anyway, there's no such thing as too much...since everyone enjoys them a lot and is always happy to receive more (certainly more to come, this is only the first batch)! :D
One of my usual recipients liked it so much that she asked me to get her a packet from my supplier so that she can fry them at home as her kids can't get enough of it. This year, I also gifted a can to a new recipient who also found it to be very nice and asked me to get a packet for her too. In short, I've not come across anyone who doesn't love these crackers...it even solicited a comment of "
ini sedap" (this is delicious) from my newspaper delivery man! ;)
I was gifted this can of
Honey Roasted Cashews from
Calia (where we once had a lovely meal). This one, made with cashew nuts, butter, honey and salt, has a very buttery taste (preferred by people who loves an overly buttery taste obviously). Good if you were eating butter cookies but in nuts, the taste was a bit too buttery for me. My husband also doesn't like to eat cashew nuts coz it's heaty according to him.
The honey is also very sticky, so much so that you had to pry them apart (with force) before you can get a nut out. It had strands like when you're pulling cheese apart...kekeke. If you tilt the can, nothing falls out. In other words, you can do the "
if the meringue is whipped to perfection" test by inverting the bowl (or, in this case, the can) over your head...lol!
A very different snack I came across this year was the
Crispy Vegetarian Goose (RM18) sold by
Sally's Kitchen (the home-based food delivery I order my meals regularly from...and still do). You usually see this mock vegetarian goose sold at
chap fan places. After taste testing one, I got a few more cans! ^.^
This vegetarian goose was super crispy though I would have liked if it had a bit more flavour like the excellent one I once had from a
chap fan place which was never matched again by any other (I had it regularly until they closed and left).
That said, this is still a pretty nice snack that's different from your usual CNY snacks. You can even eat it as an extra dish when you're having a vegetarian meal. Only drawback is that, once opened, it's best to consume it within a week (max 10 days) before it loses its crispiness and you can taste the oil after that.
This year, I also went searching (at the same coffee shop) for the
Crispy Crab Sticks (RM18, price maintained) I bought last year which, in my opinion, was a lot tastier than those I've bought over the years. Though we tend to call these crab sticks (or
surimi), I found out recently that they're actually made from fish paste (only coloured to resemble crab or lobster...hehe).
Besides being super crispy, I like this one for the more savoury taste than others I've eaten before. ^o^ I held onto the empty can just so that I could look for it again this year and recognise it. Sadly, the stall that sold it had ceased operations. Luckily, the can had a sticker of their name & number, so I was tempted to call them (since I really liked the snack, not all are mine ok). I shudder to think that I could have lost their contact if I had not kept the can...and yet there are homemade snacks businesses out there that don't bother to have their business name & number sticker on the can! I can't fathom why really. Imagine receiving it as a gift...and liking it immensely....but have no way of ordering it. >.<
I was gifted a can in return....in a slightly nicer packaging. This one says it's from
Home Taste Cookie (Bandar Sunway)...probably a home business (can't find any presence on social media). The crab sticks were very well presented, straight and neatly packed, unfortunately the taste didn't match the looks...it just didn't have that extra savouriness and crispiness as my current favourite above! :P
I also received a can of
Salted Egg Murukku (RM25, the price tag was still intact). As soon as you open the container, you get this lovely whiff of the salted egg yolk goodness.
They were super crunchy with the fragrant aroma of salted egg and curry leaves. It was very good (much better than last year's
prawn muruku) but you eat only a few pieces at a time, otherwise you might feel a bit
jelak as it can be overwhelmingly rich.
Ok-lah, in between I also ate some
healthy snacks....
Pink (or red fleshed) Pomelo! Unfortunately, the pomelo I got lacked sweetness though it was fairly juicy. If I had known how much work was involved in removing the flesh from the fruit, I wouldn't have bothered to get one.
I also received a can of
Black Truffle Potato Chip. Although the truffle taste was mild, it just tasted a bit weird to me. Mind you, I love the taste of (fresh) truffles on the rare occasions that I've had the pleasure of eating them even if they're aren't the very good quality or expensive ones. These chips are made with truffle-infused olive oil which gives it an artificial taste.
My husband took a
whiff of it (and didn't want anything to do with it). Neither did my son! >.< In the end, I found a
family member who liked it and gave it away. I can't very well let it go to waste coz with a luxurious sounding word like truffle, you can bet it's probably expensive (I think it's about RM25 for this small can).
No CNY is complete without
Kuih Kapit (RM25) that comes with a touch of love, right? That's why they're called
love letter biscuits. And what's even better than
kuih kapit....is
kuih kapit filled with more love...chicken floss! ;) I've had
kuih kapit folded into quarters (
fan-shaped, the most common), rolled up (
cigar-shaped), folded into a purse or envelope (
purse-shaped),
coned-shaped with sprinkles of sesame...well, they come in all shapes and sizes which we embrace...and some have fillings too.
These ones were folded into like mini
apom manis-shaped but filled with chicken floss (and they were abundantly filled). It has both a savoury (from the chicken floss) and lightly sweet taste (from the
kuih kapit).
Of course, we also need our once-a-year indulgence....
Bak Kwa! And this year, I didn't have to buy, my sister-in-law gifted me a packet of our favourite brand,
Oloiya. That's enough for my small family (eat in moderation
lah).
I actually prefer my bak kwa not to be individually vacuum-packed like this as I can see more oil trapped between the sheets.
There were also some
Gold Coins (similar to
bak kwa) that was given by my sister-in-law too to try (made by a friend of hers). They were pretty good in terms of taste (a good homemade effort), just a wee bit chewier than
Oloiya's in terms of texture.
Another CNY must-have (as far as my husband is concerned) are pineapple tarts. I got this can of
Pineapple Tarts @ RM22 from
Pandan Perdana's wet market (first time buying from this vendor). I thought for RM22, it was a pretty small can but the taste turned out better than expected. Never mind that it was a smaller can as long as it tastes good. It was adequately buttery and the pineapple jam was not too sweet but, more importantly, it wasn't sourish like many can be.
And, just like the year before, my next-door neighbour also gifted me a can of her homemade pineapple tarts......and, as usual, my husband is the one who
whacks it all since it's his favourite. I learnt recently that she used to sell her homemade pineapple tarts (was told she sold 300 cans!), cookies and
ngaku chips during her younger days.
She also gave me this can of
Sesame Cookies/Crisps that she made herself too. They were fragrant, crisp and tasty. She's quite adapt at making cookies and stuff....but not cakes though (they're always very dense).
I've always said that baking (cakes) is not something that's easy to nail perfectly.
This year, I bought my
Ponkan Mandarin Oranges from
Shopee (RM30.88 for M size, 28 pcs). So convenient, delivered right to my doorstep, no need to lug them home from the shops. I used to buy
Yong Chun mandarins but this year I tried out
Tian Tian coz that was the brand that
Shopee was selling. They turned out juicy and sweet, even better than
Yong Chun's.
I always buy extra Mandarin oranges coz they make a great (and affordable) give-away during CNY....I give them to my neighbours (including a Malay neighbour of mine coz I'm always welcomed to
harvest their
plantings of curry, pandan, turmeric and lime leaves, I've only picked their curry leaves thus far). I also give them to my newspaper delivery man, the security guards in our gated community and the
sampah (rubbish) collectors. This year, I even gave them to the few
Shopee delivery personnel (the same few ones who service my area) when I became an ardent
Shopee buyer due to the pandemic...lol.
This year, I didn't have time to
research for any gifts to give away, so I bought something simple instead...
Dried Chinese Mushrooms & Sausages that are always well accepted by recipients as they're bound to be featured in any dish cooked during CNY.
I've been buying these dried sausages (with a nice wine flavour) sold by a chicken rice stall in my neighbourhood for some time now (since I
discovered them). I find them even tastier than some of the ones I bought from dry goods stalls at wet markets previously.
So, these were just some of the snacks that kept me
sane in the
Year of the Tiger. What have you been munching on? ;) Let's hope this year will be a better and kinder year for all! Wishing you all a
Happy & Prosperous Chinese New Year.....enjoy the festivities and holidays but remember to stay safe too! ^.^
