KEERAI MASIYAL (SPINACH WITH SEASONING)

KEERAI MASIYAL (SPINACH WITH SEASONING)
Keerai Masiyal is the simplest spinach dish ever but tastes awesome especially if the keerai is fresh. The cooking process is not lengthy. It’s fast to cook and very good for health. After moving to Singapore and seeing how the Chinese cook their spinach by sautéing and not using much spices. I had a renewed respect for our very own Keerai Masiyal.

This can be made with different types of greens that are available in whichever place you’ll are located. I made this with Bombay Paalak Spinach which is my favorite. I am lucky to get this here in Singapore at Mustafa. I love the Paalak Spinach as it has a strong green color and taste unmatched to any greens in the world.

My grandma used to always cook this in a kallu chatti –“kallu” means stone in Tamil and “chatti” means a pot. The “kallu”pots are made of soap stone which is a soft stone and hence has to be handled very delicately. My grandma used to mash the keerai with a wooden “maththu” (a wooden churner used to blend and mash). She used to say that this enhances the taste of the keerai. Since getting these vessels has become rare, you can alternatively blend the keerai in a blender, but I don’t like to do that as it gets mashed into a fine paste or you can mash it with your hand(once it cools down) or with a ladle or a big spoon.

Ingredients:

Spinach – 1 Bunch
Asafetida (Hing) - 1 tsp
Mustard seeds – 1 tsp
Split white lentil (Udad dal) – 1 tsp
Red chilly – 2
Turmeric – ¼ tsp
Salt as per taste
Coconut Oil – 2 tbsps

Method:
Wash the spinach leaves and cut into small pieces and put them into a thick bottomed vessel. Add,  turmeric powder, asafetida and salt and let it cook. Add very little water into the vessel as the spinach will release its own water. Allow the spinach to cook until its soft. It hardle takes 10-15 minutes for the spinach to get cooked. Now turn off the gas and let the spinach rest for a while. After this mash the spinach well.
Then, starts the tempering process, Take 2 tablespoons of coconut oil or any cooking oil, add the mustard seeds, Udad dal and Red chilly. When the mustard starts to splutter and the udad dal starts to get pink, pour them onto the keerai masiyal and mix well.
The Keerai masiyal is a wonderful side dish and can be eaten with any dish. Keerai masiyal is given as a post partum dish as its good for health and very light on the stomach. It is also usually given to people who are recovering from illnesses.
Kids are given this with their favorite, “Paruppu chaadam” lentil and rice combo.
Try to add more greens to your daily food intake.
Try this simple recipe and enjoy.
Tips
By adding a pinch of Sugar to the green leaves while cooking, you can retain the green color in the dish even after it’s cooked.

KATHRIKKAI KOOTU (AUBERGINE COOKED IN A LENTIL AND COCONUT SPICED GRAVY)

KATHRIKKAI KOOTU (AUBERGINE COOKED IN A LENTIL AND COCONUT SPICED GRAVY)

We call this Katrikkai kootu at home. The keralaiyers back home call it Katrikkai Puliyitta Kootu and in Tamilnadu they call it Katrikkai Puli kootu. Some call it Rasavangi.

Basically it’s the kootu with tamarind in it and instead of the coconut being ground with spices as in a normal kootu, here we garnish it with roasted coconut which adds a whole new dynamics to the dish. Do try this dish and enjoy this delicacy.

Ingredients:

Aubergine / Brinjal / Eggplant– 5-6

Toor Dal (Yellow Pigeon peas) – ½ cup

Tamarind- Lemon size ball

Sambhar powder – 2 tbsps

Coriander powder – 1 tbsp

Turmeric powder – 1 tsp

Asafetida (Hing) - 1 tsp

Coriander leaves – 1 tbsp

Curry leaves – 8-10

Mustard seeds – 1 tsp

Split white lentil (Udad dal) – 1 tsp

Fenugreek seeds – ½ tsp

Red chilly - 2

Grated coconut - 1/2 cup

Salt as per taste

Oil – 2 tbsps

Method:

Soak the tamarind in hot water. Alternatively, you can use tamarind paste.

Cut the brinjals into chunks. Soak the pieces in water with some turmeric and salt.

Wash the toor daal and add 1 ½ cups of water to it. Cook it in a pressure cooker. Keep aside.

Heat oil in a pan and add the mustard seeds, udad dal, fenugreek seeds and red chilly. When the mustard seeds start to splutter and the udad dal becomes light pink. Add in the brinjal pieces and curry leaves and fry for a minute.

Now add the salt, sambhar powder, Asafetida and fry for a minute.

Add the tamarind juice, and allow the brinjal to cook.

Brinjal is very fast to cook. Once cooked, add in the cooked toor dal, mix well.

Now add 1½ cups of water to this. Let it boil together for 10 minutes.

Now in a pan add in the ½ cup grated coconut and roast until it is pink in color. The lovely aroma of the coconut emanates and fills the whole kitchen. Add this to the Sambhar and let it boil for another 5 minutes. Garnish with coriander leaves.

Serve with hot rice topped with a dollop of ghee, and vegetables of your choice or papads.

DRIVE TO CAMERON HIGHLANDS

DRIVE TO CAMERON HIGHLANDS

We couldn’t take the hot and humid weather in Singapore and wanted to go to a place which is nearby, affordable and has a cool and bracing weather.

Cameron Highlands (CH) is a popular tourist destination for people in Singapore who can go to a cooler place to de-stress for a short weekend getaway and there are many travel agencies offering packages of coach plus hotel to Cameron Highlands in Singapore. When we started enquiring for these packages which are quite attractive we realized that it wouldn’t be suitable for us simply because it takes around 9 hours of travel time and also because these buses don’t come with a toilet facility inside the bus. We, then, started enquiring for buses with toilet facilities and learned that only Grassland tour operators have a bus with toilet facilities but this bus operates only from Singapore to KL and they don’t go up to Cameron Highlands.

Hubby dear told me let’s choose another destination. Let’s go to Genting highlands again.

I told him firmly that Cameron Highlands it is or nothing.

Traveling with 2 young children who may be restless on such a long journey of about 9 hours and may need to use the toilet “often” not exactly with the intention of using one but for the sheer pleasure of stopping and the thrill of getting down and back into the bus would become irritating for the driver and the other fellow passengers. This kind of deterred us from thinking of taking a bus which is the cheapest and most ideal way of traveling to CH.

While we were pondering on this, hubby dear half heartedly offered to drive down to CH. This was a very adventurous move considering the high speed driving on express ways in Malaysia, the heavy vehicles traveling to and fro, the sheer distance of 612kms and also because of the route and the many sordid tales that run around in Singapore, where people keep warning,”its dangerous”, “drive during the day and not after sun set” and added to all this is the responsibility of 2 kids who are going to be a distraction for any driver. My hubby-my knight in shining armor, decide to brave it all for the pleasure of the majority “me and the girls”.

TIPS if you are planning to drive

Use a GPS if you have, its really handy.

If you have your own transportation and especially if you are a first timer to travel to Cameron Highlands please be extra careful & use low gear when you're driving.

If you are driving a manual car, go easy on the clutch and make use of engine brakes, once u reach the bottom of cameron highlands, it will be about 2 hours drive up to the top. (it’s not like Genting).

Try to drive your car within your skill limitation, always in low gear because that will help you to negotiate corners better.

I strongly recommend you take the Simpang Pulai way. Although its further by about 50 km, the time taken is about the same. This is because the road is much wider and view is good, also less sharp bends and blind spots. It’s just as scenic as the old road. You can stop at the beautiful natural waterfall on the way.

But do expect heavy rain so remember to check your tires. Not too sure about landslides, as fortunately I did not encounter any on my way up to CH.

There are many trucks and buses on the roads along the ways. Be extra alert and cautious if you are going to Cameron Highlands from Tapah. There are certain sections where you can over take slower or heavy vehicles but I still don’t recommend overtaking.

Normally the local trucks and buses will give you signal to overtake when it is safe enough.

Avoid traveling alone at night if you are not an expert in driving especially for first timer. And please take note that there are no street lights all along the way and it might be a long drive and there is very limited mobile phone coverage.

If you are going down the mountain in the night (which is not recommended) due to lack of street lights, kindly use the high beam especially for the sharp turns and bends. Drive very slowly.

The new roads are better with road reflectors.

Do have a co-driver to talk to you throughout the trip so that you don’t feel sleepy.

Take care and have a safe trip.

Drive from Singapore to Cameron Highlands

Distance – 612 kms from Singapore and

Approximate time taken – 7 hours 30 minutes.

 We decided to start early and left home on the West of Singapore at about 7.00 am which was considered quite late. We took the Tuas Second Link and smartly managed to avoid the traffic congestion that we usually meet at the Johore-Singapore Causeway link. Since the immigration is not too crowded, we breezed through it and were into Malaysia.

Petrol Stations

Before you start your journey to Cameron Highlands please make sure you have more than half tank of fuel. Because petrol stations in Cameron Highlands are only available in the following towns :

1. Ringlet (First town from Tapah) - Shell & Petronas

2. Brinchang (Middle of Cameron Highlands) - Shell & Petronas

Route to Cameron Highlands

We were using the GPS(Global Positioning System) which helped us a lot and I had also done some research on google on the ideal route to take to CH.

"Give yourself about 8 hours from second link.

We had a few stops in between Machap, Pagoh, Seremban, and another stop at Tapah. You head all the way to the north using Ipoh as your destination.

Old Route: - You can exit at Tapah Toll to go up to Cameron Highland reaching 1st town Ringlets, Tanah Rata and then Brinchang.

New Route (Highly Recommended):-

Alternatively, you can go further up north from Tapah on the same highway for another 50plus km and exit at the Simpang Pulai Toll. After toll payment u come to a junction turn right, keep right and turn right again at another junction. This road will lead u all the way to Cameron Highland. There are signs that show u to turn to Kampong Raja, Brinchang etc.

Then u will reach Brinchang, further down is Tanah Rata and Ringlets and of course eventually down to Tapah. I suppose most people will be staying at Brinchang or Tanah Rata. In short u will be going up from the other side of Cameron Highlands.

Road signs are clearly marked so there is no fear of getting lost on the new road. It takes about one and a half hours to reach Simpang Pulai from Tapah by car.

This is definitely a better proposition than the Tapah route because of the long three hours drive up the mountains.

Going up Cameron Highlands from Simpang Pulai also means one reaches Brinchang first (about a 20 minute drive).

Compare 3 hours and 20 minutes and decide which is better.

Earlier motorists taking the North-South Malaysian Highway used to turn off at Tapah to head up the long and winding road to the hilltop of Cameron Highlands, this route is the old route, (this is mountainous and quite heady)

Brinchang is the highest accessible point by road in Cameron Highlands. If one travels from Tapah, he hits the town of Ringlet (the lowest point of the highlands) first. Mid-way between Ringlet and Brinchang is the town of Tanah Rata where the bulk of activities are, such as a golf course, eateries, restaurants, rest houses and hotels.

We took the Simpang Pulai route and found the roads wider and it’s safer to drive as well.

Landslides are not common as a lot of excavation works are being conducted, that accompanied with the rains cause soil erosion. I also read that the preparation of broad platform terraces, cut out of the natural slope, is a major source of soil erosion

Landslides do occur in the highlands and this gets worse during the wet and rainy season at year end. The barren patches among the natural forests do look ugly and it’s a call to man to take care of our mother nature or else face nature’s wrath.

Finally we reached Cameron Highlands, We left Singapore at 7:00 am  and we reached the Equatorial Hotel located at Brinchang at 6:00 pm. We had taken a lot of breaks and went slow.

THE BEAUTIFUL EQUATORIAL RESORT

Nothing could be more welcome than the beautiful grand entrance of the Equatorial Resort. Finally we would be off the road and in a room resting ourselves.

The Equatorial Hotel is perched at 1628 meters (5,300 ft) above sea level, surrounded by majestic mountains and gentle undulating valleys. It is the only resort situated at the highest accessible point of the highlands. 

The hotel is excellent. Location wise, it is ideal. Between walking distances to most attractions like the Butterfly Farm, Strawberry farm, Honey bee farm, etc.

141 attractive, self-contained low rise apartment suites and 268 superior rooms, deluxe rooms and suites in the hotel tower

Spread over 13 acres, the Tudor styled resort offers 269 rooms in its tower block and 145 low rise apartments comprising 1, 2 or 3 bedroom units that offer breathtaking views of the highland landscapes.

It has all the necessary amenities for a comfortable stay including IDD telephone, CTV, mini-fridge, tea and coffee making facilities.

The staffs are very friendly, but since we went during the school holiday’s, which is a peak season for them, we had to patiently wait in the queue to check in. The huge lobby area with a high ceiling and a beautiful chandelier, waiting area with generous and comfortable seating, a beautiful stone fireplace with a lot of seating around.

And an indoor play area with special attention to the needs of children what more could I have to ask for?

There is the Golden Phoenix Chinese Restaurant, Coffee Shop with verandah dining, Cricket Bistro and Cricket Lounge for dining and drinks, as well as the Singalot Karaoke Lounge to croon the night away.

The hotel has an indoor swimming pool, gymnasium, tennis courts, squash courts.

For conference facilities, there is a multi-purpose hall, the Cameron Ballroom and 8 function rooms.

We had booked a one bedroom Suite as we didn’t want to feel claustrophobic with the four of us in a small hotel room with a King size bed and no space to move. We had chosen the room with a valley view and when the bell boy brought us to our room, I was in for a pleasant surprise a the room was big enough with a huge living room, a generous kitchen, a bedroom, 2 bathrooms and a huge balcony overlooking the valley dipping down. 

The view was absolutely breath taking.

We had a coffee table and chairs in the balcony to sit down, sip our coffe/tea and watch this breath taking view. We could see almost the entire town from our ground floor balcony.

We had a parking space for our car just outside the room.

We settled ourselves and then after refreshing ourselves went out to explore for options for a hot meal.

It is very convenient to visit the market besides the hotel, it is about 5 minutes walking distance

History of Cameron Highlands

Cameron Highlands is located in the Pahang state of Malaysia.  It is 1500 (5000 feet) meters above sea level. We went in March when it has rains but the weather is quite cool. Day-time temperature’s in Cameron Highlands is at an average around 24 degrees Celsius. If it rains, it can get cooler than this. In the night it can go up to 16-17 degrees Celsius and if it rains even up to 12 degrees Celsius.

The Cameron Highlands got its name from William Cameron, a British surveyor who was commissioned by the then colonial government to map out the area in 1885.

In a statement concerning his mapping expedition, Cameron mentioned he saw “a vortex in the mountains, while for a (reasonably) wide area we have gentle slopes and plateau land.”

When approached, the late Sir Hugh Low, the Resident of Perak, expressed the wish of developing the flat terrain as a “sanatorium, health resort and open farmland”. A narrow path to “Cameron’s Land” was then carved through the dense jungle. Nothing much happened after that.

Forty years later, Sir George Maxwell visited the locale and decided to transform the place into a hill station. A development committee was formed in 1925. Later, a road was constructed from Tapah to the highlands.

The building of the road was a challenge. The crew not only had to deal with the weather; they also had to live with the risk of being down with malaria.

When the road was completed in 1931, the British and the locals moved in to settle on the slopes of the mountain. They were soon followed by tea planters and vegetable growers who found the fertile soil and cool climate to be especially suitable for the growing of their crops.

By the mid-1930s, there was a remarkable change in the territory: it now had a nine-hole golf course, several cottages, three inns, a police post, two boarding schools, a dairy, nurseries, vegetable farms, tea estates, a Government Rest House and an Experimental Agricultural Station.

The district continued to grow until the outbreak of the Second World War. During the Japanese Occupation (1942–1945), there was hardly any development in the area. When the Japanese withdrew in August 1945, the place underwent a transformation.

Today, the haven is not only the biggest and best known of Malaysia’s hill stations; it is also the highest point in Malaysia which is accessible by car.

Weather in Cameron Highlands

The weather in Cameron Highlands is cool throughout the year.

The temperature there ranges from 14 degree Celsius to 28 degree Celsius. Rain is common all the year round even though the monsoon season is between November and February. However, the dry season is between February and April. If you really plan to enjoy the coldness in Cameron Highlands, you may make your way there between December and February. By the time, the temperature there can drop to 10 degree Celsius at certain places. The local guide told us that the weather is not as cold as it used to be.

Clothing to wear

You can make do with shorts and t-shirt during the day. The temperature can drop in the late evenings or when it rains and a light jacket would come in handy during times like this. Generally it can get very cold at night especially during the rainy season.

If you are planning to spend most of your day in the outdoors, do carry an umbrella with you because it rains a lot here. For the ladies please wear proper footwear as for some attractions you have to go down the hill and it’s slippery and wet.

Sightseeing

I'd suggest you go by car, because you have a lot more flexibility on what time you want to reach there & leave, compared to adhering to rigid coach schedules.

It’s also better to go on weekdays, because it’s less crowded & you're less likely to be intimidated by the sheer swell of the weekend crowd.

Best time to visit Cameron Highlands is during the off peak season. Cameron Highlands is normally very crowded during the school holidays, weekends and festive holidays. You might be caught in traffic jam around the towns and the tourist spots during the peak season. Besides that, it is also advisable to visit at Cameron Highlands on weekend nights, so that you can visit the famous night market at Brinchang.

We had been to the

Raju Hill Strawberry Farm

The staffs are extremely friendly, very eager to assist you. They offered us 2 boxes full of strawberry to eat on the way when they knew we are driving back to Singapore. Their sugar-free strawberry jam is worth buying.

Cactus Valley & Butterfly farm

I liked the wonderful collection of cactus they have, You can even buy some planted neatly in small pots.

The butterfly farm was like a mini zoo, with some farm animals, butterflies of course and a huge collection of reptiles and some farm animals.

Rose Valley

Rose valley was quite disappointing. I expected to see a valley full of roses, but seemed just like a collection of roses in a nursery.

Bee farm (Apiary)

This beautiful sanctuary for the bees, where they freely fly from one flower to another, collecting nectar. The farm has a surprisingly large number of beautiful floral varieties, rows and rows of wooden boxes of bee hives with honeycombs inside, and many gigantic replicas of honey bees in vibrant colours found in the midst of the tress, bushes, and flowers. The kids enjoyed it thoroughly.

We even got the pleasure of watching the beekeeper climb up the tree to remove honey from the hive.

This farm is not handicap friendly or for the dependant elderly. You have to climb up and down stairs. But it’s worth a dekko.

Mushroom Farm

I loved the mushroom farm, The mushrooms were cultivated in bottles and there were so many colors of mushrooms that I didn’t know existed.

Tea Plantation

This is one of the main attraction that's got to be in your "must see" list. 

You can visit the factories to learn about the tea making process. 

The Indian guide at the Boh Tea plantaion was extremely friendly and knew many languages. He made the whole sight seeing cum educational trip a pleasurable experience. 

You can also sit down and enjoy a cup of tea at the cafe. 

The view overlooking the plantations is beautiful and perfect for the picture album. 

There are a few tea plantations. We visited the  Boh Tea Plantation as pat of our sight seeing trip. 

There’s also the Sungai Palas Tea Plantation & Cameron Valley Tea Plantation.

But, what impressed us the most is The Bharat Tea Plantation. Please do visit this Tea plantation.

The walk in the tea plantation was very convenient and we had the best snapshots there standing nestled among the tea leaves. 

The Bharat Plantations café is very popular. Its called Anytime is Tea time Cafe.The cafe has a wide variety of tea and snacks. 

I highly recommend the Masala Chai and cardamom Tea. They are wonderful.  

I also highly recommend the Ginger Oat Crunch...please do try this!!!.

You can enjoy the beautiful view and have tea at the café with some snacks.

Shopping

There isn’t much shopping available in CH. But the Pasaraya Jimat is quite impressive and carries almost everything.

There are a lot of shops selling souvenirs. They sell many strawberry related souvenirs.

Brinchang Night Market

Also known as the 'Pasar Malam' or Night market in Malay. This night market only operates on the weekends (Friday and Saturday nights) but during the school holidays, it operates every night starting from 6:00 pm until 11:00 pm. Its a huge market situated opposite Brinchang Police Station by the road side.

The Night Market has stalls selling everything such as cooked food, Vegetables, fruits, beautiful bouquets of fresh flowers, fruits, potted plants of different varieties, Clothes and Souvenirs. 

They also have some very talented local artists who can make cartoon caricatures of you or artistically make a beautiful wooden nameplate for your door or a personalized name plate, keychain etc. or you can have your name engraved in Metal/ wood etc.

Capsicums, Zuchinis, Carrots, Brochollis, Potatos, Beans look very attractive - most sellers offer three packet for RM5!

We could find strawberries galore at the night market.

 They were selling cactus at RM10 for 7 pots

Besides these we saw a beautiful Indian temple on our way from Brinchang to Tanah Rata. I loved the location, the beautiful architecture.

Opposite to the temple was the Satya Sai baba centre.

  

FOOD- PLACES TO EAT

There are many types of cuisine that can be found in Cameron highland. It ranges from local to Western to Southern Indian to Chinese and many more. At night (especially during weekends & holidays) restaurants are packed since there's very little to do after the sun goes down.

You can get everything from Western, Chinese, Indian and Malay food to Thai and Japanese food here. Most restaurants are located in Tanah Rata and Brinchang.

Indian restaurants abound in CH and they can cook vegetarian food/ snacks for you.

Street nibbles

First the street food or street nibbles as I call as you can buy these and nibble on the way while sightseeing or shopping.

My husband absolutely loved the steamed purple skin sweet potatoes. You can see many people selling this on the street. They are served hot in small plastic bags. It’s a delight to bite into the warm creamy soft, somewhat sweet delight while walking leisurely in the cool weather.

We loved the roasted sweet corns as well.

Strawberry dipped in chocolate. This is a local favorite too I suppose and they call it Strawberry Coklat. You can find these everywhere 1 stick = RM 2 & 3 sticks = RM 5.

First Brinchang, as we stayed at Brinchang.

BRINCHANG

FU GUANG VEGETARIAN FAST FOOD RESTAURANT   (Highly Recommended)

No.5 Jalan Pasar, Bandar Baru Brinchang (39100)

Landmark : This hotel is located at the back side of the Green Garden Hotel. A friendly CH local was kind enough to show us the way.

The prices are extremely affordable.

Chinese Herbal Tea for RM1.00 (recommended)

3 dishes + rice = RM 3.50 (recommended)

Bee Hoon (Fried noodles) (Highly recommended)

They got a few starters too…

The business hours are between 8.30am to 3.30pm only.

The lady who owns the place is very friendly. She said only recently they hiked the price by 0.50 cents as everything is getting expensive and difficult to manage. A while ago the Rice Set with 3 dishes used to cost only RM3.00, Now, it costs RM3.50.

You can tell that the place is very popular among the locals.

The vegetables are home grown, so they are fresh and crispy. The portions are quite decent. She gives fairly big portions of vegetables. They don’t cook a lot and keep. I noticed that as and when a vegetable finishes they immediately make a fresh one to replenish the dish. So the food is fresh, tasty, crunchy and hot.

I asked her why she doesn’t keep the shop open until night. She was telling me that everything gets sold out and they go home to rest to prepare for the next day.

Ee Feng Gu Farm and Trading  

75, Batu 43, Green Cow, Kea Farm Brinchang, Pahang (39100)

605-4961951, 4962755

Vegan, Chinese

Hotel Sentosa

The Hotel Sentosa is very strategically located in the midst of the Night market just besides Pasaraya Jimat.  They have a few Indian vegetarian dishes and the chef is from India and understands about vegetarian food. He is more than willing to rustle up vegetarian food/ snacks for you.

Strawberry Moment Dessert café

23-24, Jalan Angsana Satu,

Brinchang Point, 39100, Cameron Highlands, Pahang.

Tel: 605 491 2061

Website: www.strawberrymoment.com

I absolutely loved this place. They have a wide variety of strawberry dishes.

The chef’s recommendations are the strawberry salad, the strawberry strudel, ice baby, mango fever. They also have a selection of cakes, crepes, fresh fruit juices and ice creams. 

TANAH RATA

Tanah Rata is more happening as far as the food scene is concerned. Less than ten minutes drive down from Brinchang,

Restaurant Kumar

26, Main Road, Tanah Rata, 39000 Cameron Highlands, Pahang

Tel/Fax: 05-4912624

Restaurant Sri Brinchang

25, Main Road, Tanah Rata, 39000 Cameron Highlands.

Tel: 05-4915982

You can find dosas (Rice lentil crepes), Idlis(rice lentil steamed cakes), vegetarian set meals etc in both these restaurants.

Restaurant Bunga Suria

Saw this restaurant Suria’s Cameron Tandoori Special. I didn’t try it, but saw a few Europeans inside. I guess it’s popular with the European tourists.

Starbucks Coffee

If you want a piece of the city, you can always visit Starbucks for Brewed coffee, espresso-based hot drinks, other hot and cold drinks and snacks.

Unit 22 & 23, Ground Floor and 1st Floor,

Tanah Rata, Cameron Highlands,

39000 Pahang Darul Makmur

Tel: 605-491 5648

T-Cafe or The Lord's Cafe

Cameron tea, Cream scones, apple pie and banana pancake

Mango Lassi is one of the recommended drinks

Address: 1st Floor, 4 Jalan Besar

Tanah Rata, Cameron Highlands, Pahang

Tel : 019-5722883

http://t-cafe.biz/

Breakfast at the Equatorial Resort

The rising sun over the hills is a spectacular sight in the mornings. 

We had to pay separately for the buffet breakfast, but it was worth it as they had a huge spread, a mix of  western and asian with local delicacies and the lovely tropical fruits. The chef was kind enough to specially rustle up vegetarian food for us.

After having the sumptuous breakfast, we started off to come back home to Singapore.

Conclusion

In short we had a refreshing trip, we enjoyed and so did the kids.

With all the developments taking place, roads being made wider through the mountains, excavations taking place, de-forestation, the place is getting commercialized. The guide was telling us that Cameroon is now buzzing with activity, the weather is less cool compared to what it was before. One of the local residents of CH who helped us to search for a vegetarian restaurant told us that the peace and quiet is affected greatly by the tourists.

Mankind’s greed to get the most out of everything has made us contemptuously neglect the environment.

Where does man want to go when he is stressed from the pressures of life from a so called developed country, he wants to go back to nature and find peace there.

Let us preserve our nature and naturally beautiful places like Cameron Highlands for ourselves and our future generations. 

IDLI MASALA (JAIN) RICE & LENTIL STEAMED CAKE SAUTEED IN COCONUT & SPICES

IDLI MASALA (JAIN) RICE & LENTIL STEAMED CAKE SAUTEED IN COCONUT & SPICES

I’m not a huge fan of idlis but I love Idli masala. It can be made with fresh or leftover idlis. Since I love this, I sometimes purposely make more idlis so that they are leftover so I can make this and relish it on another day. This recipe doesn’t include onions or garlic, you can safely call this a Jain recipe as it can be made when the idli is fresh as well. No need to use the fermented batter. Jains usually don't use fermented batter or onions or garlic in their cooking. Jain or Non-Jain, do make this at home and enjoy into a different flavor altogether.

Ingredients

Idlis – 15

Mustard Seeds – ¼ tsp

Cumin Seeds – ¼ tsp

Bengal gram dal (Chana dal) – 1 tsp

Red Chilies whole  – 2

White Sesame seeds – 1 tsp

Peanuts – 1-2 tbsp

Coconut Shredded – 2 tbsp

Asafetida – a pinch

Turmeric powder – ½ tsp

Coriander powder – 1 tsp

Cumin powder – ½ tsp

Red Chilly powder – ½ tsp

Molagapodi – 1 tbsp (http://sukanya-keralaiyer.blogspot.com/2007/10/molagapodi-idly-dosai-chilly-powder.html ) - Click on the link for the recipe.

Salt as per taste

Curry leaves – 6-7

Coriander leaves for garnish

Oil – 4 tbsps

Method

Cut the idlis into 4-6 parts and keep aside. In a wok, add 2 tbsps oil. When the oil is hot enough, fry the peanuts and keep aside. Now add the remaining 2 tbsps oil, add the mustard seeds, cumin seeds, Bengal gram dal, white sesame seeds and whole red chillies. Red chllies give a wonderful flavor to this dish. If you want more you can use. I use less of chilly so that the kids can enjoy as well.

Once the mustard seeds start to splutter, add the shredded coconut and sauté until a faint pink color and the aroma of the coconut starts to emanate. Now, you can add in the curry leaves, the fried peanuts and finally the idli pieces. Mix well. Now add the Turmeric powder, asafetida, coriander powder, cumin powder, red chilly powder, molagapodi(you can refer to the recipe in my blog). Salt as per taste and toss everything well. Keep in a low flame and cook for about ten minutes, tossing regularly in between. Garnish with coriander leaves and toss and cook for another five minutes. Serve hot and enjoy this lovely idli masala.

PANEER MAKHANWALA (RESTAURANT STYLE)-BUTTER FRIED COTTAGE CHEESE IN A TOMATO GRAVY INFUSED WITH WHOLE AND POWDERED SPICES

PANEER MAKHANWALA (RESTAURANT STYLE)-BUTTER FRIED COTTAGE CHEESE IN A TOMATO GRAVY INFUSED WITH WHOLE AND POWDERED SPICES

Paneer Makhanwalla is known as Makhanwalla because not only butter also known as Makhan is used in this dish but also the gravy is creamy due to the addition of the fresh cream. My Punjabi neighbor told me that traditionally they didn’t use onions in the dish, but since my recipe is restaurant style, I thought I will go all the way and indulge in the onions which will add extra flavor to the dish. Although popularly thought of as a Punjabi dish, this dish is actually classified as a Mughlai dish as it is very rich with fresh cream and is a gift from the Mughals who invaded and ruled India. This dish is usually considered mild, as the fresh cream makes the dish mild and tones down the spice of the masalas. This is a hot favorite among Westerners who absolutely love this dish. The blend of the tomato puree, the fresh whole spices, the powdered spices and the fresh cream is a delight to anyone’s palate. This dish is usually eaten with Indian Breads (Roti’s, fulkas, parathas or naans) but my daughter loves this with Rice. She absolutely relishes the Jeera rice and Panner Makhanwalla combo. I guess kids enjoy it because it’s mild and creamy.

Ingredients

Paneer - 250 gms (cut into cubes of 1 inch each)

Grated paneer or cheese - 1/2 tbsp

Tomato Puree – 200gms

Fresh cream – 200 gms 

Butter -1-2 tbsps

Onion - 1

Ginger paste -1 tsp

Garlic paste-1 tsp (optional, I don’t use garlic in my cooking, so I avoid it)

Bay Leaf - 1

Cinnamon (Dalcheeni) - 1" stick

Big cardamom black (Badi elaichi ) - 1

Cardamom - 2

Cloves - 2

Cumin seeds- 1 tsp

Dried fenugreek leaves powder (Kasuri methi powder) - 1 tsp

Garam masala - 1/2 tsp

Coriander powder – 1 tsp

Cumin powder – 1 tsp

Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp

Red chilli powder - 1 tsp

Fresh Green Coriander leaves (chopped) - 1/2 tbsp

Salt as per taste

Method

For the paneer

I used frozen paneer in this dish and I usually soak them in some hot water for about 15-20 minutes until they become soft like fresh paneer and drain the water after a while through a colander.

For the tomato puree

You can either use 3 big red, ripe tomatoes and make a puree in the blender. I have used the tomato puree from the can as they have a deep red color and I usually stock a few cans in the case of an emergency.

Grind the Onions, ginger and garlic(optional) to a paste.

In a Wok (Kadhai), add 2 tbsps of butter, lightly sauté the paneer and keep aside. The reason we sauté the paneer lightly in butter is to make it tough and not so easy to crumble inside the gravy.

In the same oil add the Bay Leaf, Cinnamon stick, Badi elaichi, Cardamom, Cloves and the cumin seeds. When the cumin gets fried. Add in the onion-ginger-garlic paste. After about 2 minutes, add in the tomato puree, let ir fry well for another 2-3 minutes with the onion paste, Now add in the Kasuri methi powder, Garam masala, Coriander powder, Cumin powder, Turmeric powder and Red chilli powder, mix well and fry until you see the oil come out of the masala. This is the indication that the masala is done. The masala should be cooked otherwise  the dish will have a raw masala smell. Now add 2 cups of water. Let it simmer on a low flame for about 5-7 minutes and let all the spices get marinated in the sauce.

If you feel you need more gravy add more water at this point, let it come to one boil then, add the lightly butter sautéd paneer pieces and with a light hand just mix well. Don’t use a heavy hand else you may break the paneer and it will get very crumbled. After about 5 minutes of cooking. Don’t over cook the paneer.  Add the fresh cream and cook for just 2 minutes till one boil appears. Put off the gas, remove the flame. Garnish with Freshly chopped green coriander leaves and grated paneer. You can also decorate the dish by dropping fresh cream in a pattern as a dressing like they do in restaurants.

Serve hot with Roti’s, fulkas, parathas or naans. Enjoy the Paneer Makhanwalla. 

ALOO BAINGAN (POTATOES & AUBERGINE CURRY)

ALOO BAINGAN (POTATOES & AUBERGINE CURRY)

This dish has some fond memories for me. Especially because I used to never like baingan(aubergine/eggplant), but baingan combined with aloo is truly awesome and likeable. This dish never forgets to remind me of the movie, “Sparsh” where Naseeruddin Shah played the role of a blind man and did such a wonderfully convincing act of it. He is an actor par excellence. The scene of the hostel where the blind kids sing, “ Hai re kaisi uljhan, fir se aloo baingan”.  I had made even a comic strip on this, a few years ago.

Click on the comic strip to see the larger picture.

Aloo Baingan

Ingredients

Aubergines (Eggplants/Brinjals) – ½ kilo

Potatoes – 1 big

Onion – 1

Tomatoes – 1

Mustard – 1 tsp

Cumin seeds – 1 tsp

Turmeric powder – 1 tsp

Red chilly powder – 1 tsp

Coriander powder – 1 tsp

Cumin powder – 1 tsp

Asafetida – a pinch

Dry Mango powder (Amchoor powder) – 1 tsp

Salt as per taste

Oil – 1 tbsp

Method

De-stem the aubergines, Chop them into cubes and let them soak in warm water with some salt and turmeric for about 15 minutes. Meanwhile, peel and chop the potatoes into cubes. Chop the onions and tomatoes as well. Keep aside. Now the drain the water off the aubergines and rinse well.

In a wok, Add one tbsp oil, add the mustard seeds & cumin seeds, when the mustard starts to splutter. Add the onions, when the onions become transparent, add in the tomatoes and cook until tomatoes are soft, then add the potatoes and the aubergine cubes and mix well, now add the chilly powder, turmeric powder, asafetida, amchoor powder and salt as per taste. Mix everything well, cover with a lid and cook on a low flame. After every 5 minutes give it a stir, you will see that the vegetables have become moist. Always allow it to cook in its own juices. If you see that there is no water, add a bit and cook covered on a low flame. After about 10 minutes you will notice that the potatoes are cooked, check if cooked with a spoon, if not wait until the potatoes are cooked. Aubergines usually get cooked quite fast. Once it is done, serve hot with chappatis or u can have it with dal and rice. Enjoy the Aloo baingan.

VEGETABLE LEMON GARLIC CLEAR SOUP

VEGETABLE LEMON GARLIC CLEAR SOUP

This is my husband Yo’s favorite soup and he always loves to order this whenever we go to our favorite restaurants. I always wanted to make it at home as my 2 princesses are soup lovers as well. The problem was I didn’t know how to make it. So this time when I went to the restaurant I ordered for the soup and tried to savor my soup till I could recognize each and every ingredient just like how it is done in the Master Chef series. This soup is a cross between the Chinese clear vegetable soup and the lemon garlic soup. So I would like to call it the Vegetable Lemon Garlic Clear soup. It’s not thick as other soups. Its very light and refreshing. The tangy tastes of the lemon and the crunchiness of the different colors of vegetables is not only a visual treat but also a delight to the palette.

Ingredients

Onion – 1

Garlic – 2 cloves

Ginger - ¼  inch piece

Chilli padi- 1 small red chilli (1-2 according to taste)

Carrot – 1 thinly sliced into rectangles

Broccoli – ½ cup florets

Baby corn – 2 pieces

White Tofu (the soup tofu) – a few slices thinly sliced

Green Cabbage – a few leaves thinly sliced

Celery – ½ stick thinly sliced

Leek – 1 thinly sliced

Lemon – 1 big

Parsley – 2 tbsps chopped

Dill – 2 tbsps chopped

Coriander – 2 tbsps

Cumin powder -1/4 tsp

Pepper - 1/4 Tsp          

Soya sauce – ½ tsp

Corn Flour - 2 tsps

Any vegetable oil – 1 tsp

Salt to taste

Method

Dice the onion. Mince the ginger very finely and crush the garlic with the back of a knife, chop the red chilli padi finely.

Chop or slice all the above mentioned vegetables and tofu as mentioned above in the ingredients.

Heat the oil in a sauce pan, add the ginger, garlic and the chopped chilli to the oil, and add some salt. Stir for a couple of minutes till you smell of the ginger and garlic in the oil. Now add the onion and sauté till its translucent. After this, add all the above mentioned vegetables and stir and let it cook for a couple of minutes. Add the soya sauce at this point. Add about 2 cups of water, let it come to a boil.

The vegetables should be half done by now, still crunchy. Mix water with the corn flour ensuring that there are no lumps. Cook for some more time. Ensure that the vegetables are half cooked and crunchy. This way they retain the color and the soup looks colorful as well. Add the cumin powder and freshly grounded black pepper. Simmer for 5 minutes and then add the Parsley, Dill & Coriander and turn off the heat.

Now, add the lemon juice check for salt and spice, if needed, you can add it at this point. The lemon in the soup is very refreshing. Since we are using vegetables with different colors, the soup looks colorful and interesting to kids. You can add a dash of pepper to taste and serve steaming hot.