Slice of Malaysiana: Night Markets!

Somebody once asked me how many night markets we actually have in Malaysia and I was stumped. Who knows really? What I do know is that we Malaysian love our pasars-malam, give us a quiet evening and it becomes a reason as good as any to schedule a night market!

Where I live we hold 3 night markets a week; on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. We also have them on other days , a few kilometers away (under 5 kms). There's one every Monday at Bandar Baru Sg. Buloh, one on Wednesdays at the Sg. Plong area and Kampung Subang and one every Friday at Subang Mahsing industrial area. So that leaves us our Sundays totally pasar malam free (and I don't get why this is so though, Sundays are perfect for lazing in and keeping one's kitchen 'tak berasap').

Being a Saturday, Mom felt compelled to hit our Saturday pasar malam to stock up on fresh fruits. This place is often packed on Saturdays, causing a massive traffic jam from 5.30 to at least 9 o'clock at night everytime as Malaysians get to combine two of our most cherished habits - snacking and double parking! I must admit I was a tad hesitant, as getting a parking spot would be next to impossible, and the muggy weather was sure to elicit profuse sweating on my part. But alas, with Mak wanting to go, it was tally-ho onwards. We were strangely lucky today, I found a spot to plonk the car after only having to circuit twice.

The fruit stand was the order of the day and we were warmly greeted by the now familiar vendor. We have been buying from him since we first moved here, back when his stall was a modest 2 table stall. Now it stretches long and, well.. long. He seems to still sell the same kind and range of fruits though: mix of orange, apples, pears and some mangoes. I guess it is always better to stick to what one is really good at rather than attempt being a jack-of-all-trades.

As he feted and cajoled my mum (part of the reason we keep coming back, he is a really nice and voluble sort of fellow, a heady mix for equally chatterboxy types), I took some photos of his wares (much to the surprise of most present, I did after all just suddenly swung out a not exactly discreet DSLR).

Rows and rows of good fresh fruits, different varieties offering different sensations and tastes.

More fruits, with mangoes in the distant end of his lot. Note the bossman

behind the hanging bunches of grapes, being painfully camera shy.

Mak was out for some Lai Madu, or sometimes known as Nashi Pears. These come from China.

Quarry in hand, we then browsed for some snacks. Led by our noses, we found Arbak Roti Goreng. These people are masterful peddlers of Roti Kebab and Roti Goreng, which if translated doesn't really describe what they really are. They have been here longer than the Fruitgang, and I have seen them grow up, with me. Eating their food gives me such pure pleasure that somehow transports me to my youth.

Shawarma styled chicken thighs-flame grilled, sliced and slathered liberally with sweet spicy chilli sauce, soon to be stuffed in healthy (ahem) Pita bread pocket and topped with shredded cabbage and carrots in mayonnaise!

These lil' puppies are stars in the making.

Drumroll please! A Star is born, production line style.

Soft yielding hotdog buns stuffed with curry spiced minced beef (or chicken, if that is your poison), lashed with chilli sauce, wrapped in springroll skin, dunked in thin wheat batter and deep-fried to heavenly gorgeousness!

All in we bought almost nothing, just 3 types of fruits and a piece each of Arbak's stuffed pita and deepfried bun, but we did while away a good hour just taking in the sights and smells of the night market. Oh I also inhaled both them goodies under a minute, did I tell you I was hungry? Pity I bought only a piece each.