It
happened that one of the buah tangan someone presented to my sister on
Chinese New Year eve this year was several pieces of steamed Teochew Thor kueh,
the paisley shaped savoury delicacy stuffed with glutinous rice, dried prawns,
sliced mushroom and braised peanuts.
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| My grand-niece, Audrey Loh, enjoying a game of Snakes and Ladders, during a visit here |
So
on the morning of the first day of Chinese New Year, I had the privilege to eat
this gift of Teochew kueh also known as P’ng kueh, comfortably warmed up
in the steamer, with my hot coffee.
Looking
back on the festive food we enjoyed in the first few days of this Chinese New
Year, I noted that much of the delicacies we savoured were typically Teochew
cuisine.
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| Teochew kueh known as Thor kway or P'ng kway, is a firm favourite of ours |
These Chinese were planters who
have cultivated their lands with pepper and gambier plantations for more than
15 years, were at a stage when the land was exhausted and they were ready to
seek new land to continue their planting pursuits.
In 1844, the Ngee Heng Society leader,
Tan Kee Soon, led his followers to settle in Johor, mainly in the area which is
still known as Kangkar Tebrau.
The Teochew was the dominant
dialect group among the Chinese, made up of Cantonese, Hokkien, Hakka and
Hainanese, who came to Johor mainly to cultivate pepper and gambier under the kangchu system and made Johor their new
home.
By the mid 1800’s, as more
Teochew people immigrated here, Teochew culture flourished in Johor and Johor
Baru earned its nickname as, Little Swatow.
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| Mandarin oranges are an essential item for the Chinese New Year |
Chaozhou is a major cultural
center of the Chaoshan region in Guangdong so the descendants of overseas
Chaoshan immigrants are often called, Chaozhou or Teochew people.
I first heard the word, Swatow
when I listened to a conversation in our grandfather’s house during the Chinese
New Year season – many, many years ago – when there was a discussion about
Mandarin oranges and someone claimed that the Mandarin oranges from Swatow
was simply the best.
At that time, I had no idea what
that word meant and why they insisted that the preferred choice of Mandarin
oranges was those from Swatow. I guessed that all Mandarin oranges were
imported from China so Swatow must be somewhere there.
It was much later that I learned
that Mandarin oranges from Swatow were the small, sweet and juicy oranges that
came, shipped in rough wooden crates.
I realised that size did not
matter but the quality and taste of the oranges did and I guessed, probably
also because there was an unspoken loyalty to Swatow.
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| A 'live' Teochew Opera show |
With a Sei Yap origin, our
grandmother spoke Cantonese and she enjoyed watching Cantonese opera screened
regularly on the family’s Black & White television.
By comparing the sight and sound
of these two types of Chinese opera, I learned to distinguish a distinct
difference between Teochew and Cantonese operas, not only in costumes but also
in the music and operatic singing styles.
My early exposure to Chinese
opera through our grandparents sparked my curiosity and interest in this
traditional artform and entertainment that the Chinese brought along as they
settled in new lands throughout South East Asia. Over the years, I had the
privilege to cover many stories on Chinese Opera, in particular Teochew opera
in Johor.
Later I also discovered that the
Johor Old Temple has an annual tradition to celebrate the birthday of the
Teochew deity, Yuan Tuan Shang Di or Tuah Lau Yiah, on the third
day of the third lunar month in an event dubbed, Lunar 303.
As I learned more about Teochew
culture in Johor and the Teochew food heritage here, I was pleased to document
a story, Johor Bahru, our Little Swatow, in My Johor Stories 2:
Interesting Places and Inspirational People.
In the olden days, our
grandmother had a tradition of cooking up a storm for the family’s annual
reunion dinner. [Back then, there was no such thing as ordering-in food!] She had
the help of daughters-in-law in an annual family cook-up and among the dishes
in her repertoire of festive food was our family favourite of Teochew braised
duck.
Even as I write this, I can
recall the buzz of activity for food preparation in the kitchen of No. 154
Jalan Ngee Heng to serve at the reunion dinner and the distinct dark-sauce,
caramel aroma of the braised duck sauce that wafted through the house.
At our grandmother’s 100th
birthday celebration, among the souvenirs that were shared with family and
friends were written recipes for Grandmother’s Teochew Braised Duck, lor ark
(Teochew/Hokkien dialect) and her much-loved steamed Cantonese Egg Custard
dessert, thunn tarn (Cantonese dialect).
Grandmother, the Real Champion,
passed away at the ripe old age of 103. Thankfully, her daughters have mastered
the art of recreating family favourites for the next generation family members
to savour and reminisce over grandmother’s prized recipes.
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| Ducks braising in the wok; Photo and cooking by Aunty Polly |
Now at the ripe old age of 92,
mum has hung up her apron for good while her younger sister, Aunty Polly, who
has also acquired similar skills in making Teochew braised duck, continues with
this family tradition.
In the days ahead of Chinese New
Year, Aunty Polly – who has also picked up skills in using the phone camera and
sending photographs through WhatsApp – shared a shot of her giant wok or kwali
with not one but two ducks, being braised over a stove.
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| Teochew braised duck made by Aunty Polly using grandmother's recipe |
This braised bird was cooled and
securely packed in layers of cling film, aluminium foil and plastic, before
being stored in deep freeze along with a jar of its rich gravy.
A few days later, this frozen
bird was hand-carried to Johor Bahru and safely stored away for my mother (and
her family!) to savour at leisure, after the festive visitors had left.
At the dawn of the New Year, my
mother’s two sisters – Aunty Polly and Aunty Sylvia – with their families,
braved the festive traffic to visit us from Kuala Lumpur.
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| Johor Teochew comfort food: Kway Chap |
This business was open during the
festive period for fans of this Teochew dish who were (back) in Johor Bahru, to
savour an authentic and familiar taste – they claim – that was only available here
and no-where else.
Since the global pandemic and
long periods of lockdown, the Asian Food Network or AFN, is among the
television channels that I often enjoyed watching with my mother.
Recently, I watched an episode
that featured a Teochew restaurant in Johor, Chao Shan in Indahpura,
Kulai. The name, Chaoshan is a contraction of the names of two cities in
the Guangdong region, Chaozhou and Shantou.
When I mentioned this discovery
to my former classmate, Phoebe Chua, who happened to be Teochew, she told me
that her family were regulars at a Chao Shan branch restaurant opened in Desa
Cemerlang, close to their neighbourhood.
During my Chinese New Year visit with
her recently, she suggested that we have lunch at Chao Shan and I did not
hesitate to say, “Yes!”
While this Teochew restaurant was
headquartered in Kulai, two branch restaurants were opened, one in Desa
Cemerlang and the other in Aeon Tebrau City Mall.
We were pleased to arrive ahead
of lunchtime because we saw the dining crowd trickling in shortly after and
occupied all the tables within the air-conditioned dining hall. Those who
arrived later were directed to sit at tables arranged in the alfresco section.
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| Teochew stir-fried Kway Teow served at Chao Shan restaurant |
As we discussed the choice of
dishes to order, Phoebe advised us to skip ordering any dessert because she had
a portion of homemade Teochew dessert for us to enjoy later when we visited her
at home. With such a sweet anticipation, we turned our attention to tasting the
dishes we ordered.
While I was familiar with Teochew
dishes, I was delighted to savour a highly recommended Teochew-style stir-fried
Kway Teow that turned out to be quite unlike the street-food-style char
kway teow.
At the first taste of this
Teochew stir-fried Kway Teow, I tasted the agreeable, smoky wok-hei
umami along with the crunchy texture of toasted chai poh or preserved
radish and chunks of deep-fried pork lard, a perfect foil with the smooth rice
noodles and minced pork.
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| A serving of homemade Or Nee made in a traditional family recipe |
Yes, there was also room for the
much anticipated homemade Or Nee, a warm Teochew dessert of yam paste
topped with a slice of pumpkin and a drizzle of shallot oil, made in the
tradition of a recipe that belonged to Phoebe’s father.
As its sweetness lingered in my
mouth, it reminded me of family traditions and unity, everything that Chinese
New Year means and this year, with just a little more of a Teochew taste.
There are 15 days of Chinese New
Year and not too late to wish you, Happy Chinese New Year, as we look forward
to more feasting and celebrations. Kongxi! Kongxi!
