I’m fraught with guilt at the thought of blogging about food at a time like this. Freedom of expression has taken a completely new meaning in our country. My friend, Joan, quoted this passage in her article in The Malaysian Insider, and I’ve taken the liberty to reproduce the passage here:
“Hell is a world gone mad where we do not understand our neighbours; where politicians can declare crusades and holy wars against an idea…
“The way out of hell is love. Love is the recognition of the Other; the acknowledgement that the person before us is a fellow human being whose life is an abundant store of emotions, feelings, memories of hope and loss, tears, smiles, laughter. Love is the prerequisite of communication, even when that communication is difficult and one is not always understood. But love dictates that we need to understand, or at least make the effort to understand; and not to demonise, to scapegoat, to sully, to abuse. Love is the thing that stops the finger as it presses on the trigger; it is the thing that stills the hand before it reaches for the knife.” – “Qu’ran and Cricket” Written by Dr Farish A. Noor in 2007.
I really need to get the book. For now, I’m blocking every other thought from my mind as my prose dwells on sustenance of a different kind.
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Sustenance, not for every soul, but definitely for mine. Hor fun tossed in dark sauce, an enticing agglomeration of lard and minced pork.
Soup, a melange of minced and sliced pork, pork innards, squid, prawns and a whole egg (poached in the soup). The ingredients flavour the soup and make it sweet. There is only a bare hint of MSG.
Crispy lard makes a world of difference. Recommended, only if you are able to ignore the grime on the floor.
Restoran Makanan Sun Sea
(Opposite OUG Wet Market)
Jalan Hujan Rahmat
Taman OUG, KL
Closed Wednesdays.
i think that in times like these, it’s good to turn to whatever makes us happy, whether it be literature, music, art, and yeah, food. it helps remind us of the human capacity to create things that bring joy to other people.
Imagine if one day all these wonderful flavours and ingredients decide to go their seperate ways. No more horfun tossed together with lard and dark soy sauce. No more melange soup of everything innit. All we’re left with is bowl of singular one dimensional ingredient (and I bet you it’s not pork lard!). That heavenly bowl of noodles will just be a thing of the past.
I too share the same sentiments on how frivolous it seems to be blogging about food at a time like this. I feel it’s time to sing our national anthem, “God save the Queen and her bowl of noodles!” in unison.
that’s one hugeass CHEE YAU CHAR! did u swallow it whole?! love the way you say .. an enticing agglomeration of lard and minced pork.. what better way to dine..? what better way to live..? what better way to.. die? I am not pantang la.. so haha.. you catch my meaning.
Also, on the serious aspect of the post, totally agree with ‘love stops the finger from pulling the trigger”.. we need some of that right about now..:(
It is exactly during times like this that we need nourishing sustenance of all kinds. Our Malaysian hawker/street fare can provide one type; I am consoled by this quote by Martin Luther King Jr. for the other:
“Returning violence for violence multiplies violence, adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars… Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that.”
(And no, I don’t mean that violence has been reciprocated with more violence, just the full meaning of the entire thought here.)
Hmmm…Must put this on my places to eat soon.
Our love for food, it’s the glue that binds us together as Malaysians *hugs*
I think I had this before, a long time ago. the pork’s awesome but the prawn bit was a bit .. weird? lol
Sean: Well said. Thanks for the reminder and assurance. Well, you know it’s more than that this week. Arghh..the soul needs more sustenance. Where’s the Penang CCF?
A Lil Fat Monkey: Yes, we need our giant cooking pot. God Save the Queen and her bowl of noodles!! That’s really funny, Munkeyboy! But yeah, that’ll do too!
cumidanciki: I swallowed it all, but not whole. As long as the objective is met. 🙂
Life for Beginners: Thanks for the quote. I wholeheartedly agree with it. Love conquers all. (oooh…Kennymah-esque!)
unkaleong: Yes, it’s what binds *us* together. 🙂
KY: Hehe…well, it’s a weird combo, but it didn’t taste weird to me.
Oh my… munky’s gone all philosophical and poetic early in the morning. But how apt..
And for once, I understood Kenny immediately! 🙂 Usually it takes a few readings before I get what he’s saying..
It’s the Chinese blood in you, the practicality. No matter how much tragedy man suffers, the sun still rises and the sun still sets, and we still have to eat. There are people around the world who are stateless and don’t know if they even have a future, and here we are fighting about use of a word. Pah!!
My God!! Look at that LARD!!!!! I’ll leave that aside and only eat it at the end of the meal… I will bite it with tender loving care…. hahahahaha… geee… I could smell it from the post. 🙂
gfad: Yeah, Munkeyboy is a multi-faceted being. 🙂 “And for once, I understood Kenny immediately” <-- ROFL!! 2010 is off to a worse start than ever, what with the earthquake in Haiti (yes, the frivolous matters we argue about here don't compare at all to what's happening in the world). You're right, we have to be practical, after all, life goes on. Pray more too. NKOTB: Ah, a person who likes to keep the best for last! Just like me. 🙂
Wow! That looks yummy. For that delicious bowl of noodles, I can ignore the dirty floor. As they say, the best food in Asia are in coffee shops that is quite dirty looking.
tis infamous pork noodle stall in OUG is more than 30yrs oredi. Now d MSG is “bearable” in d pork broth unlike its heydays. Try their pork porridge, it is good too.
Now, u can hv pork noodle fix 4 dinner too. D owner’s son has opened a shop, Hong Cha 13, jln hujan Rahmat3 juz nxt 2 d popular Ah Loy curry noodle (nxt 2 BHP petrol kiosk). Viva! AWOL…yummy porkylicious…. 😛
The Cooking Ninja: True true, but seriously, the floor in this particular kopitiam is exceptionally dirty!
pang: Thanks for the info! I just realised that I have yet to blog about Ah Loy despite going there so many times. hehe.
tried once, not really like it, the soup lack of taste for me 😛
the soup tasted funny… if you’re too particular about the floor, u can check out restaurant Hong Cha, its in OUG as well, opposite BP, 2 doors from AH Loy curry mee.. The pork noodles are by the same people as Sun Sea.. They only open at night, and they don’t have that dirty floor 🙂
your post reminded me of the time i used to work at bkt jalil where we would drive out here to have a fix of porky goodness! Slurps! (grime? what grime?) 😛
mimid3vils: I suppose it doesn’t appeal to everyone. 🙂
wp: Yes, Pang mentioned Hong Cha too. I definitely will be checking it out. Thanks!
rokh: Wah, that’s quite a distance to drive. Yeah, after awhile, you turn a blind eye to grime. 😛
talking about pork at “times like these”….. you da man, morgan!
by the way, the pork lard looks like the road to hell! paved with sin! so good hor.
Gosh…those photos are killing me..drool