In the previous post, I have spoken about the new kid on the block of the food scene in Kuching - the Mee Udang Gumpey, found exclusively served with huge fresh and juicy prawns. So famous that it attracted an entourage of about 30 people, lead by the former Governor of Sarawak in one of the Sundays.
For some of us, we find pleasure in such events, eating out, trying new things, especially with family and friends.
April 18 is a public holiday for the state. It is Good Friday. The long weekend allows families to plan for longer and adventurous activities. Otherwise, the weekend is just enough to break from our daily routine, by just staying at home or buying groceries, which is just a short trip to the nearest mall.
The prawn season is in - that was what the folks in the coastal villages has been saying to us. The landing sites at Telaga Air, Buntal and Santubong will be busy with fishing boats docking and landing their catch of the day. These catches, bought by middlemen, will end up in the wet markets in Kuching. Although it may still be considered fresh, by the time it reaches the market, the freshest and the best catch will still be hauled up by buyers on first contact with the fishermen at the landing site.
We can say that those out on display in the market are already second stringers.
Knowing that, it would be a great idea to "ambush" the landing sites on our own. Hopefully, we can get a good catch ourselves on a Good Friday. So, since the past 48 hours, we have been marking Buntal as the target site.
There are some member in the family who had been a fishermen before their life changed for the better in the city. They have been a good source of encouragement and facts of life to the young - such as time like this. According to them, the landing time for the boats can be quite early, as early as nine in the morning and at four in the afternoon. We have to time ourselves well, to be in the right time and place to get the freshest catch.
And so, we set out in at around nine in the morning and reached Buntal at around 10.
The many stalls selling sea produce dots the sides of the road of what seems to be a cul de sac of Kampung Buntal. A few seafood restaurants, wooden in structure squeeze in between these stalls and village houses. As they were mostly run by Chinese businessmen, Chinese calligraphy adorned the facade. The red lanterns, dull red from the many years of use, hung precariously at the sides. Such is the scene of a multiracial Malaysian life- harmony in diversity.
There were not many cars hogging the roads into the village. We parked our vehicle infront of one of the closed restaurants and walked to the many stalls. Crabs strung together, heaps of prawns, squid and Ikan kembung not only attracted us, but also the flies. A few siakaps were displayed too. The clarity of their cornea erased our suspicions about the freshness of these fish.
We moved from one stall to the other - just like the caroling team during Christmas, moving from one house to another. We haggled till we find the right price. I would say, the price here may be slightly cheaper that those in the city markets. It is not that dirt cheap either. Surely, it may not be worthwhile to drive all the way to Buntal to get your source of fish stock if not for a holiday like today.
A bundle of crabs, with really huge and angry looking claws cost about RM 80 - RM 104. I reckon a bundle weigh roughly 3 kilos. Not wanting to miss it, we settled for a smaller bundle - about 8 - 10 crabs costing RM 32.
We moved on. We bought 2 kilos of fresh prawns amounting to about RM 30. They were thumb sized. Then the tenggiri, about the size of my forearm, scaled and sliced, costing about RM 15. I even saw an adult sized shark, in one piece at the counter of one of the stalls. I thought it was illegal to sell sharks. Or the fisherman and the middlemen did not know that it was illegal to buy and sell them.
We brought some of our catch - the prawns and the crab to the nearby kopitiam - to get it cooked. Even the most humble boiled prawn and crab added with a lemongrass, garlic, salt and pepper is pleasurable to all of us. The rest of the stock was kept in an insulated carrier. It will be our supply of sea food in the coming two months.
While partaking in our eating session, the owner of the shop managed to snip in a chat line or two. According to him, the owner of Jong's Crocodile farm, frequents his place weekly to indulge in "kentucky fried" ikan lumek. Although not many people here can exactly pin point where Kentucky is, Kentucky is synonymous with a fried chicken franchise in Malaysia. Crispy teriyaki styled food is always associated with Kentucky - hence the Kentucky fried Ikan Lumek. This should be one of our menu in one of the cheat days on Saturdays.
We ended at noon, just in time to catch the Friday prayers in Kampung Buntal. By this time, more cars came from Kuching, possibly stopping by for the fresh catch while on their way to the resorts in Santubong.
Thank you Buntal for the nice treat.
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