Patricia Hului

Patricia Hului is a Kayan who wants to live in a world where you can eat whatever you want and not gain weight.

She grew up in Bintulu, Sarawak and graduated from the University Malaysia Sabah with a degree in Marine Science.

She is currently obsessed with silent vlogs during this Covid-19 pandemic.

Due to her obsession, she started her Youtube channel of slient vlogs.

Follow her on Instagram at @patriciahului, Facebook at Patricia Hului at Kajomag.com or Twitter at @patriciahului.

Batu Bejit – an Iban legend of a monkey, a man and a wife turned to stone

Published on

When comes to petrification legend in Sarawak, it usually involves laughing at a particular animal and the sky turns dark and the people who laughed would turn into stones.

For example in the legend of Ikan Pasit, the girl is turned into stone after laughing at a fish.

Meanwhile in the Bidayuh Jagoi legend of Gunung Kapor, the villagers are turned into stones after laughing at a cat.

Similarly, the stones of Fairy Caves were believed once a group of villagers who were petrified after laughing at a cat.

In this legend of Batu Bejit, the animal which become the laughing stock is what the Iban people called bejit. It is a type of monkey that can be found in Sarawak.

Batu Bejit - an Iban legend of a monkey, a man and a wife turned to stone
Cats or monkeys, petrification legends teach us to respect animals. Credit: Pixabay.

Here is Benedict Sandin’s version of the Batu Bejit legend which was published in The Sarawak Gazette, July 31, 1965:

There are two stones at Suri, Rimbas, Saribas situated between Rumah Chupong and Rumah Upu.

The reason why they are there relates to a story of a man and his wife who reared a bejit monkey long ago.

After the bejit had been tamed, they dressed it with a loin-cloth and on its wrists they put engkelai (shell armlets), and also the simpai (bone armlets).

Having done this they put on its head a turban and on its neck they put a necklace. After they had dressed it nicely, they asked it to dance. The bejit danced which made them laugh loudly.

While they laughed at the poor animal the clouds turned black, the wind blow strongly, with lightning darting everywhere.

The rain also fell heavily which caused their farm hut to become petrified, together with the monkey and the man’s wife.

On seeing this the owner of the farm hut descended to the ground being equipped with shield, sword and spear in order to fight the spirits which had caused this disaster.

He could not defend himself and turned into stone also.

It is because of this that there are two large stones now standing side by side, one being the petrified farm hut, a monkey and the man’s wife, while the other is the man himself. The petrified farm hut is bigger and higher, while the man’s stone is smaller and lower.

You might be interested in

The Japanese empire once wanted to buy North Borneo as a colony

Published on

On Nov 1, 1881, the British North Borneo Chartered Company (BNBCC) was formed to administer and exploit the resources of North Borneo (present-day Sabah).

The territory then became a protectorate of the British Empire in 1888.

At that time, BNBCC was lack of funds to develop the territory.

Hence, the company started to offer territorial concessions to outside parties including the second White Rajah of Sarawak, Charles Brooke and the Japanese empire.

Apart from offering North Borneo for concessions, the company also sought outside resources for manpower to develop the territory.

After failing to secure Indian and Javanese labour, the second governor of BNBCC Charles Vandeleur Creagh wrote to Japan inquiring for labours.

Sabihah Osman in his paper Japanese Economic Activities in Sabah from the 1890s until 1941 stated the Japanese Foreign Ministry responded to the request by introducing “emigration agencies” for this purpose.

He pointed out, “The Japanese government thus encouraged emigration to the less populous and undeveloped countries. For this purpose, it amended its emigration law in 1894 in order to increase protection for Japanese immigrants, a move that led a large number of Japanese to go overseas. Besides migration Sabah, Japan sent migrants to Micronesia, the Caribbean, and North and South America.”

For the Japanese government, sending its citizens to foreign countries was a way to solve overpopulation and unemployment. Or was there another purpose?

So why was the Japanese empire willing to send their citizens to labour in North Borneo?

According to Hara Fujio in his paper Japanese Activities in North Borneo Before World War II: Focus on Labour Immigrants, sending a labourer to a new territory was the first step to colonisation.

“The theory that in order to establish a Japanese colony, agricultural emigrants should firstly be sent, followed by commodities and merchants was shared by the Shokumin Kyokai (Colonisation Association),” Haru wrote.

Organised by Japanese former Foreign Minister Enomoto Takeaki, the CA was led by an executive council consisting of influential politicians, bureaucrats, aristocrats, nationalists and expansionists.

The Japanese Consul to the United Kingdom in 1891 wrote in a report to the Japanese government that, “If several hundred to several thousand Japanese emigrated to North Borneo for agricultural purposes, Japanese villages will surely be formed there. Once villages are established, merchants would follow one after another to form Japanese towns.”

From there, the Japanese started to send citizens to North Borneo since the 1890s. Some were peasants who did not own any land in Japan.

By 1941, the Japanese community in North Borneo numbered 1,737 with 84% of them living in Tawau working various jobs such as labourers, hairdresser, barbers, physicians and dentists.

The price of North Borneo

The Japanese empire once wanted to buy North Borneo as a colony
Dr. Johnstone; A.J. West (Officers of the Company) – British North Borneo Chartered Company: Views of British North Borneo, Printed by W. Brown & co., limited, London, 1899. Credits: Public Domain.

In the same time, the Japanese also showed some interest in buying North Borneo as a colony.

Shuzo Aoki from the Envoy Extraordinary and Minister of Plenipotentiary in Berlin sent a cable on Nov 7, 1893 to the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Munenori Mutsu.

The cable stated, “Are Imperial Government inclined to buy the Territory of the North Borneo Company for value within 500,000 pounds in order to make Japanese Colony thereof? If so, I will negotiate with British Government regarding cession of its sovereign right. Area thereof is about 1/3 of Japan. An early decision required.”

Meanwhile, Shuzo himself thought that Japan should buy the territory. He envisioned that North Borneo would be a colony to absorb the problem of overpopulation in Japan and its geographical position might contribute significantly to future Japanese commercial and military purposes and interests in the area.

In the meantime, the Japanese Consul in Shanghai, General Oogashi carried out his own feasibility study about the purchase of North Borneo.

He claimed that the BNBCC would sell North Borneo on the condition that the Japanese empire agreed to guarantee a 5% dividend per annum to the company’s shareholder or pay a lump sum of £500,000.

Despite the interest of both Shuzo Aoki and General Oogoshi, the Japanese empire declined to purchase North Borneo simply because they could not afford to.

£500,000 in the year 1893 is worth around £64,672,918.22 in 2020. That is close to 65 million pounds!

Due to financial difficulties, the deal never came through and North Borneo remained under the company until 1946 when it became a British crown colony.

As for the Japanese migrants who came to North Borneo to work, all of them were repatriated to Japan after World War II.

You might be interested in

How paddy came from a girl’s body according to a Dayak Taman legend

Published on

The Dayak Taman people is a small indigenous group found in West Kalimantan, Indonesia.

There are roughly 30,000 people in this ethnic group. Apart from the Embaloh language, the Taman language is not close to other languages in Borneo.

However, like any other Dayak groups in Borneo, the Taman people have many legends and folklore of their own.

Here is how the Taman people discovered paddy:

According to researcher Victor T. King in his paper “Main Outlines of Taman Oral Tradition”, before the discovery of paddy, the Taman people were nomadic like the Bukat and Bukitan. These two are also Dayak groups found in Borneo.

They had no knowledge of rice cultivation and lived simply off sago, jungle fruits, vegetables and fish.

So how did they discover paddy?

King, who went to a field trip to West Kalimantan from July 1972 to September 1973, interviewed a Taman elder named Bau.

Bau revealed to King a common legend known by most people of his tribe of how their people started rice cultivation.

Once there was a young girl who was an only child. One night her father dreamed that a spirit came to him and told him that his daughter must die.

It was to be the father’s job to kill her.

The spirit said that when her body disintegrated, it would became paddy and that if the father planted the paddy, it would grow and he would always have a plenty of food.

Just as in the Old Testament where Abraham was asked to sacrifice his son Isaac, the man’s decision echoed Abraham’s own.

The next day, the father called the girl to have a morning breakfast. He asked her, in a sad voice, to wear her best clothes, and after she finished her food, he asked her to lay down on a rattan mat with her eyes closed.

Killing the daughter

How paddy came from a girl’s body according to a Dayak Taman legend
Paddy. Credits: Pixabay.

The girl did not share the same fate as Isaac in the Bible.

The father then proceeded to cut his own daughter in half using a parang.

Her body started to decay and transform into paddy grains, which he then planted it in his field. However as time passed, nothing happened.

Then one day, he caught sight of an old, white-haired woman carrying a basket full of rice over her shoulder.

The old woman told him that the rice would not grow by itself.

Since it derived from a human being who has a spirit, the paddy too had its own spirit that must be pleased.

One had to perform various rituals to ‘feed’ and coax the rice.

The old woman, whose name was Piang Ambong, then taught the man different kinds of paddy ceremonies.

Since then, the Taman people have always offered gifts and prayers to paddy spirits so that they will be blessed with plenty of rice.

Read more:

Legends of how paddy came to Sarawak

You might be interested in

That time when the Daughter of the Sea Dragon King caused a flood

Published on

In January 1963, the people of Bau, Siniawan and Batu Kawa experienced a flood like they never seen before.

Apparently, the locals believed that it was caused by the capture of the Daughter of the Sea Dragon King.

Who was the Daughter of the Sea Dragon King and how did she cause the major flooding in these areas? Here is an account of what happened written by Ong Kwan Hin to the Sarawak Gazette on Mar 31, 1963:

Readers of the Sarawak Gazette would have come across a vivid account, and have seen the pictures of the flood at Bau, Siniawan and Batu Kawa by Messrs S Cottrell and Des Carbury in the February issue.

This flood at its peak period in late January, 1963 was the worst ever experienced before in living memory. Various parts of the first division of Sarawak were affected, and in other parts of the country flooding also took place. It was a generally agreed that never before in the known history of Sarawak had there been such calamity.

The Chinese devotees of the various temples offered prayers and supplications all over the country for a heavenly release from the afflictions of the prevailing rain and stormy seas.

Signs were sought for, and horoscopes were cast, and consulted as to what the bad weather and the trouble in Northern Sarawak and beyond augured for the people.

Worshipers and devotees of the various guardian deities who manifested themselves through mediums in trances flocked to supplicate for relief and assurances.

The assurances obtained were disquieting – more affliction in the form of floods or an epidemic of sickness, seemed to be what the gods could presage of the future.

The capture of Daughter of the Sea Dragon King

On the fifteenth day of the second moon (Mar 10), the Lim Hua San Temple situated at Tabuan Road was visited by devotees, who went there to pray with incense sticks and burn joss papers and send up supplications for good weather.

In the midst of the worship one of the worshipers, who was an old woman, went into a trance. While in her trance, in which one of the several deities venerated in the temple manifested itself, the deity proclaimed that yet more terrible flood and form of mad sickness would take its toll.

For months in the Museum at Kuching (so proclaimed the deity) one of the tortoises brought from Muara Tebas had been held captive and she was a daughter of the Sea Dragon King.

The flood waters would one day rise as high as the Museum Building to release this daughter and Princess from the wooden tub in which she was exhibited.

On being asked by the devotees present as to what must be done to alleviate the prevalent bad weather resulting from the wrath of the Sea Dragon King – a deity in his own right – and to forestall such a calamity in store, the deity stated that the Princess must be released.

Pleading for the freedom of the Daughter of the Sea Dragon King

According to the deity, an appeal must be made direct to the Curator of the Museum, and the appeal must be through the writer’s eldest song, Ong Kee Hui, in his capacity as Mayor of Kuching.

On doubts being expressed by the devotees that Mr Tom Harrisson would willingly free the captured tortoise Princess, the deity stated that no matter how difficult the Curator would be, his heart could be made to relent.

If and when Ong Kee Hui had released the Princess the Ong family (according to the deity) would be honoured and visited with blessings for this generation and succeeding generations.

The Sarawak Tribune in its issue dated 14th March on the trance stated that it was medium at the Muara Tebas temple. This is not correct.

From my knowledge of both temples I know, and this can be confirmed, both do not have mediums.

I went to see the senior monk living at the Lim Hua San Temple to get a first hand account a few days before sitting down to record the above facts.

He could not tell me which deity, of which there were several in the temple, had manifested itself through the old woman worshiper.

It was generally believed to be one of the Buddhas. The identity of the old woman was not discovered as this might lead to understanding, and personal embarrassment in such a case for her and her family.

A deputation of three ladies- one the wife of a proprietor of a well-known firm in Kuching, another whose husband works with a prominent textile firm, and one of the wife of a physician -called on Mrs Ong Kee Hui on the 12th March.

Mrs Ong was told the facts and as Kee Hui was not in, she promised to take up the matter to him.

Meeting up with the Sarawak Museum

I was consulted, and on the morning Mar 12, 1963, Kee Hui made a request to Tom Harrisson, the Curator of the Sarawak Museum for the release of the tortoise to the Muara Tebas temple as it belonged to that area.

Harrisson agreed to hand it back through me as one of the trustees of the temple.

On the afternoon of the 13th March at 2.30pm, I went down to the museum accompanied by my wife, Kee Hui and his wife, and my ninth son Ong Kee Pheng to effect the release of the Princess. The Information Office which acted as ‘go-between’ was there to photograph and record the occasion. Mr Lo Chi Yin (Museum Archivist) was there to meet us.

In recognition and appreciation of Mr Harrisson’s courtesy in freeing the Princess, the Hokkien Association which looks after the Muara Tebas Temple, and of which Ong Kee Hui is the Chairman, presented the Sarawak Museum with three Jade Buddha statues.

The ‘go-between’ -the Information Office was promised the gift parchment scroll, to be suitably inscribed with an invocation to the Three Kong Deity asking for countless blessings to be bestowed on its work in the future. The Princess was left in the Museum for that night.

A search for a launch was without result, but the Heng Hua fishing folk offered us the use of a Kotak.

These people had been following the fate of the Princess with deep interest. They had even thought and talked of liberating her by kidnapping, and then be the hostages to be put in jail for this unlawful act.

As their livelihood is in the sea, they are as a people extremely careful to keep on the right side of the Sea Dragon King.

Thus they would have preferred to face an irate mortal Curator than the wrath of a deity.

Releasing the Daughter of the Sea Dragon King

Eventually my son Henry Ong succeeded in renting a speedboat from the Kuching Boat Club for $35. This plus fuel and driver charges amounted to $54 for the whole trip the cost of which were subscribed to by some devotees and members of my family.

On the morning of the 19th day of the 2nd moon (Thursday 14th March, 1963) we called at the museum for the Princess at 8.30am.

We then drove up to Pending and embarked on board the speedboat. This day was the Birthday of Kuan Im – the Goddess of Mercy, a very auspicious one for liberating the Sea Dragon Princess.

The party consisted of my wife, my fifth son Henry, Mrs Ong Kee Hui, three of the women devotees (including the two who came originally to see Mrs Ong Kee Hui) and on old monk from the Lim Hua San Temple, who chanted prayers and invocation all the way.

We were met at Pending by the Tua Kampong Dawi Aron of Kampong Semilang, Muara Tebas, who told us that he had heard the story about the Princess over the radio the previous night. He expressed regret that his capture of Her Highness had caused so much trouble.

He had found the Princess in the trap he set for catching prawns.

When we later arrived back in the afternoon we found him still waiting at Pending to find if the Princess had been safely released.

Prayers at Muara Tebas Temple

That time when the Daughter of the Sea Dragon King caused a flood
Muara Tebas Temple

On arrival at Muara Tebas at 9.30am we brought the Princess up to the Temple.

The chief nun who greeted us found that Her Highness was the same tortoise which had previously been brought by her from a Malay fisherman and liberated in the sea.

There was a small hole punched in the shell where she had put stick of incense when after chanting prayers, she had released her.

We offered incense sticks, joss papers and our prayers to the deities at the Temple. I suggested that after having been reared in fresh water, the Princess should be released on dry land.

But the deity Kuan Im indicted by signs that she must be given back to the sea.

That afternoon, on our way home, we took the speedboat right out to the middle of the exactly facing the temple.

There, while the old monk recited prayers and invocations, Her Royal Highness, daughter of the dreaded and mighty Sea Dragon King deity was released.

As she went back to her own element she went into and out over the water three times, each time stretching out her royal neck to look hard and long at us.

Then she sank away from sight and while we all repeated the “Lam Boo Oh Mee Toh Hood”, she disappeared to join the denizens of the deep.

The Consort of the released Sea Dragon King’s daughter

About one week after the Princess of Sea Dragon King was released at Muara Tebas, another tortoise was found at Matang.

This time the temple devotees claimed that it was the Consort of the Released Princess.

It was reported the tortoise was sold to a bus driver who then handed it over to the Hun Nam Siang Tng Temple of Sekama Road.

After consulting the deity, the devotees released it on the birthday of the deity at the Guan Thian Siang Tee Temple in Carpenter Street which fell on the third day of the third moon.

That year, the date fell on March 27, 1963.

This was not the first time a mystical creature was held responsible for a flood in Sarawak. In 1942 for example, a dragon was believed to be the cause of a major flood in Belaga.

You might be interested in

The Iban legend of Batu Indai Binjut you might never have heard of

Published on

Legend has it that in Paku river at Nanga Anyut, there is a stone of three petrified women called Batu Indai Binjut.

In ancient times before the Paku region was populated by the Ibans the area sparsely inhabited by an ancient tribe of people called the Baketan.

The last of their group who left Paku took place in the days of Iban chiefs Kaya and Bayans eight generations ago.

Long before Tindin the first Iban migrant arrived in the Paku from Skrang, one sunny morning three Baketen women went out to fish (mansai) at the mouth of the Ayut stream.

As they fished an empelasi fish jumped out of the water and touched one of the girl’s breasts.

On seeing this, the girl sigh and said, “Eh! If it were only a young man, even an empelasi fish been attracted by the beauty of my breasts”.

On hearing her words her companions started to laugh and joke with one another and said that, “Even a tiny fish had wanted to covet them, so what more if a young man should see her breasts”.

They continued joking and laughing.

Invoking the wrath of gods

The Iban legend of Batu Indai Binjut you might never have heard of
The sky turns dark and the women slowly turned into stone.

As they laughed the sunshine suddenly disappeared and the sky started to become overcast, the wind blew strongly and was followed by torrential rain. Due to the heavy storm the three poor women could not find where to go.

They stood where they were and they gradually turned into stone.

It was said that up to seven days after their petrification, their heads were still able to speak and ask food from those who happened to come to that place. No one dared to give them anything, and they died due to petrification as well as due to starvation.

Even now this stone can still be seen in the shape of human beings, lying at the left bank of the Paku river below the mouth of the Anyut stream.

The mention of Batu Indai Binjut in an Iban folk song

According to Benedict Sandin, a former Sarawak Museum curator who recorded this legend, there is a mention of Batu Indai Binjut in the Iban Pengan song.

The song is about when either Simpulang Gana and Sengalang Burong became puzzled on hearing the sound of wind which came to invite him to attend the feast of men.

Here is the lyric of the song goes:

“Who amongst us angers the land and the world?
Well try and burn the remains of our derris,
And crop the hair which falls over our foreheads!
But still the wind would not stop blowing,
And the hurricane blew continually!”
“Oh! Maybe the children have collected the red ants!,
In baskets with holes
Or maybe someone has dipped a frog into a wooden trough?”
The children would reply:
The stone of Indai Binjut
At the mouth of river Anyut,
Has long been known to us, Serit Mamut,
As caused by a disaster during fishing”.

The similarity between the legend of Batu Indai Binjut and the legend of Ikan Pasit

If you feel the legend of Batu Indai Binjut sounds familiar, it is because it is almost familiar with Ikan Pasit.

The first Ranee of Sarawak, Margaret Brooke recorded this legend in her book My Life in Sarawak.

According to the legend, there was a village called Marup.

One day there was a girl who went fishing and caught what the locals called ‘ikan pasit’.

As she was preparing the fish, one of them jumped up and touched her breast.

“What are you doing? Do you imagine that you are my husband?” she said, laughing at her own joke.

The people who were there also laughed and those who heard the commotion came over and also laughed.

Suddenly, the sky turned grey and a mighty wind blew accompanied by flashes of lightning.

Then a hail-storm began. Hail stones fell down non-stop and hitting everybody even their houses, turning them into stone.

Meanwhile, the girl who made fun of the ikan pasit was only partly petrified. Just like the three Baketan ladies, the girl’s her head and neck were unchanged while the remaining part of her body was turned into stone.

Together with the rest of her village, the whole longhouse and its residents fell into the river.

Living as part human, part stone

While the Baketan women died due to the petrification and starvation, sadly for the girl, she lived many years with a living head and stone as her body.

Many tried to end her misery by striking her with a blade but nothing worked. Until one day, a man who heard her cries came.

Like many who came before him, he tried to strike her head with an axe and a sword but neither worked.

Eventually he struck her with a spindle and her cries finally stopped while her head and neck slowly turned into stone.

It is believed, the group of rocks believed to be Marup village were not far from Lubok Antu.

You might be interested in

What you need to know about Basque burnt cheesecake

Published on

One of the hottest trends in the world of baking nowadays is none other than the Basque burnt cheesecake.

How much do you know about this addictive, creamy, delightful piece of dessert?

Here’s what you should know about Basque burnt cheesecake:

What you need to know about Basque burnt cheesecake
Do not be scared of its burnt look! Credit: Pixabay.

1.Its birth place

This trendy cheesecake was born in a restaurant called La Vina in Spain’s San Sebastian.

The owner, Santiago Rivera revealed in an interview with a Catalan newspaper, La Vanguardia, that he created it after combining ideas from various cookbooks.

He invented it sometime in 1990. Since then, their ‘cream cheese cake’ (the name they call it) was ranked as one of the best cheesecakes in Spain.

This cheesecake is nothing like the others, though. First of all, it has no crust and so it literally looks like it is singed, or burnt..

For those who haven’t tried it: If you imagine the ‘burnt’ part to taste bitter, you would be pleasantly surprised. The burnt parts are actually where the cheesecake has caramelised, making these parts actually sweet.

Meanwhile, the inside of the cake is a whole other story. The texture is almost custard-like, all soft and creamy.

The light yellow shade inside is a complete contrast to the blackened outside of the cheesecake.

2.The original ingredients

Food critic Matt Preston in his book Cook Book: 187 Recipes That Will Make You Incredibly Popular wrote that Santiago gave him the recipe.

However, he admitted that he could never ‘get close to the ethereal brilliance of his original’.

Preston used 600g cream cheese, 4 large eggs, 300ml double cream, 260g sugar and 3/4 tablespoon floor.

Another alleged original recipe of La Vina’s Basque burnt cheesecake is published by San Sebastian tourism website.

The ingredients are 1kg cream cheese, 7 eggs, 400g sugar, 1 1/2 tablespoons flour and 500ml cream.

Check out the steps here.

Hence, the original basic ingredients are cream cheese, eggs, sugar, heavy cream and flour.

Nowadays, there are many different recipes to make the cake. Some even use only egg yolks only and kosher salt instead of flour.

There are even different flavours of Basque burnt cheesecake such as matcha and nutella.

3.Some of the tricks in making basque burnt cheesecake

As some claimed it was one of the hardest cakes to make, there are many tips and tricks that can be found online.

The inside part of the cake is supposed to be soft and almost gooey but many of the burnt cheesecakes that are being sold out there there is too firm.

What you need to know about Basque burnt cheesecake
Dont you think this basque burnt cheesecake is not burnt enough?

Dining magazine Food and Wine for example pointed out that you should not overmix the batter to achieve that particular texture. In addition to that, use heavy whipping cream with at least 40 per cent fat content and do resist the urge to open the oven while it is baking.

Meanwhile, the Los Angeles Times stressed to use a food processor for the batter.

As for the cream cheese, use Philadelphia cream cheese.

And again, do not open the oven until the timer goes off. However, do remember to keep an eye on your cake.

If the top starts to turn black all over, turn the heat down because the oven is too hot. But if the top isn’t browning, turn the heat up. You can open your oven at 30 minutes.

Do not serve the cake right away or else the inside will not be set. Let it rest for at least four hours. Once refrigerated, let the cake come back to room temperature before slicing the cake.

Although this cake defiles the number one rule of baking which is ‘Do not burn!’, it does not make it any less easier to make.

Read more about another trendy dessert, the Japanese souffle pancake here:

You might be interested in

Efforts to rehabilitate TNKU rebels after the Limbang rebellion 1962

Published on

On Dec 9, 1962, as the Brunei Revolt took place, the North Kalimantan National Army (Tentera Nasional Kalimantan Utara, TNKU) seized the town of Limbang.

After attacking the police station, they captured several rifles and machine guns.

They even held the British resident and his wife as hostage along with 12 others.

On the morning of Dec 12, the British Royal Marine commandos were tasked to rescue the hostages.

In the end, five marines were killed and many more rebels were captured.

So what happened to the TNKU rebels after they were caught? These rebels were local Sarawakians who then believed they were fighting for a good cause.

They wanted to fight for the North Borneo Federation also known as North Kalimantan or Negara Kesatuan Kalimantan Utara (Unitary State of North Kalimantan). The proposed entity would have comprised the then British Colonies of Sarawak, British North Borneo and Brunei.

Life in detention

According to Liang Kim Bang, the Limbang district officer at that time there were 204 convictions following the rebellion.

The TNKU rebels were charged under section 6 of the Preservation of Public Security Ordinance, 1962.

Liang stated, “Most of the TNKU prisoners were sentenced to periods ranging from one to five years but one lone man, a staunch rebel leader, Salleh Sambas, after much chase and hide-and-seek was sentenced to fifteen years imprisonment.”

Some of the prisoners had been taken to prisons in Kuching, Miri or Sibu while the remainders at Limbang Prison and Detention Camp had all been released on parole.

At that time, the rest of Sarawak believed Limbang was a bloody place where rebels and criminals roamed far and wide.

However, Liang clarified, “This is not at all the picture. Just sink into the oblivion of the December Rebellion. Limbang is as peaceful and sober as any district in the country. Most of the rebels are Kedayans but not all Kedayans are rebels.”

Making room for the TNKU rebels

Due to the high number of prisoners, the Limbang prison had to make some arrangement.

The district officer explained in his report, “The prison proper which has accommodation for only sixteen prisoners managed to accommodate more than 100 detainees and prisoners. This has been made feasible by converting two paddy godown into a detention camp where all the detainees and some of the prisoners were kept.”

Nonetheless, the paddy godowns were not as ‘uninhabitable as might have thought at first though by no means a healthy place to stay in for too long’.

As for the prison staff, there were 19 wardens with only three working as permanent staff and the rest paid daily.

Commenting on the prison staff, Liang pointed out, “The relationship between warders and prisoners/ detainees is good and it was with pleasure to report that no prisoner escaped or attempted to escape during the year. Medical facilities were readily available to them in the nearby hospital, the divisional medical officer or his representative and the Board of Visitors visited the prison regularly.”

Overall, the prisoners reportedly looked healthy.

Rehabilitating the former TNKU rebels

Liang also reported on the rehabilitation of the rebels which was geared to assist the rebel families and dependents since the men had either been taken in or killed during the rebellion.

“A substantial amount of work involved in rehabilitation is undertaken by prisoners who were transported daily to work in the various paddy schemes along 4 1/2th, 7th, 8th, and 9th mile Pandaruan Road which roughly coincides with the stronghold of the rebellion.

“Monthly ration is issued and from May, 1963 to the end of the year Government has spent $27,334.56 on them. Besides providing the rebel dependents with rations, 47 of their houses and 24 durong (paddy stores) were repaired with attap. This was made possible with $500 cash contribution from the Prisoner’s Aid Society and assistance from the District Office.”

Moreover, the children whose fathers were either imprisoned or killed during the rebellion, were exempted from paying their school fees for the first half of 1963.

Helping the wives of the TNKU rebels

Meanwhile, the government also provided classes four times weekly for some 30 wives or daughters of the TNKU rebels. They learned some of the life skills including cooking, needlework, gardening and child welfare.

Liang added in his report, “Besides the assistance so far outlined which is mainly of an educational, social or relief nature, concrete assistance in the form of paddy schemes. Labour for these paddy schemes is provided by the prisoners released on parole, planting know-how and supervision was given by the Department of Agriculture and the administration in general was left to the district office. Under these schemes sixty acres of paddy were planted and these were allocated to 102 rebel families.”

According to Liang, rehabilitation of these rebel dependants was a sensitive and many-sided task that had to be handled with the greatest care and prudence to prevent from being misunderstood, misjudged or misconstrued as something else.

The Limbang Rebellion left many families without their breadwinners.

Some of the women reportedly ‘either spent their time picking pebbles at the 4th mile Pandaruan Road to sell to the local constructor or the Public Works Department for constructional works, or coming to the District Office for more rations or the more loving spent a considerable part of their time visiting their husbands in prison or detention camp.’

The rebellion was also a proof that not all marriages survived for better and for worse, as some of the wives of the TNKU rebels divorced their husbands on the ground of mental cruelty through long absence.

The plea of the Kedayans

Why did the Kedayan join the TNKU rebels? The former Sarawak Museum Curator Tom Harrisson had his explanation for this.

Other than Limbang, the Kedayans in Niah and Bekenu also supported the Brunei Revolt which opposing the inclusion of Brunei in the Malaysian federation.

Harrisson explained that the Kedayans got completely confused and misled.

 “The Kedayans have played a major role in this. There are only about less than 10,000 of them in Sarawak but they have not been taken into account. There are practically no responsible Kedayans in any positions.

They are not represented adequately in government and this applies equally to many other group in the north.”

He then gave an example of how large groups of Sarawak back then were given attention not only in administration but over the radio where only they had programmes in their language.

“They (The Kedayans) are guilty all the same, no one is denying that, but there is a lesson that the same sort of thing can happen widely and I do not think the argument is sufficient that this group is small one, therefore we can ignore it.”

If some of the minority races in Sarawak are continuously being ignored, is there possible that there will be another rebellion in the future? We might never know.

Photos from the Memorial service and the unveiling of plague at Limbang on Aug 3, 1963 to honour those who died during the Limbang rebellion. All photos are under © Commando Veterans Archive 2006 – 2016 licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0.

Efforts to rehabilitate TNKU rebels after the Limbang rebellion 1962
Photo courtesy of Estelle Hart who adds ” Unveiling performed by His Excellency, the Governer of Sarawak, Sir Alexander Waddell KCMG, DSC, who laid a wreath.
Efforts to rehabilitate TNKU rebels after the Limbang rebellion 1962
The Guard of Honour provided by ‘L’ Company 42 Commando under Lt. P.S. Waters R.M.(soapy) who was wounded in the Assault on Limbang. Photo courtesy of Estelle Hart, sister of Marine Gerald ‘Scouse’ Kierans, killed in action at Limbang
Efforts to rehabilitate TNKU rebels after the Limbang rebellion 1962
Photo courtesy of Estelle Hart who adds ” Unveiling performed by His Excellency, the Governer of Sarawak, Sir Alexander Waddell KCMG, DSC. Wreaths also laid by General W.C. Walker CBE, DSO, Director of Operations, Brigadier F.C. Barton, OBE, Commander 3rd Commando Brigade, RM”

You might be interested in

Atrocities aboard Japanese destroyer Akikaze during WWII

Published on

Adults executed, babies thrown overboard from Japanese destroyer Akikaze during WWII

If you’re a history buff, you might have heard of all kind of atrocities that took place during World War II (WWII).

However, have you heard about how adults were executed and children thrown overboard while still alive?

About Japanese destroyer Akikaze

Akikaze was a Minekaze-class destroyer that was built for the Imperial Japanese Navy immediately following the end of World War I.

In those days, the Minekaze class was considered advanced for their time. They served as first-line destroyers in the 1930s.

Akikaze was laid down on June 7, 1920 and launched on Dec 14, 1920. It was completed on Apr 1, 1921, Akikaze was commissioned on Sept 16, 1921.

During her career, she served under Torpedo Squadron 1. In 1938-1939, her division was assigned to patrols of the central China coastline in support of Japanese combat operations in the Second Sino-Japanese War.

During War World II, Akikaze was on patrol and convoy escort duties. From January to the end of April 1942, she was based at Davao (Philippines).

By May 1942, Akikaze Was based out of Rabaul, escorting transports throughout the Pacific.

Atrocities aboard Japanese destroyer Akikaze during WWII
Imperial Japanese Navy destroyer Akikaze departing Yokosuka. Credits: Public Domain.

The Prisoners-of-War (POWs) aboard Akikaze

After departing Rabaul, Akikaze moved to Wewak (Papua New Guinea) from Mar 8, 1943 to deliver medicine and supplies then to nearby Kairuru Island.

On Mar 15, the Akikaze loaded Catholic Divine Word missionaries (mostly German citizens) including Bishop Joseph Loerks, six priests, 14 friars, 18 nuns and another Chinese woman with her two children.

Two days later, 20 more civilians were brought aboard from Manus. They were German missionaries, one Hungarian missionary and Chinese civilians including six women. The second batch of missionaries were reported from the Liebenzell Evangelical Mission.

Other reports stated that the Chinese infants were the children of Wewak storekeeper Ning Hee. Additionally, the POWs who boarded from Manus were reportedly consisted of an European infant, a plantation owner named Carl Muster and plantation overseer Peter Mathies, two Chinese and four Malays. There were reports stated there were at least two Americans among the missionaries.

However, it is difficult to determine the identities of the POWs as most records were destroyed after the end of WWII.

Altogether, there was a total of sixty POWs aboard the ship including three children.

Life on board the Akikaze

At first, the POWs on board were treated with dignities. They were well fed and taken care off.

The commander even removed some of his crew from their quarters so the missionaries and children could be sheltered from Allied bombs should his ship have encountered enemy forces.

Furthermore, the ship’s surgeon was ordered to attend to the sick POWs.

Suddenly, things changed dramatically over one order.

Many historians have described the events leading to the massacre.

Bruce Gamble in his book Target: Rabaul: The Allied Siege of Japan’s Most Infamous Stronghold stated, “Akikaze’s captain, Lieutenant Commander Tsurukichi Sabe, evidently presumed he would deliver the civilians to New Britain.

Several hundred missionaries and associates were already interned at Vunapope, the largest Catholic mission in the territory.

But the message delivered at Kavieng rattled him. With a pale, somber expression Sabe gathered his officers and informed them that 8th Fleet Headquarters had issued orders “to dispose of all neutral civilians on board.””

The Akikaze crew’s testimony

Perhaps, the one would give the best account of what happened during the is one of the crew of Akikaze.

In his interrogation in December 1945, the crew member described the slaughtering (which he said took 2 hours 50 minutes) as follows:

Each internee passed beneath the forward bridge on the starboard side and came upon two waiting escorts. Here they were blindfolded with a white cloth and supported by each arm.

By this time the interrogation of the second person was begun. Meanwhile, beneath the bridge of the quarter-deck on the starboard side, both wrists of the first person were firmly tied and he was again escorted to the execution platform. On the execution platform, they were faced toward the bow, suspended by their hands by means of a hook attached to a pulley, and at the order of the commander, executed by machine gun and rifle fire.

After the completion of the execution the suspension rope was slackened and it had been so planned that when the rope binding the hands was cut, the body would fall backwards off the stern due to the speed of the ship. Moreover, boards were laid and straw mats spread to keep the ship from becoming stained.

Thus, in this way, first the men and and the women executed. The child going on toward five years old was thrown into the ocean.

The testimony of Akikaze crew can be found in the paper The Australian War Crimes Trials and Investigations (1942-51) by D.C.S. Sissons.

Appeasing the dead

Meanwhile in Slaughter at Sea: The Story of Japan’s Naval War Crimes, Mark Felton described how the executions took place.

“At a given signal the destroyer would suddenly increase speed, the noise of the engines used by the Japanese to disguise the shots coming from behind the curtain. A four-man firing squad then took aim and dispatched the victims with a single, along with a burst from Lieutenant Takeo’s machine gun. Afterwards, the body was dropped to the deck, untied and pitched over the stern of the ship as she continued on her way. Whether international or not, the nature of the prisoners’ deaths, suspended as if crucified, was the final indignity to their beliefs.”

After all the internees were killed, the captain held a short religious service in honour of the recently deceased.

The motives behind the killing

The big question is why killed them? What did they do to deserve to be executed?

Felton theorised that the Japanese suspected there was a spy among the civilians.

He wrote, “The missionaries were suspected by the Japanese authorities of using concealed radio transmitter to report the movements of Imperial Navy ships to the Americans.

The spying story was most probably concocted by the Tokei Tai naval police as an excuse to dispose of the Germans, giving them a reason to kill them within Japanese military law.”

But why kill the Germans, who were the Japanese allies? Germany and Japan were both belonged to the Axis power.

Most of the times during WWII, the Japanese helped to protect the civilians of their fellow Axis forces.

Gamble explained that the Japanese forces in New Guinea did not regard German missionaries as allies, even though Nazi Germany and Japan shared a military allegiance.

“Instead, missionaries came under the jurisdiction of the minsei-bu as neutral civilians,” he stated.

The investigation

After the war ended, many war crimes came to light including the Akikaze massacre.

According to Yuki Tanaka in his book Hidden Horrors, the staff members of the Australian War Crimes Section who investigated the massacre on the Akikaze tried to discover who issued the order for the executions.

The executions were clearly against the Geneva Convention.

Meanwhile, the Australian War Crimes Section realised that this order could not have been issued by a single and relatively low-ranking staff officer. They believed that the source was several senior staff of 8th Fleet Headquarters.

The Australians interrogated Rear Admiral Onishi Shinzo. He was at that time the chief of staff at 8th Fleet Headquarters. They also interrogated vice admiral Mikawa Gunichi, who was the commander in chief.

Onishi at first tried to avoid responsibility. He claimed that the Akikaze did not belong to the 8th Fleet but rather to the 11th Fleet.

Of course, Onishi could not lie his way out of this because the vessel clearly belonged to the 8th Fleet.

Meanwhile, Mikawa claimed that he did not issue the order to move the civilians in the first place let alone execute them.

It was possible that Onishi and Mikawa both collaborated and blamed their subordinates in order to avoid prosecution.

Moreover, the Akikaze’s captain, Lieutenant Commander Sabe and his second-in-charge both died in action during the war.

As dead men could not talk, the living could spin stories as they want.

Why did Australia refused to proceed with the charges?

In the end, the Australian War Crimes Section did not continue with the prosecution.

The official reason is that they were no Australians among the victims.

A ‘victim of war crimes’ is defined in the Australian War Crimes Act 1945 as “the provisions of this Act shall apply in relation to war crimes committed, in any place whatsoever, whoever within or beyond Australia, against British subjects or citizens of any Power allied or associated with His Majesty in any war, in like manner as they apply in relation to war crimes committed against persons who were at any time resident in Australia.”

Even though the victims had been living in an Australian territory, they were not Australian citizens.

On July 18, 1947 the Australians handed the matter over to the American authorities. The Americans in turn never took further action on the case.

What happen to Akikaze?

On May 1, 1944, Akikaze was reassigned to Destroyer 30 of the Central Pacific Fleet. Together with Yukuzi (flagship) and Uzuki (destroyer), Akikaze departed Mako Guard District heading toward Brunei.

Mako was the major navy base for the Japanese in Taiwan before and during WWII. It is located at present-day Makung, Pescadores Islands.

The ships were escorting carrier Junyo and cruiser Kiso. Two days into the journey, a US Navy submarine fired a spread of torpedoes at Junyo.

In order to save the carrier, Akikaze intercepted them sacrificing herself.

Akikaze sank with all hands at about 257 km west of Cape Bolinao, Philippines.

In the meantime, it is unsure what happened to Onishi after the war. As for Mikawa, he lived a quiet, peaceful life in Japan, dying in 1981 at the age of 92.

It has been more than 75 years passed since the Akikaze massacre, one question remains; who gave the order to kill the sixty civilians including three children?

You might be interested in

#KajoAsks: Turning memories into embroidery portraits with Olumis Thread

Published on

Looking back at the historical applications of embroidery, this form of needlework was often seen as a mark of wealth and status.

For example during 18th century England, embroidery was a way for women to convey rank and social standing.

It was also a sign of high social status during the 17th century in cities such as Damascus, Cairo and Istanbul.

However, when machine embroidery and its mass production started to become famous, the need and skill of hand embroidery became rare.

Thanks to visual media such as Pinterest and Instagram, there is a brand new interest in hand embroidery

These contemporary embroidery artists have given this art once a breath of fresh air by allowing the younger generation to appreciate this particular art form.

Embroidery is no longer just a pastime for grandmothers to kill time between chores.

One of these young embroidery artist is 23-year-old Judith Liow Su Mie.

She is the brain and hands behind Olumis Thread, an Instagram account showcasing embroidery work and offering customised services.

This Sandakan-based embroiderer turns human portraits into embroidery, giving people a fresh and unique way to preserve their memories.

#KajoAsks: Turning memories into embroidery portraits with Olumis Thread
Let Olumis Thread helps you to preserve your graduation memories.

She is also an inspiring example of how young people nowadays creating their own paths when there is no opportunity available for them.

Recently, KajoMag had the opportunity to ask Liow a few questions about her work on Olumis Thread.

KajoMag: How and when did you learn embroidery?

#KajoAsks: Turning memories into embroidery portraits with Olumis Thread

Liow: I started sewing since I was 13 through cross stitch. After that, I continued my studies in fashion design at a vocational college.

From there, I learned the basic ways of sewing embroidery like french knots, backstitch, bullion and so on.

Unfortunately, I had to drop out of school and go back to normal schooling until after SPM.

I stopped sewing embroidery until I decided to continue my study in fashion design again.

Throughout my journey as a fashion design student,I learned basic sewing embroidery again.

However, I didn’t think of being an embroidery artist at that time until I graduated and returned to my hometown.

It was difficult for me to find a job in fashion here in my hometown, Sandakan.

This made me decide to start my career as an embroiderer so I started sewing full time since November 2019 to this day.

KajoMag: How would you describe your embroidery style?

#KajoAsks: Turning memories into embroidery portraits with Olumis Thread

Liow: My style of embroidery is more to design texture. I’m more interested in making embroidery that involves texture so I use french knot technique.

However, I also want to make my designs different from other embroiderers.

I was thinking besides using my skills in Photoshop and editing, I want to try out in portrait embroidery.

At the same time, I didn’t want my portrait embroidery to be ’empty’. So, I added a little floral design to it to make it look more attractive and unique.

Besides that, I make sure that none of my clients will have the same flower designs. Hence, my every creation is specifically designed to each client.

KajoMag: Walk us through the process of making a commissioned work from a client? How long does it take you to finish one project on, let’s say, a 23cm hoop?

#KajoAsks: Turning memories into embroidery portraits with Olumis Thread

Liow: I will first edit the pictures that the client wants me to sew.

When they are happy with my edited picture, I will ask them what type of frame and design decoration they want.

This is also subject to availability of the frame or threads. For the design decoration, the majority of my clients gave me permission to use my own design.

However, there are clients who provide their own designs that they like.

If they want to follow my design, I will do a review first before making a mock-up for their reference.

After they agree, I will provide a price as well as the payment process. I start sketching on the fabric only after the client makes the payment.

To start, I will trace the portrait I edited on the fabric and begin sewing the outline.

Usually, it takes me 150 hours to make a 23cm diameter hoop. If the design is complicated, it will take a little longer.

KajoMag: Tell us about your most favourite embroidery work you have done for a client so far?

#KajoAsks: Turning memories into embroidery portraits with Olumis Thread

Liow: My most favorite embroidery work is of course the portrait embroidery.

This is because the different combinations of textures make me feel excited to get the work done. Even though, editing client photos is one of the challenges I face because each of their pictures is different in terms of light and the picture they provide.

KajoMag: Are there any embroidery artists you look up to in particular?

Liow: Yes. I’m interested in Shimunia who does scenery embroidery. Her work is amazing with different textures by using very striking colours.

I also look for Charles Henry’s Instagram because of his very inspiring works. The portrait embroidery that I made today was inspired by him.

KajoMag: Do you have any dream embroidery project you want to do in the future?

#KajoAsks: Turning memories into embroidery portraits with Olumis Thread

Liow: Yes. I would like to have workshops for children between the ages of 6 and older who do not have enough money to learn sewing especially in the rural areas.

But before that happens, I plan on doing workshops in a few different places to further my brand and recruit some people to help me reach my goals.

KajoMag: Any advice for those who want to earn income through embroidery? 

#KajoAsks: Turning memories into embroidery portraits with Olumis Thread

Liow: It is not easy to make money from doing embroidery business, but at the same time it is not hard to do it. Try to find your own style and identity. Yes, it does take years to achieve your goals and it is okay if your sewing is not perfect as a beginner. Keep practicing and you’ll get there one day.

#KajoAsks: Turning memories into embroidery portraits with Olumis Thread

Follow Liow on her Instagram Olumis Thread and Facebook Junni-lynne.
Check out other stories for KajoAsks here.

You might be interested in

Breaking down the different ingredients of a Malaysian nasi lemak

Published on

Malaysians can get defensive when comes to their food. When a foreigner mocks Malaysian food, Malaysians react as if their parents were insulted.

An example is when a British journalist tweeted on Jan 15, 2020 about the nasi lemak served to her on a British Airways flight.

Along with a vomiting emoji, Katie Morley tweeted, “Chicken curry served with anaemic boiled egg, topped with smelly, slimey anchovies. ANCHOVIES. I quite like plane food usually, and this was a 0/10.”

While some Malaysians condemned her harshly over her tweet, some suggested she try the real Nasi Lemak.

Morley then gave the real deal a try at a restaurant in central London. She later tweeted thanking Malaysians who suggested her to try the real nasi lemak. She stated, “You are right, it’s delicious!”

Who doesn’t love this rice cooked in coconut milk with pandan leaf and served with sambal, anchovies, cucumber and various side dishes?

Historian Ahmad Najib Ariffin – who is also the founder of Nusantara Academy of Development, Geocultures & Ethnolinguistics – gave an insight to the history of nasi lemak.

He told the Star in 2014 that nasi lemak seemed to come from the west coast of peninsular Malaysia.

“The east coast, which is the most culturally conservative part of the country, has its own signature traditional rice dishes with prominent, distinct fish flavours such as nasi dagang and nasi kerabu.

“Farmers needed a hearty meal in the morning, so eating nasi lemak kept them full because you have all have the food groups covered – carbohydrates from the rice, oils from the sambal and protein from the anchovies.”

Here at KajoMag, look into the different components that make up a traditional Malaysian nasi lemak:

Breaking down the different ingredients of a Malaysian nasi lemak
A Malaysian nasi lemak with rendang.

1.The rice

Did you know that rice cooked in coconut milk is actually common in Indonesia? Nasi uduk, nasi gurih and nasi liwet are all Indonesian dishes comprise of rice cooked in coconut milk.

However for nasi lemak, the taste is more fragrant because of the Pandan leaves.

The rice can be cooked with fresh or canned coconut milk.

Other spices used in the rice are ginger and lemon grass to enhance its fragrance.

There is a folklore behind how coconut milk was added into the rice. Long time ago, there was a widow Mak Kuntum and her daughter, Seri.

While cooking a pot of rice, Seri accidentally spilled coconut milk into it. Mak Kuntum returned home, smelling the fragrant rice, asking her daughter what it was. To this, Seri replied, “Nasi le, mak! (It is rice, Mum!).

The earliest mention of nasi lemak can be found in The Circumstances of Malay Life, written by Sir Richard Olaf Winstedt.

He did not state nasi lemak directly but rather explained how the Malay people during the early 1900s cooked their rice.

Winstedt wrote, “To an epicure well cooked rice is the alpha, just as well-spiced condiments are the omega, of good curry. Unfortunately for European taste, at marriages and festivals the Malay cook will try to improve on perfection. He will boil the rice along with such spices as carraway seeds, cloves, mace, nutmeg and ginger and garlic, in dripping or coconut oil, or he will boil it in coconut milk instead of water, or he will gild the lily with turmeric, using glutinous rice.”

2.The sambal

A sambal is basically a sauce or paste made from chilli pepper with other secondary ingredients.

The secondary ingredients usually comprise of shrimp paste, garlic, ginger, shallot, palm sugar, lime juice, scallion and tamarind pulp.

There are so many types of sambal out there.

When it comes to nasi lemak, the sambal is the one which seals the deal when deciding if it is a good nasi lemak.

The key to making perfect sambal for nasi lemak is to stir-fry it after crushing or blending the ingredients together.

As for its basic ingredients, those commonly used are garlic, shallots, white onion, dried chilli, red chilli salt and sugar to taste as well as cooking oil.

There are many tips and tricks to make a good sambal. If the blended the ingredients are too dry, add a little oil into the mixture.

If you stir-fry the blended ingredients in a hot wok, it tends to splatter oil while frying.

One trick is to a sprinkle a bit of salt in the hot oil when it starts to bubble. It will help absorb moisture and prevent splashing.

If you are using crushed anchovies in your sambal, do not blend the anchovies with the rest of ingredients. Fry the blended anchovies first before putting in the other mixture. This tip can also prevent the oil from splashing.

Some Chinese are famous for making their own sambal. Theirs are usually less spicy and combined with minced pork as an additional ingredient.

3.The cucumber slices

The basic vegetable to compliment a Malaysian nasi lemak is the cucumber slices. However, sometimes we do see nasi lemak which comes with other vegetable such as kangkung.

A fresh, crunchy cucumber is always good addition to the dish while stale cucumber slices are always a major turn off for nasi lemak.

4.The small anchovies

If Morley’s claim was true, it was sacrilege for British Airways to be serving smelly and slimey anchovies.

The real Nasi Lemak anchovies should be crunchy.

These small anchovies give extra texture and saltiness to the whole dish.

5.The roasted peanuts

Speaking of crunchiness, here is another ingredient which adds extra texture to the whole dish, the roasted peanuts.

Together with the fried anchovies, there should be roasted peanuts, making it immediately recognisable as a nasi lemak dish.

6.The eggs

Malaysian nasi lemak commonly uses a hard boiled egg as part of the dish. If the nasi lemak is selling at a cheaper price, then the hard boiled egg is cut into half or even a quarter.

Sometimes, it is also served with a fried egg.

Regardless, the egg is an essential source of protein for the dish.

7.The extra dish

Now comes the fun part, the extra dish. There are endless possibilities when comes to the extra dishes for a nasi lemak.

The common ones are, of course, rendang, curry and fried chicken. The curry can be chicken curry, fish curry or lamb curry.

Although nasi lemak is a dish of Malay origin, other races have added their own twist and made it as their own. For example, a non-halal nasi lemak is served with pork which is either served as barbecued or fried.

Breaking down the different ingredients of a Malaysian nasi lemak
A Malaysian Nasi Lemak with cripy pork slices.

If you cannot have enough of sambal, there are plenty of dishes cooked in sambal and served with a nasi lemak. This include sambal sotong (squid) and sambal udang (prawn).

With this extra dish of protein, nasi lemak has come a long way from being a comfort food for farmers.

You might be interested in

1 … 26 27 28 29 30 … 75