I joined the American Association of Malaysia (AAM) on a tour of the famous Chow Kit Wet Market. As trusty Wikipedia explains, and also our wonderful guide: this wet market is a tourist draw. It is named after an eccentric business man, tin miner and municipal councilor: Loke Chow Kit, pictured below:
We met at a local hotel and made our way over to the market. My sweet friend has a driver. Can I tell you how nice that is? Parking is a nightmare in this area of town. Who am I kidding? Parking is a nightmare EVERYWHERE in KL. I was so thankful to get dropped off and picked up avoiding the monorail and public transport. Yes, I realize that is the most pathetic statement ever but hey, I’m keeping it real. I was thankful for her offering to let me tag along….
We started out at the local fruit stands before heading in to the market….
Did you know that the pile of coconuts she is standing in front of are ‘young’ coconuts? Young coconuts have coconut water; old coconuts have coconut milk. LEARNING!
We took a small detour to check out the local produce…
I enjoyed a rambutan…similar to a lychee or a longan. The flesh inside is much meatier and bigger than the longan. The pit is like an almond; a longan’s pit is black. It was tasty.
We made our way in to the market….
Snails…
Angie shows us a salted duck egg….It is made by soaking duck eggs in brine and then packing them in damp, salted charcoal. It is a Chinese delicacy and added to dishes like congee.
smelly beans…
I loved all of the fresh ginger, turmeric, lemongrass and herbs!!
As I am sure you’ve gathered in reading my blog for a while…bilis means fish in Bahasa. The dried fish is used in various Asian dishes like ikan bilis. I love how autocorrect wants to change the word bilis in to ‘bills’!
Above is a picture of a galangal root. Remember from my post about the Bali cooking class; we used it to make different dishes….
I believe the term ‘fresh’ fish is overused back in the states. Now THIS is some fresh fish. There were Catfish swimming around in the tank behind this lot.
This is the part of the blog where you will be unfollowing me….I posted a picture on Facebook of these cows and the reaction was so intense that I just chose to remove it. Maybe I am becoming desensitized? cold hearted? I wasn’t that upset by seeing the heads at the market. In fact….I would much rather see where my food COMES from in contrast to the farming of chickens in the US. You know, the chicken farms where the chickens are kept in tightly packed cages, where they are fed large helpings of antibiotics. In hopes it will make them grow as big as possible, so big in fact that their legs can’t support them. THOSE chickens. I actually like to see what I am eating….As my sweet husband says….we want to eat hamburgers but we don’t want to know where they come from. Food for thought (pun intended). This ends this public service announcement….
We can’t forget the chickens…fully intact. They are waving hello.
The picture below shows chickens coated in turmeric. Our guide said they don’t like the flesh to look too white since it looks rather anemic (but these chickens don’t look jaundiced?). They are then put over the flame to seal the color as well as burn off any extra feathers. Yes, chickens have feathers my friends who don’t like their food to look like the animal it comes from. See the public service announcement above for reference.
There were other stalls that sold household goods. I bought some plastic to cover my dining room table when I do crafts. I also bought some dishtowels. My helper said I got completely ripped off. I didn’t bargain at all – following the lead of the other expats with me. It was pretty inane when I think back to it. They saw a group of us coming and just laughed to themselves. There is always a different price for us expats.
They sold fake flowers and fresh ones too….
dried beans…
Also, pre-chopped garlic, shallots and grated ginger along with other sauces.
The amount of these spices that are used in everyday cooking is paramount so this option is a real timesaver.
We cannot forget the peanuts! The fresh roasted peanuts…..
The vat above is completely filled with roasting peanuts. I am very thankful that S was not with me.
Below is coconut juice….I am not sure what is in the bags with the bright red liquid, anyone?
We made a stop for some Chinese medicine…..
Then on to buy some fresh noodles! So fresh in fact that the noodles were warm in the packages.
On my way out….I saw a sweet little chicken foot on the ground. I can’t get away from them!
Our guide said that there are plans to tear down Chow Kit in the next few years. It made me sad to think about it. It is definitely rustic to say the least but the small shops and alleyways are reminiscent of history and days passed.
To end our time at the market we had a traditional Malaysian meal…briyani rice, curries, cucumber salad etc washed down with fresh lime juice…
Below – fried gourds. yummy.
Until our next adventure….
Expat Adventure 