It’s been over 5 years since we started producing dehydrated torch ginger flowers (Bunga Kantan).  It is the most popular item produced by our farm.  We have customers from many countries and though we rarely ship it out of Malaysia due to the high cost in shipping, our dehydrated Bunga Kantan has been brought to many countries: USA, England, Germany, UAE, Spain, France, Czech Republic, Australia, Hong Kong, Japan, China, Qatar and Taiwan.  It has been interesting to see how Malaysian’s love for laksa and asam pedas has made our product into their kitchens overseas.  I have also had the pleasure of being contacted by visitors to Malaysia who have previously live in Malaysia to purchase them to bring home to their home country.  I will try to accommodate them if they are in the KL area to ensure that delivery can be made on time before they leave for their home country.

What is unique about our product is that the flowers are all grown at our farm in Hulu Langat without exposure to chemical herbicides, pesticides or fertilizers.  It is dehydrated in less than 24 hours after harvest which enables it to retain its color and as much flavor as possible – something that is achieved through using a dehydrator.  If you sun-dry it, it will lose most of its color, if not all, and turn brown.

Once dehydrated, we pack it in lightweight, resealable pouches which makes it easy to transport.  Once opened, you can reseal the pouches and store it in a cool. dry place or if you like, in your refrigerator.  It wi. ll last for many months.

We have  been asked by a few companies to be their source provider for dehydrated bunga kantan.  This is something that we are not equipped to do simply because we do not produce in large quantities.  For example, to produce 1 kg of dehydrated bunga kantan, it takes about 400 flowers.  We can only produce about 100 flower every 2 weeks.

We are in the midst of increasing the number of torch ginger plants we have but it will take a while and will be limited to space availability.  Our farm is a multiculture farm which means we have different types of plants and trees planted at the farm including rambutan, soursop, dukong, pulasan, cempedak madu, various varieties of bananas and hers to name a few.  There are over 100 varieties of plants and trees at the farm and this contributes to creating a healthy farm environment as each plant or tree contributes to the overall environment of the farm in a positive way.  The good amount of rainfall and lots of sunshine makes our farm location be a great place to plant.

While bunga kantan is most often used in cooking laksa and asam pedas, there are other ways to consume it.  You can rehydrate it with very hot water and ass it to salads or chop it up and top it over hot rice.  The aroma and flavor adds a nice touch to plain rice.  You can also add it to salads.  I also like to add it to seafood soups – it adds a nice touch to it.  Just let your creativity fo and take your taste buds on a journey.