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18 Feb 2025

0 Comments By admin Articles, Edible Landscape, Farm Information

Our popular product: Dehydrated Torch Ginger Flower (Bunga Kantan)

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.

25 Feb 2024

0 Comments By admin Armchair journal, Articles, Eating Well

Turmeric & Ginger: A versatile combination

One of my favorite combination is turmeric and ginger as it is a great combination that provides not only therapeutic values and nutrients but also can be used in creating great tasting food and beverages in your daily consumption. to maximize the bioavailability of the curcumin to our body which is basically to increase the ability of our body to absorp it, I always add black pepper. Being a person who has her plate full, it was necessary for me to create a way that would enable for me to have this combination readily available and easy to use. Hence, the development of the Bentong Ginger and Turmeric with Black Pepper powder.

In this form it i s easy to store and transport. I consume it daily, often in multiple forms. When developing the product, there were many considerations:

Quality of the ingredients hence the selection of Bentong Ginger instead of normal ginger and opting to grow the turmeric on the farm. The ginger is sourced from the Orang Asli who grow it in the hills of Bentong. Growing this particular type of ginger is also dependent on the type of soil which is not the type of soil that we have at the farm.
The best form to make it convenient to use, store and transport so we made it into a powder form.
The manner of processing is also important to ensure minimizing loss of flavor and nutrients, prevent oxidization, prevent environmental contiminants such as dust and droppings from insects, etc. Thus, we chose to dehydrate using a dehydrator.
The best packaging option for us was using a resealble pack that made it lightweight, easy to transport, lower cost as well as resealable.

How to consume it:

As a warm beverage: Personally, I drink a cup of warm ginger-turmeric drink in the morning as the second drink after drinking water upon waking up. It is made with 1/4 teaspoon of powder with hot water and when it is warm, I add a bit of honey. On days when I do a lot of physical activity, i also have it as a bedtime drink. There have been research that it indicates this will help our body repair itself and as most of the body repair our bodies do is at night, so I like to think that I am boosting my internal body repair with the nutrients from this drink.
As a cold beverage: Lately, the days have been very hot so I like to have a cold, refreshing drink that I can enjoy thatprovides me with added healthy values. What I do is to use 1/4 teaspoon of this powder in hot water to encourage thediffusion into the drink followed by some citrus juice and a touch of honey. My preference is for lime juice as it is readily available and my source of the fruit is from the farm. As it is grown organically free from pesticides and herbicides, I will also grate some of the green skin into the drink. I don’t use the white part as that adds a bitter taste to the drink. You can choose other natural juices to add to it and follow your taste bud. However, I find the addition of citrus juice is the tastiest option for me. This will also elevate the nutrient offering within the drink.
As a flavoring to cooked dishes. You can add it to almost any savoury dish. I use it to when I am doing soups whether it is for seafood, chicken or beef. I add about 1/2 to 1 teaspoon of the powder depending on the amount of soup I am making.
I also love fried chicken wings so naturally, I will coat the wings with it with a touch of mountain or sea salt and let it marinate for about 15-30 minutes before frying it. Sometimes, I will marinate it a day before, leaving it in the fridge if I know the next day I will be busy and need to prepare what I want to cook ahead of time.
For me, no “ikan goreng” (fried fish) is complete without being seasoned with turmeric so I use this powder for it too. You might also want to try adding it to your ommelette for that extra “oomph”.
Let’s not leave out vegetables. Just add 1/4 teaspoon to any stir-fry or soupy vegetable dish. For cooked dishes for your breakfast, lunch or dinner, there are so many ways to use it as a seasoning making it one of the most versatile combinations.
If you think that you can only do savoury dishes, think again. You can use it to make desserts such as agar-agar. The recipe is very easy:
Ingredients
- One pack of agar-agar.
- Water
- !/2 teaspoon of the Bentong Ginger and Turmeric with black pepper powder
- Sugar – rock sugar or white sugar – in a quantity to your taste.
- !/2 a lemon or 1/2 a lime or any natural citrus juice of your choice or blended tropical fruit like pineapple.

To prepare: Just follow the instructions of the pack of the agar-agar. Once the mixture has dissolved, add the sugar and the ginger-turmeric powder. Once it has boiled, turn off the heat. Allow it to cool down for about 2-3 minutes and add the citrus juice of your choice or blended fruit. Allow it to set and refrigerate. I find it is best to serve it cold. This is one agar-agar that I am looking forward to have at Iftar during the upcoming Ramadhan with its bright golden yellow colour and tasting light and refreshing as well as easy on the digestion system.

What I have included is just some ideas that you might like to try. Just be as creative as you want and get a wonderful surprise from the dishes you produce. Eating and drinking healthy should be easy and tasty so you can seamlessly add it to your daily life. Having supplements shouldn’t just be through popping pills :).

28 Aug 2023

3 Comments By admin Armchair journal, Articles, Eating Well, Healthy Options, Herbal Therapy

The wonders of Turmeric and Bentong Ginger

Turmeric is well-know for its many theraoeutic benefits with its many health properties including as an anti-inflammatory and antioxidant. Many studies have been conducted on the benefits of curcumin in turmeric. Curcumin is not easily “absorbed” by the body and the way to improveits bioavailabilty to our body iby combining turmeric with black papper where the piperine enhances the absorption of the curcumin. It is widely-used in ayurvedic and traditionak medicine, Based on studies and research, some of the benefits are:

As a potent antioxidant, it can neutralize free radicals which tend to impact important organic substance such as fatty acids, proteins and DNA. Free radicals causes oxidative damages to our body which negatively impacts our body aging and causes other diseases.
Some studies show that curcumin can increase brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) which plays a part in memory and learning. More studies are being done to determine its potential in treating Alzheimer’s disease and other degenerative brain diseases.
The main benefit of curcumin when it comes to heart disease is improving the function of the endothelium, the lining of your blood vessels. One of the major causes of heart disease is when there is a dysfunction in the endothelium making it unable to regulate blood pressure, blood clotting, and various other factors.
In various studies, curcumin has been found to affect cancer growth and development by contributing to the death of cancerous cell, reducing angiogenesis (growth of new blood vessels in tumors) and reducing metastasis (spread of cancer). Further studies continue to be done.
Helps the body to recovery from muscle injury. In a study amongst athletes, it was found that athletes who consumed it recovered faster than those who didn’t.

There are many types of gingers but my favorite is Bentong ginger. The main component that provides the most therapeutic benefit is the gingerol. Ginger has been fond in many studies to be an antibacterial, anti-inflammatory and other health benefits. As more research is done on ginger, some of the benefits include:

Being an anti-inflammatory, it helps to reduce swelling or inflammations of joints and muscles can can be helpful for those with arthritis and osteoarthritis and swelling of joints or muscles.
Some studies show it can curb growth of cancer cells like colorectal, gastric, ovarian, liver, skin, breast, and prostate cancer and more studies are being carried out.
Ease menstrual cramps
Lowers “bad” LDL cholesterol
Ginger is loaded with antioxidants, compounds that prevent stress and damage to your body’s DNA. They may help your body fight off chronic diseases like high blood pressure, heart disease, and diseases of the lungs, plus promote healthy aging.
Helps with digestion and relieves indigestion.
Helps counter nausea.

It is with these benefits in mind that I decided to produce our Bentong Ginger and Turmeric with Black Pepper with the aim of making it easier for me to add to my daily diet and using whole foods as a medicine or health therapeutic supplement. Using chemical-pesticide and herbicide free fresh ginger and turmeric that are dehydrated and turned into a powder form, ground black peppers are then added into this mixture to produce our Dehydrated Bentong Ginger and Turmeric with Pepper. No additives, preservatives or fillers are added to it, leaving it in its pure forms.

When I decided to produce this mixture, I wanted to make it easy to consume it and as a painless way of adding it to my daily diet. Another key consideration is how to dry it. I dehydrated it as it ensures maximum nutrients preservation compared with other ways of drying and at the same time is more hygienic, not exposed to contaminants and consistent drying without dependence to weather. There are many ways to use this powder mixture for consumption:

Using 1/4 teaspoon per cup, I add hot water and sweeten it with honey as my first drink for the days. I drink it warm and it is a delicious warm drink to start my day, loading my body with the therapeutic benefits. I drink this as my first hot drink of the day and last hot drink at night on days when I plan or was physcially-active.
Adding it when cooking rice and making a flavourful rice. For additional flavour, you can add virgin coconut oil too making it a quick way to make nasi lemak kuning.
Using it as a seasoning for various proteins such as beef, chicken, fish which can then be cooked in various ways.
Adding it to stir-fry vegetables.
Adding it to coconut milk-based gravy such as in masak lemak kuning, curries and lontong.
Create a salad dressing by adding the mixture to olive oil or other salad oils and adding lemon or lime. You can also add other seasonings like honey, mustard and salt – sea or mountain salt is my preference.
Alternatively, you can put it in a capsule is you prefer to pop pills. I don’t do this because I prefer to enjoy my food then taking it as a medicine.

On a personal note, I have been drinking the ginger and turmeric mixture over the past 4 years. Having the mixture makes it easy for me to

consume it as well as take it along with me when I travel, whether domestically or internationally. When I travel abroad, my first drink in the room is the ginger and turmeric drink. It is a nice warm drink to have especially during the colder months. It has also helped me to recover from painful, muscle injury due to wearing the wrong shoes and walking long distances over uneven, cobblestone roads and paths for several days although it took longer to heal than it would have if I had gone for steroid treatment but it was my choice to avoid steroids and strong painkillers. It was an exercise in helping my body heal it self naturally supported by “whole food”s.

Bottomline: I love this mixture and the simplicity of incorporating it into my daily life.

24 Jun 2023

6 Comments By admin Articles, Eating Well, Edible Landscape

Dehydrated Torch Ginger (Bunga Kantan): The Journey

As with all flowers, the fresh Torch Ginger flowers doesn’t last long. We did our research from how to make it readily available, last longer and easy to transport. We also experimented with improving producing the fresh flowers.

From growing the plants perspective, our farm is located in an area ideal for growing it. With good rainfall, and good environmental factors including daily temperature and humidity as well as sun exposure supported by organic fertilizers, it grows well at the farm. When I bought the farm almost 15 years ago, it was like a jungle land and it already had the torch ginger plants growing in one area. As the farm was developed, I retained these plants during careful land clearing, minimising the disturbance to the land contour and enhancing the natural features. In the beginning, many flowers were just used for decoration as one really cannot consume that many flowers. Getting it to market was really a challenge and at times, at a loss.

I began to experiment about 5 years ago in how to turn it into a viable marketable produce. For Malaysians, this is a must-have ingredient when making laksa. A laksa without torch ginger flower is just a dish of noodles in fish soup. Many have told me that they cannot find it when abroad either in fresh or dehydrated form. It is also used in making other Malaysian dishes and can also be consumed as a tea with purported therapeutic benefits.

I tried air-drying and sun-drying but the end product didn’t look attractive as it turned brown although it retain some of the aromatic flavor of the torch ginger flower. The time it took to dry was also dependent on environmental factors. If it was hot and dry days, it took less number of days. If it rained, it took longer and sometimes resulted in spoilt torch ginger flowers. Moreover, it was exposed to contaminants.

I then started looking into dehydrators, there are many dehydrator models available to choose from. I checked the technical specs as well as ease of use and maintenance and did a quick cost/benefit analysis before choosing one that will suit my needs. I started with a smaller capacity model and it worked well.

With the use of a dehydrator, you could see the improvements in the product quality. The color was retained with minimal loss of intensity making it look attractive. It was also to a certain extent an indication of oxidation and with higher oxidation, the color will fade more. IT was also evenly dried. This is an important factor as if it isn’t dried properly, it will get moldy with the passage of time in the packaging. I also didn’t have to worry about exposure to contaminants.. It retained its aromatic flavors at a higher level than air or sun drying. It also dramatically reduced the time it takes to dry which in turns prevents excess oxidation.

Two years ago, with the floods, the dehydrator was taken by the flood waters. I replaced it with a bigger model – 9 trays from 5 trays – which allowed me to dry more at one time. Once dehydrated, the weight of the torch ginger flowers is between 9-10% of its original weight.

Before deciding on the packaging, I experimented on the types focusing o the following crteria:

(1) Ease of packaging

(2) Ease of transport

(3) Ease of storage.

We ended up with the current packaging of using resealable packs that is lightweight and resealable. To ensure standardization, we go by weight of the product which is 25 g of dehydrated torch ginger flowers per pack. To accurately state the number of flowers per pack is difficult as the size of the flowers vary. Moreover, our flowers are at least 2-3 times the size of what you find at the fresh market.

Being a “picky” person, we only use flowers grown at my farm for the product. In this way, I can ensure that the flowers are grown organically, not exposed to chemical herbicides and harvested at the right time. This meant that the quantity of dehydrated torch ginger flowers that I can produce is limited. I often get comments that I should plant more so I can produce more. It is not as simple as that. I do not belief in mono-culture farming so my farm will always have different types of plants and trees. The location of where we plant the torch ginger plants are also important as the soil type varies in different sections of my farm where some areas are more sandy than others, and some have more clay and then there are areas that have higher organic content. After the 2021-2022 floods when the highest water level rose to about 1.5m from the ground, we have lost some plants and trees and some areas of the ground was dumped with between 0.5 to 1m of sand. To a certain extent, it has made the ground flatter. We allowed the land to rest for about 1 year before we started looking again at what plants we wanted to add or replace and where. Early this year, we planted more torch ginger plants and Alhamdulillah, some have started to produce flowers. We will see how much many more packs we can produce in the coming months.

I am happy to see that my dehydrated torch ginger flowers have been taken overseas: Spain, USA, UK, Germany, Hong Kong, Qatar, Singapore, China, France and Czech Republic. I only sell and ship within Malaysia. We are testing selling it in the USA through Dusun Artisans. If you are in USA, please contact Dusun Artisans or visit their FB at https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100063672027242&__tn__=%2Cd.

In shaa Allah, we will continue to grow and expand to deliver quality dehydrated torch ginger flowers.

31 Oct 2022

0 Comments By admin Armchair journal, Farm Information

Sg. Lui: Penyelenggaraan yang mengundang bencana

Satu isu yang sering dibincangkan oleh penduduk di Sg. Lui, Hulu Langat ialah penyelenggaraan Sg. Lui yang kurang memuaskan. Di musim peralihan angin monsun tahun ini di antara bulan Oktober hingga Disember, dengan hujan lebat dan ribut petir diramalkan dari November 1 hingg November 23 hampir tiap-tiap hari, kami sedang bersiap-sedia untuk bencana banjir sekali lagi. Sg. Lui merupakan satu sungai yang menerima aliran air dari 5 anak sungai yang bermula di kawasan bukit berdekatan. Apabila hujan turun tidak berhenti selama beberapa jam di kawasan bukit ini, paras air di Sg. Lui boleh naik dengan mendadak sehingg melebihi 1 meter.

Pemandangan dari jambatan ke Kg. Orang Asli Paya Lebar

Saya memantau dari kawasan Kampun Paya Lebar, Hulu Langat kerana sg. Lui membahagikan tanah saya. Dari banjir bulan Disember 2021, lebih sungai di tanah saya telah dihakis lebih dari 3 meter lebar yang secara tidak langsung melebarkan sungai ini. Dari tanah saya hingga ke Batu 20, Kampung Sg. Lui, sungai ini mengecil. Paras tebing juga menurun sepanjang aliran Sg. Lui.

Di tebing sungai di sini, jelas hanya sebelah tebing sahaja yang dikukuhkan dengan guni pasir. Di sebelah kana, jelas akibat paras air yang naik baru-baru ini yang meninggalkan tanah, pasir dan batu selepas paras air surut. Paras air yang naik dan surut sering berlaku kebelakangan ini menyebabkan dasar sungai naik. Ini akan menyebabkan perbezaan paras dasar meningkat di antara hulu dan hilir dan jurang paras air dengan paras tebing mengurang. Apabila hujan turun dengan berterusan di kawasan bukit di hulu, paras air akan meningkat dengan mendadak sehingga lebih dari 1 m.

Dari permulaan tahun 2022, terdapat kerja-kerja membersih dan menyelenggara tebing Sg. Lui tetapi kerja-kerja ini tidak dilaksanakan dengan rapi menyebabkan kerja-kerja membaiki tebing dan mendalamkan sungai dijalankan berulang-kali. Kawasan ini merupakan kawasan punca air dan “tadahan hujan”. Apabila kerja-kerja dilaksanakan seperti “tikus gerit”, ia tidak akan membawa apa-apa faedah dan merupakan pembaziran wang rakyat. Jika banjir di kawasan saya, bermakna akan berlaku banjir yang agak teruk hingga ke kawasan Sg. Serai, Batu 10, Hulu Langat. Jika paras air meningkat hingga sekaki di paras bawah jambatan, ini bermakna kawasan di sepanjang Batu 23 hingga Batu 20 akan mengalami banjir kerana paras di kawasan ini adalah lebih rendah dari di sini.

Akibat banjir 2021, tebin runtuh dan paras sungai naik hasil dari mendapan pasir dan tanah.

Sungai Lui di dalam sepuluh tahun ini sudah berubah aliran. Hasil dari banjir 2021, sungai ini sudah semakin lurus. Aliran dahulu yang berliku sudah jadi kurang berliku. Tebing sungai juga terhakis dan paras air sungai meningkat hasil dari mendapan pasir dan tanah. Sudah berkali-kali JPS menghantar kontraktor untuk mendalamkan sungai dan mendamparkan pasir dan tanah yang dikorek ke tebing.

Malangnya, tiada guni pasir atau jaringan batu diletakkan di tebing sungai. Akibatnya, dua-tiga bulan kemudian, akan muncul kontraktor untuk mengorek tanah dan pasir dari sungai dan mendamparkannya ke tebing sekali lagi. Gambar ini memaparkan bagaiman sungai ini diluruskan sebab selekoh sebelum banjir 2021 sudah tiada dan sungai semakin lebar hasil dari hakisan. Jelas juga sungai ini semakin cetek akibat dari mendapan tanah dan pasir hasil dari hakisan tanah di hulu.

Saya tertanya juga, tiadakah pakar yang di JPS atau pegawai yang memantau keadaan Sg. Lui. Tidakkah mereka sedar bahawa jika bencana banjir melanda di kawasan ini, impaknya lebih teruk sepanjang aliran Sg. Lui sehingga Batu 9 Cheras?

Tebing yang tiada perlindungan yand mengalami hakisan berterusan.

Kekuatan arus air dari banjir 2021 juga menyebabkan tebing yang tinggi dihakis dan tanah runtuh sehingga satu rumah yang terdapat ditebing ini telah jatuh hancur dan beberapa rumah mengalami kerosakan besar.

Jika arus air Sg. Lui seperti banjir 2021 berulang di bulan November ini, kemungkinan besar selekoh ini akan diluruskan lagi kerana tebing sungai ini tiada perlindungan dari hakisan. Pokok-pokok akan tumbang dan dihanyutkan yang akan meninggikan lagi tahap kerosakan di sepanjang aliran sungai ini. Di bahagian ini, paras tanah sungai sudah turun lebih kuran 1 m dari paras di jambatan ke Kampung Orang Asli Paya Lebar.

Apa yang menyedihkan ialah terdapat rumah-rumah baru yang dibina oleh rakyat yang berangan untuk hidup di kawasan kampung di usia emas. Wang simpanan mereka yang digunakan untuk pembinaan rugi begitu saja dan kini berhadapan dengan masalah membai-pulih rumah atau membinanya baru.

Hal ini telah diutarakan kepada pihak-pihak yang berkuasa tetapi 10 bulan selepas kejadian, masih tiada tindakan. Hakisan ini berterusan sebab kawasan ini sering dilanda hujan lebat terutama sejak pertengahan bulan Oktober 2022.

Sungai Lui bercantum dengan Sungai Langat di Batu 18, Hulu Langat. Terdapat beberapa sungai lagi yang mengalir ke dalam Sungai Langat. Melihat keadaan semasa dan ramalan cuaca di bulan November ini, saya menulis artikel ini bagi mengutarakan masalah di Sg. Lui dan betapa pentingnya pihak berkuasa perlu melaksanakan kerja-kerja yang perlu secepat mungkin bagi mengelakkan bencana banjir seperti di bulan Disember 2021. Di waktu yang sama, saya harap penduduk di kawasan Batu 23 Sg. Lui hingga Batu 9 Cheras bersiap-sedia dan peka dengan keadaan semasa di hulu sungai yang akan membawa impak terhadap mereka.

30 Oct 2022

0 Comments By admin Articles, Eating Well, Edible Landscape, SHL Products

Making it last: Dehydrated Torch Ginger (Bunga Kantan)

The Torch Ginger Flower (Bunga Kantan) ia a beautiful flower that is aromatic and used in various Malaysian cuisine with the most well-known being Assam Laksa. There are several different colors for these flowers including various shades of pink, white and red. At the farm, we have the white and pink flowers. The most commonly found are the pink flowers. As with many flowers, these flowers will last about one week, less if it is fully bloomed. The flavor and aromatics from the flowers gets more intense from the bud stage, the stage that we most commonly find at the market, to full bloom.

Under good growing conditions, the torch ginger plant produces flowers year-round. It does especially well in areas where there is lots of rainfall. It is a tropical flowering plant that thrives in hot, humid weather and requires substantial room as it is a rhizome-plant that will spread and the leaf stalk can grow to over 3 meters tall.

Due to the short “shelf-life” and the number of fresh flowers that went to waste because I couldn’t consume or use it in time, I decided to experiment dehydrating the flower as a means to enable it to have a longer “shelf-life” and reduce wastage. At the same time, this also meant that I can have it readily available at home whenever I wanted to use them in cooking. By dehydrating it, it also makes it easier to store as it can be stored in a cool, dry place. It is important to use freshly harvested flowers to produce quality dehydrated flowers. The dehydrated flowers can be used in cooking similar to the fresh bunga kantan for soupy dishes or in a broth. I have also used it during the cooking process of plain, white rice. It imparts an aroma to the rice which makes it very inviting. Bearing in mind that dehyrated torch ginger flowers are about 10% in quantity of the fresh flowers, a little goes a long way.

I have experimented various ways of storing it as we do live in a humid, tropical country. It is best stored in an air-tight container which can be placed in a cool, dry area or in the refrigerator. To store it even longer, it can be placed in a freezer bag and stored in the freezer. I have experimented storing it in the freezer for 18 months. It retains its pink color for the duration.

During the dehydration process, the flowers will reduce to about 10% of its original size. I use a dehydrator for many reasons namely:

it ensures even drying
the drying time is consistent – no dependence on whether it is a sunny day or not
prevents exposure to contaminants
minimizes loss of flavor
almost negligible impact of oxidization.

I do not dry it out in the open, under the sun as it is then exposed to possible contaminants as well as impact of oxidization is higher. This can especially be seen in the change in color of the flowers – it will turn beige or brown. Drying it in the sun also makes the drying time uncertain as it will be dependent on the weather and temperature of the day. It is also prone to uneven drying.

To make it easier to transport and store, I have packed them in resealable packs. Being lightweight, it is easy to transport. The resealable pack makes it easier to store as once the pack is open, it can just be resealed to close it. Each pack contains 9-12 flowers, depending of the size of the fresh flowers. The flowers we use are on average more than 3 times the size of the fresh torch ginger buds found in markets and supermarkets.

Through the years that I have been producing it, I am happy that my dehydrated torch ginger has reached many countries such as England, Spain, France, Hong Kong, Czech Republic and United States. Next week, one pack will make the trip to Germany.

As we are a small farm that also grows other trees and plants, I do not produce large quantities of dehydrated torch ginger flowers so we do not do bulk selling but direct to the consumer.

To contact us, please WhatsApp to +60172821219.

30 Aug 2022

0 Comments By admin Articles, Events

Recovering from the flood od 2021/2022

Since January, 2022, we have been working on recovering from the big flood of December, 2021. The flood water rose to 1.5 meters at the farm. Azis, stalwart and brave as ever, spent the night of December 18 on the rooftop of the farmhouse. Through the ensuing days, I wasn’t able to get supplies to him and it took about 5 days before any supplies could reach to him. Our dogs and cats survived but some of our chicken didn’t.

Kitchen and dining areas once the flood waters receeded.

There was extensive damage to the farm including the destruction of our boundary walls, destruction of our fish ponds, ground damage, lost trees as well as damage to the structures. It was a huge cleanup process and it took us a couple of months to complete it. The main focus then apart from cleanup was the rebuilding of the boundary walls. It took us 2 months to rebuild the walls surrounding the farm. This time we reinforced it with steel bars as well as dug deeper to lay the cement and steel base. The focus is on getting it rebuilt. Later in the year, we will probably to the beautifying of the wall but in the meantime, it serves the function of keeping the 4-legged variety from coming it and a deterrent for the 2-legged variety.

The rebuilt boundary wall, yet to be finished.

We also lost our equipment, tools as well as personal property. The fridge, food dehydrator, tv, stereo, furniture as well as other items all went with the flood waters. It took us almost one month before we could restore clean water to the farm as we needed to lay new polypipe from the source to the farm. As the roads were not open to delivery lorries, this caused the delay. It has been heartbreaking to see all our efforts of the past 14 years washed away but we have faith that we will recover. I feel blessed that our surau, one of the areas of the farmhouse that I loved so much suffered minimal damage and the main work required was to remove the thick mud left behind and cleaning everything up.The various copies of the Al-Quran in the surau was all undamaged.

Just as the cleanup was done, we were hit with another flood in March, 2022. Another round of cleanup was required. Alhamdulillah, this time it wasn’t as bad as the water just rose about 1 feet.

We have been busy rebuilding the necessary and though this time, we have watched many mature trees die. These included cempedak, nangka, soursop, bananas, pomegranate, calamansi and several other types. From the floods we have lost about 40% of our trees. I view this as an opportunity for us to improve our planning and planting of new trees as well as the placement of the trees.

All the products that we had produced is also gone or destroyed. Effectively, we will not be able to sell any produce or products for many months ahead. As our products are farm-based, we would have to replant our source materials and this will take a few months. Only then can we start producing and selling again. This too will require new investment as I will need to replace all the equipment that we use for production of our products. I refuse to ponder over our losses as it will not bring any benefit and can only cause depression.

i don’t know when we will get to the rebuilding of the fish ponds. There was 4 ponds, all interconnected but separated with piping laid for water to flow between the ponds before going out into Sg. Lui. After the flood, the ponds were filled with sand and debris and the fish is basically all gone. I will ponder over the plan first and the amount required to invest in the work. For now, I am not rushing it as I have a feeling that it will be a substantial amount.

Through it all, we remain committed to our ideals and continue to rebuild the farm keeping true to our commitment of producing goods based on naturally or organically grown plants and trees, without the use of any chemicals agents whether from fertilizers, pesticides or herbicides. In shaa Allah, by end of 2022, the farm will be stabilized and we can focus on growing it. So for now, the farm remains closed to visitors whilst we rebuild and restart our operations.

19 Oct 2021

2 Comments By admin Eating Well, Edible Landscape, SHL Products

Dehydrated Vietnamese Coriander

One of the important items in cooking our local favorite dish of asam laksa or Vietnamese

coriander (scientific name: Persicaria Odorata) or commonly known here as daun kesum. Other dishes that is is often used in a soupy dishes especially if it contains seafood. The flavor and aroma it departs, to me, makes the dishes more delicious.

This plant can be planted on land or in water. It seems to thrive in marsh-like environment where the roots come into contact with wet soil. It lends itself to being dehydrated which increase its shelf-life and makes it easy to transport and store. It also makes it readily available for use as it can be stored like other dried herbs. As it is dehydrated using a dehydrator, it retains maximum flavour and nutrients. It also means that the leaves becomes crispy and breaks easily especially when it is vacuum-packed in packages of content weight of 20gm.. However, opting for it to be packed this way means that it extends its shelf-life too.

As with many things that we produce or develop at the farm, this product was developed based on my needs: readily available, easy to store and transport and longer shelf-life. I find that having them in dehydrated form readily available is handy. Often, when we buy it fresh, we have to buy a pack or seikat which more often than not, leads to quite a bit of it being thrown away as it spoils before all of it could be used up. By having it in this form, I can use the quantity I wish without being wasteful.

To order, please visit our shop on this website.

15 Nov 2020

1 Comments By admin Articles, Eating Well, Edible Landscape

Javanese Ginseng – Beauty with Benefits

Javanese Ginseng (Ginseng Jawa) with its botanical name Talinum paniculatum. I have grown this as an indoor plant although it flourishes when it gets sunlight exposure. I have also planted it in a pot and placed it in my office by a window that receives afternoon sunlight. In this setting, I water it once every couple of days. I use a rich organic soil content with a good amount of peat mixed in the soil. This helps to keep the soil moist but not soggy. It also does well in full sun. and is well suited to our tropical climate. It is an easy to care for plant and doesn’t require daily
watering so if you forget to water it for a couple of days, it should be able to weather your forgetfulness. Just give it a good watering and ensure that the excess can drain out.

This plant produces small pink flowers which adds a burst of colour against its green leaves. I control the plant growth by pruning it which in turns encourages it to “bush-out”. All the leaves and stems that I prune is then turned into a vegetable dish – a great way to utilize it instead of wasting it by trashing it. As the plant matures, the roots will develop tubers. These tubers are morphologically similar to the Korean Ginseng and locally, it is used similar to Korean Ginseng but at a lower price.

Javanese Ginseng leaves may be used raw or cooked. The raw leaves contains oxalic acid similar to spinach hence when eaten raw, it should be eaten in small quantities. The leaves contain calcium, iron, potassium, magnesium and zinc. It is also a source of powerful natural compounds such as Beta-sitosterol.It can be turned into a simple vegetable soup with garlic, salt and black pepper added to further add flavour. You can also make a simple stir-fry dish and can be used as a spinach replacement. The leaves may also be added to smoothies. I like the taste of the leaves – it has a smooth, creamy flavour without any other strong flavours. They pair well with ingredients like garlic and onion, and flavouring agents such as soy sauce and oyster sauce. Similar to many other leafy vegetables, cooking it can increase the bio-availability of antioxidants and other nutrients.

All in all, this plant is easy to plant, has multiple uses and can be used as a decorative plant in your home or garden.

27 Oct 2020

0 Comments By admin Eating Well, Healthy Options, Herbal Therapy, SHL Products

Indonesian Bay (Serai Kayu): Nature’s gift

English Name: Indonesian Bay

Malay Name: Serai Kayu

Scientific Name : Syzygium polyanthum

This tree is well suited to be grown in Malaysian with our tropical weather. It can group over 5m tall but you can manage the height by pruning it throughout its life span. Once establish, it doesn’t need to be watered as with our climate, it can survive with just our normal rainfalls. It is a relatively fast grower and its branches spreads out making it a nice tree for providing some shade once it grows tall. However, as I use a good amount of the leaves, I keep the height growth controlled as I prune it about every 3 months or so. With good soil, it doesn’t require any fertilizers though as a normal practice at the farm, we fertilize them twice a year

The main purpose of these tree is for the leaves. The leaves can be either eaten fresh or most often, the older leaves are dried. The dried leaves are often used as a flavoring or taste enhancer in many dishes all over the world. It can be used in soups and sauces as well as a herb for roasting various proteins like chicken and beef. You can also turn the dried leaves into a tea – I tend to crush the leaves first before making my tea.

Many studies have been performed on the therapeutical benefits of the leaves. It is well known that high blood pressure is considered the “silent killer”. One study done headed by our local researcher at Dr. Wan Amir Nizam of the Health Science Medical Laboratory, Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM), Kelantan, found that there was a lower rate of high blood pressure amongst a group of Kelantanese who consumed it daily as ulam. He also found that for people who had high blood pressure, they only had to take low doses of high blood pressure medication. The lab studies done on 2 types of rats, one with normally high blood pressure and one species that had normal high blood pressure, found that the blood pressure went down for the rats with high blood pressure but there was no effect on the normal blood pressure rats. They concluded that these leaves are safe to be eaten by people of normal blood pressure. They also found that this leaf is a popular ulam for many Kelantanese and he proposed that this is why there is a lower rate of people with high blood pressure in Kelantan as compared with other states at 13.9% in 2014.

Apart from high blood pressure, the leaves have traditionally be used in therapy for diarrhea, diabetes and ulcer. The stems, flowers and fruits also have other uses in traditional therapy.

Many may wonder what it tastes like? It has a citrusy taste with a slight “kelat” taste. I haven’t found an English word that gives the meaning of “kelat” but it is the taste that is present in unripen bananas. However, when you use it in cooked dishes, this taste is not present. I guess it is the citrus taste that led it to be name serai as Malaysian knows the lemony taste from the lemongrass or serai in Bahasa Malaysia.

To make it available for my consumption when I don’t have any fresh leaves handy, I have dehydrated crushed leaves. I will select the older leaves for this but not ones that have turned yellow or brown. In this form, I can use it as a herbal condiment or make a tea drink – either hot or cold. To make the tea, I find it best to use either just boiled water or my preference is to brew the tea in a claypot. I use a dehydrator as this ensures the maximum nutrients remain while the water evaporates and prevents contaminants. It also results in dried still-green leaves instead of turning brown as when it is air-fried or dried in the sun.

As for me, I take this gift from nature and consume it regularly in many ways.

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