Eating Well – Suria Helang Lui

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.

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.

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.

26 Aug 2019

4 Comments By admin Articles, Eating Well, Edible Landscape

The Pains and Joys of Growing Soursop (Durian Belanda)

One of the more expensive local fruits we have is the Durian Belanda. Both the fruit and the leaves have good nutritional and therapeutic values. I have been growing the trees for about 7 years now and to date and currently we have 8 trees of various ages ranging from 3 years to 5 years. Many have asked me many different questions hence this article covers my experience and each growers experience can be different.

Although it is a tree that can grow to over 8m in height, the growth can be controlled and it needs a space of a circumference of 2 m. Giving the right conditions and care, it can produce many fruits. Let’s start with the basics: the soil. At the farm, we have different sections with different soil types ranging from high clay content to rocky and high sand content. We have experimented planting them in various areas and find that it does best is soil that contains a significant amount of sand (around 30%) and does worst in high clay content soil. It needs soil with good drainage with good content of organic matter to a depth of at least 1 m. If you are living in a development area that was developed in the last 10 years, and you find that your tree keeps dying, check the soil. Many of these development had used construction and other wastes as landfill.

This tree is well suited to our tropical climate with frequent rain with some dry periods. In young trees, it will need to be watered. Once a tree has established itself, it will no linger require manual watering. The roots tend to spread out relatively neat the surface of the tree and the root doesn’t grow as deep as other trees of similar height and girth. It does not like for its roots to be disturb hence for this reason, we refrain from planting any plants around the base and keep the grass and weeds controlled by cutting the down to surface level. This serves a dual purpose: adding organic matter which as it decomposes adds nutrients to the soil and to keep the soil covered to help retain moisture.

Our farm is totally organic so we do not use any chemical pesticide, herbicide or fertilisers. To this end, the environment of the farm is such that we plant many different types of plants and trees that encourages many varieties of insects, some of which are predators to insects that attack the leaves and fruits. This helps to keep the trees relatively free of insect attacks. Having a healthy tree also helps it fights these attacks and diseases.

To support the growth of the tree, we address the soil health as well as the plant health. In order to ensure that we have the necessary
nutrients to support flowering and fruiting, we use goat and chicken manure fertilisers. We also use diluted fish amino acids mixed with EM-1 on a quarterly basis. The tree can flower year-long so keeping it well-fed is essential. The bell-shaped buds are green in color with the point facing downwards. There can appear singularly or in multiples.

As the bud develops, you will see it turn to a pale yellow flower with petals.

An interesting aspect of the soursop flower is that it blooms at night hence pollination occurs at night. Once the outer petals are open (as in the picture), it will bloom that night. At the farm, our environment encourages night insects as well as there is often night breezes which contribute to a good pollination rate. We do not hand pollinate.The presence of wind and night insects is important to increase the success of pollination. The degree of success of the pollination will also affect the fruit size and shape.

Once the petals have fallen, you will see a stub-like with :needles” left. Some have mistaken this as the dried-up flower and removed it. At this stage, it is still unclear if pollination is successful so it is best to leave it. Over the next few days or a week, you will see the beginnings of the fruit if pollination is successful, It doesn’t look like the fruit yet but a brown mass of pins.

From this stage, it will take several weeks before you begin to see the fruit in a shape more familiar to the mature soursop. You can see that the fruit will h

ave a nice shape and size when mature from the shape the fruit “bud” is as well as the number of “needles” present. Even when it is flowering and fruiting, we continue to fertilise the ree in accordance with our schedule. We also on a bi-annual basis, spread a handful of coarse salt around the circumference of the tree about 1 m away from the base of the trunk. Apart from supplying additional minerals, it also serves as an “antibiotic” against harmful bacteria.

In general, the fruit is heart-shaped or oval. The fruit is ready to harvest when you see the needles are well-spaced apart and pointing horizontally an
d the skin of the fruit has smoothen out. The fruit will feel firm. At this stage, it will be sweet and sour with lots of juices. This is, to me, the perfect time to harvest if you would like to eat it in slices. I tend to just cut it into the slices, revealing the creamy-white flesh inside, without peeling and eat the flesh off, leaving the seeds and skin. Once it has reached this stage, it will go soft within days but the intensity of the sweetness will increase and the flesh will still remain creamy-white. However, it will then be suitable only for making blended drinks.

Often, when you buy at the market, the fruit will still be hard. Do check that the fruit have the “needles” almost horizontal and widely spaced apart with smooth skin in between. This will indicate that the fruit was mature enough when harvested. Often, people will wait for their store-bought fruit to soften and when they cut it, they find that the flesh inside is brow/black indicating the fruit has rotted. This could be due to the preservatives applied post-harvest to keep the fruit looking nice on the outside but it has started to rot on the inside, Hence, by the time you feel the fruit has softened, it has rotted all the way through.

PS>> This will be one of the fruit trees that I will detail out from planting to harvesting to what you can do with it more in my book. Not sure when I will complete it though 🙂

29 Jul 2019

2 Comments By admin Eating Well, Edible Landscape

Torch Ginger – keeping it handy

Torch ginger flower is one of the regular condiments used in flavouring our local food. There are a few colours – red, white and pink – with variation in shades dependent of soil and nutrients. I have found that there are several factors in having a healthy torch ginger plant and having it flower. The first factor is space. This plant needs room to spread as the leaves and flowers grow on individual stalks/stems from the rhizome. Hence in order to have more flowers, the rhizome needs to be able to grow horizontally from which the stems/stalks will emerge.

The second important factor is availability of water. You can find them growing naturally along the riverside as well as in jungles that get a good rainfall. Hence, if you are growing them in your gardens, apart from space, you need to ensure that the soil has good water content. On the other hand, it doesn’t seem to flower should it be frequently submerged in water, leading to the third factor: the soi

It loves well-drained soil but with good organic content so that the soi

l can retain moisture for it to access but not causing the roots to be “flooded” with water. Just imagine that in natural setting

, decades or even longer, of natural decomposition of natural organic matter being added to the soil, hence this is the type of optimum soil condition. Hence, it doesn’t do well in heavy clay soil. You can always improve the soil condition by adding sand as well as organic matter.

The main target is to get lots of flowers as this is what we harvest to consume. In nature, it is naturally fertilised by animal droppings as well as from de

composition of dead animals over a period of time, which contains calcium, magnesium and other minerals. So at the farm, we use animal manure such as chicken and goat manure as well as using fish amino acids (FAA) which we produce at the farm.

Having the above factors, the one other remaining important factor is sunlight. It does best in full sunlight but a minimum of 6 hours should be fine.

The torch ginger flower can be harvested at different stages. Commercially, you will find the buds of the torch ginger. However, I find the flavour of the torch ginger is better when the petals have started to open. If I want to consume them fresh, I will place them in a vase in my home, treating it like other fresh cut flowers but not adding anything to the water as I want to consume it, I rarely keep them refrigerated. I find that the torch ginger is a good addition to hot, plain rice. Just slice them thinly and add to the rice. The aroma and flavour makes it an enticing rice dish. As many of you know, it is also a good addition to nasi kerabu as one of the ulam used. To the asam pedal and laksa asam connoisseurs, you know that it is a must ingredient to the dish.

If you are into taking baths, the flowers are also a good addition to the hot water in your bath, creating a herbal bath that removes bodily odours. It is also good to combine it with citronella when creating a herbal aromatherapy bath.

Being flowers, there is a limited time before it decays and becomes no longer consumable. The best way that I have found to retain all the flavour and nutrients is to dehydrate them. I do not sun-dry them or expose them to the open air surroundings as I do not want it to be contaminated not make the drying process weather-dependent. The petals are separated before placing them in a dehydrator to dry. This way, it can last for at least 6 months and if stored correctly, longer. For the purposes of dehydrating, I use full-bloomed flowers – the stage before it starts forming the seed pods. The flavour is highest at this time. It can be stored in air-tight containers at room temperature and be readily available for the laksa, asam pedas and many other dishes. You can also add the dehydrated petals to your hot bath water instead of the fresh petals.

05 Mar 2019

0 Comments By admin Articles, Eating Well, Edible Landscape

A humble leave herb: Curry leaves

Curry leaves are not a stranger to us. When we cook curry, it is not considered complete until curry leaves are added to it. To make fried chicken tastier, try adding a few curry leaves to to the frying oil so the aroma and taste gets infused into the chicken. But did you know that the young shoots of the curry leaves can be eaten as ulam or added into salads? You can also infuse edible oil with dehydrated curry leaves and have the aroma in taste in it which you can then use to create other dishes.

So, it that where the story ends? Of course not! There is more to the curry leaves. It is rich in iron and folic acid hence a good choice for those who are anaemic. It contains a powerful antioxidant, kaempferol, which when combined with vitamin A and C(which are both present in the leaves), protects the liver as well as improves its function, has anti-inflammatory properties which in turns provides many therapeutical benefits to the body. Curry leaves affects the insulin activity in the body as well as alters the way the body absorbs fat in digestion helping with controlling sugar and fats in your body. There are many other benefits so it would be a good item to add to your diet within your normal meals.

By dehydrating the leaves, we ensure maximum nutrients retention which makes it easy to store and have readily available as well as making it easy to transport. We have turned it into a product within our dehydrated herbal range. It is packed in a resealable pouch making it easy to transport as well as store. Each pack is RM 15 and available via mail order.

This is definitely one herb that I will increase consumption of as it can be added to your meals in many ways from cooked dishes to raw salad as well as using it as a seasoning. Another of nature’s bounty.

+60172821219

enquiries@suriahelanglui.com

facebook

Category: Eating Well