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Zong Chinese dumpling festival in Malaysia

Good ole Zong (Bak Chang) – The Traditional Food of Chinese Dumpling Festival

Triangle shaped, round or square “Yuk Zong” (?? in Cantonese), my favorite pork meat glutinous rice dumplings are filled with various fillings, wrapped in bamboo or lotus leaves. Zongs come in various shapes, sizes and tastes (sweet, savoury, spicy and a mixture of it all) according to regions or states in Malaysia.
Whenever someone ask what Zong is, I would always happily explain what ingredients are required to make this truly authentic and traditional recipe.

Welcome to Malaysia, a land where everything is of a mixture (Malaysians refer to this as Rojak): the people, the language, the newspapers and the food culture all mix naturally. Though the origins of Zong, points to Southern China, this heritage food is also well acclaimed across the Malaysian Chinese communities; the Kuala Lumpur (Cantonese speaking KL-ites) refer to it as Zong, the Northern Penang name it Bak Chang in the local Hokkien dialect and the Baba-Nyonya Peranakan call this dish Chang.

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Important and interesting, it is the meaning and story or Chinese folklore behind Zong that leave an impression. The Zong / Dumpling Festival (Cantonese: Tuen Ng Jit / ???) is celebrated on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month, June 23 this year 2012. It honours a famous and successful scholar-poet Qu Yuan who took his life by jumping into a river after the fall of the Qin Dynasty to the Zhou Dynasty. He was greatly saddened when the king refused to take his advice, leading to a great war. It is said that the local people, who admired Qu Yuan, dropped sticky rice triangles wrapped in bamboo leaves into the river to feed Qu Yuan in the afterlife. The paddling of the boats in those days apparently were meant to scare the fishes away (in modern today we have the famous Dragon boat racing).

Another, equally convincing, folklore explained: fearing that fishes would eat Qu Yuan’s body, friends and supporters had made dumplings and threw them into the river so that the fishes would eat them instead of the body. Hence the dumplings Zong was given birth.

Some of the various types of Zong available are:

– Ham Yuk Zong / Yuk Zong ( ??): Salty Meat Dumpling typically filled with fatty pork belly, yellow mung beans, salted egg yolks, mushrooms and my favorite chestnut.

– Nyonya Zong (???): A specialty of Peranakan cuisine, the fillings are minced pork with candied winter melon, ground roasted peanuts and taucheo (Chinese soy bean paste made from yellow soy beans). Traditionally the dumpling has a bit of blue rice coloured from the butterfly pea flower.

– Kan Sui Zong (???): Literally translated as “alkaline water Zong”, this is a dessert item or a snack for tea time. The glutinous rice is treated with lye water hence the distinctive yellow color. It is usually plain, with no filling and if there are it is a sweet stuffing, for example red bean paste. It is often complimented with sugar, gula melaka (Malay for palm sugar) or a delicious local coconut spread named kaya.

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Zong today, in my view is considered a forgotten food and recipe in Kuala Lumpur. Through my observations there are many chicken rice stalls but very few Zong stalls around. And how many Zong stalls serve a decent Zong? To be honest not many in KL.
The most delicious Zong sold around KL would be freshly homemade from generation old family recipes, which have been passed on from moms or grandmas. That was indeed how I acquired and learnt how to appreciate Zong: through a traditional family secret recipe and ritual since I was 11 years old. It was really satisfying, as i recalled back to those days, the family’s team spirit and hard effort making Zong. Every bite of the Zong was simply delicious, flavorful with all the pork meat and fat melting away and simply filled with lots of love.

The process of making it is truly an art and takes many cumbersome steps, from purchasing various ingredients, preparation to frying, folding and steaming/boiling them. There were always a lot of fun, jokes, laughter and gossips with and about the entire family. Never was there a quiet moment in a Chinese household especially as aunties gathered who all possessed the family trait of high sopranos voices, which were probably even evident miles down the road.
There was a lot of sharing and family members’ participation involved as each had their own role and individual strength or skill, for instance folding the bamboo leaves with stuffing and tying a cluster of them to strings. We appreciated and respected each others’ roles even the children, like myself back then were delighted eating after witnessing the hours of making Zong.
I am proud of my family and have realized that preserving the food heritage is vital in creating one’s identity and shaping the next future generations’ love for the family’s traditions.

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So what is my favorite Zong? And who makes the best Zong in Malaysia?
My favorite is: the “Ham Yok Zong” (savoury version).
In my heart the best Zong recipe by far comes from my late grandma, no one has and probably will be able to surpass that level of standard on the ‘delicious-Zong meter.’
Determined, I attempted to re-make Zong according to my grandma’s recipe some months ago. I pulled some family members together and took a few quick decisions to speed things up. The outcome was a disaster the taste, texture, everything fell short of what I was used to.
There are no shortcuts to traditional recipes and there are some things in life that are irreplaceable.

Every traditional food has its story and listening to it takes you a step closer to a deeper understanding of its culture. True meaning makes every bite unique in its taste and even more pleasantly delicious to savor till the very last bite. So I urge all to continue this tradition! Head out and buy some Zongs to eat in this time of the year. Happy Tuen Ng Jit (Zong / Dumpling Festival).

Curious to find out where to buy the best Zongs around Kuala Lumpur? Visit http://www.simplyenak.com/zong-chinese-dumpling-festival-malaysia to find out more.

This article was written by Pauline Lee. Pauline is a food enthusiast and has a great passion for Malaysian Food. Her mission is to preserve local food traditions and recipes to allow next generations to enjoy what she knows to be some of the world’s best food. Pauline is a Food Experience Captain and owner of Simply Enak – Food Experiences. Her company aims to give foreign guests the best experience of Malaysian Food. Simply Enak provides food walks, food drives, dinners at local homes and more exciting Food Experiences. Visit http://www.simplyenak.com for more information.

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Wonderful Malaysia

Overall growth of tourist arrivals Malaysia

Malaysia recorded an overall growth of +1.2% tourist arrivals with 9,438,592 tourists for the first five months of 2012 as compared to 9,323,827 for the same period last year, according to the Tourism Minister, Dato’ Sri Dr. Ng Yen Yen. ASEAN region still contributed the largest number of tourists to Malaysia with 73.4% of the total arrivals. The positive growth come from Indonesia (+19.3%), Philippines (+41.7%), Vietnam (+35.2%), Myanmar (+6.9%) and Laos (+19.9%). Other notable progressive medium and long haul markets include Saudi Arabia (+50.7%), China (+34.1%), Japan (30.6%), Russia (25.8%), Kazakhstan (25.2%), Denmark (14.4%) and India (+7.8%).

Total receipts by tourists from January to May 2012 rose by +1.9%, generating RM21.8 billion to the country’s revenue as compared to RM21.4 billion in 2011. The tourists’ per capita expenditure for that period is estimated at RM 2,309 an increase of 0.7% as compared to RM 2,294 in 2011.

The minister added that in line with the Malaysia Tourism Transformation Plan 2020 towards achieving 36 million tourist and 168billion in receipts by 2020, it is important for Malaysia to shift its focus on growing yield per tourist rather than to rely heavily on growth in tourist arrivals. “To attract the higher yield segment, we will need to enhance connectivity to key priority markets.” For a start, Tourism Malaysia works to increase flight frequencies to 6 priority countries namely China, India, Japan, South Korea, Australia and Taiwan besides developing an air-rights allocation framework to facilitate efficient development of these key routes and others.

One of the most successful programs that have been identified by the Ministry to develop rural based tourism is the Homestay Program. The tourism program recorded a significant increase with 38.4% of occupancy rate compared to 24.9% for the same period last year. A total of 133,689 tourists visited our homestay from January to May 2012 of which 110,322 were domestic tourists and the rest 23,367 were foreigners. This is a 70.7% increase compared to the same period last year where we only received 78,333 tourists. Tourist receipts from homestay program for the first five months of 2012 also proliferated to RM 7,376,446.50 (+53.1%) compared to RM4, 817,158.30 in January to May 2011. Increased spending by these tourists has stimulated the rural economy. The homestay tourism program has encouraged local communities to be a part of rural based tourism whilst maintaining their traditions and identities.

Recognized as one of the National Key Economic Areas, the tourism industry remains as one of the major contributor to Gross National Income, foreign exchange earnings and employment. In 2011, tourism ranked seventh (7th) largest contributor with a GNI total of USD12.3billion and the third (3rd) largest foreign exchange earner after manufacturing and palm oil. The Malaysian tourism industry in 2010 provided 1.8 million jobs (15.9%, share of employment in tourism to total employment). Amongst the 12 Entry Point Projects are duty free shopping, luxury tourism, designating KLCC–Bukit Bintang area as a vibrant shopping precinct, improving business tourism and increasing the supply of 4 5 star hotel rooms, etc.

The percentage on tourist shopping recorded from January to May 2012 shows 32.3% (RM7.04 billion) of the total tourist receipts. This is an increase compared to 30% last year. The covered walkway connecting Bukit Bintang and KLCC completed early this year to facilitate shopping has shown a positive impact.

To attract high yield tourists, we need quality four five star hotel rooms. Currently there are 59,804 four five star hotel rooms available in Malaysia. By 2020, 37,000 additional four five star hotel rooms are required. The Ministry of Tourism targets to increase 3000 four five star hotel rooms in Malaysia as at end 2012. Currently 71% of the target is achieved with 2,123 rooms completed. The government’s liberalization policies and lucrative tax incentives have resulted in domestic and foreign investments on hospitality assets across Malaysia.

Malaysia has premised itself as a world class destination for Meetings, Incentives, Conventions and Exhibitions (MICE). The Malaysia Convention Exhibition Bureau (MyCEB) successfully secured 33 major events throughout January to May 2012, attracting total delegates of 50,770 and generating an estimated economic impact of RM499.9 mil. The International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA) Rankings 2011 ranked Kuala Lumpur number 21 in the world and number 5 in Asia Pacific. Malaysia ranked number 29 in the world and number 7 in Asia Pacific.

Domestic tourism is also another important part of Malaysia’s tourism industry. The number of domestic tourists in 2011 increased 15.7% (45,731,000 as compared with 39,539,000 in 2010). In 2011, the spending by domestic tourists was RM27.0 billion, registering a 13.9% increase as against RM23.7 billion spent in 2010. This is the success of the “Cuti Cuti 1Malaysia” Campaign.

In order to grow the tourism industry, efforts have been intensified towards enhancing existing tourism products and developing new, creative and innovative tourism products. This included the “1Malaysia International Shoe Festival 2012?, “1Malaysia International Tourism Exchange 2012?, “1Malaysia Contemporary Art Tourism 2012? and the recently concluded “1Malaysia International Tourism Night Floral Parade 2012?.

The Ministry of Tourism’s ‘Malaysia: Truly Asia’ branding is recognized worldwide and the United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) has ranked Malaysia the ninth most traveled to destination in the world.

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KidZania Kuala Lumpur (The Curve)

A whole new experience that can add experience and color to a child’s life has been brought to Malaysia. Malaysian kids are now given the chance to experience ‘working life’ through a role play session which offers up to 90 real-like jobs here at Kuala Lumpur. At KidZania Kuala Lumpur, children from the age of 4 to 14 will spend their time wisely in an indoor entertainment and educational theme park which caters to the ever-curious minds of children.

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“What do you want to be when you grow up? A pilot? A newscaster? At KidZania Kuala Lumpur you can fly a plane, read the news or both! In this world, there’s over 90 things you and your friends can do.”

With the price of RM55 for MyKad holders or RM75 for non-MyKad holders, kids will be able to ‘work’ as a fireman, chef, painter, actor or even a magician. Whatever profession that you can think of, they would have it at the newly opened Kidzania, which is located directly opposite popular The Curve shopping mall at Mutiara Damansara.

kidzania malaysia entrance

The first KidZania was built in 1996 at Mexico by Xavier Lopez with a dream to provide children a playground to have fun while participating in the real life working environment. He has a vision to create a play room that can inspire the younglings. Upon entering the ‘corporate world’, a child will be presented with a boarding pass, a map and a cheque of 50 KidZos (i.e KidZania currency). With that, he/she will then pick an occupation by learning and performing the tasks dressed in the uniform equipped with needed ‘gear’.

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Everything is surreal at KidZania. Real-life stimulation are presented to the children so that they will experience the challenges of the position, just as those faced by the adults in the job. Children can expect to be putting out a fire should they wish to be a fireman, perform surgery on a patient if they desire to be a surgeon or pilot an airplane if flying is what they want. Creating an interior design piece or even hosting a television or radio program is possible too; as mentioned, almost possible occupation thought of is available for role-playing at KidZania.

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KidZania was not set up with the intention of gearing and grooming children to be doctors, lawyers and engineers as their parents would want them to be. Instead, KidZania places its main focus on creating a fun playground with sufficient freedom for the children to develop their abilities so that they will have more insights on his/her preference and interest. It is certainly wonderful to expose the children to available opportunities; after all, it is at this young age that perceptions and interests are formed. The children’s growth and development are stimulated too through the instilling of confidence and promotion of creativity and innovation.

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Opening hours of KidZania

A spacious playroom that can cater up to 1,700 people at a time is where you’d want your kids to be. KidZania is open daily from 10am to 5pm Mondays to Fridays. On weekends, school holidays and public holidays, they are open for a longer time until 9 p.m., giving your children ample time to learn about their desired profession. KidZania is indeed something different for the kids to do, unlike the regular play centre where they would just tire themselves out running up slides and swinging about.

Mon – Fri: 10am to 5pm
Sat / Sun / Public Holidays / School Holidays: 10am to 3pm (Session 1) and 4pm to 9pm (Session 2)

Entrance fees KidZania

Baby (aged 0-1): Malaysian/Non-Malaysian (Free)
Toddler (aged 2-3): Malaysian/Non-Malaysian (RM35)
Kid (aged 4-17): Malaysian (RM55) Non-Malaysian (RM75)
Adult (aged 18-59) : Malaysian (RM35) Non-Malaysian (RM50)
Senior Citizen (aged 60 above) : Malaysian/Non-Malaysian (RM30)

Contact details address KidZania

KidZania Petaling Jaya
Curve NX
Mutiara Damansara
47810 Petaling Jaya
Tel: 1300 88 KIDZ (5439)
Fax: + 603 7839 9488
Email: [email protected]
Website: http://www.kidzania.com.my

How to get to KidZania

KidZania is located at the intersection between Ikea, The Curve and the big Tesco. There is ample parking space in the area (you can park easily at Ikea and cross the road, or park within the building). Every taxi driver knows the way to IPC Shopping Centre (formerly known as Ikano Power Centre). Getting a taxi back to your hotel in the city center of Kuala Lumpur might be tricky, as taxi drivers around IPC are known for charging high prices. Alternatively you can take the LRT to Kelana Jaya and take the (free) shuttle bus to IPC Shopping Centre.

Video KidZania

Map of KidZania

Suggestions?

Got any good tips to share with us? Do you know of any great things to do in Kuala Lumpur, or tips on the best places to eat? Let us know by leaving a reply below!

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