Otak Otak Muar at OT Frozen Food Trading in Taman Desa Jaya, Johor Bahru

 

My foodie buddies Joe and Kumes have been talking about OT Frozen Food Trading for a while and I finally made a visit yesterday. OT Frozen Food Trading makes otak otak at a shop lot in Taman Desa Jaya and supplies many traders and stalls in JB.

OT Frozen Food Trading was started 13 years ago in Taman Desa Jaya in JB by MR Goh who hailed from Muar, the Johor seaside town famous for otak otak. The otak otak at OT Frozen Food are made using the recipe handed down by MR Goh's grandmother.

MR Goh's workers have been with him since OT Frozen Food Trading started. The simply organised work area had a calm and quiet efficiency and purpose.

MR Goh's shop felt more like kampung style communal cooking than a mass production factory. It still relies on traditional recipes and methods, only that MR Goh has organised his workers and work flow to produce the volume required by his customers.

MR Goh makes his otak otak with fresh Ikan Tengiri, Ikan Parang and shrimps everyday. 

Fish otak otak in leaf

Besides supplying to traders and stalls, OT Frozen Food also sells its otak otak to walk in customers. The current walk in price list is as follows:

  Fish in leaf (cooked) - 60sen per piece
  Shrimp in leaf (cooked) - 70sen per piece
  Fish head in leaf (cooked) - 90sen per piece
  Fish 200 gram slab in box (cooked) - RM5 per box
  Shrimp 200 gram slab in box (cooked) - RM5.50 per box.

I brought home an assortment of flavours. We just steamed those that came in slabs and tossed those that came in leaves in the mini toaster oven. I am eating them as I wrote this post.

Fish otak otak

The otak otak made entirely with spiced grounded fish or shrimp meat and coconut milk was tender, sweet and juicy. There was none of that stiffer, lifeless mouth feel that betrays the overuse of starchy bulk fillers. As OT's otak otak do not use artificial colouring it only had a light orangey hue from the curry spices instead of the bright, almost inky red colour we see in other average otak otak. 

Shrimp otak otak

OT's otak otak is spicy without being stinging but the spiciness lingers pleasantly like a fragrant, mint in the mouth for a while after the meal.

Photo courtesy of Kumes

I love the fish head otak otak as I enjoy picking through the head bones for the interesting tastes and textures of the gelatinous bits :)

It is worthwhile making a trip to OT Frozen Food Trading, if you want to stock up on otak otak at home.

Restaurant name: OT Frozen Food Trading
Address: 28, Jalan Permatang 12, Taman Desa Jaya, Johor Bahru
Map: http://goo.gl/maps/eOeOC
GPS: 1.558235,103.803795
Hours: 9:00am to 5:00pm (rest on Sunday)
Certified Halal

Date visited: 28 Dec 2012

 

My foodie buddies Joe and Kumes have been talking about OT Frozen Food Trading for a while and I finally made a visit yesterday. OT Frozen Food Trading makes otak otak at a shop lot in Taman Desa Jaya and supplies many traders and stalls in JB.

OT Frozen Food Trading was started 13 years ago in Taman Desa Jaya in JB by MR Goh who hailed from Muar, the Johor seaside town famous for otak otak. The otak otak at OT Frozen Food are made using the recipe handed down by MR Goh's grandmother.

MR Goh's workers have been with him since OT Frozen Food Trading started. The simply organised work area had a calm and quiet efficiency and purpose.

MR Goh's shop felt more like kampung style communal cooking than a mass production factory. It still relies on traditional recipes and methods, only that MR Goh has organised his workers and work flow to produce the volume required by his customers.

MR Goh makes his otak otak with fresh Ikan Tengiri, Ikan Parang and shrimps everyday. 

Fish otak otak in leaf

Besides supplying to traders and stalls, OT Frozen Food also sells its otak otak to walk in customers. The current walk in price list is as follows:

  Fish in leaf (cooked) - 60sen per piece
  Shrimp in leaf (cooked) - 70sen per piece
  Fish head in leaf (cooked) - 90sen per piece
  Fish 200 gram slab in box (cooked) - RM5 per box
  Shrimp 200 gram slab in box (cooked) - RM5.50 per box.

I brought home an assortment of flavours. We just steamed those that came in slabs and tossed those that came in leaves in the mini toaster oven. I am eating them as I wrote this post.

Fish otak otak

The otak otak made entirely with spiced grounded fish or shrimp meat and coconut milk was tender, sweet and juicy. There was none of that stiffer, lifeless mouth feel that betrays the overuse of starchy bulk fillers. As OT's otak otak do not use artificial colouring it only had a light orangey hue from the curry spices instead of the bright, almost inky red colour we see in other average otak otak. 

Shrimp otak otak

OT's otak otak is spicy without being stinging but the spiciness lingers pleasantly like a fragrant, mint in the mouth for a while after the meal.

Photo courtesy of Kumes

I love the fish head otak otak as I enjoy picking through the head bones for the interesting tastes and textures of the gelatinous bits :)

It is worthwhile making a trip to OT Frozen Food Trading, if you want to stock up on otak otak at home.

Restaurant name: OT Frozen Food Trading
Address: 28, Jalan Permatang 12, Taman Desa Jaya, Johor Bahru
Map: http://goo.gl/maps/eOeOC
GPS: 1.558235,103.803795
Hours: 9:00am to 5:00pm (rest on Sunday)
Certified Halal

Date visited: 28 Dec 2012

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Shanghai Mooncakes @ 63 茶餐室 Kopitiam Restoran Loh Sang in Taman Desa Jaya, Johor Bahru, Malaysia

 

This is the Shanghai mooncake 上海月饼 from 63 茶餐室 Restoran Loh Sang in Taman Desa Jaya, Johor Bahru. The dense not-too-sweet lotus paste wraps a salted egg yolk which is itself encased in a flaky pastry. How flaky? The pastry looked like it will crumble, if I stared at it too hard. The buttery pastry started to crumble when I gently lifted it and it melted on my tongue before I could close my mouth! No kidding.

One thing that fascinates me about the Johor food scene is that there is still space for small niche players to thrive and succeed. The Mid Autumn Festival (mooncake festival) is approaching and the usual big players are gearing up to flood the market with their fanciful factory made mooncakes in impressive, expensive packaging.

Yet there are small businesses that still make their mooncakes by hand and have a growing clientele that insists on homemade mooncakes made without preservatives and artificial flavourings. But nowadays, we can count the number of such boutique bakeries with the fingers of just one hand. One such is 63 Kopitiam Restoran Loh Sang in Taman Desa Jaya.

Looking at its "run of the mill" kopitiam shopfront, who would have guessed that 63 茶餐室 Kopitiam makes one of the best Shanghai Mooncakes 上海月饼 in Johor and some even say the whole of Malaysia? I can't say that since I have not eaten mooncakes from the whole of Malaysia yet :P

On a normal day, 63 Kopitiam sells "economic mix vegetable rice" and their popular homemade breads and buns which are freshly made everyday without using any preservatives.

During the annual Mid Autumn Festival, the owner MR Chia 謝 will make his highly popular Shanghai mooncakes.

Everything is done by hand here in 63 茶餐室 Kopitiam by MR Chia and one worker, so the amount of Shanghai mooncakes made is always limited.

MR Chia kneading the dough for the flaky crust.

Preparing the lotus seed paste and the salted egg yolk stuffing.

The lotus seed paste and salted egg filling are rolled into a tight ball, one by one.

The lotus seed paste/ salted egg yolk stuffing in the foreground are then wrapped in dough to make the Shanghai mooncakes in the background of this photo.

MR Chia applying egg wash to the tray of Shanghai mooncakes - the final step before baking them in the oven.



 

The Shanghai mooncakes in the oven.

 

 

The piping hot, golden brown Shanghai mooncakes straight out of the oven. MR Chia sells each box of 4 of these Shanghai mooncakes with lotus seed paste and single salted egg yolk at RM34.

MR Chia told me that this year, he will be renting a small stand at City Square Mall in downtown JB to sell his famous Shanghai mooncakes. Look out for 63 茶餐室 Kopitiam's unique handmade Shanghai mooncakes if you are shopping for mooncakes in City Square Mall.

Restaurant name: 63 茶餐室 Kopitiam Restoran Loh Sang
Address: 6, Jalan Danau 3, Taman Desa Jaya, Johor Bahru
Map: http://goo.gl/maps/UXEJS
GPS: 1.555211,103.805640
Hours: 8:00am to 4:00pm
No pork, no lard

Date visited: 27 Aug 2012

 

This is the Shanghai mooncake 上海月饼 from 63 茶餐室 Restoran Loh Sang in Taman Desa Jaya, Johor Bahru. The dense not-too-sweet lotus paste wraps a salted egg yolk which is itself encased in a flaky pastry. How flaky? The pastry looked like it will crumble, if I stared at it too hard. The buttery pastry started to crumble when I gently lifted it and it melted on my tongue before I could close my mouth! No kidding.

One thing that fascinates me about the Johor food scene is that there is still space for small niche players to thrive and succeed. The Mid Autumn Festival (mooncake festival) is approaching and the usual big players are gearing up to flood the market with their fanciful factory made mooncakes in impressive, expensive packaging.

Yet there are small businesses that still make their mooncakes by hand and have a growing clientele that insists on homemade mooncakes made without preservatives and artificial flavourings. But nowadays, we can count the number of such boutique bakeries with the fingers of just one hand. One such is 63 Kopitiam Restoran Loh Sang in Taman Desa Jaya.

Looking at its "run of the mill" kopitiam shopfront, who would have guessed that 63 茶餐室 Kopitiam makes one of the best Shanghai Mooncakes 上海月饼 in Johor and some even say the whole of Malaysia? I can't say that since I have not eaten mooncakes from the whole of Malaysia yet :P

On a normal day, 63 Kopitiam sells "economic mix vegetable rice" and their popular homemade breads and buns which are freshly made everyday without using any preservatives.

During the annual Mid Autumn Festival, the owner MR Chia 謝 will make his highly popular Shanghai mooncakes.

Everything is done by hand here in 63 茶餐室 Kopitiam by MR Chia and one worker, so the amount of Shanghai mooncakes made is always limited.

MR Chia kneading the dough for the flaky crust.

Preparing the lotus seed paste and the salted egg yolk stuffing.

The lotus seed paste and salted egg filling are rolled into a tight ball, one by one.

The lotus seed paste/ salted egg yolk stuffing in the foreground are then wrapped in dough to make the Shanghai mooncakes in the background of this photo.

MR Chia applying egg wash to the tray of Shanghai mooncakes - the final step before baking them in the oven.



 

The Shanghai mooncakes in the oven.

 

 

The piping hot, golden brown Shanghai mooncakes straight out of the oven. MR Chia sells each box of 4 of these Shanghai mooncakes with lotus seed paste and single salted egg yolk at RM34.

MR Chia told me that this year, he will be renting a small stand at City Square Mall in downtown JB to sell his famous Shanghai mooncakes. Look out for 63 茶餐室 Kopitiam's unique handmade Shanghai mooncakes if you are shopping for mooncakes in City Square Mall.

Restaurant name: 63 茶餐室 Kopitiam Restoran Loh Sang
Address: 6, Jalan Danau 3, Taman Desa Jaya, Johor Bahru
Map: http://goo.gl/maps/UXEJS
GPS: 1.555211,103.805640
Hours: 8:00am to 4:00pm
No pork, no lard

Date visited: 27 Aug 2012

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