Chapter 122 - Bedak Sejuk Lean Seng, Balik Pulau, Penang

Another hidden beauty gem in Balik Pulau is no other than Bedak Sejuk Lean Seng. I am not sure how to pronounce this in English but if we go with direct English translation, it is called Cool Powder - not sure if this sounds right.

Anyway, we walked for like a few minutes till we reached this place. It was rather sunny at that point of time and we were drenched in sweat. Somehow, the owner of this Bedak Sejuk thanked God for such a hot and sunny weather. He was telling us that this was the kind of weather he opted for whole day long.

We were the only visitors there and he was busy arranging the powder. Some of the trays were collected before the powder was being dried further to avoid any breakage. Being such a helpful bunch of young people, we offered our help. In fact, if you would like to participate in the process of making the bedak sejuk, you can - all you need to do is to make an early booking and if I am not wrong, each person is required to pay RM2.00 and you can walk home with a bottle of bedak sejuk.

 This was what we were being greeted when we stepped into this factory. Trays of bedak sejuk were "sunbathing" under the hot sun.

He is the current owner of Bedak Sejuk Lean Seng. He explained to us on the process to make the bedak sejuk and we listened to him attentively. 

There are several process in making this. 

Step 1 - wash the broken rice and soak them in a water for at least 1 month for fermentation.

Step 2 - after fermentation process, wash it again and blend it into paste.

Step 3 - filter the paste and hang out to dry it in a bag.

Step 4 - mix with water and put it in a tray to produce bedak sejuk. Dry it under the sun for 2 hours. Remove the powder from the tray and leave it in the room for one night.

Step 5 - continue drying the powder under the sun for 4 to 5 days until they are completely dry.

Step 6 - Once it is 100% dry, the powder is ready to be packed and then sell in the market.

This is me, in Step 4, helping to remove the powder from the trays.

For those who are health caution, fret not - bedak sejuk in Balik Pulau is proven to be chemical free. Anyone, be it those with oily skin, dry skin, uneven skin tone or even those with allergic skin, can use this bedak sejuk!  

Hence, I bought a bottle of it!

RM 5.00 for each bottle.

Overall, it is quite an educational journey to learn about Bedak Sejuk. I have never come across Bedak Sejuk so this is truly something new for me. If you notice, the bedak is not really in powder form. What you need to do is to take 2 - 3 pcs and put it on your bare hands. Then, put some water to dilute them and then you can start to apply it wherever you want. 

~Review~

I wish I can share my photo here but I guess better not - I look so awful when I apply it especially with white powders on my face. Nevertheless, when it is dried up and you even it on your face, you will notice that your face is so smooth. Like literally smooth. You can definitely try them out but one thing to take note is to bear with the smell - after all, these are made from fermented rice.

Kilang Bedak Sejuk Lean Seng,
Kampung Jalan Baru,
11010 Balik Pulau, Pulau Pinang.

Regards,
Foodiestravel

Chapter 121 - Ghee Hup Nutmeg Factory, Balik Pulau, Pinang

Since we are on the must-visit places in Balik Pulau, Pinang, let me introduce another stop which is at Nutmeg Factory, Balik Pulau. Upon stepping into this area, you will be greeted with cold nutmeg drinks. 

Such a perfect moment especially when the weather was so hot! We quickly gulped in a few mini cups before we started our journey to understand about nutmeg. Lady boss was very kind and she explained to us tediously on what is nutmeg and the benefits of it. I learnt a lot from this place!

Some nutritional facts were shared on the board, allowing visitors like myself to know and understand about nutmeg. When I was younger, I remember that I came across this smell. Neither did I know that these familiar smell  is actually from nutmeg.

A basket of nutmegs 

In fact, there are two types of nutmegs. One is the male version and another one is female version. The ones that you see above are all female version where they have one line on the outer layer and it contains one seed only. Whereas the male version has two lines on the outer layer, more like a cross line and it contains two seeds. If you notice the empty nutmeg in the red basket, that is the male version.

Holla! This is the female nutmeg. The bright red skein located around the nutmeg seed is called as mace. Mace is usually used in cooking or act as a medicinal spice. Only mature female nutmeg has the bright red skein. The immature ones will have white skein only. 

Comparison between the mature female nutmeg and young female nutmeg.

I know it sounds a bit weird on how I address it but somehow, with this kind of explaination, I trust that you will easily understand it :)

Look at the damage that I had brought to my pocket!

Thinking that I would rarely go to Balik Pulau, I had the kiasu mind and bought a few bottles of it. When we chatted further with the lady boss, she actually told us that she could courier to us if we needed to buy one. After all, many of her Singaporean clients did ask her to courier the nutmeg oil to them.

In total, nutmeg factory is quite an eye-opening experience as we rarely have the privilege to come across this precious nuts. Therefore, if you have the chance to visit this place, by all means, I suggest you to pay a visit there. After all, there is no entrance fee! Also, you get to trench your thirst with delicious nutmeg drink!

By the way, please don't expect that you will see machines on how they process the nutmeg. In reality, they bring the nuts to their workers who literally work from their own places. Once they have completed, that's where the owner will bring it back to this so-called factory and do the rest of the work. #jomcuba

Ghee Hup Nutmeg Factory,

MK 3, 202A, Jalan Tanjung Bungah, Kampung Sungai Pinang, 11000 Balik Pulau, Pinang.

Regards,

Foodiestravel

Chapter 120 - Saanen Dairy Goat Farm, Balik Pulau, Penang

Such a blissful weekend getaway! 

Thanks to the long holiday, I was able to join a group of friends to Penang for local Penang dishes. We were there for about 5 days and we had a different view now towards Penang. Instead of just having the local dishes like Char Kuey Teow and Penang Asam Laksa, we spent 2 days and 1 night at Balik Pulau.

I would say that it is one of the hidden gems in Penang since not many people actually treat this place as a tourist attraction. I don't see hotels there and even, we could not get an AirBnb stay there. 

                   

One of the places that we visited was no other than Saanen Dairy Goat Farm. Located at the north of Balik Pulau, according to the map that we got from Nature Farm Resort,  Saanen Dairy Goat Farm is free! When I said it is free, it means no entrance fee.

Upon parking, you can just head to the rest area and collect a stack of grass where you can feed the goat. Note that it is free! #whateverthatisfreewemusthighlightit

I enjoyed feeding the goats but not until when I was surrounded by all of them. It was quite enjoying watching the goats but it lasted for a while only. Besides feeding the goats and playing with the cats, there wasn't much thing you can do there. Oh ya, we saw a kancil or kijang...whatever name that you call it.

                  

                   

After feeding, we sampled some of their own produce like goat pudding, goat ice cream and goat milk which comes in 3 flavors (original, strawberry and chocolates). I opted for the original to taste it.

Voila...It was not something that I usually had. It does not even taste like goat milk hence, we went and asked the owner's daughter on why is it so. 

                  

"Well, goat milk is depends on what the owner feed them. In Saanen Dairy Goat Farm, the goat are fed with their own vegetables and plants," said the daughter. In fact, they actually have a vegetables farm, located a stone away from Saanen Dairy Goat Farm where the plantation is catered just for the goat.

After that, Mr Ho, the owner brought a group of bikers to see what rubber trees are and we tailed along. We were also being educated on a children game which was played back then using rubber seed. It is called windmill at that era. And of course, I did play along with it and hooray...I can actually blend in with this nature retreat lifestyle instead of just staying in the city.

Overall, if you have time to spend which I believe you would if you stay at least 2 nights in Balik Pulau, I reckon you to pay a visit to Saanen Dairy Goat Farm. It may be quite a distance from the town itself to Saanen Dairy Goat Farm but if you love animals, then you would definitely enjoy it.

Address : 298 Mukim 1, Sungai Pinang, 11010 Balik Pulau, Pinang.

Operating hour: Daily (from 10am to 5pm)

Happy touring!

Regards,

Foodiestravel