Sticking to the original apam balik recipe

Budiman is generous with his apam balik fillings

THE stall owner of Apam Balik Al Masyoor has been using the same recipe he inherited from his father until today.

Owner Budiman Asrizal said he learned it from his father who used to sell apam balik in Jasin, Melaka.

“No changes have been made to the recipe as I want to maintain the original taste of my father’s apam balik,” he said.

Also known as murtabak manis, the apam balik is a sweet and simple snack.

Cooked in a hot mould, the pancake is topped with sugar, toasted ground peanuts and sweet creamed corn.

He uses the same traditional tool and method employed by his father – rattan stems tied together to form a whisk to mix the batter.

The ground peanuts are toasted over a low heat for more than an hour to obtain the crunchy texture.

Budiman chose to set up his stall in Jalan Pantai Permai 1 in Pantai Dalam, Kuala Lumpur, and he has been operating there since 2012.

Manned by two young men, the owner makes the fluffy apam balik while his assistant packs the apam balik for customers.

The stall serves three versions of the apam balik – original (topped with creamed corn and peanuts), chocolate and plain (with sugar only).

Best eaten hot, the plain version will probably appeal to those who are concerned about the amount of calories consumed.

I, on the other hand, love my apam balik sweet with plenty of creamed corn and not-too-thick pastry, which is just the way this stall serves the original version.

The chocolate version looks tempting with the melted chocolate dripping from the apam balik but it might be too much for me.

The original apam balik is priced at RM3. Customers can get extra peanuts or corn for an additional 50sen.

The chocolate version is priced at RM4 while the plain one is RM2.

The stall is open from Sunday to Thursday, from 11am to 7.30pm.