A man tending to a roaring fire where several lemang in bamboo are being cooked at a stall in Hulu Kelang, Selangor. — Photos: AZMAN GHANI, ART CHEN and KK SHAM/The Star
LEMANG, a staple dish during Hari Raya festivities, is often served during social gatherings.
It is usually enjoyed with rendang (slow-cooked meat braised in coconut milk), serunding (meat floss) or kuah kacang (peanut sauce).
Making this favourite involves meticulous preparation, know-how and patience.
Glutinous rice is mixed with coconut milk, seasoned with salt, then poured into bamboo that has been cleaned and lined with banana leaf.
The bamboo is then placed over an open fire using charcoal and rotated every now and again for it to cook evenly.
The fire gives the lemang that delicate smoky flavour it is known for.
There are also variations based on taste or region, such as additional ingredients like corn or even durian.
Many usually buy lemang from roadside stalls during the festive season.
Depending on size, a tube of lemang is typically sold for between RM12 and RM30 in the Klang Valley.
Gallery
A trader arranging bamboo tubes filled with glutinous rice along a rack over hot embers in Hulu Kelang.
Workers at a lemang stall in Kampung Bukit Badak, Klang, Selangor, lining bamboo with banana leaf.
Kampung Bukit Badak stall owner Abdul Samad says he sells up to 4,000 lemang tubes a day during the festive season.
[Optional] Lemang, a traditional Malay dish, is cooked over open fire. — ART CHEN/The Star
Trader Sabri Mokhtar checking on cooked lemang at his stall in Taman Tun Dr Ismail, Kuala Lumpur.
Lemang is a traditional dish of glutinous rice with coconut milk, cooked in bamboo lined with banana leaf.
