PETALING JAYA, Apr 7 — Random food finds always taste better. Maybe the food is sprinkled with a magic element of surprise?
It was pure coincidence I stumbled upon this fried rice cake stall.
What piqued my interest was the golden brown “sandwiches” of fried nian gao, sweet potato and taro (or yam as everyone calls it here) being fried in hot oil.
Fried snacks galore at the Taman Megah stall. — Picture by Lee Khang Yi
Being the forever inquisitive person, I bought a piece of their Fried Rice Cake (RM3 for one piece, RM5 for two pieces) to just test it out.
Before I even got to my car, I was munching on it already.
What struck me was its perfect ratio of sweet potato, yam and rice cake, enveloped in a crispy hug of fried, light batter.
Afternoon tea is made better with the crispy snacks. — Picture by Lee Khang Yi
Here, the rice cake was gooey when eaten hot from the wok, retaining a pull apart texture that doesn’t completely melt away into a hot mess, after all the heat from the frying
Another plus point is the naturally orange coloured tuber had a distinctive sweetness, while the yam was fluffy.
That satisfying bite had me make a turnaround to return to the stall and buy more of the crunchy snacks.
It’s obviously best to eat it fresh from the stall otherwise just air fry it at home to crisp up the batter.
Fried Durian was a joy to eat with the creamy flesh (left) and the Fried Cempedak (right) yields soft, sweet flesh inside the crispy pocket. — Picture by Lee Khang Yi
There’s also a pandan version, apparently made by stir frying the rice flour with pandan leaves to perfume it with that sweet, grassy aroma.
Another visit to the stall, newly opened in Megah Good Luck Restaurant, saw me buying more fried goodies for afternoon nibbles.
Fried Durian (RM3) turned out to be crispy nuggets of joy, where creamy durian flesh meets crunchy batter. More please!
In their hands, Fried Cempedak (RM2) yields a sweet, slightly caramelised treat with the crispy exterior.
The stall has a distinct look, used in all of the other branches too. — Picture by Lee Khang Yi
Since there’s a seed inside, one will start craving for more of the yellow, sweet flesh of the fruit, after tasting its sweetness.
The price also varies, depending on the size of the fruit used.
The Fried Banana (RM2) had a thicker coating that seemed to engulf the smaller size banana that is soft and slightly caramelised from the deep frying.
This stall has a network of branches all over the Klang Valley, like Puchong, Taman Muda, Kepong, Sungai Long, There’s also a stall in Kuantan. A full list can be found on their Instagram page.
In Taman Megah, this corner coffee shop also offers ‘popiah’, roast pork noodles, ‘mee Jawa’ and more. — Picture by Lee Khang Yi
The Big Tree Fried Rice Cake,
Restoran Megah Good Luck, 1,
Jalan SS24/11,
Taman Megah, Petaling Jaya.
Open: 7am to 3pm.
Closed on alternate Mondays.
Tel:013-6637375.
Instagram: @bigtree.zhaniangao
*This is an independent review where the writer paid for the meal.
* Follow us on Instagram @eatdrinkmm for more food gems.
