PETALING JAYA, March 8 — Delicious apom manis is hard to come by. Usually, we’re more accustomed to the plain-tasting apom served at Indian eateries with crisp edges and a slightly soft middle that is eaten dipped in coconut milk.
In Penang, the apom is sweeter with a rich eggy taste hence its name, apom manis. It’s best eaten plain.
Usually, you find these Indian sweet crepes within Chinese coffeeshops in Penang. One famous stall is located at Restoran Swee Kong, Pulau Tikus, where the sweet-tasting crepes are prepared using an old-style cooking method with Indian clay pots or belanga, and the fiery heat from a charcoal fire.
About a year ago, Penang native Divagaran Ganasan, 30 and his wife, Fonsica Mikkel, 30, decided to start a stall in Subang Jaya to sell apom manis.
Divagaran, who works in sales and marketing for his family business, set up the stall for his wife to run. He had relocated from Butterworth, about 10 years ago.
According to him, he picked apom manis since it’s simple to make and it is less work compared to other food items. Initially his wife wanted to serve Indian food like thosai, puri and chapati but Divagaran felt there’s a niche for apom manis since it’s not readily found in the Klang Valley.
He follows the same trend in Penang — opening his stall within Chinese coffeeshops. The name of the stall, D’Rachna Recipe, is a take on Divagaran and his daughter, Rachna’s names.
The apom manis is made according to a family recipe, which is inherited from Divagaran’s grandmother who was taught how to make the sweet crepes by a Chinese woman.
Eaten on its own, fresh from the small wok, the apom manis tastes like a softer and bigger kuih kapit with its mixture of eggs, coconut milk, rice flour and sugar.
The couple tweaked the recipe a little, to give it a plainer taste, using fewer eggs compared to the Penang apom manis. This makes it a better pairing with all kinds of fillings like brown sugar, bananas and corn.
They prefer to only use pisang berangan in the apom manis for its fragrance and slight sourish taste. Divagaran’s idea was to offer varieties to keep customers happy by using a famous apam balik stall in Penang that has all kinds of fillings as a benchmark.
The couple took about two to three months working on the recipe and its method to perfect it prior to opening their stall in Restaurant Sin Kong, USJ Taipan. Last September, they expanded to another stall at Restoran Meisek.
About 40 to 60 per cent of Divagaran’s customers are from Penang who miss the taste of the apom manis from their hometown. For that distinct soft and rich eggy taste, just ask him to make it the Penang way and he’ll just beat an extra egg into the batter.
Adaptation is his key to success. He can even make the crepe with crispier edges and a thinner middle, just like the sweet crispy apom often sold by the Chinese in the markets.
The presentation is also customisable. Usually he folds his apom manis, rather than leave it open like they do Penang. Some of his customers even ask him to roll the apom manis a few times to make it easier to eat.
Even though tradition calls for charcoal fire and clay pots, they prefer modern appliances, like a non-stick wok and normal gas fire as it makes it easier to control the fire.
Aside from these two stalls, the business will be expanded through franchises. People have approached them to open at other Chinese coffeeshops but due to the lack of manpower, they prefer to provide them with the batter and the know-how to make the apom manis. You can look out for two more stalls opening in Puchong Kinrara and USJ1 later in the year.
The young couple is also open to giving a helping hand to single mothers. According to Divagaran, they can provide the stall complete with equipment and the batter, while the single mothers can work for profits selling the apom manis.
D’Rachna Recipe Apom Manis
Restoran Mei Sek
No. 10 & 12, Jalan USJ 14/1K, Subang Jaya
Open: 7am to 3pm
Restoran Sin Kong
25, Jalan USJ10/1C, USJ Taipan, Subang Jaya
Open: 7pm to 11pm.
Tel: 011-2636 5571.
