Soon to be new zealand favourite dish. As in UK, japan, germany. Surrender and submit.
Klang boy’s Nasi Kandar a big hit with New Zealanders
Sean Augustin
-
February 6, 2021 7:00 AM
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Joel Singam and his wife, Alexandra Kumaran. (Lincoln Tan pic)
PETALING JAYA: Nursing a depression after losing his job, Joel Singam was trying to distract himself with a football game on his PS4 at his home in Auckland, New Zealand, when his wife, Alexandra Kumaran, blurted out an idea.
“Why don’t you start selling Nasi Kandar?”
And Singam, a one-time chef and top car salesman for Australian carmaker Holden until he was retrenched last year, pounced on the idea, just like that.
How could he go wrong with Nasi Kandar, he thought?
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For one, Singam had travelled to every corner of Malaysia with his father, an insurance adjuster, and had acquired a taste for local cuisine.
Secondly, he was a chef albeit an Italian-trained one.
Thirdly, as he and his wife had observed, there was no proper Indian-Muslim restaurant in their neighbourhood that catered to a big halal market.
“So, my wife tells me, ‘we have all these recipes already in our heads, we should open a Nasi Kandar outlet’.
“It was a light-bulb moment,” Joel, a self-confessed foodie, tells FMT.
So Singam and Kumaran hammered out a plan, rolled up their sleeves and got a stall going at the weekly night market.
They called it “Nasi Kandar Pulau Pinang by Chef Joe”.
Some of the Nasi Kandar dishes sold at the Auckland night market in New Zealand. (Joel Singam pic).
As theirs was the only stall selling authentic Nasi Kandar, word, he said, spread like wildfire, and fuelled by an article in the New Zealand Herald, many Kiwis began dropping by for a taste of Penang.
When Singam and Kumaran first started, 80% of their customers were Malaysians. Now that business has boomed, Malaysians account for only 30%, while the rest are Kiwis, including Maoris and Pacific Islanders.
“They love the spices, the mutton and lamb curries, and the rice. They love the roti canai as well!”
There are roughly 10,000 Malaysians in Auckland. So, one can imagine how some of them were understandably amused upon hearing that Singam from Klang, and Kumaran from Kepong were selling Nasi Kandar from Penang!
The Penangites in particular, Singam says, can be rather territorial about their island cuisines. “So, I tell them it’s my personal rendition of Nasi Kandar from Penang.”
From left: Mutton curry, fish Curry and cabbage served at Joel’s Nasi Kandar stall. (Joel Singam pic).
Singam, more than anyone else, knows the weight the “Nasi Kandar from Penang” brand carries, so he goes out of the way to procure only the best ingredients to ensure the authenticity of the flavours even if it bumps up his cost.
These include such must-haves like lemongrass and kaffir lime leaves. His name, Singam says, is more important than money, although a patriotic streak also spurs him to perfect his craft.
“I also carry Malaysia’s Nasi Kandar’s reputation in New Zealand.”
Since opening in August last year, Singam’s business has done well. Often, they’re all sold out even before closing time.
He credits his success to his family and friends, who have been pillars of strength, and to all the other Malaysians who have supported his business.
Singam makes a special call-out to Dave Ananth, an Auckland based lawyer and president of the New Zealand Malaysian Business Association, who helped and advised him in his new venture.
Joel’s wife, Alexandra Kumaran, attends to customers at the night market. (Joel Singam pic).
But a special place in his heart is reserved for his wife, who Singam says is his rock.
He tells FMT that Kumaran was constantly by his side, particularly after he was let go and still too shell-shocked over what to do with his future.
It was Kumaran, a former assistant human resources manager at a property firm, who encouraged him to re-embrace his first passion – cooking.
“She is my inspiration. She reminded me of all the Malaysian curry recipes I have, and told me I could become the Malaysian Sergio in Auckland!” he said, referring to Italian chef Sergio Maglione.
For now, Singam is focussed on opening a commercial kitchen, and selling bottled sauces.
Currently, all the preparation and cooking are done at home, he says, but adds, “Somewhere down the line, I want to open a restaurant, and I’ll call it ‘Kandar by Chef Joe’”
Klang boy’s Nasi Kandar a big hit with New Zealanders
Sean Augustin
-
February 6, 2021 7:00 AM
5kShares
PETALING JAYA: Nursing a depression after losing his job, Joel Singam was trying to distract himself with a football game on his PS4 at his home in Auckland, New Zealand, when his wife, Alexandra Kumaran, blurted out an idea.
“Why don’t you start selling Nasi Kandar?”
And Singam, a one-time chef and top car salesman for Australian carmaker Holden until he was retrenched last year, pounced on the idea, just like that.
How could he go wrong with Nasi Kandar, he thought?
Powered by Streamlyn
For one, Singam had travelled to every corner of Malaysia with his father, an insurance adjuster, and had acquired a taste for local cuisine.
Secondly, he was a chef albeit an Italian-trained one.
Thirdly, as he and his wife had observed, there was no proper Indian-Muslim restaurant in their neighbourhood that catered to a big halal market.
“So, my wife tells me, ‘we have all these recipes already in our heads, we should open a Nasi Kandar outlet’.
“It was a light-bulb moment,” Joel, a self-confessed foodie, tells FMT.
So Singam and Kumaran hammered out a plan, rolled up their sleeves and got a stall going at the weekly night market.
They called it “Nasi Kandar Pulau Pinang by Chef Joe”.
As theirs was the only stall selling authentic Nasi Kandar, word, he said, spread like wildfire, and fuelled by an article in the New Zealand Herald, many Kiwis began dropping by for a taste of Penang.
When Singam and Kumaran first started, 80% of their customers were Malaysians. Now that business has boomed, Malaysians account for only 30%, while the rest are Kiwis, including Maoris and Pacific Islanders.
“They love the spices, the mutton and lamb curries, and the rice. They love the roti canai as well!”
There are roughly 10,000 Malaysians in Auckland. So, one can imagine how some of them were understandably amused upon hearing that Singam from Klang, and Kumaran from Kepong were selling Nasi Kandar from Penang!
The Penangites in particular, Singam says, can be rather territorial about their island cuisines. “So, I tell them it’s my personal rendition of Nasi Kandar from Penang.”
Singam, more than anyone else, knows the weight the “Nasi Kandar from Penang” brand carries, so he goes out of the way to procure only the best ingredients to ensure the authenticity of the flavours even if it bumps up his cost.
These include such must-haves like lemongrass and kaffir lime leaves. His name, Singam says, is more important than money, although a patriotic streak also spurs him to perfect his craft.
“I also carry Malaysia’s Nasi Kandar’s reputation in New Zealand.”
Since opening in August last year, Singam’s business has done well. Often, they’re all sold out even before closing time.
He credits his success to his family and friends, who have been pillars of strength, and to all the other Malaysians who have supported his business.
Singam makes a special call-out to Dave Ananth, an Auckland based lawyer and president of the New Zealand Malaysian Business Association, who helped and advised him in his new venture.
But a special place in his heart is reserved for his wife, who Singam says is his rock.
He tells FMT that Kumaran was constantly by his side, particularly after he was let go and still too shell-shocked over what to do with his future.
It was Kumaran, a former assistant human resources manager at a property firm, who encouraged him to re-embrace his first passion – cooking.
“She is my inspiration. She reminded me of all the Malaysian curry recipes I have, and told me I could become the Malaysian Sergio in Auckland!” he said, referring to Italian chef Sergio Maglione.
For now, Singam is focussed on opening a commercial kitchen, and selling bottled sauces.
Currently, all the preparation and cooking are done at home, he says, but adds, “Somewhere down the line, I want to open a restaurant, and I’ll call it ‘Kandar by Chef Joe’”
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