Sunday, July 04, 2010

Getting A Real Whiff of Petai Beans

Petai Beans

When I first ate some of those local petai beans earlier this week, they didn't seem as bad as my colleagues made it out to be. Only today when I happened to be at a supermarket did I get a whiff of how smelly they really were.

Oh man, these were horrible! They didn't have anywhere near the range as durian, but they were very strong once I brought them closer to my nose. My head instinctively jerked backwards while expletives left my mouth.

In retrospect, I guess I did taste some of that in the cooked version, but I thought it was because of a salty Chinese fermented bean paste or something. Well, now I finally know how this stuff got its stinky name.

8 comments:

mkia said...

That was some really funny descriptions... So did u get asparagus pee after that time u eat?

Disgusting, ain't it?

The really young ones ain't as stinky and tastes really good straight off the pod.

You should check out their nutritional value..

Unknown said...

Hei~ Really like your blog, expecting more interesting article :)

Wenny said...

lol.....but petai is very common in indonesia, usually we fried or roast it then eat it with sambal, or other who wouldn't like to eat petai that style would choose to cook it with sambal shrimp and potato or put it in gulai. And it taste kinda addictive...lol...

blue peanut said...

hey there, love your blog. this is unrelated specifically to the petai bean (which I had never even heard of before) - i can't believe number of places you have eaten at! just read that you are from California - where? I am moving to San Francisco next month - excited but i know for SURE that the #1 thing I will miss about Singapore is the FOOD. there is no great Chinese or SEA food in SF City (i've looked) - sigh. Do you review SF food too? Keep up the great work! Best, Cheryl

Blur Ting said...

Funny, after reading your post, I couldn't resist reaching out for a pack when I was at the grocers during the weekend. Now I have a pack of petai bean in my fridge and I'm wondering what I'm going to do with it!

Pete said...

My favorite recipe involving petai beans is a Nyonya stir-fry with pork-belly slices, onions (sliced), chilli paste, sugar, salt, tamarind juice, a bit of toasted belachan (shrimp paste) and lots of petai beans.

Unknown said...

I don't really like the petai smell too. But i heard that it's good for digestion. Try eating it with sambal blachan.

Anonymous said...

Hi there :) I love love love Petai, esp those fried with samba/onions/ikan bilis. I normally get my fix at Changi Villange:
1) Nasi Lemak Stalls
2) Ubin 1st Stop Restaurant

I could eat the whole plate on my own *lol*

Petai is supposed to be good for the kidney or urinary tract i think?