Tell me how you like it…

In a recent post, I shared a photograph of the traditional way of boiling water and brewing coffee and tea in the old school coffee shops – over a hot charcoal stove…

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…and I remember seeing them toasting bread on it  as well. They would get it all burnt and then they would use a knife to scrape off the black surfaces on both sides before generously applying one slice of butter, not unlike those cheese slices that we can get at the supermarket these days, and of course, their own-made kaya (coconut jam) after that.

I don’t know how to make kaya but when I was teaching in Kanowit, 1978 to 1982, I saw the lady at this coffee shop…

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…double-boiling and stirring it continuously. It certainly looked very tedious so of course, I would not want to give it  a try, no, thank  you. The lady had passed away and the son and daughter-in-law are running the shop now. I am not too sure whether they still make their own kaya or not but somewhere along the line, in most, if not all coffee shops, the butter and the kaya were sidelined and all you will get will be just Planta and Yeo’s.

I do know of this place in town that uses Golden Churn…

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…though but see! I told you they would just use the canned kaya these days and this particular brand.

Of course I do not have a charcoal stove at home and I would not bother to use this…

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…either as it would be quite a hassle to get the charcoal burning and there would be all that smoke and it can get rather messy as well. Ummmm…if you’re curious, no…I have not got that thing assembled yet. Hehehehehehe!!!!

Yes, I have a toaster that is over 30 years old and it still works perfectly but I find that by the time the toast gets dark enough, it would be crusty inside out so I prefer to toast my slices of bread on a pan, flipping regularly till I get them nicely browned on both sides. That way, the surfaces would be crusty and inside, it would still be soft like fresh un-toasted bread. Of course, I would apply a generous layer of butter on it and also kaya…

I do think the made-in-Singapore Glory brand Hainanese kaya (with honey) is very nice and a welcome change from their pandan one which is good as well…and to go with my kaya toast, I would insist on half-cooked eggs, the way I like them – the egg white hard and the yolk still runny.

Come, tell me how you like it…