The other day, when I blogged about the packet of Kawan Brand’s Malaysian roti channai that I bought, my regular follower & commenter, Irene, from Kuching had this to share: Best to go with curry. Normally, if I have this paratha, I open up a small can of curry, Sunstar brand to go with. Nowadays, I go for this Sunstar brand curry, not into Yeo’s brand much now.
I was quite positive we had a can or two of curry something in the pantry – I think I saw them there a long time ago. We are not into those canned curries as they have one kind of smell – we call it kwan thow air bee (canned smell) so we would rather cook our own even though because of the convenience especially, we had had our share of those a long long time ago, Yeo’s especially.
I went rummaging through the shelves and found these…
Yes, we go for some of those Sunstar products such as their satay sauce…
…ever since, for reasons unknown, wee’s stopped producing theirs…
…and their clams in soya sauce…
…for frying bihun with cangkok manis. They’re just as good as the formerly-made-in-China Amoy Canning ones, now produced in Singapore (Amofood) and are very much cheaper.
I heated the beef curry briefly in a pan and poured it into a bowl…
Then, I took two slices of the roti channai out of the freezer and fried them till nice and crispy. Incidentally, I took them out around an hour earlier to thaw and I found that the pieces came apart easily even though there wasn’t any paper separating them – not need to pry them apart using a butter knife like what I said previously in my aforementioned blogpost.
Once done, I ate the roti with the curry gravy, the beef and the potato…
…and yes, I would say it was not so bad. The canned smell was there but it was not too obvious unlike some brands that I had had before – it definitely did not put me off and I quite enjoyed it actually.
I think when I drop by the shops again, I shall pick up a few cans, the bigger ones, to keep in the pantry. It may not be as nice as the curry we cook ourselves but it is good enough and so very convenient to just open a can, heat it up and eat…like when there is nothing left from lunch – it sure saves the trouble of having to cook something else for dinner.
...STILL CRAZY AFTER ALL THESE YEARS! 
Are there a lot of grocery stores in your neighborhood?
Two blocks of shops only with two what-they-call mini-supermarkets and a fruit & vegetable sundry shop…plus two vegetable stalls, one in the morning and one in the afternoon and a stall selling local Chinese teatime delights in the afternoon as well. There is a coffee shop and a bakery…and a hair salon. Very convenient!
Tea Time Delights!? Like sweets and sandwiches? Do they also sell actual tea?
No, just Chinese “cakes” or “kuih” as we call them in Malay, usually deep fried, that we buy home and enjoy for our afternoon tea.
I am always skeptical with stews on can but this one looks definitely delicious!
Can’t beat one’s own home-cooked, of course.
Yes, now I go for mostly Sunstar brand. The other day as I browse through Sunstar products on the shelves, I come across this fried fish with salted black beans. I think it is a new product so I grab a tin but yet to try. As of now, I have Chicken curry, Beef curry, satay sauce and fried fish with salted black beans, a tin each in my pantry. Just standby in case there is nothing in the house to eat. Very convenience, just open up and warm it.
Oh! The fried fish with salted beans. We used to enjoy the China ones but these days, my missus would not touch anything from China.
Other than this beef curry and the satay sauce and the clams in soy sauce, I have not tried any of the Sunstar products. For roti canai, I usually open a can of AYAM tuna curry. Nice too, the gravy especially.
Why is it called roti channai instead of roti canai?
Honestly, I have yet to see this Sunstar brand over here…or is it just me…or maybe I seldom buy canned curry.
That is the old Malay spelling which is actually more correct. “canai” would be pronounced as “ka-nai” or “kan-ai” not “chan-nai” since there is no “h” and only one “n” to be shared by the two syllables in the spelling. “Cantik” was “chantek” in the past and “tek” sounds more accurate than “tik”. They like to change things like they are so very clever and in the end, they only make it worse!
Oh? Either you never go shopping – somebody in the house will go and buy all the groceries…or you only eat freshly cooked stuff, no canned products for your meals. So lucky lah you!!!
Yeah, cannot defrost the roti canai otherwise they will stick to the plastic paper.. I know cos I got caught once before.. hahaha… I like the paratha with curry chicken… I can take two pieces too!
Ya, I had two too that morning to try out the canned beef curry. Very filling! Now I know, no need to defrost.
Oh no, I dislike canned curry. I have eaten the Yeo’s and some other brands and you are right, they have that certain smell which is the reason why I don’t like it. I have not come across the Sunstar brand over here.
Interesting! Tekkaus has not seen it in Johore either. It is very well-marketed here, available at all shops and supermarkets.
Yes, I never liked canned curry, all brands – that is why I never bought but this brand, the satay sauce is really good. Use to cook any kind of meat, no canned smell…and the clams in soya sauce for frying bihun. The favourite of many around here, some say it’s Hinghua style! The curry is like I said “not too bad”, cannot beat own-cooked. Chinese say no fish, prawn will do. LOL!!!
Lucky you! Can’t find tinned rendang here.
They do have rendang paste though.
But I usually have my roti pratha with sugar, ha ha.
That A1 Mountain Globe instant curry paste that I like a lot has one for rendang too but I don’t know how to go about cooking it and it tastes more or less like curry, a little sweeter. I think I was supposed to add kerisik (toasted grated coconut) and daun kunyit (turmeric leaves) and what not. Will try again one of these days.
There is beef rendang in cans – I think I did try once, ADABI brand but no, I did not really like it because of that smell in canned stuff.
Poor thing! Eat with sugar! LOL!!!
Sometimes, when we don’t have fresh home cooked curries, these canned curries will do. I too very seldom will buy canned curries because of the smell and taste these curries have. I can’t remember seeing Sunstar brand here. I will keep a look out because I am interested in the satay sauce.
Oh!!! Another one who has not seen Sunstar products. Here, it’s Yeo’s…and Sunstar…and Gulong from China. Others not so prominent.
It is so convenient to use the satay sauce to cook satay meat. Usually we cook pork or chicken – can’t get fresh beef here and the frozen ones may be smelly and are always very tough, not nice.
Last time, we used wee’s brand but they do not make the satay sauce anymore. Ayam is not so nice, taste is ok but colour is so yellow. Now we use Sunstar:
Some of these canned curries are actually very good, especially to go with roti
Know of any really good ones? I’ve yet to come across one that makes me wanna go back for more.
I love my carbs so much, I probably don’t even need a topping 😉 Maybe just a sprinkle of salt.
…or sugar or condensed milk. I would rather have mine with dhall curry or any curry sauce…or not at all. Spoilt rotten, eh? Hehehehehe!!!!