GEORGE TOWN, Aug 20 — What happens when you put marshmallows into a hot bowl of traditional teatime bee koe moey (black glutinous rice)?
You get a surprisingly delicious treat that perfectly marries the sweet creamy richness of marshmallows with the thick black glutinous rice slow-cooked to a soft chewy consistency.
The creamy gula melaka and pandan flavoured marshmallows gave the thick black glutinous rice porridge just the right amount of sweetness while its fragrant flavours further enhanced the creamy mixture.
This black glutinous rice and marshmallow concoction is a newly introduced seasonal item at marshmallow artisan Huey&Wah Cafe.
Alongside the black glutinous rice is another traditional treat, ang thau thng (red beans soup), that they paired with the same gula melaka and pandan flavoured marshmallows.
Similarly, the ang thau thng is cooked to a soft thick consistency. It is served hot with a gula melaka and pandan flavoured marshmallow on top so that the puffy sweet delight slowly melts into the red beans soup.
The gula melaka and pandan flavoured marshmallows are Huey&Wah’s seasonal offering for the Merdeka month.
The marshmallows are only available until the end of September so this mean these decadent desserts will only be available until the end of next month too.
Huey&Wah, manned by Woong Yuh Wah and Mah Chun Huey, produces artisanal marshmallows in several flavours from the common vanilla and chocolate to unique ones like Stout and matcha.
They also produce seasonal flavours such as the current gula melaka and pandan one in conjunction with special occasions.
“We plan to produce gula melaka and pandan flavour marshmallows every August and September,” Mah, who is popularly known as Huey, said.
Previously, they made orange ginger for the Christmas season and peanut butter during Chinese New Year, as well as durian, blueberry lemon and strawberry flavours.
More s’more
At the mere mention of marshmallows, thoughts of camping trips, barbecuing marshmallows and making s’mores come to mind.
While it is not as common here, it is still something that many associate marshmallows with. But you don’t have to go camping and sit by the fireside to enjoy these anymore.
Huey&Wah introduced its s’more platter, mini bbq platter and #toastkaokao grown-up s’more a while back where you get to toast the marshmallows and make your own s’mores.
If you’ve never tried s’mores before, they have single portions where you choose a marshmallow flavour and they will toast and make it into a sandwich for you.
The “sandwich” is made of crunchy homemade graham crackers, a Hershey’s chocolate bar and ooey-gooey melted marshmallow.
The s’mores platter is strictly for marshmallow lovers and since it is rich, sweet and quite a large portion, this is best shared by two to three people.
The set comes with your choice of marshmallows, Hershey’s chocolate bars, homemade peanut butter, banana slices, hazelnut bits, digestive biscuits and homemade graham crackers.
A burner is provided so you can toast the marshmallows on your own before constructing your own version of s’mores with the ingredients provided.
You only need to slather the peanut butter onto the biscuit, add bananas, chocolate and sprinkle with the hazelnut bits.
Once the marshmallow is toasted to a soft, melting consistency, you place it on the prepared biscuit, sandwiched and pull out the stick.
Be prepared to bite into a sandwich that is crunchy on the outside and sweet and gooey soft on the inside. Expect to make a mess simply because there are no other ways to enjoy melted marshmallows.
Well, except to eat it on its own.
If you want to skip the whole s’more process and just eat melted marshmallows, their mini bbq set is the perfect choice. It comes with 10 different flavours of marshmallows, hazelnut bits, Hershey’s chocolate shreds and a burner. You toast the marshmallows and eat it on its own or dip it into the hazelnut bits and chocolate before enjoying.
Home cooked recipes
Other than marshmallows, the cafe just recently introduced “daddy’s secret curry chicken” served with white rice, papadom and pickles. “This is my father’s recipe that we make from scratch here,” Mah said.
The curry chicken has just the right mix of spices without too much heat and is thickened with evaporated milk. It can also be served with toasted bread upon request.
Also new on the menu is their grilled cheese sandwich thick with cheddar, mozzarella and tomato slices. You can also opt for grilled cheese sandwiches with additional ingredients such as pesto chicken, Hawaiian chicken, chipotle, streaky beef, smoked duck or smoked salmon.
Huey & Wah Cafe
368-1-14, Bellisa Row,
Jalan Burma,
10350 Penang
Tel: 04-2283962
Time: 8am-8pm
Huey&Wah Snack Bar
Lot 139-G-03,
Armenian Street Heritage Hotel,
Lebuh Carnarvon,
10200 George Town, Penang
Time: 11am-4pm
