The story of kacang putih industry of Ipoh, started in 1940s, now national favourite 
Jan 29 2013, 03:48 PM, updated 13y ago
QUOTE
UNIQUE WAY: Before potato chips and fries, a favourite snack was 'kacang putih'. Brought to the country by migrant families from India, it eventually became every Malaysian's favourite snack and even became a name for a village. Kalavaani Karupiah writes
THE moment someone says kacang putih (chickpeas), the thought that comes to mind is the crunchy snack food -- a favourite among Malaysians.
But when one is in Ipoh, Perak, it is advisable to be precise when saying kacang putih because there is a village in the outskirts of the city which goes by the same name.
At Kampung Kacang Putih in Buntong, visitors can get not just chickpeas, but a wide variety of crunchy deep-fried, roasted and steamed Indian snacks, including murukku, pakoda, omom and kadalai.
This humble village has a thriving family-run cottage industry producing these delicious snacks and is now considered one of the country's main suppliers.
The kacang putih industry, which began in the late 1940s, had its beginnings at the foothills of Gunung Cheroh in Ipoh.
C. Kaliapan, 76, was one of the kacang putih pioneers in Ipoh.
He was only 13 years old when he arrived from India and learnt to make the snack from his uncle.
"Most of the kacang putih sellers started off as petty traders selling kacang kuda.
"Our first settlement was at the foot of Gunung Cheroh.
"Back then, we would get up at 4am to prepare steamed kacang kuda.
"Afterwards, we would walk around Ipoh town carrying a four-legged rectangular wooden tray on our heads to sell them."
Kaliapan says the word putih (white) was added to the name kacang as the kacang kuda turned white once they were steamed.
The locals started calling the Gunung Cheroh settlement as Kampung Kacang Putih due to the trade.
He says kacang kuda traders would go to places like cinemas, hospital and schools on foot to earn their living.
Kaliapan said he finally decided to start his own kacang putih business in 1957.
"It was actually on Merdeka Day when I started out on my own. I made about RM20 on that day.
"From selling just steamed kacang kuda, we started selling other popular Indian snacks. We also started plying our items on bicycles."
In Oct 19, 1973, their cosy life at the foothill of Gunung Cheroh settlement ended when massive slabs of limestone fell on top of a longhouse, killing 42 people.
Rescuers searched for trapped victims for three days, but only managed to retrieve 12 bodies while the rest are still buried beneath the debris.
Although the 30 kacang putih families were spared from the tragedy, the settlement was declared unsafe and they were resettled to Teluk Kurin B in Buntong.
The move proved to be a blessing in disguise for the families as they could build better and bigger houses.
The families began setting up their own retail outlets at the front portion of their new houses before slowly turning Teluk Kurin B into a famous kacang putih hub.
The area was renamed to Kampung Kacang Putih and has become one of the city's famous tourist spots.
Kacang Putih Traders Association chairman A. Gunasegaran, 50, says there are about 50 families involved in the business full time and using modern technology to manufacture their snacks.
"Most of the entrepreneurs got the idea to develop their business after their day-to-day production started to receive higher demand.
"On average, each family produces up to 1,000kg of kacang putih daily, with the quantity increasing during festive seasons," says Gunasegaran, adding that there are about 45 varieties of snacks produced daily.
Each family, he says, possessed their own secret ingredients.
Entrepreneur M. Sundaraj, 66, who has been in the business for the past 38 years, says his murukku and chickpeas are in high demand, adding that the murukku, as well as other snacks, are made using original recipes at his house with the help of his wife and children.
"We usually churn out about 300kg per day.
"When the murukku and chickpeas run out, we will make new batches.
"During festive seasons, we will increase production.
"We also have regular customers who place their orders early," he says, adding that his products are distributed to wholesalers nationwide
THE moment someone says kacang putih (chickpeas), the thought that comes to mind is the crunchy snack food -- a favourite among Malaysians.
But when one is in Ipoh, Perak, it is advisable to be precise when saying kacang putih because there is a village in the outskirts of the city which goes by the same name.
At Kampung Kacang Putih in Buntong, visitors can get not just chickpeas, but a wide variety of crunchy deep-fried, roasted and steamed Indian snacks, including murukku, pakoda, omom and kadalai.
This humble village has a thriving family-run cottage industry producing these delicious snacks and is now considered one of the country's main suppliers.
The kacang putih industry, which began in the late 1940s, had its beginnings at the foothills of Gunung Cheroh in Ipoh.
C. Kaliapan, 76, was one of the kacang putih pioneers in Ipoh.
He was only 13 years old when he arrived from India and learnt to make the snack from his uncle.
"Most of the kacang putih sellers started off as petty traders selling kacang kuda.
"Our first settlement was at the foot of Gunung Cheroh.
"Back then, we would get up at 4am to prepare steamed kacang kuda.
"Afterwards, we would walk around Ipoh town carrying a four-legged rectangular wooden tray on our heads to sell them."
Kaliapan says the word putih (white) was added to the name kacang as the kacang kuda turned white once they were steamed.
The locals started calling the Gunung Cheroh settlement as Kampung Kacang Putih due to the trade.
He says kacang kuda traders would go to places like cinemas, hospital and schools on foot to earn their living.
Kaliapan said he finally decided to start his own kacang putih business in 1957.
"It was actually on Merdeka Day when I started out on my own. I made about RM20 on that day.
"From selling just steamed kacang kuda, we started selling other popular Indian snacks. We also started plying our items on bicycles."
In Oct 19, 1973, their cosy life at the foothill of Gunung Cheroh settlement ended when massive slabs of limestone fell on top of a longhouse, killing 42 people.
Rescuers searched for trapped victims for three days, but only managed to retrieve 12 bodies while the rest are still buried beneath the debris.
Although the 30 kacang putih families were spared from the tragedy, the settlement was declared unsafe and they were resettled to Teluk Kurin B in Buntong.
The move proved to be a blessing in disguise for the families as they could build better and bigger houses.
The families began setting up their own retail outlets at the front portion of their new houses before slowly turning Teluk Kurin B into a famous kacang putih hub.
The area was renamed to Kampung Kacang Putih and has become one of the city's famous tourist spots.
Kacang Putih Traders Association chairman A. Gunasegaran, 50, says there are about 50 families involved in the business full time and using modern technology to manufacture their snacks.
"Most of the entrepreneurs got the idea to develop their business after their day-to-day production started to receive higher demand.
"On average, each family produces up to 1,000kg of kacang putih daily, with the quantity increasing during festive seasons," says Gunasegaran, adding that there are about 45 varieties of snacks produced daily.
Each family, he says, possessed their own secret ingredients.
Entrepreneur M. Sundaraj, 66, who has been in the business for the past 38 years, says his murukku and chickpeas are in high demand, adding that the murukku, as well as other snacks, are made using original recipes at his house with the help of his wife and children.
"We usually churn out about 300kg per day.
"When the murukku and chickpeas run out, we will make new batches.
"During festive seasons, we will increase production.
"We also have regular customers who place their orders early," he says, adding that his products are distributed to wholesalers nationwide
Quote
0.0150sec
0.47
5 queries
GZIP Disabled