BY SAMUEL KARUNIA KORNO
KUCHING: Have you ever heard of roti canai sarang burung? It is your typical roti canai but with a delightful twist to fulfill your morning hunger.
What makes this dish unique is how it combines the richness of sunny side-up eggs with the flakiness of roti canai topped with crushed fried shallots.
This dish is usually accompanied by a sweet yet spicy sambal to fulfill any savoury foodie’s morning routine.
Thus, it comes as no surprise that roti canai sarang burung has become a sensation among the locals who like to go out for their breakfast.
In the early hours here, people would often queue up for the famous Sam Sarang Burung Kenyalang to start their day.
Sam Sarang Burung Kenyalang is operated by Hisamudin Zawawi alongside his wife and daughter.
The roti canai sarang burung has placed Hisamudin’s stall on the map.
The 49-year-old explained that the toppings added is what put aside their roti canai sarang burung, distinguishing them from other roti canai vendors.
“The mixture of crushed shallots and pepper paired with a sweet and spicy sambal as the toppings for our roti canai sarang burung brings a sweet and savoury flavour for everyone to indulge in.
“This unique combo of toppings was inspired by my wife, Maimunah Shadan who wanted to combine the savoury goodness with a little kick of spice topped on the crispy yet flaky sarang burung,” he told the New Sarawak Tribune.
Hisamudin said the unique combo of toppings aims to elevate the flavours of the typical roti canai sarang burung.
He also said that roti canai sarang burung is different from the usual roti canai whereby the roti canai would be shaped like an O with sunny side eggs in the middle.
“To simply put it, the roti canai sarang burung is made to resemble eggs in a bird’s nest. We prioritise the combination of flavours as it serves to fulfill all the necessary characteristics needed to start the day,” he said.
The inspiration for the dish came from a regular customer of the stall, who asked Hisamudin to watch a YouTube video and incorporate the dish into his menu.
“Back in 2019, a regular customer asked me to watch this viral video on YouTube. He suggested that I introduce this menu because he likes how I do my usual roti canai.
“The video he showed me focused on a regular roti canai sarang burung. However, it prompted me to think about how I could add my twist to it.
“I felt that I could experiment and incorporate more flavours into the ordinary roti canai sarang burung,” he said.
From there, Hisamudin and his wife went through a trial-and-error period where they tried to figure out what flavours were suitable to pair with the ordinary roti canai sarang burung.
“When we finally got the right combinations, we decided to introduce it to our customers, and they loved it. Orders were piling day by day and some even ordered double because they were hooked,” he said.
Hisamudin admitted that the journey to make the perfect roti canai sarang burung was not an overnight success as it was filled with hardship and dedication.
He said his journey of venturing into the food industry was a long one starting with his humble beginnings in a coffee shop.
“My parents could not afford to pay for my education for me to continue my studies after Sijil Tinggi Pelajaran Malaysia (STPM), so only my younger siblings had the opportunity to further their studies.
“For me, being the eldest, I had to go to work while my younger siblings were studying in school. I worked at the coffee shop in Pending and that is where I developed my skills in cooking and making drinks.
“My skills in making roti canai came from this roti canai stall that used to be at the coffee shop I worked at, where the owner of the stall could not continue the roti canai stall and needed someone to help him continue the business,” he said.
Hisamudin said he volunteered to learn from the owner who taught him everything from zero.
“It was in 1997 when I first started making roti canai and that is when I started to venture into the food and beverage business,” he said.
With the success of his roti canai sarang burung, Hisamudin can make and sell around 300 to 400 of this dish daily.
“Before we introduced roti canai sarang burung to our menu, we would need around two trays of eggs. Nowadays, we need at least 10 trays and I am grateful that we often sold out every day,” he said.
However, being part of the food and beverage business, there are also challenges that come with it.
Hisamudin said the hike in food prices is the main issue that most food and beverage vendors have faced in recent years.
“In making roti canai, cooking oil and flour are essential in making the perfect batter. However, the hike in food prices is making it difficult for us vendors to get our supplies at a cheaper rate.
“Back then cooking oil cost around RM5 for two packets compared to RM14 for 1 bottle of cooking oil. While 10kg of wheat flour back then used to cost around RM20 but nowadays it’s RM30 for 10kg,” he explained.
Even though there are challenges in the price of supplies, Hisamudin said this does not stop him from giving the best for his regular and potential customers.
“For the time being, I feel it is really difficult to expand the business because even now the orders and requests for roti canai sarang burung are overwhelming,” he said.
Sam Sarang Burung Kenyalang has had an overwhelming welcome since its launch back in 2019.
“I am grateful that the business has been going well for the past six years since we started, and food vloggers helped in promoting our unique roti canai sarang burung here. We even had the opportunity to meet customers from Brunei and Indonesia just to indulge in our unique dish.
“So it is really a blessing throughout the years ever since we put the roti canai sarang burung in our menu and the reception has been positive “, he said.
The Sam Sarang Burung Kenyalang stall is in Super Cafe along Jalan Pending and operates from 6:30am to 11am.
