Food We Love - Pisang Goreng (Fried Bananas)

 

Pisang Goreng (fried banana) is a well loved, common street hawker snack in Johor.

 

Molten hot, banana flesh almost like sweet melted cheese wrapped in crispy, crunchy fried batter is a favourite tea time treat for many of us.

 

Chilling with friends at a pisang goreng stall, enjoying fried snacks with a cuppa of teh terik is a special kind of uniquely Malaysian bonding ritual.

Here are three pisang goreng stalls I love and I am sure that there are more, that I have yet to discover.

 

Pisang Mawar is arguably the most famous pisang goreng stall in Johor Bahru. Pisang Mawar is a cheerful place with constant streams of customers enjoying their tea here or bagging loads of goodies to take home.

 

 

Pisang Mawar has many Singaporean customers as it is located on a route convenient for Singaporean drivers to pick up bags of goodies on their way home.

 

Another famous Pisang Goreng stall, Sweet Banana has been selling their popular fried goodies from their push cart stall along Jalan Stulang Darat for many years before they recently relocated to their new premises at Stulang Walk.

 

 

Now customers can relax and enjoy the same Sweet Banana tasty fried goodies with comfortable seating and easy, ample free parking.

 

This pisang goreng stall in Taman Sri Skudai that does not really have a name, is a favourite place with residents who like to come here to take a break from the afternoon heat and catch up on the day's happenings in the neighbourhood.

 

 

It is not unusual for famous hawker stalls to have no name and yet everyone in the neighbourhood knows about them as it is the local landmark.

Share with us about your favourite pisang goreng stall by leaving a comment :)

Name: Pisang Mawar

Address: Off Jalan Sungai Chat in the direction of Woodlands/ Pusat Bandaraya. Next to Galeri Mawar and opposite the clock tower at Dataran Bandaraya.
Operating Hours: 1:00pm to 6:00pm

Nearest Parking Area: Ample free parking at location

Name: Sweet Banana

Address: Stulang Walk ( at the junction of Jalan Stulang Darat and Jalan Stulang Laut)
Operating Hours: 1:00pm to 6:00pm (closed on Sunday)
Nearest Parking Area: Ample free parking at location

Name: No name (faded bamboo curtain bears the sign “GORENG2 ”)

Address: At the junction of Jalan Emas 7 and Jalan Emas 2, Taman Sri Skudai
Operating hours: 2:00pm to 5:00pm (closed on Sunday)
Nearest Parking Area: Ample free parking at location

Goreng Pisang Mawar in Johor Bahru, Malaysia

Pisang Mawar is the most famous pisang goreng in JB. People may have different preferences on which is the tastiest or most popular pisang goreng, but for fame, Pisang Mawar is unmatched.

Pisang Rajah

The thing that struck me about Pisang Mawar is the place is so happy and relaxed. Perhaps, it is the surroundings. Not far from the beach, up a grassy slope with a florist and Galeri Mawar as the backdrop, and easy parking. But most of all, everyone seemed so relaxed and happy here, chilling in the afternoon :)

The family that runs Pisang Mawar was so cheerful - that sets the tone for the whole place. I mean, this must be the most photographed pisang goreng stall in Johor, if not Malaysia, but they still obliged photographers warmly and graciously.

Pisang Mawar is famed for their pisang goreng. Crispy outside, soft and sweet inside. The batter was also not greasy. 

Remember to dip the pisang goreng in this spicy hot and savoury sauce. When combined with the sweet taste of the crunchy pisang goreng, it creates a very interesting mix of flavours and bite.

When enjoying my pisang goreng, I saw the lady pouring fresh, good quality, clear vegetable oil straight from the plastic bottle into the frying wok. No compromise with recycled oil here.

We love this curry puff

Besides their famous pisang goreng, Pisang Mawar also offers other tea time snacks like curry puffs, spring rolls, kuih muih, mee siam and nasi lemak. Pisang Mawar also served drinks and this is the only place that actually gave us a not-too-sweet teh tarik when we requested for "kurang manis" or less sweet. Thumbs up :)

Pisang Mawar's nasi lemak was good too. We were at Pisang Mawar in the afternoon, so by this time the nasi lemak was cold. Yet, the coconut fragrance still greeted us when we opened the old style banana leaf and old newspaper wrapping.

The sambal chili was a grainy, thick paste. Not overly spicy and not too sweet. This sambal chili is more like that from the old days, whereas nowadays, the more drippy, gravy-like and sweet kind seemed to be served in most places. Another thumbs up for Pisang Mawar.

Pisang Tanduk

->> Pisang Mawar is a must try for it's fame, and personally, I like the food here too, especially their pisang goreng :)

Pisang Mawar was featured on Fatbook 非食不可 programme.

Restaurant name: Pisang Mawar
Address: Off Jalan Sungai Chat, next to Galeri Mawar and Kedai Bunga Kim Florist (nearby landmarks are Thistle Hotel and Johor Clock Tower)
Map: http://goo.gl/maps/FBLPv
GPS: 1.461741,103.741906 / 1°27'42.3"N 103°44'30.9"E
Hours: Noon till late afternoon

Halal

Date visited: 4 Jan 2012, 27 Sep 2012

Return to Johor Kaki homepage.

Goreng 2 in Taman Sri Skudai, Johor Bahru, Malaysia

 

This is the kind of stall that inspired me to start Johor Kaki blog. Corner stall in a quiet neighbourhood. Been there for longer than anyone can remember. Everyone, young and old, all races, stop by and pick up a brown paper bag of hot goodies and go merrily on their way.

When I asked the boss, Enche Arifin, what is the name of his stall, he shrugged and said it doesn't really have a name. No one ever asked him this question! :)

I walked around the stall and found the faintly visible words "Goreng 2" on the sun bleached bamboo shades.

Goreng 2 has a cosy dining area, where we can sit down in the cool to enjoy our goreng goreng and a teh tarik. For years, people from all walks of life had been stopping by, to relax a while and to catch up on the neighbourhood news.

A regular customer told me that there are other goreng goreng stalls in the area but Goreng 2 is the most popular.

My favourite is their goreng pisang (fried banana fritter).

The batter was crispy while the banana inside was nicely cooked.

The banana melted in the hot oil and turned into a molten, sweet, creamy paste. This was one of the best goreng pisang that I have tasted so far.

Lekor

Spring rolls

Yam

Goreng 2 has many other hot goodies - all good fried fritters with good crispy crusts and piping hot insides.

Drop by, take a break or pick up some hot goreng goreng at Goreng 2, if you are around Taman Sri Skudai.

Restaurant name: Goreng 2 Fried Fritters
Address: Off Jalan Emas 7, Taman Sri Skudai, Skudai
Map: http://goo.gl/maps/lXobq
GPS: 1.543660,103.652433
Hours: 2:00pm to 5:00pm (closed on Sunday)
Halal

Date visited: 14 Sep 2012

Return to Johor Kaki homepage.

Sweet Banana Pisang Goreng @ Stulang Walk in Johor Bahru. Best Fried Banana Fritters in JB Series

The famous Sweet Banana pisang goreng stall has moved to a new location further up along Jalan Stulang Laut (in 2012).

Banana Fritters @ Sweet Banana along Jalan Stulang Darat, Johor Bahru



What is going on?

Cars parked by the road side buying bagfuls of fried goodies. This is rather dangerous. The best is to park along Jalan Kunning just slightly further up and take a short 3 minutes walk to Sweet Banana.

This is a road side stall along Jalan Stulang Darat near the JB CIQ well known among Johor Bahru locals who often stop by to pick up bagfuls of deep fried bananas, sweet potatoes, green beans and tapioca.

As its name Sweet Banana boldly states, its top draw is fried banana fritters or goreng pisang in Malay.

Johor Bahru has many such stalls selling deep fried snacks. One of the things that sets Sweet Banana apart from most others is the use of fresh oil for frying. You can see the newly opened tin cans of cooking oil at the stall. The oil in the large woks look yellowish rather than the dark brownish colour we often see at other stalls.

When we eat goreng pisang from the usual stalls, there is often an unpleasant aftertaste felt on our tongue due to the overused oil. At the usual stalls, the oil is usually used for many cycles of frying to keep the cost down. At Sweet Banana, I taste only the natural sweetness from the fresh banana.

The batter used at Sweet Banana is also neutral in taste and flavour. Not too thick, or too sweet and fried to a crispy golden brown crust. The batter at Sweet Banana does not compete with the banana’s natural sweetness but does a perfect job of sealing in its natural flavour and tenderness. Their crust is so good that some customers asked for bits of crust to eat as a crispy snack!

Try also their fried green bean patties. The thin, crispy crust wraps a sweet and crunchy patty made from boiled green beans. In fact, don't just try their bananas and green beans - try everything they have at the stall J You will be delighted.

I will make side trips to the famous Sweet Banana to pick up the delicious goodies for my family and friends.

(Sweet Banana has moved to a new location nearby. Please see my new post on Sweet Banana. Thank you.)

Restaurant name: Sweet Banana (roadside stall)

Address: Near power substation just before junction of Jalan Stulang Darat and Jalan Biru
Map: http://g.co/maps/496kv

GPS: 1.470681,103.775176
Hours: Daily 1:00pm to 6:00pm (usually sold out by 5:00pm) (Closed on Fridays)

Halal

Date visited: 3 Jan 2012, 9 Jan 2012