Tuhau-based products gain a following
Published on: Sunday, February 24, 2019
Text Size:
Like the bunga kantan, tuhau usually grow in damp shaded areas, it can be seen in fertile areas, rivers and lowlands.
Tuhau is also easily found in abundance in the interior of Sabah, especially in Keningau, Tambunan, Tenom, Ranau and Nabawan. It is used to make Kadazandusun delicacies and the young tuhau can be prepared in various ways.
Besides being fried with white chilli and anchovies and eaten with rice, it can also be pickled, turned into tuhau floss or tuhau-based sauce.
Young, soft tuhau can be found in young tuhau plant; avoid taking those with tall stems as this means it is old and is inedible.
The oil being drained from the fried tuhau.
Tuhau is now among downstream products highly sought by visitors as souvenirs. It has a place in the hearts of visitors near and far, that many entrepreneurs compete to meet the high demand for it.
A meeting with the Persatuan Pengusaha Tani Randagong Lama Ranau (Wanira) Chairwoman, Jamilah Lawa, proved to be inspiring for her initiative in helping to improve the living standards of women in Ranau.
“Before this, women here worked as farmers only, selling fruits and crops planted ourselves,” she said, adding that they had langsat, durian and mangosteen which are sold in stalls along the main road.
Tuhau being friend in boiling oil.
She said they eventually tried to diversify using tuhau; as it happens, the raw supply is easily obtained in the area.
She said they started by making tuhau delicacies in small quantities because they were not sure if the products will be accepted by buyers.
Good feedback from buyers encouraged them to start producing in bigger quantities, which eventually led to the setting up of Wanira comprising 12 women in the village.
Jamilah said since the founding of Wanira, members started taking up courses organised by the Department of Agriculture, Federal Agriculture Marketing Authority and the Sabah Farmers’ Organisation Board.
From there, they started selling their products in other districts during carnivals at the invitation of agriculture agencies.
The encouraging response from buyers became their motivation to maintain the quality of the product and keep up with the high discipline in the preparation of the product.
The tuhau being washed clean before going into the frying pan.
“We always prioritise cleanliness whenever we are in the workshop. Every member is required to wear gloves, aprons and to remove their jewellery,” she said.
She said they do not use preservatives in their tuhau product which is cooked for five to six hours until the water is dry enough for the chillies to last longer.
“To make pickles, we use mortar and pestle to pound the tuhau instead of using machines to ensure the aroma is maintained,” she said, adding that after several attempts, their application for a frying machine was finally approved by the Department of Industrial Development and Research. adding that the machine was much help in the manufacturing of their tuhau paste.
She said the department also supplied a mixing machine and flour thinning machine to make crackers, as well as a pepper grinder for their use.
“Although the process of making tuhau paste still takes six hours, but more can be produced with the help of the machines,” she said.
She said the paste produced can last up to a month, while the pickles can last up to six months, except for the floss, which can last long if the container is closed tightly and to prevent the ‘crunchiness’ from going away.
She said the goods will be sold from Tuesdays to Fridays, while pre-ordered supply of tuhau from Nabawan will be delivered every Mondays.
She said every week the supplier will send about 350 plastics of tuhau because their supply in the village alone is inadequate and with that supply they can produce over 100 jars of paste, floss and pickles.
“The Sabah Industrial Development Ministry also helps us to label the products to make it easier for us to market the product to other districts.
“However, the preparation process needs to be done before night because we don’t have power supply in our workshop, and because of that we are in the midst of saving funds to apply for power connection,” she said.
She said each jar of goods produced will be equally distributed to each member who will then benefit from the sale.
“We are lucky to have been given permission by the village chief to utilise the workshop which was actually a place to store engine for the community to use,” she said.
With the funds which the members managed to save, they cleaned and repainted the workshop in addition to installing tiles on the floors.
“Earlier this year was the first time we were invited by Sabah Parks to conduct a tuhau floss-cooking demonstration at Kampung Sokit in Bundu Tuhan.
“Last year alone, we managed to earn a gross profit of RM70,000 from our sales which received encouraging response from buyers in the peninsula, Sarawak and Labuan.
In line with years of experience and observation in product sales, several upgrades have also been made such as the use of better jars which are airtight compared to the previous plastics used.
Jamilah also hopes women will work diligently because many of the resources available on earth can be diversified and processed as income rather than not doing anything because sales from the product can actually help increase family income. - Fauzrina Bulka/Azman Jumat
ADVERTISEMENT
