A: Welcome to this week’s “Food delight”. We are …. and …, and we are very happy to be here to share some recipes with you.

B: Hello, you guys. - A: OMG, B. You seem less chatty than usual. How are you doing?  
B: I had a terrible day, A. 
A: Oh, come on. It is good to have a bad day sometimes, otherwise, you’ll never know what a good day feels like. 
B: But this was one of the worst. I forgot my BFF’s birthday. 
A: What did he say?
B: He didn’t say a word to me or text me back.  I feel so guilty. He's super sweet, kind, funny, smart and altogether an amazing buddy.  
A: Why don’t you make it up by cooking something for him, which I think would be a creative way to say you’re sorry. For example, “Pudding Raja”, a Malaysian specialty that was originally a special dessert for the King. 

Pudding Raja is not so much a pudding as a delicious dish of fruit bathed in a sauce made from milk and custard (Photo: Pinterest)

B: Wow. We tried this dessert when we were in Malaysia. 

A: The pudding was once served exclusively to the royal family on special occasions such as coronations, birthdays, and anniversaries. Today, we can enjoy the pudding without having to visit the palace, since it is available abundantly in the market. 
A: The pudding is immensely rich in flavor and texture and is best served cold with a thick luxurious custard sauce poured over the top. The balance of spongy, chewy, crispy, and smooth in every bite, will surely convey my apology when he tastes the dessert.
B: And you know what? I talked to Sazli Nazim Ismail, Chef de cuisine of Le Meridien Restaurant in Kuala Lumpur during his working visit to the Sheraton Hotel, Hanoi. He will tell us more about this dessert. “Pudding Raja or Royal Pudding, at first, we only do this for the King because we have a lot of steps to make the dessert. We have four layers. On the first layer, we use fried banana, and we soak it in sugar syrup. On the second layer, we have custard, vanilla custard. On the third layer, we have some fruit, we can use cherry, grapes, any kind of fruit that you have. Mostly we use the fruit that is not soft but a little bit hard like mango, strawberry, kiwi. And on top of the fruit, we have egg yolk. We cook it in the sugar syrup.”

The dessert is prepared carefully and beautifully with four colorful layers (Photo: Pinterest)

A: So, the basic ingredients are bananas or prunes, cherries, and cashew nuts. To me, Pudding Raja is not so much a pudding as a delicious dish of fruit bathed in a sauce made from milk and custard. Absolutely mouth-watering 

B: Yep. Sazli Nazim Ismail will elaborate. “You have to mix everything together, so you can feel different flavors in your mouth. In the past, the dessert is only served in the palace. When we have celebrations like the coronation of the King, when the prince or princess gets married, we only serve that pudding at that time. Now, everyone knows how to do it, everyone can eat. It had to be a four layered pudding. If you like more custard, you can add more custard, if you like more fruit, you can add more fruit, it’s up to you. But it had to be 4 layers.”
A: Pudding Raja is a favorite dessert that is also served during traditional Malay weddings and festivals. When in Malaysia, you will find that some dutiful Malay housewives will prepare Pudding Raja as a special afternoon tea accompaniment for the husband or family, especially on week-ends. 
B: The dessert is prepared carefully and beautifully with four colorful layers. The dish is not simple, but you can try it at home. Cook some and share your opinion and photos with us by emailing them to englishsection@vov.org.vn. Or tag us on Facebook at VOV5 English Section. 
A: For more recipes, visit vovworld.vn/ Food-delight, where several recipes are already waiting. We always love seeing what you guys come up with. Join us next week for more tips on diversifying your menu. And now, good-bye.