Petanak Wet Market, Kuching

The chicken man

On our second morning in Kuching, we visit Petanak Market, a wet market with stallholders and clientele that are mostly Chinese.

As a child in Malaysia, I used to go with my mum to markets early in the morning before school. I didn’t like the overpowering odour of raw pork and chicken, the blood-splattered tiles, nor the dangerously slippery wet fishy floor. Those memories come rushing back to me at Petanak Market. But now, as adult who loves to take photographs and share my pictures with others, I’m really excited to be here. I want to photograph everything I see… the produce, the people and all the activity. I could stay here for hours.

Chicken man

Chicken man

Our MATRADE hosts and guide Joseph tell the market people that our group is from Australia. The stallholders are very good-natured about us observing their every move, checking out their produce and taking lots of photographs. The market’s regular customers stare but otherwise go about their business.

As we gather around the first fish stall and point our cameras at this woman, her friends at the adjacent stalls call out and tease her: “Smile, you’re a big star now!” She grins and giggles.

I recognise only some of the fish species, but they look so fresh, all glistening, shiny and plump. Feel free to help me name the fish species if you recognise any!

Shiny fresh fish

Shiny fresh fish

There are also dried fish for sale.

Dried fish

Dried fish

At every fish stall there is a collection of recycled plastic ice cream tubs, buckets and strainers, each used for different steps of the fish and shellfish cleaning process. Everyone has at least one slimy and well used heavy wooden chopping block.

Rinsing

Rinsing

Peeling prawns

Peeling prawns

I see lots of these little yellow-tinged fish and can’t help imagining how tasty they would be, coated in seasoned flour and crispy-fried.

Sorting out the yellow-tinged fish

Sorting out the yellow-tinged fish

Yellow-tinged fish

Yellow-tinged fish

A woman slices fish open to extract the sac of roe from within.

Extracting fish roe

Extracting fish roe

Fish, squid and roe (in the orange plate farthest to the left)

Fish, squid, prawns and roe (in the orange plate farthest to the left)

More fish for sale

More fish for sale

Are these tuna?

Are these tuna?

Mystery long fish

Mystery long fish

Squid in a pool of their own ink

Squid in a pool of their own ink

These are pomfret. We used to eat fried pomfret as kids in Malaysia.

Pomfret

Pomfret

More mystery fish

More mystery fish

Next to the fish stalls are a number of poultry stalls. I’m reluctant to venture too close to the poultry as there’s a current avian flu warning for South East Asian countries including Malaysia, but I can’t help smiling at the chicken man, grinning as he cleans his chickens.

The chicken man

The chicken man

I smell the pork market before I see it. A large sign hangs from the ceiling listing porky parts including organs such as kidney, heart and liver. And head skin.

Pork market price list

Pork market price list

Warning: The pork butchery description and images (including raw meat/various pig parts) may be confronting to some. If you don’t want to see them, skip to the fruit and vegetables.

Joseph tells us we’ve missed the early morning rush. I’m secretly a little disappointed we’ve missed seeing the butchery at its busiest but I’m also glad to have missed an even more stifling and intense concentration of the raw pork smell that hangs in the air here.

Butchers at work in the pork market

Butchers at work in the pork market

Some of the stalls are empty, though the evidence of recent butchery remains.

Empty stalls at the pork market, Petanak Market

Empty stalls at the pork market, Petanak Market

Hanging from hooks or piled on wooden planks and cardboard stained with blood and raw meat juices are ribs, trotters, jaws (with teeth intact) and slabs of meat, fat, skin and bone. Wherever you walk, there are pink bits of flesh and fat on the floor. Amidst the warm and humid conditions, refrigeration isn’t apparent. It’s not a place for the faint-hearted.

Various pork parts for sale

Various pork parts for sale

More pork parts for sale, including part of a pig's head

More pork parts for sale, including part of a pig’s head

Chopping pork

Chopping pork

I peek through the hanging slabs of pork to photograph this butcher as he cuts away blobs of fat from pieces of pork fillet.

Cutting the fat away from pork fillet

Cutting the fat away from pork fillet

A customer buys a bag of pork ribs

A customer buys a bag of pork ribs

Taking a breather

Taking a breather

A man sharpens knives at an empty stall. On the far wall behind him, there’s a distinctly visible blood splat.

Sharpening knives

Sharpening knives

In the next section of Petanak Market there are grocery shops selling vegetables and fruits, bottled sauces, tinned goods and all kinds of things in shiny packets.

There are many kinds of dried shrimps and anchovies for sale.

Dried shrimps and anchovies for sale

Dried shrimps and anchovies for sale

We get a taste of smoked shrimps.

Smoked shrimps

Smoked shrimps

Next to bags of little gem biscuits, chocolate creams, cream crackers and other biscuits, someone’s just eaten their lunch.

Someone's just eaten their lunch

Someone’s just eaten their lunch

The shopkeepers stand proudly by their wares as we take photographs.

Shopkeeper

Shopkeeper

The shelves are full of bottles of sauce. Next to the fresh fruit are three different kinds of dried and pickled chilli vegetables and bottles of cincalok, made from fermented shrimp.

Shopkeeper

Shopkeeper

Next to the grocery shops, we watch a woman chopping coconuts in half, then separating the coconut flesh from the prickly hairy husks.

Chopping coconuts

Chopping coconuts

It’s hard work in a hot, dirty room. There are a lot of coconuts to get through. She works with strong arms and expert hands.

The coconut-chopping room

The coconut-chopping room

Fresh noodles for sale

Fresh noodles for sale

We’ve now reached the fresh fruit and vegetable part of the market.

Vegetable seller

Vegetable seller

Fruit and vegetable seller

Fruit and vegetable seller

We all recognise midin, brightly green and curly, sold in leaf-wrapped bundles.

Midin (jungle ferns)

Midin (jungle ferns)

Snake beans

Snake beans

Green vegetables - the one with red in the leaves is known in Malaysia as

Green vegetables – the one with red in the leaves is known in Malaysia as “bayam” – some call it red spinach or Chinese spinach

Eggs - the white ones are salted duck eggs

The brown are chicken eggs, the white are salted duck eggs

Cucumbers and cabbages

Cucumbers and cabbages

Pak choy is a good seller today

Pak choy is a good seller today

Sorting out bunches of kangkong, also known as water spinach, morning glory and water convolvulus

Sorting out bunches of kangkong, also known as water spinach, morning glory and water convolvulus

Fragrant fresh curry leaves

Bunches of fragrant fresh curry leaves

Don't interrupt a man while he's calculating

Don’t interrupt a man while he’s calculating

Just before we leave, I catch a fleeting glimpse of my first kucing in Kuching. There are two of them hanging around the trucks. Can you see them both?

First kucing in Kuching

First kucing in Kuching

And although our trip to Petanak Market hasn’t included eating, I feel happy and energised as we get back on our bus, all with much filthier shoes than before.

We had breakfast back at the hotel before we went to the market – I’ll tell you about it in a future post. :)

TFP visited Kuching, Malaysia as a guest of Malaysia Kitchen, MATRADE and Tourism Malaysia.

Read the posts in my Kuching Trip 2011 series (in order):

More Kuching posts are on the way!

Where is Kuching, Malaysia?


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