Shrimp fritters ‘horse hoof’ become attraction, traders successfully defend heritage business

KEPALA BATAS: The transformation of the shape and taste of shrimp fritters by a trader has not only succeeded in preserving the family heritage business but has also become a unique attraction at the Ramadan bazaar here. Siti Zawiyah Ismail, 26, said she wanted to continue her father’s legacy of selling small-sized shrimp fritters for the past 30 years, but realized that competition from other vendors offering the same dishes greatly affected their sales. Therefore, she introduced shrimp fritters called ‘horse hoof’ which are large in size and received a warm reception from customers.

“I trade to continue the family heritage business of shrimp fritters founded 30 years ago. “But due to competition, I need to make innovations. So, I introduced shrimp fritters with the name ‘horse hoof’ which are large in size using my own recipe. “These shrimp fritters, which are crispy on the outside and soft on the inside, are sold for RM3 each and can be eaten with peanut sauce or mixed with Singapore rojak. “Additionally, they can also be used as an ingredient in pasembor and gado-gado, which are popular dishes in the northern region of the Peninsula,” she told Astro AWANI.

According to Siti Zawiyah, she managed to sell about 50 to 60 pieces of ‘horse hoof’ shrimp fritters per day at the Ramadan bazaar since the first day of fasting. She said many customers mentioned that they were attracted to the large size of the shrimp fritters – fitting with its name – ‘horse hoof’ and they liked its delicious taste. “In addition to trading at the Ramadan bazaar and night market, we also accept orders for ‘horse hoof’ shrimp fritters for feasts or any festive events,” she said. Get the iftar, imsak, zakat calculator, and interesting Ramadan articles here

-Astro Awani