In the heart of Kuala Lumpur, at the serene enclave of Taman Mulia, a 72-year-old dynamo named Datin Norhayati Mohd Nor transforms her kitchen into a bustling hub of festive preparation each Hari Raya. With the energy of someone decades younger, she spends days crafting traditional dishes that have been passed down through generations, ensuring her family’s celebration of the Muslim holiday is steeped in love and heritage.
A Lifelong Passion for Cooking
Norhayati’s culinary journey began at the tender age of seven, when she moved to Negri Sembilan to live with her grandmother. As the only girl among her cousins, she found herself drawn to the kitchen, a space that sparked her curiosity and ignited a lifelong passion. “I’ve loved to cook since I was a young girl” she recalls with a laugh. “I was so interested that I started making butter cakes at eight, using coconut shells for heat because we didn’t have an oven in our kampung home.” 
Her early experiments laid the foundation for a repertoire that expanded when she married Datuk Abdul Malek Abdul Hamid, now 76. Learning from her mother-in-law, a strict and skilled cook, Norhayati honed her craft further. “I watched her closely and learned so much” she says, reflecting on how these matriarchal figures shaped her approach to food.
Hari Raya: A Time for Family and Feasts
For Norhayati, Hari Raya—the festival marking the end of Ramadan—is more than a religious observance; it’s a cherished family reunion. Even during her busy years as a radiographer and mother of five, she took weeks off to prepare for the occasion, baking up to 3,000 pineapple tarts and cooking for her extended family. Now retired, she continues this tradition with undiminished zeal, welcoming her husband, children, and 16 grandchildren into her home each year.
Her menu is a testament to heritage, featuring heirloom recipes like rendang Minang Negri Sembilan, a rich, coconut milk-based dish infused with lemongrass and turmeric leaves. “I had to cook this rendang with my mother to learn it” Norhayati explains. “She never wrote anything down, so I had to watch and remember.” The result is a tender, flavorful beef rendang that embodies the labor-intensive process of pecah minyak, or oil separation, which takes hours of slow cooking.
A Trio of Rendang and Sweet Delights
Unlike many home cooks who might settle for a single rendang, Norhayati prepares three variations: her signature rendang Minang, a beef rendang, and a chicken rendang, both featuring her homemade rempah Rembau spice mix. Inherited from her mother-in-law, this blend of coriander seeds, cumin, black peppercorns, and star anise hails from Rembau in Negri Sembilan, a region once known for buffalo rendang. “Nowadays, most people use beef or chicken” she notes, describing how her version delivers a perfect balance of sweet, smoky, and spicy notes.
Another highlight of her Hari Raya spread is wajik, a glutinous rice dessert sweetened with gula anau, a nipah palm sugar famous in southern Malaysia. Learning to perfect this treat under her mother-in-law’s critical eye was no easy feat. “I failed three times before getting it right” Norhayati admits with a smile. Her persistence paid off, resulting in a delicate, squidgy dessert that captures the essence of festive sweetness.
An Act of Devotion
Despite the availability of ready-made food and gentle protests from her family—“Mak, why do you take all the trouble?” her children ask—Norhayati remains committed to cooking from scratch. “I can still cook, so I will cook” she asserts, her smile radiating warmth. For her, each dish is an act of devotion, a way to connect her family to their roots and to each other.
As Hari Raya approaches, Norhayati’s home in Taman Mulia will once again fill with the aromas of rendang and the laughter of loved ones. In a world where traditions can fade under the weight of convenience, her dedication stands as a quiet reminder of the power of food to nurture both body and soul.
