Despite MCO, Machang kuih kapit entrepreneur sees brisk sales ahead of CNY

MACHANG: Many traditional dessert-making entrepreneurs in Kelantan were either forced to cease their businesses or experienced a drop in sales following the implementation of the Movement Control Order (MCO).

But housewife Kua Bee Kiok considers herself lucky because her kuih kapit business seems to have been undimmed by the MCO.

Kua said orders for her kuih kapit keep coming in as usual despite the MCO, which was imposed in the country in March, last year.

"Many traditional dessert makers, like those selling mooncakes and steamed buns, are seeing little demand for this coming Chinese New Year, but orders for my crispy 'love letters' remain as usual.

"The majority of my buyers are regular customers who have been loyal to me for many years and I understand their habit, which is to book at the last minute.

"The Year of the Ox is around the corner and my hands are still full making kuih kapit," said the 60-year-old when met at Kampung Mata Ayer, here.

Kua, who was handed down the kuih kapit recipe from her mother 35 years ago, said she started baking love letters for the coming Chinese New Year celebration two months ago.

"In previous years, my husband, Chang Loe See, 68, helped me in the baking, but this year, he is not well and needs a lot of rest.

"Therefore, I will make kuih kapit alone using metal moulds and a charcoal pit to bake them.

"My kuih kapit is different from others because I still use the traditional way of baking them, with a charcoal stove, and this make the pastry – with the ingredients of flour, eggs, coconut milk and some sugar – more crispy and smell good," Kua said.

The mother of four said she sells 70 pieces of kuah kapit for RM25, and her clients hail from Machang and other districts in Kelantan.