Going bananas for golden bites

The Star

4 days ago

Fritter stall in Shah Alam a favourite with locals for three decades
FEW snacks are as beloved by Malaysians as banana fritters – a simple pleasure of ripe bananas dipped in batter and deep-fried until golden.
Crisp on the outside, soft on the inside, this is the kind of treat that sparks instant joy with every bite.
At Azmi Goreng Pisang Shah Alam, that joy is a serious affair.
Tucked along Jalan Langkap Satu 18/6a in Section 18, this modest roadside stall has been dishing out some of the crunchiest, most addictive banana fritters for over three decades.
Each fritter hit that sweet spot between cruch and softess, with a batter that is light and never greasy.
It's the kind of texture that hooks you from the first bite and keeps you going back for more.
The man behind the wok is Azmi Man, a 71-year-old former army personnel who has been frying bananas since 1994.
After retiring from military service, Azmi juggled selling fritters part-time while working as a wiring technician.
Eventually, he left the trade and devoted himself fully to the food business.
The stall now runs with four woks going at once, allowing them to fry fritters continuously.
'This business was not passed down to me. I started it myself,' said Azmi.
'In the beginning, I did wiring jobs in the morning and fried bananas in the evening. But over time, I knew this was what I wanted to do,' he said.
His stall now offers a variety of deep-fried local favourites like pisang tanduk, pisang nangka, yam, cempedak, sweet potato, and breadfruit, but the undisputed crowd-favourite is pisang awak.
'Back then, pisang awak was cheap, about 60 to 80sen a kilo. Nobody paid much attention to it,' Azmi recalled.
'Now, it's the one everyone asks for.'
The rise in popularity of pisang awak, however, has not come without its challenges.
A few years ago, local banana crops were hit by a bacterial wilt disease that caused plants to wither, rot and die – making it difficult to source the beloved variety.
Azmi had to act fast. To keep up with demand, he turned to suppliers in Thailand, who now deliver shipments of pisang awak to his stall twice a week.
On a typical day, he goes through up to 200kg of bananas, most of them the pisang awak.
Azmi dedicates his time to selling good quality banana fritters.
It's not the easiest fruit to work with, said Azmi.
'Pisang awak takes longer to cook and can be tricky to handle,' he said, but insisted that the effort paid off.
'It's soft, sweet and different from the rest. People don't mind waiting a little longer,' he said.
To keep up with growing demand, Azmi and his team have expanded their operations.
The stall now runs with four woks going at once, allowing them to fry continuously while rotating breaks for prayers.
Some customers even place bulk orders worth over RM200, using delivery services like Lalamove to have their favourites sent straight to their doorsteps.
The business has also found popularity beyond the stall, thanks to Azmi's signature batter which is now sold in ready-to- use packets for customers who want to fry at home.
'Some of them enjoy making the snack themselves. They just dip bananas in the batter and fry whenever they feel like eating them,' he said.
Recently, Azmi relocated his stall to a new spot just down the road from the original location. To ensure his regulars could find him, he shared videos online to give directions and put up clear signage from the old spot.
Despite the move, prices remained affordable: RM1 for three pieces of pisang awak, RM1 for two pieces of pisang tanduk, RM2 for three pieces of pisang nangka, and 50 sen for each slice of yam or sweet potato.
In a city brimming with fried banana stalls, it is rare to find one that blends tradition, consistency and quality the way Azmi does.
What began as a small post-retirement enterprise has grown into a beloved neighbourhood staple, built not just on golden fritters, but on the kind of dedication that keeps customers coming back, day after day.
The stall opens daily from 12pm to 6.30pm, except on Fridays.
For orders or directions, call 019-220 0478.