Smoked wild boar a Sabah sensation

KOTA KINABALU – Sinalau bakas (smoked wild boar meat) is one of the most exotic traditional cuisines in Sabah. Over time, it has become more popular and well known even to non-Sabahans.

Visitors to Sabah would typically be told that they would have to travel into the interior and up hilly roads. There they could sample it at one of the many sinalau stalls dotting the hilly roadsides.

But nowadays they won't have to travel so far. The tasty dish can also be found closer to the city, such as in Penampang, a district on the outskirts of the city.

One such stall serving sinalau bakas in Penampang is the Sinalau Bakas Gerabak in Kg Ramayah Penampang alongside the Pan Borneo highway.

The stall is run by the owner, Elizabeth, and her husband. They have been selling smoked wild boar meat for the past few years.

On when she got her start, Elizabeth said five years ago, she had set up a stall selling sinalau bakas at Gunung Alab along the Tambunan road. But as there were many other sinalau bakas sellers on the same road, she decided three years ago it would be better to set up here at her home in Kg Ramayah. 

"We only source our meat from a licenced supplier in Tawau, as the freshness is important in making the sinalau. We prepare the meat by burning off the wild boar hairs, then we scrape the rest off before cutting it up.

"Then it is smoked in our meat smoker using selected woods such as rubber tree or the jambu tree wood. Not any type of wood can be used, as some may be poisonous.

"We go through six to seven trunks of rubberwood a day, each weighing from 5-10 kgs each. Usually, it only takes a few hours in the morning from cleaning the meat to finish smoking it for consumption.'

On the taste, Elizabeth said sinalau wild boar is different from farmed pork due to its exotic wild nature.

'It has a gamier taste due to the wild plants, fruits and roots that form the wild boar's diet in the wild. Also, boars sourced closer to palm oil plantation areas would have meat that are more fatty thanks to the oil palm fruits they eat."

She said it takes them three hours to smoke the meat. And it involves a fair amount of moving and turning the meat over every once in a while to ensure it is properly smoked.

"Don't mistake wild boar sinalau for fully cooked meat. It's not. Sinalau meat is smoked meat and is used as an ingredient for other dishes such as stews and soups.

"Fully cooked barbecued meat that you can eat straight away is called sinalau 'hinugu' bakas.

'Sinalau bakas can be kept for a day at room temperature, longer if refrigerated. Linugu bakas, due to its fully cooked nature, can be kept for a few days at room temperature and for some time if refrigerated.

"Sinalau hinugu bakas is typically served with linopot (cooked rice wrapped in fragrant leaves) and fresh chilli sauce.

"What's also important is the chilli sauce that goes with the sinalau," she said, adding that her chilli sauce is a secret recipe that her customers love.

Elizabeth said on a good day they could sell up to 20kg of meat as they used to have a small cafe. But due to the conditional movement control order (CMCO) they were now only operating for takeaway.

She said their worst period was during the movement control order (MCO) earlier last year, "when we had to close our stall due to government Covid restrictions. We had to depend on our savings and not on government help."

Nowadays, Elizabeth said their stall has regular customers of all races, who buy to take away on their travels.

"Many of our customers are Sarawakians as they could not find similar smoked boar products there. 

"Also, there are Sarawakian police personnel in Penampang and soldiers in the nearby Lok Kawi army camp who are among our regulars."

"We are open every day except on Monday.' – The Vibes, January 16, 2021