Sunday, February 19, 2006

MILO & me

I'm a fan of the drink, popularly known as "MILO". Have been ever since my childhood days. The originators of this drink are geniuses. Man, it is not often that I claim addiction to stuff (nothing ever illegal nor immoral).

It took me many years to realise this but I do consider myself lucky to be living in Singapore in this part of Asia.

I wonder if they do have it in USA? Better I go ask my friend, who had studied in USA before. Else, I can bet with you that there will be some MILO freaks like me, who will pack AT LEAST one tin of MILO into their luggage, come what the weightage will be. There you go, Mr/Ms Customs Officer, this ONE TIN will have to last me ONE SCHOOL YEAR. Yes, that's right. You heard me correctly.

The "Milo" comes in a chocolate-coloured powder form, which is packed into grass-green tins. Now, the tins when empty, serve as useful storage containers for things like: biscuits & love letters (edible tidbits served during Chinese New Year). It is air-tight, thus sealing in the crispyness into the container.

What one can do is to take a couple of teaspoons (or in my case, TABLESPOONs) of the MILO powder, drop it in a glass/mug, before mixing it with some hot water & milk (doesn't matter if it is full-cream or skimmed), finally topping it off with some cold/cooled water. I like mine cuppa with extra MILO powder floating on top. In some food & beverage places, they call it the "Milo Dinosaur". More or less the same recipe & they put it up for sale.

MILO lovers would have you know that there are TWO different types of powder available in the market out there, at least true in this part of the world, Asia. Depending on your luck & how the business managers do it, you can get MILO powder in Singapore coming from either Malaysia and/or Australia.

Unless I'm very much wrong, the one coming from our neighbouring Malaysia, is sweeter; to accomodate our Asian tastebuds for sweet stuff. While the one coming from Down Under Australia, it is creamier (probably from all the milk supply from the moo-moo cows).

Both types are equally good, not one above the other. It is just a matter of tastes.

There has been spin-offs using the MILO powder to manufacture drinks. Like the ever-popular MILO Dinosaur in Singapore (a recent concocted drink). Another is the MILO Freeze (more or less like pure crushed Milo drink). A third is the tetra-packed instant MILO drink, in packs of six. This can be found in Singapore & Malaysia.

A fourth is the "instant MILO 3-in-1, or if u prefer, 2-in-1 powder). They (meaning the instructions) always tell you "just add hot water" ... Bah, humbug!! To me, when I do that, the drink is like drinking "long kang water" (water from the drains, not a very pleasant experience). I always end up adding milk to those "2-in-1" or "3-in-1" instant MILO powdered drinks.

In the part of Australia during my student days, I NEVER SAW any TETRA-PACK of the Milo drink. To say it literally, I would have given an "arm & leg" just to get hold of ONE.

Only in my final semester, did they come up with it ... in my uni's cafeteria. It was delicious & creamy, not too sweet. It was not tetra-packed but in a plastic bottle with "an hour-glass" figure. Not exactly what I always drink back in SG. On hindsight, I should have packed a dozen of those drinks in my luggage.

The Customs Officers surely would be interested in my packing. I guess they would probably think,"This girl is crazy. You can get MILO powder in Australia, why would she want to bring in from her home country??"

I only ever once did pack those "3-in-1" but as they fell far short of my expectations (read above), I never did that again. Instead, I relied on Australian-made MILO powder & milk. Learnt my lesson.

On a parting note, please don't try this unless you don't mind chocolate teeth for awhile. I used to sneak a clean spoon into the family MILO tin at home & gobble up a few TABLESPOONS of the addictive powder. This, of course, was done only when the parents were not at home ... and when I was much younger.

20 Comments:

Blogger rinaz said...

Oh yes, who'd never try milo powder and eat it by itself? Ahh ... comfort food by itself!

Found this blog from tomorrow :)

8:14 pm  
Blogger myztika said...

hullo fellow milo lover! heh, a few tablespoons is nothing. I used to eat a whole bowl of it, just like that. =p of course, I'll get scolded by my mom, who believes that eating milo like that would make me all pimply. O_o

as with marina, found your blog from tomorrow.sg. =)

9:52 pm  
Blogger fuzzoo said...

Malaysia and Australia Milo tastes different because of ingredient differences. Palm oil (readily available in Malaysia) is used in the Malaysia product and palm oil does not overwhelm the cocoa and that's why Malaysia Milo is more chocolatey compared to Australia Milo. Personally I prefer Malaysia Milo... it just tastes better.

10:15 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Tell you what's another great way to enjoy Milo - scoop some vanilla ice-cream and sprinkle some Milo on top. Doesn't have to be a lot, half a tablespoon is enough for me, but tastes really good. When the powder combines with the slush at the end,yummy.

another way is if you get hold of the tetra pak versions, just dump them in the freezer and tadaa - Milo freeze. You can make do by making your own drink and just pouring them into whatever receptacle and then dump them in the freezer. Works well with most other tetrapak drinks too e.g. soya bean, ribena etc.

Enjoy!

1:39 am  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

yeah i am guilty of eating milo powder by tablespoons when i was much younger as well! haha.

3:52 am  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

i bought a tin of milo which screamed "new australian recipe" a few days ago; "more milky and chocolately" (or some catchline to the tune of that)

and below in fine print: "made in singapore".

see! it only said "AUSTRALIAN RECIPE"!

p.s. whereas milo MADE down under has a paper label, milo with only a RECIPE from down under has its label printed onto the tin. beware.

2:24 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

yeah, they have it in USA (in asian store of course). Malaysian made is the most expensive ( definitely has the best taste!), Aussie is alright, but made in china taste like Ovaltine (which is a blasphemy for Milo-lover!).
yeah, found this on tomorrow too :)

2:23 am  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

My pref based on my experiences:

M'sia Milo tastes best with condensed milk, while Aus Milo could do without milk and sugar.

However if you wanna add milk to the Aus Milo, please do so with fresh milk (not UHT or powdered) cos it's much smoother to drink to. You could do with little or no sugar as the Milo is pre-sweetened.

One favourite is Milo Mocha, in which I add half to one teaspoon of Nescafe instant coffee to my Milo.
This really kickstarts my day cos of the caffeine and sugar rush. However, I've avoided doing so everyday cos one do get pimples (yes, you do even in temperate climate) popping due to the heatiness of this mixture...

Cheers from Down Under!

6:02 am  
Blogger Jenny Teo said...

I used to be a Milo drinker until recently when I switched to VICO. For some reason, I find the taste more delightful, but it is not sold in many supermarkets, only managed to find it in Cold Storage.

5:11 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

You forget the Milo trucks with free milo!!

4:00 am  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

and now they have milo godzilla. which is milo dinosaur plus vanilla ice-cream.

*power*

1:55 pm  
Blogger Sleek Black said...

hey, enjoyd reading ur article "milo".

I used to study in Australia and would smuggle in some 3-in-1 milo packets from Singapore.

Never notice the difference in taste between Singapore and Australia.

6:05 am  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

ooooooooooooooh!!! i want milo now!

12:35 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

HAHA what a funny and unique blog! I'm a big fan of Milo, but i must say Malaysia Milo is better for me, its taste is more flavoursome (if that's a word). I live in down under so I have Aussie Milo though, nevertheless, still loving it! You should try getting a banana and slicing it into pieces, then with a bowl of Milo, dip and coat the slices of banana in the bowl.. MMMmmmmmmm hahha Cheers Milo Lovers!! XD

11:45 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

im a malaysian living in australia - and to me - if its milo, i'll be happy - but personally, i like malaysia's milo more =D
and i am currently eating a bowl of banana + vanilla ice cream + heaps and heaps of milo powder =D
yummm

11:20 am  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

My email: keyangtay@yahoo.com.sg

3:26 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Would like to try Milo Freeze,how do u make it???

4:43 pm  
Anonymous ak said...

hi, i was searching why malaysian milo differs from australian milo, and saw your blog! im a milo lover too and i have to say and agree with most of you malaysian milo taste way better..sweeter and more chocolaty, australian milo tastes milkier and less chocolaty.. so, thumbs up to malaysian milo!

anyone ever wonder why we can't bring malaysian milo into australia? got 2KGs in the last time i came back but they are quarantined! worst sight-2KGs or milo straight into the bin! jeez..

7:54 am  
Anonymous luckyno13 said...

Found your blog searching for 'Is it okay to eat Milo powder'. I was gobbling up a few (okay more than a few) tablespoons on MILO powder when my roomie said it's supposed to bed bad for your health. Hah like I'd believe her.

4:28 pm  
Blogger Unknown said...

I am from Manila and I swear Milo taste and smells different 40 years than it is now. I missed the old taste of Milo in the tin can. I remember when I open the can the aroma smell all over our house and it taste so delicious, the Milo now taste like sugar.

2:58 am  

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