Early Aidilfitri celebration: Tunku Azizah cooks till morning for Raya feast - Palace assistants

Soon after the announcement by the Keeper of the Rulers' Seal, people, mostly in shock, scrambled to gather the necessary ingredients, especially fresh produce, to make their Hari Raya dishes such as rendang chicken and beef, satay, and lontong.

Likewise, the situation in the kitchen of Istana Negara, as recalled by one of the palace chefs, Pazlina Saleh, 49, who was among the 10 cooks working throughout the night, helping Raja Permaisuri Agong Tunku Azizah Aminah Maimunah Iskandariah to prepare food for the the Aidilfitri celebration the next day.

Tunku Azizah is known for her hobby of cooking with various videos of Her Majesty showing her cooking skills being viral on various social media platforms.

"Even Her Majesty was shocked. Some people think that since we work at Istana Negara, we get to know the date for the Aidilfitri celebration earlier and can make early preparations, but that is not true.

"Like others, we also have to wait for the announcement, and for the Aidilfitri celebration in 2022, we were all shocked because we did not expect the celebration to be earlier than was predicted.

"All of a sudden, the situation became chaotic, especially for the chefs, because we were not prepared and there was nothing much in the kitchen to cook to be served for the Aidilfitrri celebration," she said.

Pazlina said Tunku Azizah was the one who calmed down the situation.

"Her Majesty is very understanding and is not a fussy person. So, we just prepared whatever was available in the kitchen for Her Majesty to cook and that night, Her Majesty cooked until 4 am (the next day) preparing the Hari Raya dishes.

"And because there were so many things to cook, all the chefs had to cook one dish each for about 300 guests," she said.

The pastry chef at Istana Negara, Shahril Hidayatullah Mat Nawi, 35, described the situation in the kitchen as a festival with all family members busy preparing special Aidilfitri dishes.

He said Tunku Azizah, although a Queen in her role as the Raja Permaisuri Agong, rolled up her sleeves and was busy in the Istana Negara's kitchen, as well as in Her Majesty's private kitchen.

Her Majesty cooked her special Aidilfitri dishes such as chicken and beef rendang, beef dendeng, Johor laksa, chicken harissa (Mediterranean dish), kuah kacang, soto ayam, ketupat palas and various types of cakes, he said.

According to Shahril Hidayatullah, Her Majesty did not show any signs that she was tired or not getting enough sleep in having to be up early the next day to accompany Yang di-Pertuan Agong Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri'ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah to the Federal Territory Mosque to perform the Aidilfitri prayer.

After the prayer, Their Majesties are back at Istana Negara to welcome and entertain their Hari Raya guests, including Cabinet ministers as well as foreign dignitaries after a two-year hiatus because of the implementation of the Movement Control Order (MCO) due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

"Her Majesty only had time to rest for two hours after working in the kitchen and then had to get ready to go to the Wilayah Mosque for Aidilfitri prayer, and after that, back to Istana Negara to receive the guests.

"Actually, Her Majesty can just order us to cook, but because of her love for cooking, and her desire for others to also taste her cooking, she was willing to be in the kitchen for hours, doing the cooking herself, especially after the two-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

He said Tunku Azizah was not only "hands-on" in the kitchen", but also in decorating Istana Negara for the Aidilfitri celebration.

"Her Majesty made sure everything is in the best condition, including the flower arrangements at the main hall and the dining hall, to welcome the guests," she said.

Chief of the palace assistants (Ketua Kundang) at Istana Negara Saadiah Mohammad Mahardin, 57, said four florists were involved in providing fresh flowers, such as orchids, ivy leaves and baby breath, which are Tunku Azizah's favourites.

"The situation that night was chaotic. Everyone was shocked after finding out that Aidilfitri was the next day, but with simple and clear instructions from Her Majesty, I and 20 other palace assistants in charge of housekeeping, as well as staff from the four florists, we were able to accomplish the job of decorating the palace well, as desired by Her Majesty.

"We decorated according to Her Majesty's taste and for the flower arrangements and other decorations, we used more white and pastel colours because white is Her Majesty's favourite colour. For the flowers, the must-have is the orchids because Her Majesty likes orchids," she said.

Saadiah, who has been in service for 34 years, said that Her Majesty, besides deciding on the gifts to be given to guests, will also be among the workers at the site to ensure all preparations go smoothly.

"If there is any event, Her Majesty will definitely be on the ground to monitor our work. She is like a mother, always guiding and advising, that we always feel ashamed and embarrassed when we cannot give the same commitment as Her Majesty to our job," she added.

"Now that Her Majesty is leaving us, we all are very sad. We will miss her.

"We thank Her Majesty who never hesitates to share her knowledge and for the guidance and lessons Her Majesty gave us during her five-year stay at Istana Negara," he said.

The Raja Permaisuri Agong will return to Pahang with the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri'ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah, whose five-year reign ends this Jan 30.

-- BERNAMA