Malaysian Cuisine

[Shiewie]

kew:

I have no idea as to what single dish is truly a bona-fide Malaysian dish.

I would say that sambal belacan is Malaysian, but it's quite difficult to draw a hard line between Malaysia and Indonesia, given the amount of shared history and movement of people and goods throughout the region. But that's ultimately my point: Malaysia and Malaysian cuisine are a product of the meeting of diverse influences. Malaysian cuisine is an example of a spectacularly successful fusion of cuisines. And that's why Roti Canai, Hainanese Chicken Rice, and Kangkung Belacan are all Malaysian.

I know a Singaporean who would argue with you over that claim... or is Singapore just getting lumped into Malaysia (hee hee)?

Which of those dishes are not Malaysian, as far as a Singaporean is concerned?

And since you brought it up, are there any Singaporean dishes which are uniquely Singaporean and not served in Johor?

Actually I'd been wondering when this was going to come up .

To me, Malaysian and Singaporean cuisines are essentially the same with some slight regional differences ... just like its people .

[trillium]

kew:

I have no idea as to what single dish is truly a bona-fide Malaysian dish.

I would say that sambal belacan is Malaysian, but it's quite difficult to draw a hard line between Malaysia and Indonesia, given the amount of shared history and movement of people and goods throughout the region. But that's ultimately my point: Malaysia and Malaysian cuisine are a product of the meeting of diverse influences. Malaysian cuisine is an example of a spectacularly successful fusion of cuisines. And that's why Roti Canai, Hainanese Chicken Rice, and Kangkung Belacan are all Malaysian.

I know a Singaporean who would argue with you over that claim... or is Singapore just getting lumped into Malaysia (hee hee)?

Which of those dishes are not Malaysian, as far as a Singaporean is concerned?

And since you brought it up, are there any Singaporean dishes which are uniquely Singaporean and not served in Johor?

Actually I'd been wondering when this was going to come up .

To me, Malaysian and Singaporean cuisines are essentially the same with some slight regional differences ... just like its people .

I'd agree with Shiewie. I wasn't saying they aren't Malaysian, just that they're considered Singaporean too. Soley Singaporean? I don't think so... fish head curry? roti john? I think these are in Malaysia too, right? Hmmm... maybe the Singapore Sling! Wait, that's for the cocktail forums.

The fun part about the regional differences is that something very subtlely different to me (like a curry and coconut-based laksa) will taste completely "wrong" to my partner. He'll dismiss it as "Malaysian"... while my best bud from Malaysia will get all huffy if he says nasi lemak is a Singaporean specialty. I'm no fan of misplaced nationalism, but I think it's at its most charming and fun when it's defense of regional differences in food.

regards,

trillium

Edited June 7, 2004 by trillium (log)

[trillium]

kew:

I have no idea as to what single dish is truly a bona-fide Malaysian dish.

I would say that sambal belacan is Malaysian, but it's quite difficult to draw a hard line between Malaysia and Indonesia, given the amount of shared history and movement of people and goods throughout the region. But that's ultimately my point: Malaysia and Malaysian cuisine are a product of the meeting of diverse influences. Malaysian cuisine is an example of a spectacularly successful fusion of cuisines. And that's why Roti Canai, Hainanese Chicken Rice, and Kangkung Belacan are all Malaysian.

I know a Singaporean who would argue with you over that claim... or is Singapore just getting lumped into Malaysia (hee hee)?

My grew-up-in-Thailand friend says the Thais do a nearly identical dish to Hainanese chicken rice found in S'pore, but it goes by the name of chicken fat rice. I think the chilli prep is different though.

regards,

trillium

I think someone posted a link in one of the other threads to an article about the Hainanese community in Thailand ... so it's likely a similar dish morphed out from the Hainanese community there ...

Yup. Just pointing out you can't really call Hainanese chicken rice solely a Malaysian dish!

regards,

trillium

[Shiewie]

The fun part about the regional differences is that something very subtlely different to me (like a  curry and coconut-based laksa) will taste completely "wrong" to my partner.  He'll dismiss it as "Malaysian"... while my best bud from Malaysia will get all huffy if he says nasi lemak is a Singaporean specialty.  I'm no fan of misplaced nationalism, but I think it's at its most charming and fun when it's defense of regional differences in food.

Yeah and it's funny how this never ends - I guess the tastes that people grew up with are the fondest in their hearts . My eighty two year old uncle who's lived in Singapore for more than three-quarters of his life and who holds a Singaporean passport still complains about the "bad" hawker food in Singapore (I wouldn't call it bad, just different but I guess they are niggling differences to him) and still has to get a fix of his favourites each time he comes to KL every few months . But then those from Penang also complain that the KL hawkers can't get it right either .

[Pan]

I wasn't saying they aren't Malaysian, just that they're considered Singaporean too.

I never meant to suggest they weren't, though. A lot of Malaysian dishes come from elsewhere or are also cooked elsewhere. We could make a very long list of those.

[Pan]

article about the Hainanese community in Thailand ... so it's likely a similar dish morphed out from the Hainanese community there ...

Yup. Just pointing out you can't really call Hainanese chicken rice solely a Malaysian dish!

regards,

trillium

Obviously not! It's of Hainanese origin, right?

I suspect that if we tried to make a list of exclusively Malaysian dishes, we might well be left with only some regional dishes from the northeast and such-like.

[spinoza]

kew:

I have no idea as to what single dish is truly a bona-fide Malaysian dish.

I would say that sambal belacan is Malaysian, but it's quite difficult to draw a hard line between Malaysia and Indonesia, given the amount of shared history and movement of people and goods throughout the region. But that's ultimately my point: Malaysia and Malaysian cuisine are a product of the meeting of diverse influences. Malaysian cuisine is an example of a spectacularly successful fusion of cuisines. And that's why Roti Canai, Hainanese Chicken Rice, and Kangkung Belacan are all Malaysian.

I know a Singaporean who would argue with you over that claim... or is Singapore just getting lumped into Malaysia (hee hee)?

Which of those dishes are not Malaysian, as far as a Singaporean is concerned?

And since you brought it up, are there any Singaporean dishes which are uniquely Singaporean and not served in Johor?

Singaporean char kuay teow is Singaporean. I don't think they serve it sweet in Johor.

Is chwee kueh Singaporean as well?

[spinoza]

I have a theory that chicken chops are indigenous to Malaysia

I have never found a chicken chop in the UK or Europe

Much less anything like the Hainanese chicken chops they sell in Seremban

Or near UOB bank in KL city centre

[trillium]

kew:

I have no idea as to what single dish is truly a bona-fide Malaysian dish.

I would say that sambal belacan is Malaysian, but it's quite difficult to draw a hard line between Malaysia and Indonesia, given the amount of shared history and movement of people and goods throughout the region. But that's ultimately my point: Malaysia and Malaysian cuisine are a product of the meeting of diverse influences. Malaysian cuisine is an example of a spectacularly successful fusion of cuisines. And that's why Roti Canai, Hainanese Chicken Rice, and Kangkung Belacan are all Malaysian.

I know a Singaporean who would argue with you over that claim... or is Singapore just getting lumped into Malaysia (hee hee)?

Which of those dishes are not Malaysian, as far as a Singaporean is concerned?

And since you brought it up, are there any Singaporean dishes which are uniquely Singaporean and not served in Johor?

Singaporean char kuay teow is Singaporean. I don't think they serve it sweet in Johor.

Is chwee kueh Singaporean as well?

Hey, we may have found one! Char kway teow...now I'm hungry.

A funny story about Malay vs. S'pore food. I have Mrs. Leong's Best of Singapore Cooking and really love it. When the partner went back home I asked him to pick up her Best of Malaysia Cooking because I wanted that one too. When he got back and I flipped throught the pages it was the identical cookbook, just with a different cover. Very funny.

regards,

trillium

[Packo]

Markk - check out my website www.malaysianfood.net

It's all about Malaysian food!

[Peter the eater]

Bump.

Can somebody tell me about this product? It's very thick, tastes like caramel soy sauce and the bottle says "Product of Malaysia":

[markemorse]

Bump.

Can somebody tell me about this product? It's very thick, tastes like caramel soy sauce and the bottle says "Product of Malaysia":

←

Looks like kecap manis....

[kermie]

malaysian food is my favourite!

beef rendang

roti prata (the flakey pastry kind not like a chapati) - more singaporean?

yes, the dark mee goreng (still trying to get the recipe for the yellow hokkien noodles)

nasi lemak for breaky - yum - coconut rice with anchovy, peanut, egg, chilli etc

[SheenaGreena]

I recently made an awesome Malaysian style curry from some Southeast Asian cookbook I have laying around the kitchen. It's amazing how different fresh homemade curry tastes from the store bought stuff.

I chopped up chiles, lemongrass, fresh galangal and turmeric, ginger, garlic, shallots, and added tomato paste. Then I added a touch of fish sauce for saltiness since I didn't have any shrimp paste. I also added some lime zest and juice for flavoring. I then pounded them in a mortar and pestle in the backyard (didn't want to make a mess in the kitchen!) and finished it off in the food processor.

Then I schmeared it on some chicken thighs and grilled them up.

I also made a lovely cucumber/coconut milk side salad that went really well with the spicy flavors.

I can't wait to try this recipe again (:

[heidih]

Sheena- as the weather warms up that combination of spice paste grilled chicken and cucumber salad sounds inviting. Can you give us a brief description of how the cucumbers were dressed? I have never used coconut milk with them.

[egale]

I second the request. Also, do you happen to remember the name of the Southeast Asian cookbook you used for the curry paste?

[SheenaGreena]

Can't find the curry recipe (still looking for that), but I found the recipe for the cucumber salad. I got the recipe from one of those books that you get in the $5 section of Border's. The cookbook is cheap, but the recipes are pretty darn good. Although I should add that this was missing something (probably a tiny bit of sugar and some fish sauce).

The cookbook is: "The Cooking of Malaysia & Singapore" by Ghillie Basan

1 cucumber, peeled, seeded, sliced

4 shallots, thinly sliced

1-2 chilies thinly sliced

4 tbsp coconut milk

1-2 tsp toasted and ground cumin seeds

salt

1 lime

toss all together, reserving half of the cumin to sprinkle on top of the salad before serving.

[SheenaGreena]

YAY found the curry paste recipe and it was from the same cookbook.

I threw all these ingredients into the food processor, but added a little more of some things to taste like more tomato paste, and I added fish sauce instead of boring ol' salt.

4 shallots

4 garlic cloves

1 oz fresh ginger

8 chiles

1 lemon grass stalk

2 tbsp oil

1 tbsp tomato paste

2 tsp sugar

juice of 2 limes

salt and pepper to taste (did not add this, just added fish sauce to taste instead)

For some reason I found a lot of fresh galangal and turmeric so I decided to add a bit of that to the paste as well. I actually made this paste a few months ago and I still have some leftover in my fridge. It's still fresh and on occasion I like to smear a bit of it onto hard boiled eggs. For some reason, I really like the combination. It also freezes very well and would probably be great smeared on chicken, beef, pork, and shrimp

should add that the recipe says to marinate for 2 hours, I suggest doing it overnight or for longer than 2 hours, because it wasn't enough. Oh and add some coconut milk or yogurt too if you want it a little richer.

ENJOY...sorry it took me so long to respond (:

Edited March 19, 2010 by SheenaGreena (log)

[egale]

Sheena, thanks! By the way, you got a great deal on that book. I just checked on ecookbooks.com and it's listed at $23.09!

You sound like a great cook judging from your ability to add things like tumeric and galanga without a recipe to provide guidance with amounts. I have fresh tumeric growing and the last time I "just added some" to a curry I put in too much and the curry got really bitter. The fresh tumeric smelled so magical that I just couldn't stop myself. Lesson learned: don't trust my nose!

Thanks again.

Ellen

[SheenaGreena]

I learn through trial and error, and for all the times I make a great meal I always make something that turns out crappy. Only way to learn right? Yeah I only used a teeny teeny bit of turmeric because I just wanted to add color and I added way more galangal...tastes a little like ginger so I used it as such.

Yup, it always helps to check out the bargain cookbooks of any store. I found some good finds there, but I usually stick with the non western cookbooks.

[Allen89]

On 5/26/2004 at 0:04 PM, Jason Perlow said:

Hmm. Favorite Malaysian dish.

I like the stir fried pearl noodle dishes (the noodles that look like worms).

I like "Chili Chicken" which is a somewhat dry chili sauce chicken dish.

Theres another dish that I've had at a NY chain called Penang, called "Tofu Nyonya" which is fried tofu in a spicy chili sauce with ground pork and lots of basil.

Oh yeah, the deep fried string beans with dried shrimp in it.

1. "Chili Chicken". Does it look like the attached picture?

 

On 5/26/2004 at 5:11 PM, Shiewie said:

Are these worms short fat pudgy ones made of rice flour? If so, then I think they could be Loh Shue Fun which translates to Rat's Tail Noodles (also called Bee Tai Bak in Penang - there's also a sweet version which is slightly different). Actually they look sort of like white tadpoles but with tails at both ends. They're fatter than the average noodle and needs a robust sauce to complement it - it's good stir-fried with minced/shredded meat and thick soy sauce and served with a small plate of sambal and kalamansi.

Hmm... it's more likely a Malaysianised Chinese dish where the tofu is first deep-fried (outsides are golden brown but insides remain milky white) before stir-frying it with a sambal-based sauce wth minced pork and basil. Not quite Nyonya I'm afraid as basil is not really a typical Nyonya ingredient.

 

2. Actually there are different kind of Nyonya, the cuisine from northern side of Malaysia are influence by Thai cuisine and they do use basil, to be exact the Thai basil.
F.Y.I. Penang Nyonya is from Penang, one of the Malaysia northern state.

 

3. A list of Malaysian food:
http://www.listchallenges.com/2017-update-malaysian-food-that-ive-tried