How The Many Foods In Malaysia Can Unite Us As A Country by Ivan Jan
An essay on the entanglements of the Malaysian people, as seen in their food and history.
First published in Gagasan Mahasiswa Undang-Undang Sabah on 20 September 2021.
From the author:
This was a piece I wrote for Gagasan Mahasiswa Undang-Undang Sabah when they hosted their Koisaan in Writing Malaysia Day Special article writing competition. The competition aimed to foster a sense of patriotism and unity in the youth of Malaysia via topics such as ‘What does it mean to be a Malaysian’, ‘What are your hopes for Malaysia’, and ‘Describe the many foods in Malaysia and explain how they can unite us as a country’. Having grown up experiencing multiple cultures due to my families being in Brunei and both West and East Malaysia, I felt most equipped to write on the third topic. I hope that, by reading my submission, my fellow Malaysians can resonate with the rich history and culture behind our everyday foods that we may take for granted.
To be a Malaysian is to have lived your life amongst perhaps one of the most diverse food cultures in the world, as its cuisine has been predominantly influenced by an oriental fusion of the trinity of Chinese, Indian and Malay origins. The flourishing amalgamation of these cultures, ethnicities and languages has often led to Malaysia being affectionately described by its locals as ‘Asia’s melting pot’, the meeting point of cultural integration. Although a quick look at the Malaysian ethnic population will show disparities between each group, such as the composition of ethnic Malay and indigenous groups being 69.8%, the ethnic Chinese population composition being 22.4% and the proportion of ethnic Indians being 6.8%, the fact remains that each culture’s traditional cuisines and cookery have more than deeply penetrated the deepest recesses of Malaysian society at its core. Hence, it can easily be agreed by the likes of gourmets, connoisseurs, tourists, locals and food enthusiasts everywhere that the Malaysian food scene is not to be missed out on due to the sheer variety of flavours and techniques that you would be exposed to, all in one nation.
For starters, I will be reviewing and sharing my personal experiences with the largest ethnic group in Malaysia, the Bumiputera. As chef Abd Hafidz Ainuddin puts it, Malay cooking is easily characterised by spicy flavours, expert usage of herbs and spices, their key component of coconut milk in numerous dishes, and lastly, their method of stewing meats with a viscous and luscious gravy. This includes dishes such as the renowned nasi lemak, ayam percik, beef rendang, tapai, satay and more. Popularity-wise, nasi lemak wins the race by a mile due to its exciting flavours and packaging. Traditionally, the dish consists of rice that has been steamed with coconut milk, creating a rich and scrumptious fragrance, and is topped by a variety of sides such as fried anchovies, a hot sauce called sambal paste, a boiled egg, slices of cucumber and a cluster of fried peanuts, all of which are conveniently wrapped up in banana leaves, which boost its tantalising aroma. Nowadays, with slightly differing sides, nasi lemak is further topped by proteins of all sorts, from chicken and beef to seafood and fried eggs. In my opinion, besides different restaurants and kiosks offering varieties of nasi lemak with differing sides, what makes the dish so exciting to me is the fact that every household has their own sambal recipe. This means that certain places might have sambal that has quite a kick to it, while others would have distinct features in their chilli paste, such as being less viscous, having more chilli flakes, having onion bits mixed in and so on and so forth. The list goes on! As such, the fact that each sambal is so unique in its own right shows that recipes have been passed down from generation to generation, up to this day, when nasi lemak continues to thrive as by far Malaysia’s most common staple dish.
With regard to Chinese cuisine, its numerous dishes carry ancient roots from Mainland China, incorporating many styles, including but not limited to Cantonese, Fujian, Hakka, Teochew and Hokkien cuisines. What makes Malaysian Chinese cuisine stand out from its mainland predecessors is that Chinese migrants who have settled in Malaysia have adopted local cultures into their culinary techniques and repertoire. This can be seen in examples such as Malaysian Hainanese rice being enriched with pandan leaves and local spices, which create a unique flavor, one that is distinct from its origins in the Hainan islands. Not only that, since pork serves as a major component in Chinese dishes, the Malaysian Chinese have frequented chicken as a substitute for their local Muslim clientele to the point that certain Chinese restaurants have even been granted halal certification. A notable dish that has once been referred to by the BBC as ‘Malaysia’s humble king of noodles’ is the Penang char kuey tiaw, which is also one of my personal favorites. Translated from Hokkien, it stands for stir-fried flat noodles. It is a noodle dish traditionally made with soy sauce, eggs, Chinese sausages, garlic and shrimp. Its perfect blend of sweet, savoury and spicy, thus providing a great depth of flavour, along with its status as a quick, cheap and fast dish, makes its immense popularity no surprise. Personally, the fact that it is stir-fried on a wok and utilises soy sauce and eggs as central components makes it reminiscent of fried rice, which is probably the reason why I favour it so much; it can be considered the noodle equivalent.
In terms of Indian cuisine, its dishes can be mainly traced back to South India, due to a majority of the Malaysian Indian community being of South Indian origin. The staple dishes are characterised by the use of wheat-based breads such as chapatis, rotis and parathas which are complemented by scrumptious curries and kurmas. Although similar to ethnic Malay dishes with the frequent presence of coconut milk and spices, what sets Indian dishes apart is the curry leaves that pack a punch. Notable dishes known and beloved by many include chicken tikka masala, nasi kandar, murtabak and nasi briyani. A favourite dish of mine, which is also a famous snack food throughout all of Malaysia, would have to be the roti canai, which is essentially fried flatbread that is usually served with either condensed milk, daal, or a curry of your choice. Although it can be had as it is, there is also an exaggeratingly innumerable amount of options for fillings that may be stuffed into the roti, ranging from simple ingredients such as eggs, onions and cheese to more wild components such as bananas, canned sardines and even Milo powder! The variety of ingredients it can work with allows for an infinite amount of creative possibilities, limited only by the imagination. In my opinion, what makes this dish such a fan favourite is that the roti simply serves as the ideal medium for the flavours of the rich and mouth-watering curries to shine. They exist in perfect harmony and equilibrium, complementing each other in ways that truly bring out the umami of each imbedded flavour.
As perhaps one of the most symbolic and desired dishes in Malaysia, laksa can be said to have been born out of the marriage of cultures between all three ethnicities. Its status as a delicacy is undoubted as seen in Lonely Planet’s Ultimate Eatlist which has ranked it as the number two food in the entire world. Simply put, it is a spicy noodle dish with a delectable broth that is topped with proteins such as poultry or seafood. The vagueness in this description is due to the several varieties of the dish in several different nations and states, with the only notable constants being the presence of noodles and broth. Its origins can be traced all the way back to when Chinese traders travelled through the Silk Road to settle in the Malay Archipelago, thus being influenced by Indian spice trades. As the respective peoples of each ethnicity intermingled and settled together, the ultimate culmination of cultural exchange occurred when spices, herbs and coconut milk were added to Chinese soups to concoct the by far unparalleled richness of the laksa broth. Its rich, savoury taste with a spicy kick truly represents the embodiment of a national unity of cultures that all happened to come together in Malaysia. In light of these cultural fusions, the saying ‘The way to a man’s heart is through his stomach’ applies to us, while also transcending the boundaries of ethnicities, cultures and languages.
Conclusively, one can see that through a mutual appreciation of one another’s cultures and cuisines, a sense of unity can be created. After all, respect for another culture’s food leads to respect for their culture, which further leads to respect for their people and so on and so forth. We may be divided by factors such as religion and beliefs, but we are united in culture and nationality.
Ivan Jan is a passionate foodie and traveler who has spent a majority of his childhood living across Brunei, Sarawak and West Malaysia. Alongside his undergraduate and postgraduate legal studies, Ivan indulges his creative impulses in his leisure time by writing articles on whatever topic catches his interest.
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ivan-jan
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