Malaysian Cuisine

The vast majority of Malaysia's population can roughly be divided among three major ethnic groups:Malays,Chinese and Indians. The remainder consists of the indigenous peoples of Sabah and Sarawak in Malaysian Borneo, the Orang Asli of Peninsular Malaysia, the Peranakan and Eurasian creole communities, as well as a significant number of foreign workers and expatriates.

As a result of historical migrations, colonisation by foreign powers, and its geographical position within its wider home region, Malaysia's culinary style in the present day is primarily a melange of traditions from its Malay, Chinese, Indian,Indonesian, Filipino and indigenous Bornean and Orang Asli, with light to heavy influences from Arab, Thai, Portuguese,Dutch and British cuisines, to name a few. This resulted in a symphony of flavours, making Malaysian cuisine highly complex and diverse. The condiments, herbs and spices used in cooking vary.Because Peninsular Malaysia shares a common history with Singapore, it is common to find versions of the same dish across both sides of the border regardless of the place of origin, such as laksa and chicken rice.

The same thing can be said with Malaysian Borneo and Brunei, such as Ambuyat. Also because of their proximity, historic migration and close ethnic and cultural kinship, Malaysia shares culinary ties with Indonesia, Thailand and the Philippines,121 as these nations often share certain dishes, such as satay and rendang. Because the vast majority of Chinese Malaysians are descendants of immigrants from southern China, Malaysian Chinese cuisine is predominantly based on an eclectic repertoire of dishes with roots from Fujian, Teochew, Cantonese, Hakka and Hainanese cuisines. However, despite the vast majority of Indian Malaysians are descendants of immigrants from southern India, Malaysian Indian cuisine has a mixture of north-south Indian and Sri Lankan diversity that can be differentiated by drier or wetter curry dish preparation.

Malaysian cuisine has developed over the region's history. Although the modern state of Malaysia did not exist until 1963,the cuisine can claim traceable roots as far back as the 1400s during the time of Malaccan Sultanate. Malaysian cuisine is a mixture of various food cultures from around Malay archipelago, India, China, the Middle East, and several European countries.This diverse culinary culture stems from Malaysia's diverse culture and colonial past (The cuisine was developed as a melange between local and foreign In the 15th century, the region now known as Malaysia became an important passageway for maritime trade.

Passing through Malaysia were Arab traders who brought spices from the Middle East, as well as Portuguese, Dutch, and English colonists and traders who introduced food staples such as peanuts, pineapples, avocado, tomato, squash and pumpkin.During the 19th century during the period of British colonial rule, many Indian and Chinese laborers were brought to Malaysia, contributing to the diversity of tastes in Malaysian cuisine 1617.Being a multicultural country, Malaysians have over the years adopted each other's dishes to suit the taste buds of their own culture. For instance, Malaysians of Chinese descent have adapted the Indian curry, and made it more dilute and less spicy to suit their taste. Chinese noodles have been crossed with Indian and Malay tastes and thus Malay fried noodles and lndian fried noodles were born. Malaysians have also adapted famous dishes from neighbouring countries, or those with strong cultural and religious ties, and in the absence of an established community from said countries have made it completely their own, a notable example being tom yam, one of Thailand's most well-known dishes.After migrating south of the border, Thai tom yam takes on the visual characteristics of a Malaysian Assam gravy with a flavour profile of sweet, sour and spicy.

It is thickened with pounded chile paste which also turns it a vivid orange-red.Tamarind is often used instead of lime juice as its souring agent, and dried instead of fresh chillies are used to provide a fiery kick. Malay-style tom yam soup tends to be heavily seafood-based, whereas in Chinese-style eateries the broth's spiciness is toned down and usually serves as a base for noodle soup.Across the sea from Peninsular Malaysia on Borneo island, lie the states of Sabah and Sarawak. Traditional lifestyles and limited roads still predominate outside of the major cities, especially in Sarawak, where rivers are the only major highways for much of the inland population. The jungles of Borneo are teeming with wild plants, fungi, and fruits, and its sweeping coastlines and many large rivers provide an abundance of seafood and freshwater fish fit for the dinner table. A rich variety of traditional food has been developed by Borneo's many tribes and indigenous groups over the centuries; much of it is healthy food, consisting of foraged (now increasingly cultivated due to modernisation) and fermented foods. Because much of the region was once under the Brunei Sultanate's thalassocracy, the Bruneian Malay people have left a lasting culinary influence, particularly on the cookery of the coastal Muslim communities of East Malaysia.

According to the source paper written in 2006, the Malaysian food industrial sector accounted for about 14% of the total manufacturing energy consumption)Historically speaking, fresh produce is often scarce for hunter-gatherer nomadic tribes around the world, thus it is usually preserved out of necessity for important events and festivals. The tribal peoples of Sabah and Sarawak are no different most of them have developed age-old techniques for curing, fermenting or preserving their supplies of fresh meat, fruit and vegetables. For example, during festive occasions the Murut people of Sabah would serve tamba (jeruk in the Malay language) made from fresh raw wild boar or river fish, which is stuffed in bamboo tubes along with rice and salt and left to ferment for a few weeks, a technique which is also practised by the Lun Bawang people across the border in Sarawak.Fermented products are also frequently used as a cooking ingredient besides eaten on their own. Dayak households in Sarawak may saute their version of fermented meat with garlic and tapioca leaves (either fresh or pickled), and fermented tempoyak is a popular cooking seasoning. (citation needed]The production and consumption of traditional liquor play an important cultural role for the non-Muslim peoples of East Malaysia. Alcoholic drinks made from rice is the most common form, as well as the widely available. In Sabah, the Penampang Kadazan lihing is perhaps the most well known. Yet due to the historical lack of a standardised Kadazandusun language used and understood statewide, ethnic groups from other districts in Sabah have very different names for similar fermented rice-based drinks: hiing (certain Dusun languages), kinomol, segantang, kinarungkinopi, linahas, and even tapai.To add to the confusion, tapai proper as understood by most Peninsular Malaysians is a fermented sweet and sour rice paste served as a snack or dessert, although further fermentation of the tapai to produce alcoholic drinks is possible. The preferred party drink of the Murut, made from the tuber of the cassava or tapioca plant, is also called tapai. The Iban of Sarawak call their rice wine tuak, which must not be confused with Sabahan talak, which is a hard liquor made from rice. To the native peoples of Sarawak, tuak may also refer to any alcoholic drink made from fermenting any carbohydrate-rich substance besides rice.

With migrants arriving over the centuries from the Middle East, India, China and Indonesia, Malaysia has a rich multicultural heritage, and this is reflected in Malaysian cuisine, which is heavily influenced by Indian, Chinese and Indonesian cuisine.Malaysian cuisine combines locally sourced herbs and spices with varied cooking styles inspired by the cultures that define creating a unique explosion of flavours that's robust and palatable.With many varieties in the menu for palates of all sorts, you'll never be bored or run out of eats and drinks to satisfy your taste buds.From the use of the wok to the combinations of spices found in popular dishes, Malaysian food is generally spicy and always flavourful, often with fragrant combinations of spices such as coriander and cumin (the basis of many Malay curries), lemongrass, kaffir lime leaves, cardamom, star anise and fenugreek.

Like many countries in Asia, rice is a staple of Malaysian cuisine, with local or Thai rice being the most common, and lndian basmati rice used widely in biryani dishes. Nasi Lemak, which is ricesteamed in coconut milk and served with dried anchovies, peanuts, hardboiled eggs, cucumber and sambal, is often referred to as Malaysia's national dish, and can be eaten at any time of the day. It is best enjoyed with curry or the very popular Rendang, which is a spicy meat stew usually made with beef.Noodles are another staple, especially within the Chinese community, with the best-known example being the spicy noodle soup laksa. There are two main rypes of this crowd favourite – Curry Laksa, which is a coconut curry soup with noodles, and AsamL aksa, which is a sour fish soup with noodles. Meanwhile,Indian breads such as Roti Canai have transcended all cultures to become a quintessential Malaysian breakfast food,although itis just as widely consumed for lunch or afternoon tea, and is commonly enjoyed in the company of friends as a midnight hang out snack.