Indian and Nyonya cuisine from Malaysia
Indian cuisine
Fragrant and spicy, with a strong personality and unique character, Indian cuisine has preserved the identity of the Indian subcontinent but lent fragrance of local ingredients. Even India’s curry has give up to yogurt in Malaysia and gladly adopted coconut milk.
In Malaysia there are even two kitchens, adding ethnicity and religious. There is not only Hindus Indian cuisine, but of Indian Muslims, the so-called mamak cuisine, popular with local authorities to encourage Islam. Because they do not serve alcohol and low prices, mamak premises enjoys a high popularity.
Hindu Indian cuisine is characterized by numerous curries, especially chicken, fish or squid, flavored with properly local ingredients. Specific for Indians from here – and to those from Singapore – is Banana leaf rice, dish consisting of rice mixed with vegetables and curry, eaten from banana leaves.
Thosai or Dosai is the name of a glued made from fried lentils leavened overnight in ghee (butter) and eaten with curries and vegetarian chutney (fruit or vegetable thick sauces). Indian cuisine Muslim (mamak) is a halal kitchen that complies with the restrictions required by the Koran. Nasi Kandar, a native dish of Penang is specific to this cuisine and rice is served with fried chicken pieces with different kinds of curry sauces.
Teh Tarik or Tea Tarik, translated as pulled tea is black tea mixed with condensed milk and transferred to a speed boat to another in order to cool down and to produce specific foam.
Non-alcoholic beverages based on fruit yogurt, as mango lassi are specific for Indian Hindus and for Muslims and are welcomed by all Indians spicy foods, regardless of their faith.
Nyonya cuisine
Baba-Nonya or Peranakkan is the name of the first hybrid populations from Malaysia, the result of a cross between Chinese settlers who came here in XV and XVI centuries and local tribes’ people. Nonya cuisine is an archaic cuisine that is part of the history of this place and is characterized by culinary stereotypes combined with ancient innovations of Chinese culinary culture.
The taste of this cuisine is distinguished by Malay but without to be a halal cuisine. Specific to nonya cuisine is Laksa, a Malaysian jungle plant, added by the natives in different kinds of food for their favorite flavor and shrimp sauce, Cincalok.
Otak-otak is a product of this culture classic culinary hybrid, repetition of a word is specific for indigenous population in the area and consists of a dumpling of rice and fish wrapped in banana leaf and roasted on the grill.
Se Bak is pork marinated overnight and slow cooked barbecue is another recipe of earlier archaic local Islam. Asam Laksa is a specific facet of this cuisine and a mixture consisting of a bowl of rice noodles served in a fish broth flavored with onion, pineapple, basil and cucumber. Another specific food of this cuisine is Masaka Belanda, a mixture of fish and pork slowly cooked.