Malaysian cuisine consists of cooking traditions and practices found in Malaysia, and reflects the multi-ethnic makeup of its population. 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 East Malaysia, the Orang Asli of Peninsular Malaysia, the Peranakan and Eurasian creole communities, as well as a significant number of foreign workers and expatriates.
Condensed milk is cow's milk from which water has been removed. It is most often found with sugar added, in the form of sweetened condensed milk, to the extent that the terms "condensed milk" and "sweetened condensed milk" are often used interchangeably today. Sweetened condensed milk is a very thick, sweet product, which when canned can last for years without refrigeration if not opened. The product is used in numerous dessert dishes in many countries.
Youtiao, known in Southern China as Yu Char Kway, is a long golden-brown deep-fried strip of wheat flour dough of Chinese origin and also popular in other East and Southeast Asian cuisines.
Cha chaan teng, often called a Hong Kong-style cafe or diner in English, is a type of restaurant that originated in Hong Kong. Cha chaan tengs are commonly found in Hong Kong, Macau, and parts of Guangdong. Due to the waves of mass migrations from Hong Kong in the 1980s, they are now established in major Chinese communities in Western countries such as Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Likened to a greasy spoon cafe or an American diner, cha chaan tengs are known for eclectic and affordable menus, which include dishes from Hong Kong cuisine and Hong Kong-style Western cuisine. They draw comparisons to Western cafés due to their casual settings, as well as menus revolving around coffee and tea.
Bak kut teh is a pork rib dish cooked in broth popularly served in Malaysia and Singapore where there is a predominant Hoklo and Teochew community.
Singaporean cuisine is derived from several ethnic groups in Singapore and has developed through centuries of political, economic, and social changes in the cosmopolitan city-state.
White coffee can refer to any of a number of different kinds of coffees or coffee substitutes worldwide.
Yuenyeung is a drink created by mixing coffee with tea. It originated in Hong Kong, where it remains popular.
Teh tarik is a popular hot milk tea beverage most commonly found in restaurants, outdoor stalls, mamaks and kopitiams within the Southeast Asian countries of Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, and Thailand. Its name is derived from the process of repeatedly pouring the drink back and forth from one container into another with arms extended during preparation, which helps to slightly cool the tea for consumption and giving it a frothy head. It is made from a strong brew of black tea blended with condensed milk.
Grass jelly, also known as leaf jelly or herb jelly, is a jelly-like dessert originating in China. It is commonly consumed in East Asia and Southeast Asia. It is created by using Chinese mesona and has a mild, slightly bitter taste. Grass jelly was invented by the Hakka people who historically used the food to alleviate heat stroke after long days working in the field. The dish was introduced to Southeast Asia by the Chinese diaspora. It is served chilled, with other toppings, such as fruit, or in bubble tea or other drinks. Outside Asia, it is sold in Asian supermarkets.
The romanisation of the Chinese language in Singapore is not dictated by a single policy, nor is its policy implementation consistent, as the local Chinese community is composed of a myriad of topolect groups. Although Hanyu Pinyin is adopted as the preferred romanisation system for Mandarin and the standard of Chinese education, the general lack of a romanisation standard for other Chinese varieties results in some level of inconsistency. This may be illustrated by the many variants for the same Chinese characters often found in surnames such as Low, Loh, Lo; Tay, Teh; Teo, Teoh; Yong, Yeong.
Chinese Indonesian cuisine is characterized by the mixture of Chinese with local Indonesian style. Chinese Indonesians, mostly descendant of Han ethnic Hokkien and Hakka speakers, brought their legacy of Chinese cuisine, and modified some of the dishes with the addition of Indonesian ingredients, such as kecap manis, palm sugar, peanut sauce, chili, santan and local spices to form a hybrid Chinese-Indonesian cuisine. Some of the dishes and cakes share the same style as in Malaysia and Singapore, known as Nyonya cuisine by the Peranakan.
Lor mee is a Chinese Hokkien noodle dish from Zhangzhou served in a thick starchy gravy. Variants of the dish are also eaten by Hokkiens in Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand. In the Philippines, the local variant is called Lomi or Pancit Lomi. The thick gravy is made of corn starch, spices, meat, seafoods and eggs. The ingredients added into the noodles are usually ngo hiang, fish cake, fish, round and flat meat dumplings, half a boiled egg, and other items depending on the stall and the price paid. Vinegar and garlic can be added as an optional item. Lor Mee can be served together with red chili. Traditional versions also include bits of fried fish as topping though few stalls serve this version anymore.
Singlish is the English-based creole or patois spoken colloquially in Singapore. English is one of Singapore's official languages, along with Malay, Mandarin, and Tamil. Although English is the lexifier language, Singlish has its unique slang and syntax, which are more pronounced in informal speech. It is usually a mixture of English, Hokkien, Cantonese, Malay, and Tamil, and sometimes other Chinese languages like Teochew, Hainanese, Hakka, Hockchew, and Mandarin. For example, pek chek means to be annoyed or frustrated, and originates from Singaporean Hokkien 迫促. It is used in casual contexts between Singaporeans, but is avoided in formal events when certain Singlish phrases may be considered unedifying. Singapore English can be broken into two subcategories: Standard Singapore English (SSE) and Colloquial Singapore English (CSE) or Singlish as many locals call it. The relationship between SSE and Singlish is viewed as a diglossia, in which SSE is restricted to be used in situations of formality where Singlish/CSE is used in most other circumstances.
Heong peng or heong peah, in English, are round pastries that contain a sweet sticky filling made from malt and shallots, which is covered by a Chinese flaky pastry crust and garnished with sesame seeds on the surface. Originating in Teluk Intan in Perak, heong peng are available in many stores around Ipoh, and other parts of Malaysia and Singapore. Heong peng is popular with the Malaysian Chinese community, especially those in Northern Peninsular Malaysia.
Chhoah-peng or Tsua bing, also known as Baobing in Mandarin, is a shaved ice dessert introduced to Taiwan under Japanese rule, and then spread from Taiwan to Greater China and countries with large regional Overseas Chinese populations such as Malaysia and Singapore. It is especially popular in Taiwan where the dish has a variation called xuehua bing (雪花冰), in which the ice is not made out of water but milk.
Oliang, commonly known as Thai iced coffee, is a popular Thai beverage. Oliang is prepared from a mixture of Robusta coffee grounds, brown sugar, and various grains and seeds like cardamom, corn, soybeans, rice, and sesame seeds. The drink is noted for its coffee aroma and smoky notes from high-roasted grains and seeds.
Kopi, also known as Nanyang coffee, is a traditional coffee beverage found in several Maritime Southeast Asian nations. Often brewed to be highly caffeinated in strength, it is commonly served with sugar and/or milk-based condiments. This drink originated from the British Malaya era, with Hainanese cultural roots. The name of the drink is derived from the Malay term for coffee. The term Nanyang, which means "South Sea" in Mandarin, refers to Maritime Southeast Asia. Kopi culture vocabulary is grounded in the Hokkien dialect as a result of historical immigration to Maritime Southeast Asia from the Minnan region in the south-eastern part of Fujian Province in southeastern mainland China. The beverage is usually served in coffee shops, hawker centres and kopitiams across the region.
Mamak stalls are indoor and open-air food establishments particularly found in Southeast Asia, especially in Malaysia and Singapore, where the cuisines served are typically those derived from Indian Muslim and Pakistani cuisines, unique to the region.
Roti bakar, also known as roti kahwin, refers to a type of toast bread in maritime Southeast Asia, usually prepared with grilled white bread, in both the Indonesian and Malay languages. The dish is a popular breakfast food as well as tea time snack in countries like Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore. Historically, roti bakar was grilled or toasted by using charcoal as a heat source in many communities throughout the region, though this practice has dwindled with the advent of modern technology.
