Nyonya Main Cuisine

12:21 AM |

Juliana Foo Li Lynn
0111251@kdu-online.com
  



      Last week, we have introduced a delicious Chinese cuisine which is called the Poon Choi. As for continuing the Nyonya dessert, we will be introducing some extraordinary yet known by all Malaysian, which is the Nyonya Cuisine.

             Now, I will be starting off by introducing one of the famous Nyonya main dishes in Malaysia which is known as Ayam Pongteh, a soybean-based chicken stew with mushroom and potatoes. Ayam Pongteh is a Malacca Nyonya dish that is made with chicken, potato with fermented soy bean sauce, mushroom and also Gula Melaka. This dish is definitely a heartwarming and delicious dish, especially for family occasions.
                               



            Second on the list, we will be introducing a dish that is one of the most popular dish in the Nyonya cuisine. Nyonya cuisines are always known for their strong aroma in their chili paste. This dish is widely known for its spiciness yet delicious and mouth-watering chili paste. This dish is called Sambal Udang. It is cooked with a mixture of chili paste that is flavoured with Malaysian shrimp paste and also shrimp itself. As alternatives, it can also be cooked together with petai or squid as well. This dish is best served with steaming hot white rice.

                       


            Next is another spicy dish from the Nyonya Cuisine. It is called Gulai Tumis or in other words, tamarind fish curry. This dish is cooked with spice paste, ginger flower, ladies fingers and most importantly, stingray. As stingrays are sometimes hard to find, we can replace it with other fishes such as ikan tenggiri (Spanish mackerel) or squid. The curry in this dish is practically hot and sour and it is traditionally famous amongst the Nyonya and Hainanese household in Malaysia. This particular dish can also be served with only rice. In fact, most of the Nyonya dishes are suitable to be served with only steamed hot rice.

                                  


            Coming up is a dish that every one of you must try if you haven’t got a taste of it. This dish is so mouthwatering that just by looking at the picture itself, you couldn’t resist in having it. It is called the Otak-otak. It is steamed with moist fish custard that is wrapped with banana leaves. It is also one of the famous and iconic Nyonya dish that is filled with the taste of various aromatic herbs, exotic spices and sweet fragrance of rich coconut milk. But one of the secret ingredient in this delicious dish is known as the wild betel leaves or called daun kaduk by the local people. 

                                              


            Lastly is a dish that no Malaysian don’t know of. This dish is especially famous in Penang therefore, some people may mistake it as one of the Chinese Cuisine, but it is actually from the Nyonya Cuisine. This main dish is called, Asam Laksa. Sounds familiar, right? Well, to all Malaysian, if you do not know about it, you are not a true Malaysian. Asam Laksa is so famous that you can almost have it anywhere. But, as the origin of Asam Laksa is from Penang, therefore the best one to have is at Penang itself. 



            Do you feel hungry now? Well, these are just a few of the most famous Nyonya Cuisine and there is still a whole lot more mouthwatering Nyonya food out there to explore and taste. As for now, thanks a lot for staying with us throughout these few weeks. We sincerely hope that the information and knowledge about the variety of food we shared has opened a whole new world for you, our readers to experience. 

Low, Bee Yinn. RASAMALAYSIA. (2015). Nyonya Receipes. Retrieved on 17 October
            2015, from http://rasamalaysia.com/recipes/nyonya-recipes/

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Posted by Anonymous

The Wonders of Nyonya Cuisine

8:33 PM |

Choo Kar Man
0111524@kdu-online.com

Have you guys ever watched “ Little Nyonya”?

It is a Singapore drama series with the culture of  Nyonya as its background. After I completed watching the series, I started to take interest in Nyonya cuisine and began trying out all the dishes. Hence, Nyonya kueh had become one of my favourite food today among the Nyonya cuisine. Have you ever wonder how Nyonya cuisine came by? Baba Nyonya group is the result of the intermarriage of Chinese people from China with the native people of the region settling in Peninsula Malaysia, mainly situated around Malacca in the early 17th century. Therefore, the descendants of these settlement sparked a whole new culture which is the peranakan, also known as the Nyonya.

Same as every culture, food plays a very important role in it. The Nyonya cuisine is influenced by the local Malay cuisines and spices and at the same time incorporates both Malay and Chinese recipes to create an array of delightful dishes and desserts. So now I bet you know how Nyonya cuisine would be. But how about Nyonya Kueh? Nyonya kueh is made from multifarious type of flavourful ingredients such as sweet potatoes, tapioca, palm sugar, coconut milk and pandan leaves. Coconut milk and pandan leaves are considered the main ingredients when it comes to Nyonya kueh as most of the Nyonya kueh will be using both of it. With all the ingredients presented together, the outcome of the Nyonya kueh will be a delightful one when placed on a platter, and can be served during tea time as a sweet dessert or as a part of the menu at festive occasions.


When a Nyonya is cooking

During the old days, the Peranakan girls, also known as Nyonya were trained to sharpen their skills in the culinary art, because they believe that this will lead to a better marriage. So, after the short introduction of the Nyonya culture today, I would like to introduce to you one of my favourite Nyonya kueh, which is the kueh Bingka Ubi Kayu(cassava). Traditionally, the top of the kueh would normally become dark brown and a little bit crusty. This is because in the past, there was no electricity and they have to use charcoal to bake the kueh. In the present day, you can still get the same crusty effect if you bake it in a fan forced oven. The kueh will be light yellow in colour and has a sweet hint due to the coconut milk used. You can even bite into the grated coconut. I would suggest that you use the wooden coconut grater to grate the coconut in the recipe that I am going to share with you all later. “Ahh! That is so troublesome”. I know that this will pop up in your mind immediately but there is no doubt that fresh grated coconut will taste better than the frozen one. Anyhow, the choice is up to you and can still use the frozen one as stated in the recipe.


         After the brief introduction of the Nyonya culture and also my favourite kueh Bingka Ubi Kayu, here is the easy recipe for your all. I hope that everyone will have a try at it and have fun! 


Kueh Bingka Ubi Kayu


Ingredients:
1kg of finely grated cassava (tapioca)
4 cups of sugar
1 tin of coconut milk and add water to make 1 litre in total
3 heap of tablespoons plain flour
250g of freshly grated coconut

Method:
Mix the grated cassava, grated coconut and flour in a large mixing bowl.
Heat up the coconut milk together with sugar. When the sugar starts to melt, add this mixture into the combined cassava mix. Use a balloon whisk to stir thoroughly.
Lastly pour into a 8”X 8”X 3” tin, either lined with grease proof paper (baking paper) or banana leaves.
Bake in the oven at 180 degrees Celsius for 2 hours.

Bee Yinn Low.(2010). Kuih Bengka (Tapioca/Cassava Cake). Retrieved 6 November 2015 from http://rasamalaysia.com/kuih-bengka-tapiocacassava-cake/2/


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Posted by Anonymous

Chinese Dessert

4:40 AM |

Lavanya Yong Tze Chung
0111606

Last week, we discussed about how fantastic Indian cuisine was. For now, we will be focusing on Chinese desserts and share to you readers about the mouth-watering and fascinating yet simple Chinese desserts.

This time, we will be kicking off with one of the most famous desserts which is the Tang Yuan. Tang Yuan means re-union and is a Chinese dessert made from glutinous rice flour mixed with water that is shaped into little balls and then served in sweet liquid. Nonetheless, Tang Yuan is a 'must-to-be-eaten' dish during Yuan Xiao, which is also known as the Lantern Festival, Winter Solstice Festival that is called Dongzhi in Mandarin, and also on pre-wedding days for those who are getting married. Moreover, in this 21st century, Tang Yuan is created using different fillings. Besides, some people still make their own dough during Winter Solstice Festival as it consists of only three simple ingredients and can be done easily.  Glutinous rice flour, water and oil are mixed together to form the dough which is then rolled into little round balls and added into the sweet liquid. Different types of filling can be used according to the liquid or soup used such as chocolate, peanut, red bean paste, or sesame paste.


         Coming up on the menu is a traditional sweet potato soup cooked with ginger which is beneficial and healthy as ginger contains nutrients that help to keep our body warm, eliminates digestive problems, reduces pain and so forth. Even though the texture of the soup is light, it has a strong tangy taste due to the combination of sweet potato and ginger. Moreover, it is quite easy to prepare this soup at home. Firstly, peel the sweet potato and ginger, and then dice it into small cubes. Later, depending on how sweet is the soup wanted, add in white rock sugar and Pandan leaves accordingly. Let it boil for about 15 to 20 minutes or until the potato are soft enough.



Third on the list is one of the most traditional and popular Chinese desserts, which is the red bean soup. Red bean soup can be served either hot or cold according to the seasons. It is a sweet soup that has different tastes as the result of the mixing of sun-dried tangerine peels, sago, lotus seeds and white rock sugar. Sago and lotus seeds are also frequently found in other Chinese desserts to thicken the texture of the soup. Red bean soup can also be turned into a drink called “hong dou bing.” It is made from red bean soup, sago and ice, and originates from Hong Kong.


Lastly is the Nian Gao which is another dessert eaten during Chinese New Year and DuanWu, also known as the Dragon Boat festival. Nian Gao is made from glutinous rice so the overall texture is a little sticky. The word Nian means ‘gummy’ and Gao means cakes, but it also means tall. Therefore, the Chinese believes that eating Nian Gao during special occasions signifies that you are raising yourself higher in everything you do each year and hoping for a good life ahead of us in the future.



There are many more varieties of delicious and unique Chinese desserts which are really amazing and these are the most popular and iconic ones that we have chosen to share with you, our readers now. Please stay tuned as we strive harder to bring you even more tasty and succulent dishes next week. 

Ellen L. (8 September 2013) Red Bean Dessert Soup. Retrieved 10 November 2015, from
         http://www.thehongkongcookery.com/2013/09/red-bean-desert-soup.html
Foo, Jasmine. (2013) How to Cook Potato Sweet Soup (Chinese Dessert). Retrieved 10 November 2015, from
         https://snapguide.com/guides/cook-sweet-potato-soup-chinese-dessert/
Wong, Sharon. (19 February 2015) Lunar New Year: Try This ‘Nian Gao’ Recipe. Retrieved 10 November 2015, from
http://www.nbcnews.com/news/asian-america/lunar-new-year-try-nian-gao-recipe-n303566
Wiffy. (24 February 2013) Homemade Tang Yuan. Retrieved 10 November 2015, from

http://www.noobcook.com/homemade-tang-yuan/

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Posted by Anonymous

Chinese Cuisine: Poon Choi

12:14 AM |




The Poon Choi, which is also spelled as "Pun Choi", is a traditional dish that was once very common in China. It is a dish usually served in large wooden, porcelain or metal basin due to its communal style consumption. The name itself translates to a "big bowl feast".

According to tradition, its origins was invented when the Mongolian army invaded china causing it's young emperor to flee the area. In order to serve the Emperor and his army, the people collectively gathered their best food and cooked it in a large wooden basin due to insufficient serving containers.

The Poon Choi slowly became a traditional dish among the villagers. Furthermore, due to it's large quantity, it is suitable for a communal meal and is served whenever there were celebrations like weddings and festivals.


The ingredients usually used in the Poon Choi are pork, beef, lamb, chicken, duck, abalone, ginseng, shark fin, fish maw, prawns, crab, and squid. According to the villagers at that time, vegetables are not highly valued ingredients therefore the dish usually includes mostly or only meat and seafood.

When preparing the dish, special attention is given to the layering of the ingredients as it contributes to the taste as it is composed of many different ingredients and the ingredients that absorbs sauces the most are placed at the bottom while the middle is usually filled with the meat and at the top, seafood and other rare ingredients are placed. This allows the sauces at the top to flow to the bottom as the top is eaten.



As the preparation and cooking is tedious work, it requires multiple people to work on the dish which ultimately cultivate teamwork and unity among its chef.

The modern day Poon Choi represents the creativity of the chefs as ingredients change as time passes by to suit the people's taste. This dish is extremely popular during Chinese New Year as it is gimmicked as fortune and unity.




Daryl Justin De Rozario

0106775@kdu-online.com
 

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Posted by Irnie Furzannie binti Azroie
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