April 16, 2008

A true authentic Malaysian experience

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We had roti for breakfast yesterday - it was fabulous. Roti for breakfast may probably be weird to some, but in Malaysia, it is a common breakfast (as well as anytime) food, normally eaten only with a light curry or dahl (unlike in Australia where roti is usually a side order to a main meal). There are many varieties including roti telur (roti with egg), roti sardin (roti with sardine) and other savoury types. Then there are the sweet variety such as roti pisang (roti with banana)! 

Roti literally means bread in Malay, but it's different from the bread that is widely available in shops. Roti is made from wheat flour. The dough is left to rise slightly and then stretched and layered while cooking on a flat pan. As a result, there are many silken layers, and the good ones are crispy on the outside and soft inside.

I love roti telur - cooked with a beaten egg between its layers - eaten simply with fish curry (no fish, just curry).  Yesterday, we had one roti and one roti telur between us, with teh tarik.

Teh tarik is simply tea and condense milk. Tarik means to pull. The tea is poured from one container to another with the containers as far apart as possible, as if the liquid is pulled...  this mixes the contents and gives the tea quite a bit of froth. It is usually served hot (but on a hot day, some people ask for the cold variety). It is an extremely popular drink. It is very sweet, so we usually say "kurang manis" (i.e. less sweet) to the waiter when ordering and they usually oblige. Drinking teh tarik is a popular activity to catch up with friends or just to have something to pass the time with.

Jeremy (pictured above) seems really happy with his brekkie of roti and teh tarik, eaten at a local mamak (indian muslim) shop. I think this should be on the to-do list of anyone coming to Malaysia.

1 comment:

Linda said...

My daughter studies the Indonesian language and is also learning hospitality. I didn't know that when she made roti it may have meant something to her as an Indonesian student. I'm sure the tea would be of interest to her as well. manis is a word she likes to use.

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