Foods

Sarawak Laksa

Sarawak Laksa – De Facto State Dish of Sarawak  

 

Sarawak Laksa is the “de-facto” state dish of Sarawak.

Due to lack of worldwide publicity, this cuisine has long been neglected in the ranking of Malaysian cuisines as it is a treasure hidden in the eastern state of Malaysia on the island of Borneo.

Though its popularity has yet to stretch to other States in Malaysia, but it had started to gain popularity internationally.

While Sarawak Laksa had never appeared in any food ranking of Malaysian Cuisines, most people (including Malaysian themselves) may be surprised that as at 30 May, 2013, goggling “Sarawak Laksa” yielded 243,000 results whereas goggling “Assam Laksa” and “Curry Laksa” yielded only 143,000 and 158,000 results respectively.

Worldwide, in big cities like Melbourne, Toronto, restaurants that sells Sarawak cuisines will definitely have Sarawak laksa and its siblings “Kolo Mee” on the menu. In 2012, the Sarawak Tourism Board in its blog polls concerning top 10 iconic foods of Sarawak, Sarawak Laksa comfortably ranked no.1 and followed by Kolo Mee.

Sarawak Laksa is unique in that it is a fusion between Penang Assam Laksa and the Curry Laksa. It is both tamarind based and coconut milk based. It is not as greasy (“lemak”) as curry laksa and it is not as sourish as the Assam Laksa. No people in my circle be it Assam Laksa Lover of Curry laksa lover have ever rejected our offer of Sarawak laksa.

Sarawak Tourism Board gave a very brief but concise definition of Sarawak Laksa as follows:

“The Sarawak Laksa is essentially vermicelli rice noodles (bee hoon), cooked in a shrimp-based broth that is made to thicken with coconut milk. This dish is served with generous amounts of crunchy bean sprouts, a few boiled prawns and garnished with shredded chicken and slivers of egg omelette. For added spice, there’s the thick sambal paste that is usually served on the side. For some extra pizzazz you can squeeze some lime juice (limau kasturi) into your dish as well.”

This treasure have yet to be discovered by both Malaysian and worldwide foodies but asking any tourist or visitors who have ever visited Sarawak, it is unlikely anyone have not tried or forgotten this unique cuisine. It is time that this De-facto Sarawak State Dish be given a status or recognition and introduced to the world officially. The ranking of Malaysian delicacies will not be complete with the omission of Sarawak Laksa. For more detail on Sarawak Laksa, its history, ways of preparation, please visit https://www.facebook.com/SarawakFoodHistory

 AYAM PANSOH

Eating local food in Kuching, Sarawak is one of the things every traveler or visitor must try when you are here. The choices are totally different from West Malaysia and Sarawakian Food in very unique in their own ways. You can actually find them at a number of places around Kuching town especially when you walk around the main town. Usually when I visit Kuching town, especially around the Waterfront area, I would explore new restaurants and cafes in search for some exotic Sarawakian food like the Ayam Pansoh in the picture above. This amazing dish is cooked in a bamboo before being served to you