Nyonya cuisine, a traditional fusion food

Nyonya cuisine, a traditional fusion food

Maria Endah Hulupi, Contributor, Jakarta

The key to authentic Nyonya dishes, said Malaysian chef Amy Koh,
is firsthand experience in knowing how to use liberal amounts of
ingredients.

Like all Nyonya cooks, she learned from the best teachers of
all.

"I learned from my mother who learned from my grandmother. I
feel that without experience you won't get the desired results,
because Nyonya cuisine does not know any exact measurements. We
use agak-agak (adding each of the ingredients to taste, depending
on experience and taste) to season the dishes. But the
ingredients are used in generous amounts.

"You just cannot be stingy with the ingredients," Koh said.

Nyonya cuisine -- the blending of Malay and Chinese culinary
influences which developed in the coastal port cities of Malaysia
and Singapore -- is said to be fading in prevalence as people
give in to grabbing a fast food meal on the run instead of
cooking at home.

It may be true, but the food received unusually high exposure
in recent weeks in Jakarta, with two food promotions at the JW
Marriott and InterContinental MidPlaza hotels earlier this month,
plus the opening of a new restaurant in Pondok Indah, South
Jakarta, reviewed below.

The valued family tradition, the use of generations-old family
recipes and the unique old way of cooking the elaborate meals are
among reasons why Nyonya dishes are still served in Straits
Chinese homes and at mostly family-run restaurants in Malaysia
and Singapore.

Koh believes that Nyonya cuisine is something that should be
learned from the heart, and that all-important experience of
seeing the experts in action.

"Having done it before is helpful because it's not only about
the cooking ingredients but also the fire, how to stir fry the
spices, when to put the ingredients in and how to season the
dish," she said.

The cuisine, also known as Baba-Nyonya or Peranakan cuisine,
offers dishes with unique flavors and aromas derived from the use
of a wide range of aromatic Malay herbs and rempah-rempah
(spices) with Chinese ingredients, like tofu and soya.

Most dishes are based on mixing the spices, such as chilies,
shallots, lemon grass, candlenuts, turmeric and shrimp paste,
into a paste. Most cooks still prefer to use the mortar and
pestle to get the right consistency and flavor of the pounded
spices.

"The dishes are usually based on intricate recipes and
(involve) hours in the cooking process but (they) usually will be
finished in around 10 minutes," said Datin Amy Hamidon, president
of the Malaysian Embassy Ladies' Association in Jakarta during a
press gathering in conjunction with the promotion at the
InterContinental MidPlaza.

The history of Baba Nyonya cuisine and culture can be traced
back to the 15th century when Chinese traders entered the port of
Malacca to sell silk and porcelain they brought from their
country to traders from India and Arab countries.

They in turn came seeking the famed spices of the region.

"No doubt, most of these spices were grown in Indonesia but
Melaka (Malacca) was an important port and was the center of the
spice trade," explained Datin, who is the wife of the Malaysian
ambassador to Indonesia.

While waiting for a good wind to speed their way back to their
homeland, the Chinese stayed in Malacca for several months, which
led to marriages with local Malays, the women known as Nyonya and
the men as Babas.

The amalgamation of the two cultures is perceptible in every
aspect of life, from the architectures, clothing and the cuisine
in the Malaysian port cities. "We are very Malay but we have
Chinese ancestors," Datin said.

Although some aspects of the culture are disappearing as
people marry outside, in Singapore, Malaysia and in some parts of
Indonesia the elaborate dishes are still served in households by
the wife, usually with help of other female members of the
family.

For the food promotion, Koh prepared around 30 authentic
Nyonya dishes, including popular ones such as ayam buah keluak
(chicken seasoned with keluak, a type of fruit), otak-otak
(grilled fish cakes wrapped in banana leaves) and sambal udang
(chili shrimps).

Koh used her family recipes and to ensure authentic flavors
she brought some of the ingredients, like belachan (a pungent
shrimp paste), keluak, tamarind, chilies and kin cham (a Chinese
vegetables) from Malaysia to Jakarta.

"Even though the ingredients are available in Jakarta, they
are not the same, like the tamarind. Here you have a black
colored tamarind, while in Melaka we have a nice yellow colored
tamarind. The belachan also tastes different," she explained.

The cuisine is known for its slow cooking process and some of
the dishes, even though they are popular and well liked, are
reserved for special occasions due to the time constraints of
cooking them in the home.

"People prefer to buy otak-otak because it requires a lot of
work," Datin explained.