Introducing a National Cuisine to Foreigners through Tourism

How to effectively bring most iconic Malaysian regional cuisines to the world stage?

By NZChefSi@ChefSarawak

Why Malaysian cuisines could never beat Vietnamese or even Thai cuisines’ popularity to foreigners except for the Sarawak laksa, if it was never being highly recommended by celebrity chef Anthony Bourdain, perhaps it is still another hidden regional cuisine of the part unknown world.  Sarawak laksa is actually a regional fusion cuisine found in one of the most remote Malaysian states to most eyes of West Malaysian, some of these Western Malaysian who has never been to East Malaysian still jeer curiously if Sarawakians are sleeping on the tree top. Perhaps yes, I was told that many Sarawakians' political awareness is still “sleeping on the tree!”  but without them, perhaps Malaysian political scene would look different and our national carrier’s third-class food served to passengers wouldn’t embarrass most Malaysian trained chefs. Malaysian always serve the best food and drinks to their visitors, but I don’t understand why it changes on the air.

To prepare food, bring to the air and serve the passengers after 6 to 12 hours period, the chefs have to think very hard like those dotting moms how to prepare their kids’ lunch boxes, how their kids could still enjoy yummy hot food without changing much in quality after 4 to 6 hours. It is something chef school students won’t get a chance to learn from their modules.

I decided to write this article due to on my recent trip to Kuching, Sarawak, one sunny morning after my breakfast, coincidently when I waited at the side of a backstreet alley of Kuching Kenyalang market for my ride, I saw a native trying to cut a piece of pumpkin with a blunt cleaver, his left hand held more than an inch away from the cleaver. Of course, he cut slowly. Why people still considered Malaysia as a third world country?  I think its commoners don’t even have the basic vocational skills, now who will teach them? I remember most older NZ chefs told me they were either trained by a famous French chef who would use a bread that his apprentice gave him wrongly to hit right on the head of such innocent apprentice and that happened to be my L5 chef tutor, or by Air NZ catering, it actually fostered the most chefs during the past decades to help NZ tourism and hospitality before SkyCity emerges. Since MAS does so well training their air stewards and air hostess, why don’t MAS also set up a scheme, trained its own crew of professional chefs through its own airline catering, one stone two birds, this will end up fostering many Malaysian future chefs to help to improve MAS food, to benefit own Malaysian hospitality industry and tourism.

When I traveled internationally during recent years, I rather starved myself by traveling Air Asia or Jetstar. But this round’s cross-continental traveling was unavoidable, due to my MAS air-ticket was not paid by me. MAS was known for its bad in-flight food, not until I finally ate them after many years, I could tell what went wrong now, the food actually went so wrong, except the smiles from the air stewards and hostess could please me.

MAS Inflight Drinks:

Rave: I won’t complain here, it did serve a wide variety of drinks and water. Mas used foreign red wine or white wine as Malaysia doesn’t produce wine. But for the fruit juice choices, there are always orange juice and apple juice, I really think that MAS should promote and serve at least a choice of own Malaysian national agricultural produce like coconut juice, soursop juice, pineapple juice or guava juice etc. Coconut juice (Cold entity) versus orange juice (Cold entity) or apple juice (Cool entity), what will be your choice? If I was the executive chef of MAS catering I would choose either UFC coconut water (does any Malaysian coconut juice taste as authentic as it?) or less sugar pink guava juice and soursop juice for the passengers. For a long distance traveling less sugar soursop juice should be drunk to boost one’s immune.

I did appreciate MAS’s wide variety of beverages served for economic class passengers, besides the juice, you can choose a white wine, red wine or a beer. Although fresh milk was not given for the tea or coffee, at least the convenient instant cream and sugar were provided.    

Picture: Soursop cured my severe sore-throat and symptom of bad flu within three days.

MAS in-flight Entree:

Rant: I looked at this American style soft bun pitifully, it looked like around 30 to 40g, often my European professors would not consider it as bread, for me I would consider it as Chinese style baked bread instead, as most Asian would prefer soft bun perhaps due to they don’t have a set of strong teeth. I pressed it with my fingers, it is not soft but brittle, a sign of overnight soft bun. It is not the bread where production begins by the old Boulanger at Olaf Mt. Eden at 11pm every night until dawn, and only artisan bread and bun could last into a longer time, that’s why most Auckland fine dining restaurants or bread connoisseurs would rather pay more for its bread. 

A badly produced bread regretfully is a waste, it continues to nurture innocence taste buds on the flight, I would probably eat it like a pig without fussing on it unless I have been starved for three days. I learned that many chefs can’t bake good bread, regretfully due to they are actually not interested in producing good bread, and also, they have not acquired the true European artisan bread yet since young.

Unfortunately, this white or wholemeal bun tasted worse than some internet amateur home bakers and it is served on MAS. If MAS can’t supply well-baked bread to its passengers, its own regional bread like steamed rice bun, steamed bread or even steamed rice cake ketupat may end up another soggy tale. Rice bun can be baked or even deep fried.

Seriously, MAS bread bun’s recipe needs a change for higher standard and quality, its yeast needs to change for French yeast, semolina must be added to promote higher protein to the existing hard flour, the dough needs to be rest for 6 to 8 hours in a chilled condition. The soft dough can be improved by fat and sugar, the crunchy crust must be brushed with the mixture of some natural magic portion flavored egg wash or just flavored water, brush the surface of the tapered dough periodically before baking. Good bread is just like any other food, it needs good flavor and texture in and out. After the first bite, you want another bite, although it is just a plain bun.

Rave: Butter gave was an extra plus but it helps if only the bun is good.

Rant: This was the second meal being served on the same 11-hour flight from Auckland to KLIA, I was again being served with stew, now the beef stew. Its carrot salad without being seasoned with any spice or herb, it was tasteless.

What I noticed was when I ate pies around different Auckland café, whenever I ate a pie without being seasoned with pepper, I would ask the chefs which chef school they attended before, they would tell me they were self-taught or trained directly in the different New Zealand commercial kitchens. I noticed that when I received my apprenticeship in Langham Hotel, Auckland, there was always a big bag of ground pepper, these European trained chefs in the main section could also tell the different strength between white and black pepper powder.  TT means to taste, it always indicates using salt and pepper, salt and pepper are like a husband and wife in culinary, it is the final checking on almost any food’s seasoning before serving.

I think it’s the time MAS menu should introduce Malaysian local herbs like lemongrass, ginger torch buds or Daun kesom to their salad or salad dressing.

Rave: Diplomatically saying I think the salad dressing was the child-friendly version, but I think most children won’t appreciate much on raw and hard to chew carrot salad, most of the time they just wanted to hear, “Oh good boy, you have finished your carrot salad!”  

Rant: Too special for me to chew and digest. Mung bean vermicelli that l ate since toddler but in this case, the vermicelli was merely being soaked in just warm water, drained, then being served as salad. I really guess the chefs who prepared this salad either knows nothing much about vermicelli or knows much more than me about vermicelli! This kind of "no cook" vermicelli often appeared in the Vietnamese spring roll when some of my chef school classmates who never cooked or tasted mung bean vermicelli before. It should be blanched quickly and refresh for salad or Vietnamese rolls!

Rant: Smoked chicken slices with sweet corn and raw cucumber. I like all the three ingredients, but the whole thing was degraded by the way how it was presented and prepared. Cucumber seeds need to be get rid of, it is not advised to serve so plainly --- like a naked infant walked along with his parents at the beach, at least the cucumber could be tossed by some chopped herbs herbal oil (or Malaysian cucumber relish acar could be introduced by garnishing it on top of the smoked chicken slices, so it won’t look too plain and too simple) if the chef didn’t intend to add salt to prevent it becomes soggy.

MAS in-flight Main:

Rant: MAS economic meal lamb stew for Ack to KL route. l am amazed who wrote this recipe and menu plan or if the chefs were following the recipe properly.  I wonder if the kitchen inside the tall wall opposite of AGS could prepare the similar meal much better than this! The French Bean turned yellowish green. Again, I couldn’t taste any spice in it, not even the black pepper.

Rave: Child-friendly meal!

Rant: After flying for a lengthy time, another similar main meal was served but this round it was the beef stew. What a wonderful “flying jail experience!” Similar sauce as the above but only the meat was changed! A typical lazy chef’s menu plan, all because I came across a chef produced this kind of menu exactly!

Rave: If you hardly have a chance to eat western food, this may taste great to you!

Rant: KLIA to Auckland route, look at this chicken rendang really pissed me off completely, most Malaysian housewives could prepare this dish better without any recipe. Can MAS menu be more innovative? Deep fried your chicken with glutinous flour, then add on the rendang sauce later. It is better to serve ketupak if the rice ended up soggy like this. Most distasteful piece of chili being garnished on its top. I snapped this chicken rendang ordered by a passenger who sat next to me.

Rave: Place a hibiscus on next to your ear will be appreciated if it is a Malaysian garden party with Hawaiian motif, unfortunately, although Hibiscus is Malaysian national flower, on the world stage if a Malaysian pinched a hibiscus on his/her outfit, foreigners would surely think you are a Hawaiian! So, you want to promote your national cuisine by garnishing a piece of cut chili with seed on top of chicken rendang? Now you can't find red identity internatioanlly with Hibiscus  but you want to show people your chili? Please go to the market, get some ginger torch flowers, shredded it up finely, season, then garnish on top tastefully may effectively awaken the Malaysian national cuisine to call for international attention.

Rant: A typical Malaysian breakfast. Very disappointed with this yogurt brand, too sweet and too runny. Nasi lemak's anchovy was far too salty. Rendang sauce’s herbs were not browned and caramelized enough, l could still taste the green of the herbs. The tea served didn’t have much fragrance, we produced tea at Sabah and Cameron Highland, now what has happened? Why Malaysian own teas can’t be used to impress international passengers?

Rant: Lagsana was a bit too dry and salty just like its nasi lemak. Again, recipe should be revised or the chefs or cooks cooking skills and techniques should be monitored, trained and improved. The cheese was hardened. Blanched broccoli was just simply plain, was its purpose used to balance up the salty Lagsana?

Over salty and over sweetened food are always found in lower income group of people, what kind of passengers can afford flying cross-continent long distance and this is not Air Asia.

Rave: With a choice of Lasagna and Chicken rendang, good to hear there were such good choices. There were two kids flying alone with MAS escort during last year end, as their mom never wanted to prepare Lasagna for them, so they liked it and also because they were hungry.

MAS in-flight Dessert:

Rant: Brownie's texture should have crispy surface and chewy texture, little flour was added to produce brownie, it is mainly made up of quality chocolate chips, caramelized sugar, cocoa powder, lots of eggs, quality butter, some optional walnuts. This MAS version tasted like the chocolate cake instead! It is not necessary to serve a large piece of dessert, the dessert is a comfort food, an awesome small piece is much better and healthier than a large size piece called “junk food!”

Rant: This was served for both inbound and outbound flights. I only guessed it was the carrot cake due to carrot cake’s recipe usually called for cinnamon and soda. Overwhelming soda and cinnamon were tasted, I think carrot cost too much in Malaysia, I couldn’t taste carrot due to it was covered with cinnamon and soda. But surprisingly, I still could smell the egg which I thought vanilla could do a trick to cover the raw eggs smell, but there was no vanilla called for this recipe.

Terrible recipe, just like most poor kids suffered their untalented, calculative or stingy poor mom’s bad food, but have to keep quiet for ages - A typical Malaysian style.

Rant: Looked at the piece of cake at the side, I took a bite, I couldn’t tell if it was sugar caramelized cake or butter cake, it was so badly prepared.

I have realized the reasons why our variety of Malaysian cuisines have been undervalued and underpromoted by our own Malaysian, instead the second-class western food has been introduced on board, are we over-zealous to please westerners yet our national airline doesn’t have enough western trained chefs or just could employ mediocre chefs to prepare mediocre western food?

I was thinking why can’t MAS catering developed a fusion of Malaysian regional cuisines with a western twist, this kick-start could also introduce foreigners about Malaysian herbs, spices, and local produce effectively and also help to bring the best of Malaysian regional cuisines to world stage, and also help to sell our Malaysian agriculture produce effectively.

Even Hawker’s food could call for Michelin’s attention, MAS meal for economic class, although it has limited budget, if there is no severe corruption going on, giving the catering contract actually to someone who doesn’t love food but only interested in money, when the contract reaches the trained chefs, no good chefs would be willing to take such limited profit. MAS, a national airline which represents Malaysia should act as a leader to promote Malaysian regional and national cuisines effectively to foreigners.