Sugee, rawa, semolina, suji….a staple ingredient, found in most kitchens. An ingredient I reach for when want to make quick comfort foods. A soothing porridge, a spicy upma, a heartwarming halwa. It was thus eye opening to realise that for centuries, semolina had been linked with the cuisines of Europe and the Middle East. Even …
The Peranaken community is unique to South East Asia and particularly the Malay archipelago. Chinese or Indian Traders who sailed to the Malacca straits and plied their wares, couldn’t return to their places of origin until the monsoon winds aligned with their destinations. So they would drop anchor literally and figuratively and spend 4 to …
Malacca! ; Once the busiest entrepôt in Southeast Asia. A melting pot of cultures….Chinese, Indian, Arab, African, European- all jostling for trade and power. ; Godowns and bazaars, cheek by jowl with bordellos and opium dens. A babel of different tongues- Tamil, Arabic, Gujarati, Hokkien, Bengali, Teochew. Shrines to Mazu and the Guanyin, elaborately carved …