A US-based cooking channel’s has sparked criticism over its nasi lemak, with Malaysians questioning the pale anchovies, peanuts and sambal.
MALAYSIANS can be quite particular about how our food is perceived, let alone presented on the global stage.
That said, a recent viral video ranking Malaysian school lunches, including the country’s national dish, nasi lemak, has left many Malaysians baffled and disappointed by its appearance.
A YouTube Shorts video posted by US-based cooking channel @CookeddClips showed the nasi lemak wrapped in the typical triangular packet, but its contents caused many netizens to do a double take, with some even calling it “criminal”.
The video showed the nasi lemak with what appeared to be its traditional accompaniments, although some looked noticeably different – from the three large anchovies neatly lined up on the rice to the plain-coloured peanuts and the small dollop of nasi lemak sambal, accompanied by what appeared to be chicken.
The appearance of the anchovies and peanuts particularly threw off many Malaysians, who pointed out that they should be deep-fried to give them their characteristic colour and crunch.
While the hosts appeared to enjoy the nasi lemak and its simple flavours, they ranked it highly in their “solid B-tier” category, placing it third overall.
Malaysia was ranked alongside countries such as China and Indonesia.
Netizens, however, did not spare the appearance of the nasi lemak, with many sharing suggestions on how the dish could be improved.
“That is the most pale nasi lemak I’ve ever seen in my life. We use sun-dried anchovies that are deep-fried until crispy and, for the love of God, please understand the variety of sambal in Southeast Asia, such as the cooked variety actually used in nasi lemak and the uncooked type (shown in the video),” one user said.
“As a Singaporean, that was a disgrace to our Malaysian brothers and sisters,” said another.
