Dishes 'hijacked': M'sia

KUALA LUMPUR - MALAYSIA will lay claim to its signature dishes like laksa and chicken rice which are being 'hijacked' by other countries, the tourism minister said according to a report on Thursday.

Those on the list include the fragrant coconut milk rice 'nasi lemak', spicy soup noodle 'laksa' and pork ribs herbal soup 'bak kut teh', Tourism Minister Ng Yen Yen said according to The Star newspaper.

'We cannot continue to let other countries hijack our food. Chili crab is Malaysian. Hainanese chicken rice is Malaysian. We have to lay claim to our food,' she was quoted as saying.

'In the next three months, we will identify certain key dishes (to declare as Malaysian). We have identified laksa... all types of laksa, nasi lemak and bak kut teh,' she added.

source:http://www.straitstimes.com/Breaking%2BNews/SE%2BAsia/Story/STIStory_431009.html

Ms Ng said her ministry will announce a strategy on how to brand the dishes as Malaysian.

'That is Part Two. We cannot reveal it yet, but we will let you know soon,' she reportedly said.

Ms Ng did not name which countries were hijacking the dishes, which are popular around the world and particularly in neighbouring Singapore and Indonesia.

Her comments came amid a diplomatic row with Indonesia, where protesters have accused Malaysia of stealing its cultural heritage.

The dispute erupted in Indonesia in August after erroneous reports emerged that Malaysia had screened tourism advertisements featuring the traditional 'pendet' dance of Indonesia's Hindu-majority Bali island.

The ad was actually a promotion for a Discovery Channel programme, but despite an apology from the network, protesters vowing to 'crush Malaysia' have burned national flags and thrown rotten eggs at the embassy in Jakarta.

Malaysian Foreign Minister Anifah Aman will meet his Indonesian counterpart Hassan Wirajuda in Jakarta on Thursday in a bid to cool the tensions which Malaysia has described as a 'grave concern'.

Ties between the two countries are regularly punctuated by rows over cultural issues as well as the welfare of Indonesian labourers and maids working in Malaysia. -- AFP

Malaysia says its local dishes were 'hijacked'

Malaysia will lay claim to its signature dishes like laksa and chicken rice which are being "hijacked" by other countries, the country's tourism minister says.

Those on the list include the fragrant coconut milk rice nasi lemak, spicy soup noodle laksa and pork ribs herbal soup bak kut teh, Tourism Minister Ng Yen Yen said, according to the Star newspaper.

"We cannot continue to let other countries hijack our food. Chili crab is Malaysian. Hainanese chicken rice is Malaysian. We have to lay claim to our food," she said.

"In the next three months, we will identify certain key dishes (to declare as Malaysian). We have identified laksa ... all types of laksa, nasi lemak and bak kut teh."

Ms Ng said her ministry would announce a strategy on how to brand the dishes as Malaysian.

"That is part two. We cannot reveal it yet, but we will let you know soon," she said.

Ms Ng did not name which countries were hijacking the dishes, which are popular around the world and particularly in neighbouring Singapore and Indonesia.

Her comments came amid a diplomatic row with Indonesia, where protesters have accused Malaysia of stealing its cultural heritage.

The dispute erupted in Indonesia in August after erroneous reports emerged that Malaysia had screened tourism advertisements featuring the traditional "pendet" dance of Indonesia's Hindu-majority Bali island.

The ad was actually a promotion for a Discovery Channel program, but despite an apology from the network, protesters vowing to "crush Malaysia" have burned national flags and thrown rotten eggs at the embassy in Jakarta.

Malaysian Foreign Minister Anifah Aman met his Indonesian counterpart Hassan Wirajuda in Jakarta today in a bid to cool the tensions which Malaysia has described as a "grave concern".

Ties between the two countries are regularly punctuated by rows over cultural issues as well as the welfare of Indonesian labourers and maids working in Malaysia.

source: http://au.news.yahoo.com/thewest/lifestyle/a/-/lifestyle/6061581/malaysia-says-its-local-dishes-were-hijacked

Malaysia crabby over right to 'hijacked' recipes

Malaysia is starting a food fight with other countries to win bragging rights for producing some of Southeast Asia's most beloved recipes, including chili crabs and coconut cream rice, a news report said Thursday.

"We cannot continue to let other countries hijack our food," The Star newspaper quoted Tourism Minister Ng Yen Yen as saying while launching a campaign to promote the country's cuisine.

The ministry is identifying signature recipes that it will declare as Malaysian, Ng said. She did not reveal how the government might counter others who claim ownership of those dishes, but added that details of its strategy will be announced later.

"Chili crab is Malaysian. Hainanese chicken rice is Malaysian. We have to lay claim to our food," Ng said. She mentioned other favorites such as "nasi lemak," which is rice soaked with coconut cream, "laksa," a spicy noodle soup, and "bak kut teh," an ethnic Chinese pork rib stew.

Tourism ministry officials familiar with the campaign could not immediately be contacted.

Variations of the dishes Ng listed are available in several other Asian nations, particularly Singapore, Indonesia, Brunei, Thailand and China.

Some creations, such as chicken rice, were introduced to Malaysia and Singapore by ethnic Chinese workers who settled here after leaving China a century ago.

Chili crab - a recipe of crabs stir-fried in tomato and chili-based sauces - could become a bone of contention. It is often associated with Singapore and is considered the city-state's unofficial national dish.

Malaysia was recently embroiled in another cultural spat with a neighbor.

Indonesians held protests earlier this month accusing Malaysia of stealing a Balinese dance for a TV promotional campaign about Malaysia. It later turned out that Malaysia had nothing to do with the video, which had mistakenly described the dance as Malaysian. The video was broadcast on the Discovery Channel cable network, which apologized for the mistake.


source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2009/09/17/malaysia-crabby-over-right-039hijacked039-recipes.html