August 14, 2024
KUALA LUMPUR – To the unschooled traveller, Malaysia’s vast gastronomic tapestry can often seem overwhelming – intimidating even. There is so much to eat – and yet paradoxically, this can make the choice of what to eat all that much harder, especially if you don’t really understand what you’re eating in the first place.
In her new television series, Malaysia Gourmet with Justine Schofield, Australian food personality Justine Schofield tackles this conundrum by lifting the veil on local meals as she eats her way through Malaysia while giving international gourmands detailed insight into local cuisine. She also sets out to demystify local meals for the benefit of international gourmands eager to sample a slice of local cuisine.
“I think it’s really nice to travel somewhere where you don’t really know that much about the cuisine and learn it because a lot of tourists go in with their eyes closed, and then their eyes open wide afterwards.
“I think I wanted to be the eyes of the tourist that is going to Malaysia for the first time, and trying all of those main dishes that we know about, you know like nasi lemak, laksa, char kway teow, rendang – all of those things and experiencing them and really understanding the deliciousness and what is involved in actually making these very unique dishes to Malaysia,” says Schofield via an exclusive Zoom interview.
A passion for food
In many ways, Schofield is the ideal candidate for the job of international food ambassador, given that she is such a passionate foodie herself. A former MasterChef Australia contestant (she placed fourth in the first season of the show), Schofield has gone on to cement her status as a successful celebrity chef Down Under with her long-running show Everyday Gourmet with Justine Schofield, which has now been on air for 14 years.
Schofield worked with a host of local culinary experts, including Penang cookbook author Pearly Kee (photo). PHOTO: MALAYSIA GOURMET/THE STAR
“Probably about 10 years ago we decided to start doing spin-offs of Everyday Gourmet, so going outside of the studio and taking the show internationally. We’ve been to places like Macau, we’ve gone to Japan, we’ve explored of course a lot of Australia and recently we went to France.
“And so when we were looking at where could we explore next that has a strong influence in the food world – Malaysia was on our list. Because it has that strong tapestry of fusion of many different cultures bound together – Chinese, Malay, Indian and the indigenous side of the flavours too. So bringing that all together – I was so curious about it.
“And who doesn’t love laksa and nasi lemak and satay? They’re the basic popular dishes, but I wanted to go even further and learn more about it. That’s when we started to make it happen,” she says.
Although Schofield had been to Malaysia 20 years before, she says that initial trip was a specialised sail fishing expedition, so she didn’t really get the chance to properly see or taste what the country had to offer.
“It was a big fishing trip in the east coast of Malaysia and we did sail fishing, which is quite popular over there. Of course it was catch and release because they are sacred fish but then at night we would catch other things, like squid or other types of fish which we would take to the local restaurants to cook up. And for me, you can’t get a better authentic travel experience than that.
“So 20 years after that, to be able to go back in a different way and explore more of Malaysia and more in detail was quite an unforgettable journey and in particular a culinary journey for me who loves food so much,” she says.
Filming took place over a 15-day period and involved travelling to Kuala Lumpur, Penang, Terengganu and Borneo. Part of the allure of the show is that Schofield thoroughly immerses herself in all the culinary experiences involved – from eating street food favourites to talking to local culinary mavens like cookbook author Pearly Kee and then getting knee-deep in the trenches and recreating some of the local meals herself, albeit with her own spin on it.
In terms of filming, Schofield says everything was very seamless – even the 10 domestic flights she had to take were all on time – with not one single flight delay! The only slight hiccup was when she had to figure out the English words for ingredients that had colloquial names.
Schofield says there were no real challenges to putting the show together, except in the instance when ingredients like mani cai (sayur manis) had to be translated and the interpreters weren’t sure how to explain it to her. PHOTO: MALAYSIA GOURMET/THE STAR
“Everyone speaks English, but me trying to understand what certain vegetables were and how you cook them was sometimes a little bit challenging. There was one vegetable that was called mani cai (sayur manis).
“It is a leaf that is very green and it wilts down and you can add it to soups and stir-fries in particular. So we had one interpreter that was saying it was this and another interpreter that was saying something else. So I was just like, ‘What?’
“I think it’s actually in the first episode when I cooked this. And it was just so delicious. Naturally as a cook I want to use something that I haven’t used before and interpret it my way, so I did it with scrambled eggs and still to this day, I don’t know if I said the right thing.
“But that’s pretty much the only challenge. And by the way, you’re going to get that wherever you travel and that’s the beauty of travel, that it’s lost in translation sometimes,” she says.
The food
Throughout the show, Schofield got to try a range of local delights, from char kway teow to nasi lemak, roti canai, popiah and so much more. She says she literally walked into the production of the show with no idea of the vastness of the food on offer in the country, having had only the tiniest idea of what Malaysian food was all about.
“We have plenty of laksa here in Sydney and in Australia but to actually go behind the scenes and learn how to make it from scratch was quite amazing and you respect the dish more when you see it made from scratch. It’s not as easy as opening a packet and adding boiling water.
One of the things that amazed Schofield was the sheer number of laksa varieties that abound on the local front. Pictured here is Sarawak laksa. PHOTO: MALAYSIA GOURMET/THE STAR
“And I also learnt that all laksas are not equal and each region does a very different laksa. Some are creamy, some are not, some are more sour, some use a specific lemon lime through it, some don’t.
“And I had the best rendang of my life in Penang. It was made by someone named Tarina who cooked it at Tropical Spice Garden and it takes forever to make – you have to toast the coconut and cook it down slowly. I think I ate so much that I felt sick afterwards!
“So I realised that there are many, many layers and efforts involved in making lots of these stunning dishes that we all know and love with Malaysian cuisine,” she says.
Schofield also worked with local culinary experts and mavens who shared their tips, tricks and recipes. But the intrepid Schofield also came up with many recipes of her own, inspired by everything she learnt during her Malaysian trip. So you will discover her own take on chicken rice, sticky wings, sambal squid and even a crudite with curried mayonnaise.
“I’m not an expert in Malaysian cooking – in fact, quite far from it – and that’s why it worked really well to go in to learn. That was my job, to learn about Malaysian food. I took what I knew and used my own cooking skills and techniques and then injected a lot of Malaysian flavours and ingredients into it.
While some of the recipes on the show like char kway teow are from culinary experts, Schofield also contributed a host of recipes, which included her own twists on classic dishes. PHOTO: MALAYSIA GOURMET/THE STAR
“So for example, I did a honey soy chicken but I did it with a Malaysian twist to and added some sambal and different ingredients. And I did a quick chicken rice which usually takes a lot longer to make.
“And also because I’ve got a French background, I like to sort of put a spin on things and do things slightly differently. So when I did the squid sambal, I actually cooked the squid the French way but then I made my own sambal with belacan and local chillies and limes.
“And some of the locals were trying it and they were like ‘Wow, the squid is so soft!’ So it was cooked using a French technique but with ingredients from Malaysia,” she says, laughing.
Another season?
One of the problems with introducing, marketing or talking about Malaysian food to people unfamiliar with the country is that Malaysian food is so diverse and multi-layered and incorporates so many different influences. On a global scale, it isn’t very well known at all and part of the challenge is that it is so hard to encapsulate or explain, which means it is difficult to get people acquainted with it – much less understand it – unless they actually come here and experience it themselves. Which is exactly what Schofield aims to do with Malaysia Gourmet.
“I mean, even now, I feel like I’m even more confused having experienced everything in Malaysia. Because people have come from different areas and have their own history in Malaysia – so you’ve got traditional Malay influences as well as the Chinese and Indian influences and the indigenous flavours too and then sometimes it is all entwined. So I think you need years and years to understand the history of it. But that’s what’s so cool about it.
Would she do another season focused on Malaysian food? Schofield says she really, really wants to. PHOTO: MALAYSIA GOURMET/THE STAR
“I just love the rich tapestry that makes up Malaysian cuisine. It’s not just one, it’s all. And I think that’s life, right? Food coming together brings people together.
“So I think if people have been thinking about going to Malaysia but haven’t actually booked their tickets and get to see the show and they actually book those tickets after the show, then my job is done and it would be the most exciting thing for me,” she says.
Given that Schofield only had a few days to explore the diversity of Malaysian cuisine, she says the prospect of another season of the show is something she would certainly welcome.
“Well, I think we could do another 10 chapters! I would love to go back to Malaysia and do part two because I would like to go back to some places and learn more. And there are still so many places to explore and so much more to eat!” she says, laughing.