A long,luminous green leaf gives dozens of dishes its signature touch,but those unfamiliar with it will hardly notice: Pandan is considered teh vanilla of southeast Asia. Perhaps bay leaf would be a better comparison, as its flavor is hard to pin down, but if it’s missing, it’s promptly noticeable.
For many in Germany, Southeast Asian cuisine is no longer a big question mark. Thai and Vietnamese restaurants can be found in every major city,expanding our culinary horizons with flavorful,spicy,fresh dishes that have little in common with old friends like sushi and Chinese fried noodles.When it comes to food further south,many people stop there,and this is where pandan really comes into its own.
What exactly is pandan?
Pandan is a palm tree. Its area of activity and growth extends from southern China and Sri Lanka through the entire Indonesian archipelago to Papua New Guinea.Strictly speaking, all pandan plants are clones grown from cuttings of some wild relative. The flowers are rarely seen in the wild, especially in eastern Indonesia, which is why the plant is now assumed to have originated there. It is not especially sensitive, which is why it is grown in many home gardens, why it is essential for many dishes and also why its essential oils are said to keep pests such as cockroaches away.
Difficult to grasp the taste
pandan has a herbaceous scent, like blades of grass and other leaves, and at the same time full-bodied and creamy like rice pudding. Pandan drinks have a creamy flavor while being clear and transparent. Freshly steamed rice tastes even more like rice when cooked with a knotted stalk of pandan, and coconut desserts take on an almost artificial note because the pandan perfectly highlights their natural taste. the meat is frequently enough wrapped inside, marinated and fried.
A typical savory use is Nasi Lemak, probably the most famous Malay dish in Southeast Asia. For this, jasmine rice is steamed together with pandan, some garlic, ginger and coconut milk rather of water and finaly served with spicy sambal and fried little fish, cucumber slices and a fried egg wrapped in a banana leaf. For special occasions, the rice is colored bright green with pandan puree.
Shared cultural heritage
I had the chance to immerse myself in Singapore’s kitchens for just under a week in November, and the smell of pandan was a constant companion.Eating is a popular sport in Singapore and everyone has an opinion on the best satay skewers or tastiest fish head curry. The country’s cuisine is dominated by Chinese, Malay, Indian and Indonesian influences, some of which even appear in the same dish. A particularity are the Peranakan, an ethnic group said to have formed from the marriage of Chinese sailors and Malay women on the Straits of Malacca. This diverse population blends classic Southern Chinese cuisine with tropical ingredients and spices and influences from malay traditions since the 14th century. Although their culture has been aligned with that of china in many respects through measures to integrate the four main “races” of Singapore, nowadays greater emphasis is placed on preserving their distinctive characteristics. Singapore is a young country, culturally dominated by the history of its neighboring countries and its immigrants. Perhaps this is why Peranakan culture has a special status in the country where 74% of the population is of Chinese origin, as in Malaysia and indonesia it is treated more as a sidenote to history.
Green,the classic color of desserts
While chocolate and vanilla dominate in Western patisseries and dessert shops,the bright green of Pandan cannot be ignored in the city-state at the southern tip of Malaysia. Puddings, sponge cakes, chiffon cakes and even dan tat (the Chinese version of the Portuguese pastel de nata) come in colors ranging from delicate jade green to the bright green of a traffic light. They also color and flavor local sweets, more commonly called “nyonya Kueh”, which are largely associated with peranakan hospitality (peranakan women are called Nyonya and men are called Baba). I was able to taste the classic Nyonya Lina pastry: Kueh Lapis is a colorfully layered flaky dessert made from glutinous rice flour. Kueh Dadar is a green crepe filled with caramelized coconut flakes. Kueh Salat has a layer of sticky rice with coconut milk on the bottom and lush green pandan pudding on top. Even though many of them are made with similar ingredients, they vary greatly in appearance and texture.
at the first Michelin-starred Peranakan restaurant, Candlenut, I tried the refined version of chendol, a snow concoction made with coconut water, palm sugar syrup and tiny gummy worms made from glutinous rice flour and dyed a delicate green with pandanus. Despite the sweetness and creaminess, it provided us with the refreshment we needed before the walk in a temperature of 29 degrees at nine in the evening.
-kuala.jpg.webp 728w, https://media1.faz.net/ppmedia/w1240/aktuell/682182319/1.10155969/original_aspect_ratio/nasi-lemak-wird-in-kuala.jpg.webp 1240w” src=”https://media1.faz.net/ppmedia/w1240/aktuell/682182319/1.10155969/original_aspect_ratio/nasi-lemak-wird-in-kuala.jpg” title=”Nasi Lemak is sold wrapped in pandan leaves in Kuala Lumpur.” width=”3000″ class=”body-elements__image–medium” data-v-dd221be4=””/>Nasi Lemak is sold wrapped in pandan leaves in Kuala Lumpur.BEE