Although Malaysian knew more about the Baba Nyonya's products like food and clothes. Did you know that certain food is meant for certain occasions and cannot be simply served? Let's find out!
A birthday was always an occasion to be celebrated as a milestone. Many dishes would have been cooked for the elder’s birthday. Some of the dishes that were a must: noodles (mee suah) to signify longevity,
glutinous rice balls in syrup (kuih ih) to celebrate the sweetness of life, and eggs to celebrate fertility for many generations. It would have been a time of much merriment and festivities for the family. Mee Sua is longevity mee, when the Peranakans cook and serve longevity mee, they cannot cut off the mee.
Picture: Mee Sua
The 'Nyonya Mee' people serve in most of the restaurants are actually Mee Sua. The exact Nyonya Mee is meant for mourning. It is cooked with Tau Chew (soya bean) paste served with sambal rojak. Nyonya Mee is also known as Mee Malik Tuk or Mee Naik Bukit. Naik Bukit means barrier and funeral.
Picture: Nyonya Mee
Blue was a colour that became synonymous with Peranakan funerals. Even the cakes (kuih) eaten during the funeral would be blue and white. The kuih lapis, in red and white originally, will be changed to blue using bunga pulut telang (Butterfly Pea Flower) for mourning.
Picture: Kuih Lapis Bunga Pulut Telang
They do not serve ondeh-ondeh for mourning. They will only serve ondeh-ondeh for happy occasion. For example, birthday, marriage, and Chinese New Year.
Picture: Ondeh-ondeh
Hee Piew (Fish maw) soup is a luxurious dish to the Peranakans. They do not drink Hee Piew soup throughout the whole year, They will only serve it during Chinese New Year.
Picture: Hee Piew Soup
They do not serve Pongteh during birthdays dinner because Pongteh is only meant for ancestor prayer.
Picture: Babi Pongteh
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