page_title: Malaysian cuisine
section_title: Bread
hierarchical_section_title: Malaysian cuisine / Food and ingredients / Bread
caption_attribution_description: Roti Canai, traditional food of South Asia, on top of banana leaf
context_page_description: Malaysian cuisine consists of cooking traditions and practices found in Malaysia, and reflects the multi-ethnic makeup of its population. The vast majority of Malaysia's population can roughly be divided among three major ethnic groups: Malays, Chinese and Indians. The remainder consists of the indigenous peoples of Sabah and Sarawak in East Malaysia, the Orang Asli of Peninsular Malaysia, the Peranakan and Eurasian creole communities, as well as a significant number of foreign workers and expatriates.
  As a result of historical migrations, colonisation by foreign powers, and its geographical position within its wider home region, Malaysia's culinary style in the present day is primarily a melange of traditions from its Malay, Chinese, Indian, Indonesian and ethnic Bornean citizens, with heavy to light influences from Thai, Portuguese, Dutch, Arabian cuisines and British cuisines, to name a few. This resulted in a symphony of flavours, making Malaysian cuisine highly complex and diverse. The condiments and spices used in cooking varies as the land is blessed with these natural resources that brings bursting flavours in the outcome of meal preparation.
context_section_description: Malaysia does not produce wheat, and all supplies are imported from wheat-producing countries. Nevertheless, Western style white bread and Indian breads made with wheat flour like roti canai are fairly common foods in the modern Malaysian diet today. A very typical way of serving white bread in Malaysia is having it toasted and spread with kaya, a sweet spread made from a base of coconut milk, eggs and sugar. Reflecting the British colonial influence in Malaysia, kaya toast or roti bakar is a popular breakfast staple and afternoon tea snack. It is typically paired with a cup of local brewed coffee or tea, and soft-boiled eggs to be seasoned to taste by the diner with soy sauce & ground white pepper. Roti kahwin is a variation where butter is sandwiched along with a layer of kaya between slices of untoasted white bread.
  Traditional wheat-based pleated steamed bao or pao (Chinese : 包子) is a Chinese staple which has become tightly woven into Malaysia's gastronomic fabric. Pao are found in restaurants doing brunch dim sum trade, as well as specialist Chinese kopitiam. Sweet fillings may include tausa, lotus seed paste, kaya, pandan, ground peanuts, and custard; savoury fillings may consist of delicious stewed char siu (Chinese : 叉燒), chicken or pork. Malay versions (pau) may be found in night markets (pasar malam) and they are always halal, with fillings of curried potato, chicken or beef. Some variants have a quail egg in the middle in addition to the curry.
  Oven-baked bread buns are also available in specialist bakeries, kopitiam, and restaurants. One local speciality in particular - a bun with a buttery core and topped with a crispy and fragrant coffee pastry crust - has achieved iconic status in Malaysia, and franchises like Rotiboy and Pappa Roti which specialise in these coffee buns have successfully expanded abroad to multiple nations and spawned hundreds of outlets. However, the popular buns that remain a favourite among Malaysians are the buns that are filled with a deliciously sweet shredded coconut filling, kaya (coconut jam), pandan kaya (screwpine with coconut jam), sweet corn, chocolate, red bean paste and butter buns.
caption: Roti canai
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