Burmese cuisine and what it really is or isn’t

At first glance it seems clear what Burmese cuisine is, that is what the Burmese are cooking. But a closer look reveals that things are not as clear cut as they seem because there is widespread ignorance both inside and outside of Burma as to the correct meaning of words.

Burma is in many ways a land of great diversity. There are many different ethnic groups such as Mon, Shan, Kachin, Chin, Karen, Rakhine, Bamar etc. The total number of officially recognized ethnic groups is 135 but there are many more because many are not recognized. And as diverse as the country’s ethnicity is its cuisine. In other words, ‘Burmese (Myanmar)’ cuisine is just a general term. What is called ‘Burmese’ cuisine is actually the sum total of the many different local cuisines and the cuisines of the bordering countries of Bangladesh, India, China, Laos and Thailand, as cuisines know no more or less arbitrarily drawn borders. By humans.

Depending on the types of agricultural products available, as well as the local and regional flora and fauna, many dishes are not only different, but depending on the respective region, they also have a different taste, even though they have the same name. Is it a coastal region, is the natural environment hilly or flat, are there rivers, is it dry and arid or marshy and humid, is it hot, is it temperate, is it cold, is the soil sandy or rocky, what is the quality of the soil, How much irrigation water is available? These and other things are determining factors of what the respective local cuisine has to offer and how it tastes.

As said before, there are dishes that bear the same name and are available and liked throughout the country. But again, they taste different depending on whether you eat them in Yangon, Mon State, Mandalay, Shan State, or Rakhine State. A good example of this is the ‘unofficial Burmese national breakfast dish’ Mohinga. Mohinga, a hearty fish soup composed primarily of fish broth made (preferably) from catfish, fish and shrimp paste, banana stem or flower, onion, ginger, garlic, lemongrass, and chili, thickened with chickpea flower and served with boiled rice noodles. eggs and slices of lemon or lime, originates from Mon State and is appreciated throughout most of Burma, but is not very popular in the tribal areas along the Burma-Thailand border. Other examples are coconut noodles (O Nu Kaukswe), pickled tea leaf salad (Lahpet), and noodles in fish or chicken broth (Mont Di).

Burmese cuisine is undoubtedly very tasty and includes many delicious dishes, which I love to cook as I learned from my wife and of course to eat and share with family and friends. But where do these recipes come from? Time and time again, locals proudly speak and write about a ‘traditional Burmese cuisine’ and a ‘pure and not hybrid Burmese cuisine’. pure Burmese? Traditional Burmese? Isn’t it hybrid? What does traditional, original or pure Burmese cuisine really mean? Does it mean that it originated in the country the British called Burma or does it mean that it originated from the Bamar (Burmese) who make up the majority of Burma’s population and never tire of talking about ‘their cuisine’? And how original or pure ‘Burmese’ is Burmese cuisine anyway? I have been living in Burma for 25 years and I know a lot about Burmese cuisine, but nevertheless, I have done some research on these issues to get it right. Although at first I thought it would be a piece of cake to find the answers to these questions, with regard to Bamar’s cuisine it turned out to be quite a difficult task.

It was with some surprise that I soon ran into real trouble because when it came to Bamar cooking (this is obviously what the Bamar mean by ‘pure Burmese’ cooking) I found that I was trying to find something I didn’t really know about. Knows nothing. In other words, there are no historical records on what the Bamar have eaten, so it cannot be said what and to what extent the Bamar have actually contributed to what is today called ‘Burmese’ cuisine.

The Bamar (made up of 9 different ethnic groups) were the last ethnic group to arrive in areas that long before their appearance were already inhabited by Pyu (Arakanese), Mon, Kachin, Kayah, Shan, Chin and (with the exception of the Mon) their many subgroups. What these ethnic groups have contributed to what is called ‘Burmese’ cuisine is evident because their traditional cuisines exist and can be assumed to have remained basically the same to this day. But what and where is the Bamar kitchen? In other words, while it is proven beyond a reasonable doubt that the Pyu, Mon, Shan, etc. have made important contributions to ‘Burmese’ cuisine, it is not entirely clear what the contribution of the Bamars/Burmese is (note that it is not Burmese). It seems to me that the Bamar have taken the cuisines that already existed and made them their own simply by ‘Burmese’ the original names and calling the whole thing ‘Burmese’ cuisine. Surely the Bamar must have eaten something and subsequently there must have been some traditional Bamar recipes/dishes (note not Burmese!) that they brought back with them where they came from. However, since there are no documents, such as recipes written for personal use or published in cookbook form, that provide information on what original or traditional Bamar cuisine is, the answer to this question is left to speculation. Please note that what I am writing about Bamar cuisine is the conclusion I have personally come to after extensive and exhaustive research. Other people’s research may lead to different results depending on the available sources. I have read and heard about a royal palace book with the title ‘Sâ-do-Hce’-Cân’ which was said to have been written on palm leaves in 1866 during the reign of King Mindon Min (1853 to 1878) and supposedly contains recipes. I seriously tried to get a copy of this book transcribed and published in 1965 by Hanthawaddy Press, but could not find one. This book is said to contain 89 recipes, but nothing is said about the type and origin of these recipes. However, I doubt that all (if any) of these recipes are pure source Bamar recipes.

The answers to all the questions I will answer in this preface are below. Not only, but also with regard to ‘Burmese’ cuisine, it is a fatal mistake (but unfortunately made quite often) to assume that Burmese and Bamar (Burmese) are the same thing because it most definitely is not. Burma is the country and the Bamar are one of the ethnic groups that inhabit Burma. Since the Bamar – also called Burmese – constitute the largest ethnic group in this country, the British gave it the name of Burma; and the citizens of Burma are Burmese. But not all Burmese are Bamar. Only members of Bamar, which is one of the ethnic groups in Burma, are Bamar. Subsequently, we have to differentiate between the country Burma, its citizens the Burmese and the members of one of the ethnic groups of Burma, the Bamar. This means that there is a Burmese cuisine (the country’s cuisine) and a Bamar cuisine (the ethnic group’s cuisine) but these two cuisines are not the same. The problem with the original or traditional cuisine of Bamar is that no one knows what dishes it includes. The root of the problem with this is that nobody knows exactly where the Bamar came from. If that were known beyond any reasonable doubt, we’d also know what his kitchen is.

The next question I had to find an answer to was to what extent ‘Burmese’ cuisine is influenced by the cuisines of neighboring countries. This was particularly important to me because many Burmese and particularly Bamar do not get tired of seriously stating that ‘your cuisine?’ it remains traditional and unique. However, the result of my research says otherwise. It is clear without a doubt that ‘Burmese’ cuisine is greatly influenced mainly by Indian and Chinese cuisine; and this not only in the border regions but throughout the country and not only marginally but substantially. For example, the delicacy considered by the Burmese ‘Danbauk Htamin’ (rice with chicken or lamb) is actually an Indian dish with the original name Biryani. In fact, some Indian dishes and foods like the very popular Burmese breakfast dish Htamin kyaw (fried rice) or Chin Tha Ye Thee (pickled mango) or Halawa (sticky rice with butter and coconut milk) are assimilated to ‘Burmese’ . ‘ cooks to such an extent that many Burmese don’t even know that these are of Indian origin and instead believe that they are original Burmese, which of course is incorrect. However, it is not just whole dishes that Indian cuisine has introduced into Burmese cuisine. It has also given the traditional style of Burmese cooking an Indian twist by having Burmese women and cooks use Indian condiments such as Masala (curry powder), which is not traditionally used in Burma. And the story does not end here, the introduction of milk, butter and dairy products such as cheese, yogurt and sour milk, as well as the consumption of black tea with milk and sugar (surprised?) are additional ways in which the Indians have influenced Burmese cuisine.

The Chinese have secured their presence in Burmese cuisine in two ways. One way was to introduce Chinese-style cuisine into Burmese homes and restaurants by using vegetables that were previously unknown, used less, or combined differently, such as celery and Chinese cabbage, mushrooms such as Chinese mushrooms, sauces like oyster sauce and other things like bean curd (tofu). The other way the Chinese have carved out their place in Burmese cuisine is through Chinese dishes like Peking-baigin (Peking duck), Kawpyan-kyaw (spring rolls), and Pausi (Chinese dumpling). Chinese cooking style, Chinese vegetables, etc. and the dishes have become an integral part of Burmese cuisine.

I think it has become clear from my writings that ‘Burmese’ cuisine does not mean ‘Bamar’ cuisine and that nothing conclusive is known about the latter. And even if the Bamar have contributed (which I think they have) some recipes to what is called ‘Burmese’ cuisine, they have no part in all the other ethnic foods and dishes that have been around for a long time (actually , for a long time). centuries) when they arrived in what is now Burma (Myanmar).

In a traditional Burmese dish that is boiled (not steamed!), rice (htamin) always takes center stage. The rice is accompanied by a variety of curries (hin) based on fish (nga) or prawns (pazun seik) or prawns (pazun a-htoke) or pork (wet-tha) or beef (ame-tha) or chicken (kyet), clear broths (blon) and/or clear soups (hinga), vegetables such as cauliflower (kaw-phi-ban), cabbage (kaw-phi-htoke), or eggplant (kha-yan-thee), salads (athoke ) made from, for example, tomato (kha-yan-chin-thee) or cucumber (tha-kwa-thee) with onion (kyet-tun-ni), seasonal fruits such as apple (pan-thee), banana (nga -pyaw -thee), mango (tha-yet-thee), and/or pineapple (nar-nat-thee), etc. and/or desserts such as semolina cake (sa-nwin-ma-kin). Unlike non-Asian countries where meals are traditionally served in plates (appetizers, soup, main course and dessert), in Burma everything is served at once so that diners can choose for themselves what to eat first and what to eat last. final.

Life in Burmese homes traditionally takes place on the ground. Chairs and beds are familiar and exist in households, but they are mainly used by older people, which is particularly suitable for the vast rural population of Burma.

Since eating is an integral part of life, therefore, it also takes place on the floor and the food is placed on a very low table, usually round, while the diners are seated on the floor. Burmese people usually eat with their fingers. Only the soup is eaten with short Chinese spoons and in the case of noodle soup, the noodles are eaten with chopsticks. Bowls of water and lemon wedges for washing hands and fingers, as well as small towels, are provided on the table.

I hope you have found my article on Burmese cuisine and related matters interesting and instructive.