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Famous cook Nigella Lawson pronounces the pandan leaf as the next big food item at a recent festival in England.
Above Photo: Courtesy of Ann P/Flickr
Photo: Courtesy of Ann P/Flickr
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Popular TV show cook Nigella Lawson has recently announced the humble pandan leaf as the next big food item in the West.
She was quoted by The Telegraph as saying that pandan will be "the new matcha", referencing its rising use amongst chefs in The United States as a sweetening and flavouring agent similar to vanilla.
According to the article, the last time Nigella endorsed avocado on her television show, sales of the fruit rose by 30 per cent in the UK.
Above Photo: Courtesy of Tim Parker/Flickr
Photo: Courtesy of Tim Parker/Flickr
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For us here back home, pandan is used in a variety of kuih and desserts as a way to inject the leaf's pleasant botanical flavours and aromas to liven up a dish's flavours.
In the South East Asian region, the use of the leaf is deeply ingrained in each country's culinary heritage, Malaysian cuisine included.
The pandan leaf has also been reported to have health benefits, such as the relief of headaches and fever.
