Asam Siok is a largely unknown heritage dish and is now seldom cooked in traditional ways. “It is a must-have celebratory dish of the Bidayuh unknown to even most Sarawakians, eclipsed by the popularity of manok pansoh (bamboo chicken) of the Ibans,” explains Yap. 

She elaborates on how the dish is made: “Marinated bite-sized chicken, heirloom rice, and hand-torn tapioca leaves are wood-fired in the hollows of a bamboo stem, which is a primary cooking method.” The addition of rice, cooked together with chicken, as well as some of the base aromatics, differentiates it from manok pansoh.

“Earthy Dayak ginger, lemongrass, and bungkang leaves, aromatic ingredients indigenous to the rainforest of Borneo, are the main flavours of Asam Siok,” she says. 

Labo Belatuh is the treasure of a remote and small tribe. “It is a unique traditional dish of the Kelabit, notably those in the highlands of Northern Sarawak, bordering Sabah,” Yap enthuses.

To make the dish, meat, particularly wild boar and venison, is salted and smoked over Tetel, which Yap explains is the wood-burning stove kitchen and heart of every traditional longhouse.

“Fully-smoked meat is then pounded into strips, fried with bruised lemongrass, and eaten with rice,” she says. “My version is made with flavourful beef brisket and smoked over coconut and sugarcane husks.” Indigenous, wild cinnamon is also often an ingredient in the salt rub.

Tobah (Bidayuh) or Telu’ (Lun Bawang) are ancient forms of preserving excess proteins during hunting or fishing seasons. “This embodies the waste-not philosophies of the original ways of eating,” Yap enthuses.

Tobah and Telu’ are similar dishes of protein that are lacto-fermented with cooked rice and salt. “Both freshwater fish and meat proteins can be prepared this way with a different fermentation time,” she explains. “Fish is quickest, and has a minimum maturity of two to three weeks, while meat can take over a month.”

Yap explains that fermenting with rice activates the natural bacteria on the grains, which adds a complex flavour profile that is mildly sweet and slightly tangy and salty. “Also notable is the fermentation vessel—bamboo stems are traditionally used, and the porosity of this natural vessel results in a cleaner ferment,” she says. 

“Biter is an unknown yet simple and powerful dish for nourishment and an energy boost,” says Yap. The traditional Lun Bawang nourishing soup is made with gourd shoots, heirloom rice, and sometimes the addition of hunted meat.

“It is so nourishing that it is given during convalescing and postpartum, or just for a boost of energy.”

“Nuba Rinagas is a Lun Bawang rice dish reserved for Irau, or festivals,” Yap shares. “It is lesser known compared to Nuba Laya, the more popular mashed heirloom rice wrapped in the itip leaf. “

She explains that to make the dish, heirloom Keladi rice is cooked in rendered visceral fat, typically from a boar, and balled before serving alongside a variety of kikid (side dishes and accompaniments). “It is simple but rich, not unlike the coconut rice of nasi lemak.”

To book a session for Ethnic Sarawak Night, visit @karens_plate on Instagram.

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