International chefs to share Malaysia Queen’s recipes with the world

KUALA LUMPUR: Masters of Malaysian Cuisine (MOMC) will collaborate to cook dishes from the cookbooks published by Malaysia’s Queen, Azizah Aminah Maimunah Iskandariah, throughout December.

MOMC’s online cooking demonstrations will be broadcast live and feature some of the top Malaysian cuisine experts around the world who first came together during the Covid-19 lockdown to share their cooking knowledge with a global audience.

MOMC’s live demonstrations will also be streamed concurrently across multiple online channels, including on their website, MalaysianChefs.com.

Apart from showcasing Malaysia’s diverse cuisine, the chefs engage with the audience by answering any cooking questions during the broadcasts.

Queen Azizah’s two cookbooks, Air Tangan Tengku Puan Pahang — Masakan Tradisional Pahang (traditional dishes of Pahang) and Air Tangan Tengku Puan Pahang — Manisan Tradisional Pahang (traditional sweets of Pahang), are compilations of vintage recipes from her home state of Pahang that were in danger of being lost to future generations.

They represent the diversity of Malaysia, with contributions from various communities including the Malays, the Chinese, the Indians and even the natives, or the Orang Asli, deep in the jungles of Pahang.

The entire production of the books was funded by the legacy left by the Queen’s late father, Sultan Iskandar of Johor, and all proceeds from their sales go to Tunku Azizah Fertility Foundation, a foundation she set up over 15 years ago, which funds IVF treatment for couples.

Queen Azizah’s interest in cooking pairs with her interest in traditional craft, in particular Tenun Pahang (Pahang Weave).

The plates of food in her book are all placed on Tenun Pahang DiRaja, a handwoven textile that was a dying art in Pahang until she travelled throughout the state to preserve it. She gathered the remaining handful of old weavers, documented all the techniques into a curriculum, and set up a training  institute in Pahang to train a new generation of weavers in this craft.

She also designs, teaches and produces pieces of Royal Pahang Tenun for her enterprise Che Minah Sayang.

MOMC Series 7 runs on Mondays through the month of December, starting on Monday 7. A special New Year’s Eve session will air on Thursday December 31, to wrap up the series.