Southeast Asia is an intriguing and diverse hotpot of cultural and culinary influences from all over Asia. You will find that recipes often combine the principles of Chinese cooking and the spices of India with local herbs and ingredients. In the countries that lie further down south, there are also strong influences from the ethnic Malays, notably in the generous use of spices, coconut milk and fragrant aromatics like lemongrass.
Because of the proximity of these countries, and similarities in the technique and ingredients used, it comes as no surprise that there are often overlaps in regional cuisines. You’ll probably recognize very similar dishes across Southeast Asia, just under different names, with slightly different accompaniments. You could order jok in Thailand, bor bor in Cambodia, or cháo in Vietnam, and get served the same bowl of creamy rice porridge topped with a variety of herbs, meat and delightfully crispy fried bits (see congee, here).
That said, there are also significant differences that characterize the cuisine of each Southeast Asian country. Thai food is often packed with fiery punchy flavours; Vietnamese food is light and makes use of lots of fresh herbs; while Indonesian cuisine consists of richer, heavily spiced curries. Even within a country, you will find particular regional differences. The people of southern Thailand, for instance, are mostly Muslims and their food is hot, spicy and rich with coconut, similar to neighbouring Malaysia; but in the mountainous, jungly north, where coconuts are not as abundant, food tends to be more broth-like and flavoured with bitter herbs.
While the Chinese have definitely influenced Southeast Asian cuisine greatly, bear in mind that there are further nuances to this. China is a large country containing many different cultures, and immigrants from each region have influenced the cuisine in their new homes in quite different ways. A little tour around London’s Chinatown will turn up plenty of noisy Cantonese roast duck shops and dim sum houses, and maybe the odd restaurant serving up mind-numbingly hot dishes drowning in Sichuan chilli peppers. But in Southeast Asia, you will also find Teochew, Hokkien, Hakka and Hainanese Chinese, each of these communities bringing quite different tastes to the table.
The Teochews, in particular, are known for their light steamed dishes, soy sauce braises, and use of pickled vegetables. You’ll see this style of cooking quite commonly in Southeast Asia, especially in Thailand, Cambodia and Singapore. Traditional recipes are very often adapted to include typically Southeast Asian ingredients, for instance, galangal and spices are thrown into a classic Chinese soy sauce braise to make Teochew braised duck (see here).
All these lines get more blurred as the people from each culture move, mingle, and exchange knowledge with one another. In fact, whole new cultures can sometimes be born, complete with their own unique set of customs and cuisine. You will see Peranakanese or Nyonya food mentioned a lot in this book. Nyonyas are the women in a Peranakan household, descendants of Chinese immigrant traders who married the local Malays in the old British-run Straits Settlements of Singapore, Penang and Malacca (Malaysia). Peranakan cooking combines the fragrant spices and herbs of the Malays with decidedly Chinese ingredients, giving rise to some pretty fantastic results, such as babi assam (tamarind pork belly, see here).
As many countries in Southeast Asia were once Western colonies, you will also see some distinct influences from their old colonial masters in each of these countries’ cuisines. The Filipino adobo (see here) is a loose adaptation of the Spanish method of preserving meat with vinegar. The French introduced the baguette to Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia, giving rise to banh mi / khao jee / nom pang – thin-crusted baguettes stuffed with varying combinations of cooked meat, liver pâté, fried eggs, chilli, fresh herbs and pickled vegetables.
I’ve drawn a Southeast Asian food map to help explain the characteristics of each region’s food. Do note that these are broad categories; you will of course find some dishes with quite contrasting flavours to the rest of the cuisine.