[Nasrul Haziq]

Laksa is basically a Malaysian dish consisting of rice noodles served in a curry sauce or hot soup. There are many different variations of laksa that have developed in Malaysia and Singapore. Ingredients for laksa may include chicken stock, coconut milk, lemongrass, galangal root or fresh turmeric root, chillies and shrimp paste. Variations may also include coconut cream and other types of seafood such as crab meat or prawns (shrimps) and fish balls made from ground white fish mixed with chives or onions.

Different regions in Malaysia have different types of laksa. For example, the Puri (famous for seafood) laksa from Penang uses fresh turmeric or galangal instead of lime leaves, the Sarawakian laksa uses a greater emphasis on belacan (shrimp paste), the Kedah and Perak laksas are using tamarind as a souring agent. The Kelantanese laksas use durian as well as tamarind while the Johorean laksa has coconut milk base.