From nostalgic reflections on childhood favorites to practical Mohingya how-to guides, there’s a (small) world of online food writing about Myanmar, home to one of Southeast Asia’s lesser-known cuisines.
Tin Cho Chaw, the UK-based author of cookbook Hsa*Ba (Please Eat) hasn’t posted anything for a while but it’s worth scrolling through her past entries for the beautifully simple design and gorgeous food photography. Recipes for modern updates on classic Myanmar flavors are mixed in with nostalgic food memories from her childhood in Yangon and return trips as an adult.
“Some recipe or another tend to pop up during my conversations with my mother. Today it is vegetarian ‘meat’ made simply with flour and water. It is a recipe my mother learnt from her sister who was taught by the nuns at the Chinese temple in Rangoon.”
An Edible Woman
Not strictly a food blogger, the twenty-something Chinese-Burmese writer behind this charming Yangon-centric diary says she tells “stories of youth and womanhood… all unfolding through gastronomy”. Recent entries include a review of an ethnic Wa restaurant and a meditation on the aftermath of Cyclone Komen.
“Yangon has changed dramatically in the two years I have been back. This was my first time tasting Wa cuisine, which was made possible only because I had been wandering around in MyLan Food Fair (What is that?! This was unheard of circa 2012!). The moment we saw the sign “Wa Ma Ma Restaurant,” we knew we had to try, and I’ll tell you why.”
This bubbly Facebook page with food tips for Yangonites on the go just popped up in September but the author has already published recipes for palak tofu and banana mug cake so it looks promising. The tone is chirpy – expect emoticons.
Having a rush busy morning & no time to prepare for breakfast? Here’s a quick healthy but fully energizing booster breakfast mug. This is one of my favourite breakfast with a cup of coffee in my rush mornings.”
Mimi Aye, another cookbook author of Myanmar heritage based in Britain, has lots of Myanmar recipes from her book Noodle! on her blog. She also made a bunch of how-to YouTube videos.
“So last Sunday, I picked up a lovely bunch of acacia leaf from Tawana Thai supermarket for just one of your English pounds. Proper name Acacia pennata, known as tsu boht in Burmese and cha om in Thai, acacia leaf tastes like heaven, but smells like absolute hell. My husband calls it ‘poo weed’.”
A helpful recipe blog from a Myanmar expat who grew up in Singapore but hails from Moulmein. As she writes in the ‘about me’ section: “There is this popular Burmese expression, ‘Yangon for the bragging, Mandalay for the speaking and Moulemein for the eating.’” Check out her step-by-step guides to cooking dishes like nan gyi thoke and sour chicken soup.
“Burmese classic breakfast – Moh hin gha is the popular breakfast frequently served up by at the road side stalls or by mobile street hawkers from house to house on a bamboo pole balanced across his/her shoulders. This rice noodle with fish broth is one versatile lightmeal which we can have it at any time of the day.”
