Penang Asam Laksa Ranks 7th In CNN’s List Of World’s Best Dishes Beating Tom Yum & Ice Cream!

This just shows how seriously we take our Laksa!

CNN updated their list of 5o best foods in the world and we’re proud to announce that the Penang Asam Laksa has grabbed the 7th place beating out popular dishes such as Tom Yum and even Ice Cream!

Now, to truly appreciate this dish, let’s learn a little about what goes behind this iconic dish. While the exact origin of this dish is unknown, according to Taste Atlas, it originated in the coastal areas of Malaysia among the local fishermen who made the dish from readily-available ingredients.

The signature spicy-tangy soup is made with mackerel fish and its main distinguishing feature is the asam or tamarind which gives the soup its sour taste. Other ingredients that give Penang laksa its distinctive flavour include lemongrass, galangal (lengkuas) and chilli

If you’re wondering what grabbed the coveted first place in the list, it is the massaman curry from Thailand. While probably unknown to us, CNN has called it the “king of curries”!

“Spicy, coconutty, sweet and savory. Even the packet sauce you buy from the supermarket can make the most delinquent of cooks look like a Michelin potential. “

The curry is popularised by Thai Muslims who mostly make the curry with chicken. The flavours of the massaman curry paste (nam phrik kaeng matsaman) come from spices that are not frequently used in other Thai curries. If you’re curious in trying the world’s best curry, here’s a simple recipe you can try while staying home for the CMCO!

Here’s the full list of Top 10 dishes in the world according to CNN:

1. Massaman curry, Thailand
2. Neapolitan pizza, Italy
3. Chocolate, Mexico
4. Sushi, Japan
5. Peking duck, China
6. Hamburger, Germany
7. Penang assam laksa, Malaysia
8. Tom yum goong, Thailand
9. Ice cream, global
10. Chicken muamba, Gabon

While we’re definitely proud of the Penang asam laksa, we have our own list of delicacies which we believe could’ve made the list as well. This definitely includes nasi kandar, char koay teow and SO MUCH MORE!

Also read: Remember That Iconic Cake From Mr Bean? Someone Actually Did It & We Can’t Wait To Try It!