Oh My Burger Malaysia – secret identity outed

If you grew up in or have ever been to Malaysia, you would be familiar with this infamous kuih. Burger Malaysia has many other funny names we’ve chanced upon.

The Many Names of Burger Malaysia

• Kuih Doraemon – Sarawak
• Burger Nasi Lemak
• Kuih Pacman
• Bombolini Sambal
• Roti Bomb – Melaka

Apart from the names above, burger Malaysia is also known as KUIH PANTAT BERDARAH in Melaka. Yes, you read that right the first time. I know I know, you must be thinking, “How can something so tasty have a name that’s errrrrrr….. somewhat disgusting?”. Well, when we first heard of this name our reaction was WTH?! Pretty much everyone at Cilisos felt like our childhoods got ruined when our Editor shared about the “underrated” name.

Now that you see it, you can’t unsee it. Can you?

Image Source GIPHY

Our editor first saw the name kuih pantat berdarah on the Malaysian Heritage and History Club on Facebook. They were kind enough to connect us to a local Malaccite, Mr. Luqman NulHakim from the Minang community in Alor Gajah Melaka. He confirmed that that was the name the kuih went by in the early 40s-60s.

Mr. Luqman said, “Though we do not have written proof, the kuih pau sambal that we all love and enjoy was once known as kuih pantat berdarah in the early days before and during the early days after independence. As people realized how sensitive the word is, they started referring to the burger Malaysia as kuih pau sambal.”

Where did this Kuih Pantat Berdarah Originate From?

This is one of the most old-school kuih in Malaysia. Mr . Luqman added, “It is believed that burger Malaysia was initially a fillingless tea time pau created by the Chinese immigrants, which was later adopted by the Malay community where they spread the leftover spicy nasi lemak sambal and stuffed it with a slice of crunchy cucumber.”

Jokes apart, on a more serious note; if you have ever been to a gerai kuih recently, you will realize that finding a lip-smacking kuih pau sambal is hard these days as sellers are becoming frugal with the filling due to the rising costs of ingredients that the sambal no longer melelehs. The burger Malaysia best pairs with a piping cup of hot tea or coffee. The heat from the beverage, the spiciness from the sambal, and the coolness you get from the cucumber make the perfect evening snack.

I guess regardless of what it is called as Shakespeare once said “What’s in a name? That which we call a rose, by any other word would smell as sweet.”, the burger Malaysia will still be loved by Malaysians.