Heritage Food of the Peranakan Indians: In a Chitty Melaka Kitchen

Articles by SilverStreak, Storm-Asia and Johor Kaki

Featured in tabla! and Vasantham News!

Excerpt from tabla! (22 March 2024):
“Rare and precious recipes belonging to the Peranakan Indian community, also known as the Chitty Melaka, have been recorded for posterity in a colourful, 200-page book.

Heritage Food Of The Peranakan Indians In A Chitty Melaka Kitchen contains about 100 recipes, contributed by 10 matriarchs from the community.

It is one of more than 550 projects supported by the National Heritage Board's (NHB) Heritage Grants Scheme since its launch in 2013.”

—

This book is a treasured collection of close to 100 Peranakan Indian recipes, ranging from everyday dishes to festive fare. Each recipe is inspired by the skills and stories of different members of the community. Using the collective voice of Nenek (an affectionate term for grandmother) to capture the warmth of a typical Chitty Melaka kitchen, we invite everyone to savour the flavours of a small and distinctive community.

The Peranakan Indians are the descendants of the intermarriages between early South Indian settlers and the Malay, Chinese and other local communities. Beginning from the 15th century in the important port city of Melaka, our hybrid culture has evolved over time, with our cuisine and spoken language bearing close resemblance to the well- known Baba-Nonya community.

What makes us unique would be our roots in the Chitty Village in Melaka; indeed, tracing this long lineage is a source of pride, even as many have settled far and wide across the globe. Compiling the recipes and associated traditions has been a labour of love, undertaken by the Peranakan Indian (Chitty Melaka) Association and its supporters.