Wednesday, 7 October 2026The story behind the things you thought you knewIssue Nº 005 · New story every weekday
Backstory Asia

Where Southeast Asia's food really comes from

Most of these dishes were not born where you think. Almost all of them were born in more than one place.

Think of the dish you call your own. Now follow it backwards. It came by boat. Or it came with a family who moved for work. Or it came with a trader who stayed.

That is the story of almost everything on this desk. Noodles travelled with Chinese traders. Flatbreads came with Tamil Muslim cooks. Coconut rice started as a farmer's meal by the sea. Coffee got its roast from Hainanese cooks who had worked in British kitchens.

Every dish here is loved in more than one country. That is not a problem to settle. That is the story. A dish that crossed a strait belongs to both shores.

We tell each origin the same way. What you thought you knew. What the name means. Where it began. How it spread. Then why it matters. One short story at a time.

Malaysia · Singapore

An illustration of the Backstory Asia globe mascot peering through its magnifying glass at an open banana-leaf packet of nasi lemak, sambal on the coconut rice beside anchovies, peanuts, egg and cucumber, on a village veranda at sunrise.
Illustration: Backstory Asia, AI-generated

Nasi lemak: the farmer's coconut rice first printed in 1875

It began as a hearty breakfast for Malay farmers. Its first print record is from 1875: a Malay-French dictionary defines it as rice cooked with coconut milk.

Published 8 October 2026

Rice dishes

Rice dishes: story, one-line hook, and place
Nasi lemak: the farmer's coconut rice first printed in 1875It began as a hearty breakfast for Malay farmers. Its first print record is from 1875: a Malay-French dictionary defines it as rice cooked with coconut milk.Malaysia · Singapore

Breads and pastries

Breads and pastries: story, one-line hook, and place
Roti canai: the flatbread that crossed an oceanYou think roti canai is Malaysian. The name says otherwise.Malaysia · Singapore

A new story publishes every weekday.

From our bureaus

Malaysia2 stories
Singapore2 stories