Danish food products in Malaysia

Food for Life – Danish Green and Natural

Words: Linnea Welker    Photos: Monica Tindall

Denmark, a beautiful country, consistently rates at the top of the ‘happiest country in the world’ lists. Known for Lego toys and the home of Hans Christian Anderson, it has become a major destination for foodies from around the world. The capital, Copenhagen, has the most Michelin stars in Scandinavia and northern Europe and is the home of Noma, which has been named the ‘world’s best restaurant’ on four different occasions.

Now, Denmark is looking abroad. The Danish Minister of Environment and Food recently came to Malaysia with chefs from the National Culinary Team to pair their skills with Malaysian chef Azim Amran in a live cooking event where they prepared dishes with the Minister and Danish Ambassador. Held on a Friday afternoon at the Danish Ambassador’s home, the event featured dishes that bridged the foods and cooking styles from the two countries for a fabulous result.

Danish food products in Malaysia
Malaysian and Danish Chefs with the Danish Minister of Environment and Food

Upon arrival at the ambassador’s lovely home, one could feel the energy of the event. Servers hurriedly met the needs of guests while they perused the numerous food displays encircling the rooms. Carlsberg, one of the two main beer brands in Denmark, was providing cold beer and Orana supplemented the beverage offering with refreshing non-alcoholic drinks.

Danish food products in Malaysia
Calsberg, Danish Beer

The first dish to be prepared by the international team of chefs was a lovely savory cream plate paired with a bit of green salad. Seasoned to perfection with pieces of mussels, this dish offered a depth of taste that was incredible. We tried to twist the chef’s arm in handing over his secret recipe and he promised to email it to us… we’re still waiting.

Danish food products in Malaysia
Danish Cuisine

The next dish to be prepared was a spicy Malaysian influenced recipe combining local and Danish ingredients. Beautiful local vegetables were sauteed in a light broth with a fish sauce base. The signature ‘heat’ of Malaysian cuisine was the perfect finish to this colorful and delicious dish.

Danish food products in Malaysia
Malaysian Danish Dish

While sampling the prepared foods, one also gained an education in food exported from Denmark. Various dairy products such as butter, cheese, and yogurts, as well as, butter cookies, and chocolates that were prepared with ingredients from the Danish company AAK were available for tasting.

Danish food products in Malaysia
Emborg Cheese
Danish food products in Malaysia
Danish Chocolate
Danish food products in Malaysia
Danisa Cookies

Jams, juices, and, of course, even more cheeses were on display. It was interesting to learn how many Danish products are already available internationally, such as the Emborg brand of cheese, Apetino feta cheese, and Aria products. Also, the latest introduction of lactose-free cream cheese is a welcome addition to the Malaysian market.

Danish food products in Malaysia
Danish Jams
Danish food products in Malaysia
Danish Cheeses
Danish food products in Malaysia
Danish Juices and Syrups

Another popular export from Denmark is fish and fish spreads from the cold Norwegian waters. We learned from our gracious host Astrid, the wife of the Ambassador, that these can be eaten alone as a traditional Danish snack or prepared into something much more elaborate.

Danish food products in Malaysia
Kipling and Mackeral

This event served to be as educational as it was delicious. The Ambassador and his wife were consummate hosts to the crowd of restaurant and hotel executives and chefs who attended to learn more about how Danish and Malaysian cuisine can share products and ideas. We left after a delicious culinary journey with a new curiosity about Danish dishes and pleased that the ingredients are available locally.

12 Comments

  1. Linnea and Monica!
    Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah – beautiful Copenhagen – a city of delights of joy.
    How I enjoyed my two trips to this city – the joys of the Tivoli gardens etc etc.
    Food of the highest quality and that ” Mother’s milk” – CALSBERG Beer.
    Brings tears to my eyes just looking at those photos.
    Yep Copenhagen was up top with Salzburg and Barcelona.
    Cheers and thanks for the memories
    El Colin Cordobes

  2. I would really enjoy sampling the Danish jams, cheeses and juices!!! They look delicious! 🙂

  3. Danish? I love their butter cookies.

  4. I do like those Danish cookies and dairy products

  5. Oh, I love kippers and sardines on crackers….great for snacking! 😉

  6. All looks very nice and a treat for the Malayans.

  7. What? Emborg is Danish?? That’s great I guess! I always thought it was Arab, because their packaging always has Arabic words.

  8. A mouth watering post! Hmm…chocolates!

  9. Carlsberg! Also, the Carlsberg foundation funded one of the first researches on eel’s life cycle!

  10. danish butter cookies really bring back delightful childhood memories! they’re the best! 🙂

  11. Danemark and Carlsberg beer, anytime ; -)

  12. Love the colors of the houses.

    Greetings,
    Filip

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