This Australian City Is So Obsessed with Laksa They Have a Festival for It
The unofficial dish of the state of Penang would definitely be Char Koay Teow. For Selangor, it would arguably be Satay Kajang (don't kill us). However, in the state of Darwin in Australia, it is unexpectedly… laksa. The fastest flight from Malaysia’s capital city Kuala Lumpur to Darwin would take approximately 14 hours (with a layover) but the noddle broth has become the city’s favourite meal.
Although Indonesians and Singaporeans would try to claim the dish as their own, as Malaysians know, there are at least six types of laksa to try in the various states of our country. This includes Laksam, Penang Asam Laksa, Curry Laksa, Nyonya Laksa, Johor Laksa, and Sarawak Laksa which locals would count as the signature dish of the state alongside Kolo Mee.
Although it is uncertain which variety is the favourite in Darwin, BBC reports that the capital city of the Northern Territory, Australia takes its love for laksa to a whole new level by having it for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Their obsession with laksa is such that it has become a staple on weekdays and weekends at all types of establishments from food courts to cafes and atas restaurants. At the local markets, crowds form between stalls for their weekly Saturday laksa feast despite the heat which is rarely below 20 degrees.
In KL & PJ, some may cite Village Park as their favourite nasi lemak stall while others may say otherwise. In Darwin, households are divided over their favourite laksa spot.
A local, Elly said to BBC, "It's very controversial which laksa you go to. It's properly a debate in our household. There's two people that love Yati's, there's two people that love Purple Lady, and one undecided."
Laksa Festival
In Penang, there are Char Koay Teow competitions although it is done on a small scale, but the Darwin International Laksa Festival in October is truly massive, and is a month-long event with thousands of laksa enthusiasts attending the Festival Finale.
This year, a record-breaking 120 laksa and laksa-inspired dishes were submitted by 90 venues for the festival which is supported by the government. There are traditional laksas to satiate anyone’s tastebuds – thick and soupy or thin and light. These are topped with wanton dumplings or prawns of the chicken, pork, or vegetarian variety. Their Chief Minister Natasha Fyles also joined in the festivities and plans are already being made for a 2024 festival.
Check out this larger-than-life model of a laksa bowl they had:
A Motley of Laksa
It’s obvious that the people of Darwin eat, sleep, and dream about laksa. For the festival throughout the years, they literally cooked up some of the weirdest varieties of the dish that you could think of. Here are some which caught our eye but only seem to be for the brave at heart (or rather, stomach):
1. Laksa Basque Burnt Cheesecake
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This intentionally burnt cheesecake has unexpected ingredients within.
2. Laksa Scrambled Eggs
Fluffy scrambled eggs on 2 pieces of toasted sourdough, topped with Malaysian curry laksa sauce, coriander, and fresh chilli.
3. Laksa Naan
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Naan can compare to this Indian flatbread.
4. Laksa Inspired- Mille Feuille
The fancy French dessert has been given a laksa twist. Here puff pastry is layered with laksa cream patisserie, chocolate mousse, meringues, chocolate bar, raspberry and laksa dust. Erm, yum?
5. Laksa Sausage
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This will be something new for the BBQ grill: laksa sausages.
6. Laksa Cocktail
This is an interesting poison of choice. Bottoms up, anyone?
7. Laksa Chocolate
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We would never have thought of mixing cocoa and laksa but this one may just hit the sweet spot.
8. Laksa Ice Cream
Forget vanilla or strawberry, cool down with some laksa ice cream.
Laksa King
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30 years ago, his mum Loretta bought a modest food court shop called Chok’s Place from a friend. One day, Jason had an epiphany. "I actually woke up one day and said 'Mama, I'd like to start doing what you're doing." Jason went on to buy the business from his mum and built on her legacy and recipes.
In 2019, he entered the city’s first-ever laksa festival last minute to compete for the Golden Bowl, the winner of which is determined with a blind tasting. After winning, his business exploded and now limits his dishes to only 50 a day. He won again in 2020 and this year, he was inducted into the Laksa Festival Hall of Fame.
Laksa League Game
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The festival also introduced a brand new online game this year called the Laksa League which encouraged players to become Laksa Legends by tasting local laksa and laksa-inspired delicacies. User jleight must be a huge laksa fan as they checked into 99 venues and tasted more than 100 dishes, winning a trip to Cairns in the process. Side note: we also think that they should get a health check up at this point.
Origins of their Love for Laksa
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It is uncertain when or how laksa fever took over the city which has a population of 139,902 as of 2021. Its proximity to Southeast Asia, being far closer to Asia than any other Australian capital makes it a key link between Australia and countries such as Indonesia and East Timor.
A significant proportion of Darwin's residents are recent immigrants from Asia, including the people of East Timor. As more than half of the population was born overseas, or has a parent who was, it is one of Australia’s most culturally diverse places.
As told to BBC, "I grew up in Darwin and laksa just has always been a thing that people love," said Jo Smallacombe, who organises the Laksa Festival.
All this talk about laksa makes us feel like having a bowl now. Brb!
Visit the website for the Darwin International Laksa Festival here. Or go to https://www.australia.com/en-my to find what else you can do in Australia.
Image credit: @kopistopdarwin, @deckbardarwin, @saffrron, @darwintrailerboatclub, @primemeatsnt, @domsbarandlounge, @darwinlaksabest
