About this event
What exactly is rendang beyond just a beef dish, how has it come to embody both a cooking process and a shared heritage? What part have the flavours and techniques of Nusantara kitchens played in shaping modern Australian cuisine? And in an age where algorithms influence what we cook, who decides which recipes endure?
Serumpun: Tasting Tradition, Telling Tales returns on 25 October 2025 at the Asian Civilisations Museum’s Ngee Ann Auditorium to explore these questions. Organised and curated by Khir Johari, author of the multi-award-winning The Food of Singapore Malays : Gastronomic Travels Through The Archipelago. This year’s symposium — with the theme, Edible Inheritance: Stories Across Generations and Oceans — brings together academics, chefs, and cultural voices from across Southeast Asia and beyond to examine how food traditions are carried, adapted, and reimagined across time and borders.
Solo talks and panel discussions will span topics from Food and Language, The Transmission of Food Knowledge in the Indian Ocean, and Unpacking The Concept of Agak-agak. The programme extends beyond the stage with one-off collaborations at Harummanis, helmed by chef-owner Akmal Anuar of Michelin-starred 11 Woodfire in Dubai and Michelin Green Star restaurant Fiz.
A highlight of the weekend is the Rendang Tasting Picnic in partnership with Minangkabau cuisine expert Reno Andam Suri. This intimate tasting experience offers a journey through rendang in its many forms — from highland vegetable-forward versions to festive coastal interpretations — revealing how the technique adapts to seasonality, geography, and local customs.
Serumpun 2025 is an invitation to taste, learn, and connect through the living foodways of the Malay Archipelago.
