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‘Halal’ dish using rice wine causes controversy

11 September 2023 By Louis Thomas

A food stand in Kuala Lumpur, the capital of the predominantly Muslim country of Malaysia, has sparked debate after it emerged that it used alcohol as an ingredient for its claypot chicken rice.

The food stand in Kuala Lumpur’s Sri Petaling suburb is run by a Cantonese-speaking couple who, according to reports, have been serving the dish to customers for many years without disclosing that alcohol is used in the cooking.

A video of the preparation of its claypot chicken rice went viral as it showed that one of the ingredients going into the dish was a dousing of rice wine.

Rice wine is a common ingredient in Chinese and Chinese-influenced cuisines, and is often used in claypot chicken rice recipes outside of Islamic countries. There are several different styles of rice wine, but generally the ABV is around 15%, though most of this will be evaporated away during the cooking.

In Islam, alcohol is considered haram. The Quran contains several verses of Allah telling the prophet Muhammad about the evil of alcoholic drinks. Among them is a line in the Surah Maidah, the fifth chapter of the sacred text: “Indeed, Satan desires to incur enmity and hatred between you through wine and gambling, and he desires to prevent you from God’s remembrance and prayer”.

It is estimated that of Malaysia’s total population of 33.9 million, almost two-thirds (63.5%) practice Islam, 18.7% are Buddhist, 9.1% Christian, and 6.1% Hindu.

In response to the wave of criticism of the stand for its use of alcohol as an ingredient, Kemajuan Islam Malaysia (JAKIM), the Malaysian government’s department of Islamic affairs, has stated that the premises do not, and have never held, the Malaysian Halal Verification Certificate.

It is understood that the backlash has caused the couple to close their stand for now.

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