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Bak Kut Teh is typically served in a steaming clay pot

Another picture of Bak Kut Teh

Bak kut teh is a Chinese soup popularly served in Malaysia, Singapore and also states of neighbouring countries like Batam of Indonesia and Hat Yai of Thailand. The name literally translates as "pork bone tea", and at its simplest consists of meaty pork ribs in a complex broth of herbs and spices (including star anise, cinnamon, cloves, dang gui and garlic), boiled together with pork bones for hours. However, additional ingredients may include offal, varieties of mushroom, lettuce, and pieces of dried tofu. Light and dark soy sauce are also added to the soup during cooking, with varying amounts depending on the variant.

Bak kut teh is usually eaten with rice, and often served with youtiao (strips of fried dough) for dipping into the soup. Soy sauce (usually light soy sauce, but dark soy sauce is also offered sometimes) is preferred as a condiment, with which chopped chilli padi and minced garlic is taken together. Tea of various kinds (the Tieguanyin variety is especially popular in the Klang Valley area of Malaysia) is also usually served in the belief that it dilutes or dissolves the copious amount of fat consumed in this pork-laden dish.

Klang, widely believed to be the home of bak kut teh, is famous for her many bak kut teh restaurants. Indeed, the dish is reported to have been invented in Port Klang for port coolies there in the early 20th century, to supplement their meagre diet and as a tonic to boost their health.

There are numerous variants of bak kut teh with its cooking style closely influenced by the prevailing Chinese enclave of a certain geographical location. In Singapore, there are three types of bak kut teh. The most common variant is the Teochew style, which is light in color but uses more pepper in the soup. The Hokkien, who prefer saltier food, use more soy sauce, which results in a darker soup. The Cantonese, with a soup-drinking culture, add medicinal herbs to create a stronger flavoured soup.

A less fatty variation of bak kut teh made with chicken instead of pork is called chik kut teh. It also serves as a halal version of the dish catered to Muslims, whose religion forbids them to consume pork.

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