Did you know that our Malay sponge cake has been considered to be Hong Kong's national cake by CNN?

Shocking right?!

chinese call this "malay cake" pic.twitter.com/j4kSvRjgSH

— Paul Tan 199 (@paultantk) January 10, 2023

Malay Cake, also known as Ma Lai Go in Cantonese, is a famous dessert in Guangdong and Hong Kong. The cake is round with a yellow-ish shade and is often served in teahouses in slices.

But do you want to know a fun fact?

Despite the fact that the cake's name contains the word Malay, it may seem to have originated in Malaysia. However, there are three distinct theories about where it came from.

So there's one where it was brought to Malaya from Guangdong in China during Malaya's second Chinese immigration surge. This greatest immigration population introduced numerous languages and cultures, such as Cantonese and its cuisine, into Malaysia, laying the groundwork for Malaysia's current cultural diversity.

The second narrative is set during the British Malaysian era when English colonists has a habit of enjoying afternoon tea with cake. However, because milk and ovens were not common in Malaysia at the time, locals had to be creative and substitute those two things with coconut milk and steamers. That is how the Malay Cake came to be. As a result, Malay cake was introduced to China as a different form of English cake.

In the 16-17th century, when the new Castilla bread was carried onboard, the sponge cake went from West to East. Because sponge cakes are dehydrated, they can be kept longer than any other food. It was quite a valuable and tasteful enjoyment snack during the long sea voyage. As the Portuguese took over the Malacca base, more Asians were acquainted with sponge cakes, giving them the experience to master the skill.

Well, you learn something new every day, I suppose.