Murtabak facts for kids
Mutabbak, a spicy omelette pancake filled with bits of vegetables and minced meat
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| Alternative names | Motabbaq, matabbak, muttabak, metabbak, mutabbaq, mataba |
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| Type | Flatbread, Pancake |
| Course | Starter |
| Place of origin | Yemen |
| Region or state | Arabian Peninsula, Indian subcontinent, and Southeast Asia |
| Created by | Yemenis |
| Serving temperature | hot or warm |
Motabbaq (Arabic: مطبق) is a delicious stuffed pancake or flatbread. You can find it in many places, especially in the Arabian Peninsula and Southeast Asia. Countries like Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei, Thailand, and Bangladesh all enjoy it.
The name mutabbaq comes from Arabic and means "folded." It's a very popular street food in places like Yemen, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, and Singapore.
Motabbaq is often described as a savory pancake. It's usually filled with a mix of beaten eggs, chopped leeks or green onions, and minced meat. The pancake is pan-fried, then folded into squares and cut into pieces. In Indonesia, this dish is super popular and is called martabak.
You can also find different kinds of martabak. Some are vegetarian, while others have chicken or other fillings. Many Yemeni and Indian Muslim restaurants, especially in Singapore, offer these tasty variations.
In Malaysia, murtabak was first sold by Indian Muslim restaurants. It usually has minced meat like beef, chicken, or even goat meat. It also includes garlic, egg, and onion. People often eat it with curry sauce, sliced cucumber, or pickled onions. This dish is now popular all over Malaysia, with many different recipes. Malay Muslim sellers also make it. In Yemen, murtabak often includes goat meat or mutton.
In Indonesia, Martabak is a famous street food with two main types. There's Martabak Manis (sweet martabak) and Martabak Telur (savory egg martabak). Martabak Manis is a thick, sweet pancake. It's usually topped with yummy things like chocolate, cheese, peanuts, or condensed milk. Today, you can find it with international toppings too. These include Skippy Peanut Butter, Ovomaltine, Toblerone, Lotus Biscoff, and even Durian spread. There's also a thin, crispy version called Martabak Tipis Kering (Tipker). Martabak Telur is the savory kind. It's a crispy pancake filled with eggs, chicken or beef, and scallions.
History of Motabbaq
The word mutabbaq means "folded" in Arabic. This suggests that Murtabak might have started in Yemen. Yemen had many Indian people living there. Indian traders then brought the dish back to their home countries. Tamil Muslim traders later brought Murtabak to Southeast Asia.
The dish called murtabak is a pancake with many layers. It came from the state of Kerala in India. The people from there are called "mamaks," which means "uncle" in Tamil. The original name for this dish was "mutabar." This name combines "muta" (meaning egg in Keralite) and "bar" (short for "barota" or "bratha roti," which is the bread). The pancake base is also known as "pratha roti" or "parantha" in Hindi. Some people also think "murtabak" is like another dish called Mughlai paratha, popular in Kolkata, India.
Similar flatbreads exist in Yemen and other parts of the Arabic world and Persia. Indian traders visited these Middle Eastern places centuries ago. It's possible they shared cooking ideas and adopted each other's food habits. However, "mutabar" is the original name for the egg, chili, and onion flavored layered pancake.
In Indonesia, Martabak Manis started in the Bangka Belitung Islands. Chinese people (Hokkien and Khek) living there created it. They called it “Hok Lo Pan,” meaning “Hok Lo ethnicity’s cake.” Its first toppings were sugar and sesame seeds. Martabak Manis has different names in different regions. In West Borneo, it's called Apam Pinang, similar to Malaysia's Apam Balik. In Central Java, it's known as “Kue Bandung.” This name came about because a man from Bangka Belitung opened a Martabak Manis stall next to a “Bandung Noodle” stall.
In countries where martabak is common, it's an everyday food. People make it at home, and you can often find it in restaurants that serve traditional food. That's why it's known as street food. Sometimes, especially the sweet martabak, you can even buy it ready-made in stores.
Types of Motabbaq
Savory Motabbaq
There are many kinds of savory martabak. In Brunei, most martabaks are not stuffed. They are just made of dough, similar to the Indian paratha. This plain martabak is called martabak kosong. It's a bread-like dough that is kneaded and tossed in the air, then served hot with a sweet curry sauce.
In Singapore and Malaysia, murtabak is usually filled with spiced beef, chicken, or mutton. It's served with a curry sauce, sweet pickled onions, or cucumber in ketchup. Another type in Malaysia and Singapore is murtabak cheese. This one has mozzarella cheese as an extra filling. Martabak from Johor (Malaysia) and Singapore often use more minced meat than other Malaysian versions.
The common ingredients for Indonesian egg martabak include the dough, seasoned ground meat (beef, chicken, or mutton), sliced green onions, and beaten duck eggs. Sometimes, herbs and potatoes are added. Some street vendors mix the ground beef with curry spices. In Indonesia, common spices for the meat are shallots, garlic, ginger, cumin, coriander, and turmeric. These spices are ground and stir-fried.
Chefs use a very large flat frying pan or iron griddle to cook martabak. They usually use vegetable oil, but sometimes ghee or butter is used too.
Before serving, martabak is usually cut into pieces. Sometimes it's eaten with sweet and salty soy sauce and pepper. Savory martabak in Indonesia and Malaysia often comes with acar. This is a pickled side dish of diced cucumber, sliced carrot, shallots, and chillies in sweetened vinegar. In Singapore, it's sliced cucumbers in tomato ketchup. In Malaysia, Singapore, and parts of Sumatra, martabak is served with kari (curry) gravy.
In Palembang, there's a special egg-martabak. The eggs are dropped onto the flattened dough before it's folded and fried. It's served in curry, usually with diced potatoes in beef curry. It's topped with chillies in a sweet-sour soy sauce. This dish is called Martabak Haji Abdul Rozak, or Martabak HAR. It was made famous by an Indian Indonesian named Haji Abdul Rozak. There's also Martabak Kubang from Padang, West Sumatra. It's served with a light curry for dipping.
Another type of martabak, especially in Malaysia and Sumatra, is martabak kentang. This means potato-stuffed martabak. It uses the same dough but is filled with diced potatoes, beaten eggs, green onions, and spices. You eat it by dipping it into hot sweet-sour soy sauce or curry sauce.
Indonesia has many new and exciting martabak varieties. Chefs are adding different toppings to make the dish unique. Some new savory toppings include black-pepper minced meat, spicy tuna, shredded Beef Rendang, grilled salmon, and even Instant noodles. Popular instant noodle toppings are Indomie and Samyang spicy noodle. Sometimes, Mozzarella cheese is sprinkled on top of the fried Martabak and then torched until it's melty.
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Ingredients of martabak
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The making of egg martabak
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Murtabak Raja Kelantan
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Martabak HAR from Palembang
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Murtabak in Malaysia
Sweet Motabbaq
Another type of martabak is called martabak manis, which means sweet martabak. It's also known as Terang Bulan or Martabak Bangka. However, these names are mostly used in Indonesia. In Malaysia, the same folded thick pancake is called apam balik.
Even though they share the name "martabak" because they are both folded, the sweet version is quite different. The way it's cooked, the dough (which uses yeast and baking soda), and the ingredients are not the same as egg martabak. Sweet martabak has a texture more like a crumpet.
When it's baked on a pan, sweet martabak is spread with butter or margarine. Then, toppings like sugar, crushed peanuts, chocolate sprinkles, or cheese are added. Before serving, the martabak is folded in half, so the toppings are inside. In some parts of Indonesia, egg martabak might be called Martabak Malabar to tell it apart from sweet martabak.
There are many new kinds of martabak manis today. Some popular additions include green tea powder (matcha), cream cheese, Oreo cookies, and chocolate candies. These include Kit Kat, Ovomaltine, Toblerone, and Nutella. Also, durian fruits are often used as a topping.
When you order Martabak Manis, some stalls offer two choices of margarine: Blue Band margarine or Wijsman butter. Wijsman butter costs more because it's made from 100% cow milk fat.
See also
In Spanish: Murtabak para niños
