READING COMPREHENSION (YEAR 5)
MALAYSIAN FOOD
Theme : World of Knowledge
Topic : Malaysian Food
Year : Year 5M
Duration : 1 hour
Level : Mixed abilities
C.S. : 3.5.1, 3.7.1, 3.8.2, 3.8.3, 3.8.4
Pre-reading:
Activity A:
In groups of four, list five Malaysian food that
you know.
a) ___________________________________
b) ___________________________________
c) ___________________________________
d) ___________________________________
e) ___________________________________
Activity B:
What do you want to know about Malaysian
food?
The taste of food
a) ___________________________________
The ingredients
b) ___________________________________
Ways of cooking
c) ___________________________________
While-reading:
First reading:
Malaysia is an exciting place
when it comes to food.
There are many varieties of
food because of the many
ethnic groups among the
Malaysian population. The What are the
major races are the Malay, major races
Chinese and Indian, each in Malaysia?
with their own unique
special food.
Malay food is known to be
spicy with a lot of herbs and What is the
spices. Fresh coconut milk is main diet in
often added to the dishes.
any Malay
Rice is the main diet in any
Malay meal such as nasi food?
lemak, nasi kerabu, nasi
dagang and even fried rice.
Other popular Malay dishes
are ikan bakar and sate. The
fish and meat are marinated
and grilled over a charcoal
fire.
Chinese food uses very
little spices. One of the
main ingredients is soy What is the main
sauce. The food is either
ingredients
boiled in pots as in rice
porridge and soups, or stir-
in Chinese food?
fried in woks as in mixed
vegetables and fried
kuetiau. Other popular
Chinese dishes are chicken
rice, sweet and sour dishes,
wonton noodles and spring
rolls.
Indian food has its own unique
hot and spicy taste. A lot of spices,
yogurt and ghee are used in Indian
cooking. Indian dishes include nasi How is Indian
beriani, breads such as capati, naan food served
and paratha. They are normally
normally?
served with fish or meat curry,
vegetables, pickles, chutneys and
pappadam. Tandoori chicken is also a
favourite dish. The chicken is roasted
in a big clay oven and then grilled on
an open fire. Indian meals are often
served on banana leaves.
In Malaysia, we can find all these
food in most food courts and hawker
centres.
Activity B: Second reading:
Read the text again. As you read, decide
whether the following statements are true(T)
or false(F).
1. Most of Malay and Indian food are spicy. T
_____
2. Soy sauce is the main ingredients in
F
Malay food. _____
3. Malaysia is a mutiracial country. T
_____
Post-reading:
Activity A: In a graphic organizer, list
four ways of cooking that you can find in
the text.
grilled
Ways of
roasted
cooking
boiled
fried
Activity B: Group the food in the
text according to its category.
Malay food Chinese food Indian food
Rice porridge Nasi beriani
Nasi lemak
soups capati
Nasi kerabu Mixed vegetables naan
Nasi dagang Fried kuetiau curry
Fried rice Chicken rice chutneys
Sweet and sour dishes
Ikan bakar Wonton noodles pickles
sate pappadam
Spring rolls
Tandoori chicken
Activity C: Answer these questions.
1. Which of these make Malaysia an exciting place?
a. The food c. the people
b. The races d. the ethnic groups
2. All of these are rice dishes except…
a. Nasi beriani c. porridge
b. Nasi lemak d. capati
3. Which of these words in the passage is not used
to describe Malaysian food?
a. variety c. special
b. unique d. exciting
4. What makes Malay food spicy?
____________________________________
5. How are ikan bakar and sate similar?
____________________________________
6. How is Chinese food different from Malay
food?
Chinese food Malay food
1. __________________________ 1. __________________________
2. __________________________ 2. __________________________
6. Find the meaning of the words in bold.
a. varieties = _______________________
b. ethnic = _______________________
c. unique = _______________________
d. marinated = _______________________
e. ingredients = _______________________
Activity D: Groupwork
You are the class monitor. You are planning to
have a class party. Discuss what food you
would want to bring to the party. Share your
ideas with the class.
THANK YOU….
