M’sian Stall Allegedly Selling Halal Claypot Chicken Rice Caught Using Rice Wine, Owner Denies Claims

Malaysian Stall Closes After Video Of Rice Wine Being Used In Claypot Chicken Rice Goes Viral

UPDATE (14 Sep, 5pm): The stall owner has clarified that it was not rice wine in the container, but rather sesame oil, according to Harian Metro.

He vehemently denied that he used the non-halal ingredient in his cooking, and added that he is seeking to get halal-certified soon.

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On 5 Sep, a Malaysian stall had to temporarily cease operations after a TikTok video emerged revealing that it had used rice wine to cook its claypot chicken rice.

This was after the stall became popular among its patrons for selling the dish.

Officials have since clarified that they never issued the stall a halal certification.

Malaysian stall cooks claypot chicken rice with rice wine

Initially, the couple running Aman’s Food Stall at Restoran Ahmad Muzakin in Kuala Lumpur went viral for their fluency in Mandarin.

Their signature dish, claypot chicken rice, became immensely popular with customers and even received rave reviews from the Malay Mail.

However, a TikTok user took to the social media platform last week to expose their cooking process.

In the video uploaded on the site, the chef adds a bit of rice wine to the meal.

The rice wine contained a low percentage of alcohol, the OP said, but they argued that this was enough to make the food non-halal.

The footage has since gone viral, especially as Malaysia’s Syariah law forbids the consumption of alcohol among Muslims.

Most expressed surprise at the stall’s use of the beverage.

Others called out the eatery for not informing their customers that they had used the wine.

Stall never received halal certificate

Addressing the situation on Saturday (9 Sep), the Department of Islamic Development Malaysia (JAKIM) said the matter had caused concern among Muslim patrons visiting the stall.

They went on to clarify that they had never issued the operator a halal certificate.

JAKIM also urged Muslim customers to be mindful when visiting eateries.

They could visit JAKIM’s official portal or the Verify Halal app to check if a certain establishment holds a valid halal certification.

In response to the incident, the restaurant announced its closure on 5 Sep until further notice due to “improvement in progress,” The Straits Times (ST) reports.

Also read: Forged Halal Certificates Purportedly Issued To 2 Businesses, MUIS Reports Matter To The Police

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Featured image adapted from TikTok.