Malaysian Man Teaches South Korean Colleagues To Eat With Their Hands
Few things are as heartwarming as seeing people share their culture with others in harmony.
A Malaysian engineer recently did so by introducing traditional food from his country — and the traditional way to eat it — to his South Korean colleagues.
His TikTok video shows them gathering and enjoying the dishes using just their hands.
@fikriakram91 Makan Udang masak lemak dgn ayam goreng Guna tangan. Fuhhh, baru paduuu. Today, no chopsticks, no fork and no spoon. Hidup Melayuu! Kah!!#korealife #korean #melayuboleh #koreanpeople #fyp
The wholesome clip has since garnered 2.5 million views on TikTok, with Malaysians praising the cross-cultural experience in the comments.
Malaysian engineer cooks food for Korean colleagues
According to his profile, TikTok user @fikriakram91 aka Fikri Akram is based in South Korea and works as an engineer.
In a TikTok video uploaded on 28 Dec 2023, he filmed himself sharing a slice of Malaysian culture with his colleagues.
This involved whipping up delicious traditional Malaysian dishes for them, such as udang masak lemak, or prawns in coconut gravy.
He also cooked a platter of fried chicken, definitely a universal favourite.
Source: @fikriakram91 on TikTok
He complemented the cuisine with a classic selection of sambal from Malaysia.
Source: @fikriakram91 on TikTok
His Korean colleagues were clearly excited to try out the Malay dishes, grinning from ear to ear.
Source: @fikriakram91 on TikTok
Korean officemates eat with just their hands
The cultural sharing didn’t stop at the scrumptious dishes.
As the OP said jokingly, his plan to ‘Malay-ify’ his officemates included eating all the food with just their hands.
“No chopsticks, no fork, no spoon,” the video’s overlay text reads.
His Korean colleagues took to it well, eagerly grabbing clumps of rice to munch on.
They had a good time, laughing and chatting together as they ate.
Source: @fikriakram91 on TikTok
Not a single person had a hand not stained with gravy, oil, and rice grains by the end of the meal.
Source: @fikriakram91 on TikTok
Evidently, they enjoyed the traditional Malaysian dishes, with at least one of them going back for seconds.
Source: @fikriakram91 on TikTok
Their final verdict? “Very delicious!”
Source: @fikriakram91 on TikTok
Video receives much praise from Malaysians
The TikTok video went viral, gaining 2.5 million views and thousands of comments.
Most of them were Malaysians, complimenting the OP and his colleagues.
One praised the Korean officemates for being good at eating with their hands.
Source: TikTok
Others lauded the OP’s cooking ability, which surely made a good representation of Malay culture.
Source: TikTok
This wasn’t the OP’s colleague’s first time trying his cooking.
A video from September shows the OP sharing some rendang with his engineer buddies, except back then, they were still using chopsticks to eat.
Source: @fikriakram91 on TikTok
Early last year, a Singaporean’s Korean boyfriend ordered Kopi O from a kopitiam in Singlish and was overjoyed when he succeeded.
Have news you must share? Get in touch with us via email at news@mustsharenews.com.
Featured image adapted from @fikriakram91 on TikTok.
