Malaysian Kari Ayam Ranked No. 1 Stew In The World On TasteAtlas
An all-time favourite, chicken curry is loved by both Malaysians and foreigners who visit the country.
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Online traditional food guide TasteAtlas just put Kari Ayam (chicken curry) at the top of its April 2025 global ranking for 50 best stews around the world.
Malaysian chicken curry is a flavour-packed blend of spices mixed in creamy santan (coconut milk). Soft, boiled potatoes give the broth a thick, starchy consistency and is doubly delicious as it gets saturated with curry.
This spicy and savoury comfort food is usually paired with a plate of steamed white rice or flatbreads such as roti canai or capati, but you can pretty much have it with any other form of carbs.
Thailand’s Phanaeng Curry came in second place, and is similar to Malaysian chicken curry in terms of spices and coconut milk. The main difference is that it has a distinctive zest from the makrut lime in the recipe.
Third place goes to the traditional Armenian stew Dzhash, which combines fresh vegetables, legumes, and fragrant herbs.
Our Thai neighbour managed to clinch the most number of entries compared to the other Southeast Asian countries included in the list with Massaman Curry (7th place), Thai Curry (23rd place), Green Curry (26th place), and Red Curry (29th place).
Meanwhile, Indonesia’s Rendang and Gulai were put in 6th and 10th place respectively.
India holds all the cards when it comes to curries and stews
It’s no surprise that India has the most number of entries in the list, seeing as how they are the masters of curry.
The first Indian stew dish to appear on the rankings is Murgh Makhani (4th), a butter chicken dish originating from Delhi.
This is followed by Keema (8th), Misal (12th), Kurma (24th), Vindaloo (27th), Dal Tadka (34th), Saag Paneer (39th), Shahi Paneer (40th), and Xacuti (50th).
Netizens question some dishes’ categorization as “stew”
The inclusion of rendang in a list for stews raised a few eyebrows, but a quick check clarified any dish that involves the slow cooking of meat, vegetables, or sauce in a liquid can be considered a stew.
While rendang may not seem like a stew, the meat is cooked slowly over a long period of time in a closed pot or a pressure cooker to give it that tender texture.
Of course, there was also an argument about whether rendang is a Malaysian or Indonesian dish, but it’s pretty common for countries in a region to share their own rendition of a dish.
In any case, recipes are meant to be shared with pride, just like the food we eat. Otherwise, how else will the rest of the world know how great our food is?
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