1. Serani

2. Kadazandusun

3. Murut

4. Rungus

5. Kedayan

The term "Serani" became prominent due to the fact that the ancestors who arrived 500 years ago were referred to as "Nasrani" by the Malay population. Nasrani is a term for the follower of Christianity originated in the Arabic language.

• Eggs

• Sugar

• Vanilla essence

• Heavy cream

• Milk

  
  

The tarts are then baked until the custard is set and the pastry is golden brown, resulting in a delightful combination of crispy crust and sweet filling.

• Glutinous rice

• Coconut milk

• Sugar

• Pandan leaves

Pandan leaves are optional if you want to add some richness of flavour and colour to the dessert. This mixture is then steamed until it’s firm and has a slightly sweet and creamy taste. Putugal is often served during festive occasions.

• Meats (chicken, pork)

• Vegetables

• Sausages

  
  

With a mixture of spices, including chili, vinegar, and a blend of seasonings. The result is a flavorful and spicy curry with a hint of sourness.

• Fresh fish

• Lime or calamansi juice

• Shallots or onions

• Various seasonings

• Ginger

• Chili peppers

• Bitter gourd

The fish is “cooked” or marinated in the acidic juice. Hinava is known for its vibrant flavors, combining the freshness of raw fish with the zing of citrus and the aromatics of shallots and other seasonings.

The dish of hinava is often served when greeting or celebrating events, such as the Kaamatan or Tadau Kaamatan Festival, weddings, feasts, engagements, and so forth.

Ingredients may include:

• Wild mango

• Red chilli peppers

• Salt

• Ginger

• Red onion

• Lime

• Fresh turmeric

• Salt

• Takob akob (a tart wild fruit)

• Tamarind

• Unripe mango

• Belimbing buluh (a local sour fruit)

• Ginger

• Bird's eye chillis

Also, few lemongrass are added to balance out the acidic fruits and add to the overall flavour character.

• Chicken pieces

• Ginger

• Lemongrass

• Bamboo shoots

It’s often seasoned with local herbs and spices to create a flavorful and comforting broth. Sup manuk lihing is a beloved dish in Sabah, and it showcases the use of indigenous ingredients and flavors in Kadazandusun cooking. It’s a hearty and nutritious soup that reflects the culture and culinary traditions of the region.

Hunting and gathering are important parts of their culinary traditions. For the Murut, wild game such as boar and deer is a common source of protein. Fish forms an essential element of the diet in areas near rivers or water sources. Sinalag, tuau, ambuyat, and binulu are a few of the most well-known Murut traditional dishes.

• Fermented brown rice,

• Water

  
  

Tapai is known for its lower water content compared to Lihing, which is produced from pulut, or glutinous rice. In the Murut culture, Tapai is traditionally consumed using a straw, and it is a communal experience, with all guests taking turns drinking directly from the wine jar. To maintain the desired taste, water is often added to dilute the Tapai, and the wine jar is refilled until it loses its flavor at which point a new jar is opened during celebrations.

Tapai is seen as the embodiment of the rice spirit, Bambarayon, representing spiritual energy and the life force. Accepting and sipping Tapai when it’s offered is a way of paying respect and gratitude to Bambarayon.

• Hot rice

• Sweet potato

• Salt

• Water

• Banana leaves

It is important to note that if someone passes away, Linopot will be served differently based on the event. In the case, Linopot will be wrapped with the Tarap leaves and not banana leaves. In this case, the difference between taste and fragrance is also noticeable to occur as well.

Named ingredients are:

• Fish

• Salt

• Pangi Seeds

• Rice

Most of the time, they would use fish from the river because the taste is fattier and sweeter. Furthermore, to note that when using the pangi seeds, we need to be careful as it is considered as a low-level poison.

• Tuhau

• Kantan flowers

• Onions

• Garlic

• Coconut milk

• Cassava leaves

• Oil

• Sugar

• Salt

• Salt

• Tamarind paste

• Shallots

• Garlic

• Ginger

• Turmeric powder

• Mackerel scad

The use of tamarind paste adds depth to a dish by balancing the salty taste from the salt with the sweet taste of the tamarind.

• Eggplants

• Anchovies

• Salt

• Chillies

• Lime juice

• Water

  
  

During the old days, it was common for people to cook eggplant with firewood. In order to get the perfect taste and texture of food, it is essential to char the eggplant in order to get the perfect taste.

The main ingredients are:

• Margerine

• Flour

• Salt

• Sugar

• Yeast

  
  

• Papaya

• Mango

• Galangal

• Anchovies

• Salt

Fruits that are not yet ripe can be used except for jackfruit because the fruit is quite hard. So, you would have to soak it in hot water first to soften it.

• Glutinous rice

• Coconut milk

• Pandan leaves

• Banana leaves

• Salt

  
  

Although the method of making Kelupis seems quite simple and easy, it requires patience and initiative to ask those who are skilled in making it.

Here are ingredients:

• Glutinous rice

• Coconut milk

• Brown sugar

• Granulated sugar

  
  

• Rice flour

• Coconut milk

• Cooking oil

• Corn flour

This can be seen, for example, in the use of coconut milk instead of cream in European recipes. Most Southeast Asian menus do not contain heavy cream, cooking cream and whipping cream that are normally put in the European dishes. Thus, this explains why most Southeast Asians and East Asian are mostly lactose intolerant and cannot properly digest dairy product. For instance, the use of dried Chinese sausage (lap cheong) in the place of chorizo in Mexican recipes. Aside from this, use of vinegar, mustard and Worcestershire sauce can be interchanged with soy sauce, chilli, and ginger in place of vinegar, mustard, and ginger in a Serani dish called Debal's Curry.