Umai

Umai is originally a food for Melanau fishermen on fishing trips to the sea, as it is very inconvenience and dangerous as well to start a fire for cooking on their small fishing boats.

It is raw fresh fish, sliced, then marinated with asam paya ( Eleiodoxa conferta ), onion, chilies, etc. Vinegar is sometime used, and the asam paya may be replace with lime or lemon.    Umai goes well with sago pearls which also requires no cooking or preheating.

Not all fish are suitable for umai. Though it is very important that the fish is fresh. Among the fishes used are : duai ( white or black pomfret/bawal – Pampus argenteus, P. niger ), empirang ( Setipinna breviceps ), tenggiri ( Scomberomorus sp ), etc