You might think food brings people together. But online, it has sparked some of Asia’s fiercest cultural disputes. From Singapore and Malaysia arguing over Hainanese chicken rice and hawker centres, to China and South Korea clashing over kimchi and bibimbap, food has become a proxy for deeper debates about history, identity and power.

Dishes migrate across borders and governments now stake claims over recipes and food cultures - even durian has ended up drawing in the United Nations.

In this episode, host Mariko Oi is joined by Asia Specific podcast journalists, Derek Cai and Rachel Lee, to unpack why food disputes are often most intense between close neighbours, and why they’ve become louder in the age of tourism branding and soft power. Chinese American chef and food writer Jenny Dorsey also reflects on why food is never just about taste - and how questions of ownership, authenticity and belonging shape the way we eat and argue. Asia Specific brings you essential insights and conversations on the stories shaping the Asia Pacific region - an economic powerhouse, geo-political flashpoint and the birthplace of global cultural trends.

Asian perspectives on international issues and in-depth analysis on news from a region that’s home to nearly 2.5 billion people. Whether it is the latest on trade between China and Donald Trump, the rise and fall of political dynasties in Thailand, Indonesia, and the Philippines, or South Korea’s K-pop inspired soft power strategy - we unpack what key players are thinking and dive into the stories that matter. Hosted in Singapore by Mariko Oi alongside BBC experts in Beijing, Bangkok, and beyond – listen to new episodes twice a week. Episodes of Asia Specific are also available on YouTube here: https://bit.ly/4iJyeVt

Get in touch: asiaspecific@bbc.co.uk

It’s a grand promise by Indonesia’s President Prabowo Subianto - a free meal every day for 83 million school children and pregnant women.

But one year into one of the boldest free meal programmes in the world, the policy is facing budget challenges and several mass food poisoning cases affecting thousands of children.

The success or failure of the programme will define the legacy of a leader who pledged to end malnutrition during his presidential campaign in 2024.

But Subianto isn’t just stopping at free food. He has bigger ambitions for a country long seen to be underperforming compared to its huge potential.

To find out if Indonesia’s leader can reshape South East Asia’s largest nation, Asia Specific podcast host Mariko Oi is joined by the BBC's South East Asia correspondent Jonathan Head and Bloomberg Opinion’s Asia columnist Karishma Vaswani, who grew up in Indonesia and was the BBC's correspondent and editor from 2009 to 2015.

Asia Specific brings you essential insights and conversations on the stories shaping the Asia Pacific region - an economic powerhouse, geo-political flashpoint and the birthplace of global cultural trends.

Asian perspectives on international issues and in-depth analysis on news from a region that’s home to nearly 2.5 billion people. Whether it is the latest on trade between China and Donald Trump, the rise and fall of political dynasties in Thailand, Indonesia, and the Philippines, or South Korea’s K-pop inspired soft power strategy - we unpack what key players are thinking and dive into the stories that matter.

Hosted in Singapore by Mariko Oi alongside BBC experts in Beijing, Bangkok, and beyond – listen to new episodes twice a week. Episodes of Asia Specific are also available on YouTube here: https://bit.ly/4iJyeVt

Get in touch: asiaspecific@bbc.co.uk

How tycoon Jimmy Lai went from pro-democracy activist to national security criminal is a story that, some say, mirrors the changes in Hong Kong itself. The 78-year-old once published the city's most widely-read tabloid Apple Daily, which played a pivotal role in encouraging and supporting pro-democracy protestors during a prolonged and violent uprising in 2019.

But for the past six years, he’s been the target of the Chinese government’s national security police. Now, after a landmark trial in Hong Kong, Jimmy Lai has been found guilty of foreign collusion - a conviction that one human rights group describes as the ‘death knell’ for press freedom in the former British colony.

Asia Specific host Mariko Oi is joined by BBC Senior Journalist Danny Vincent and Hong Kong Journalists Association Chairperson Selina Cheng, and examines the reaction of activists exiled abroad with former Hong Kong Legislative Councillor Ted Hui.

Asia Specific brings you essential insights and conversations on the stories shaping the Asia Pacific region - an economic powerhouse, geo-political flashpoint and the birthplace of global cultural trends.

Asian perspectives on international issues and in-depth analysis on news from a region that’s home to nearly 2.5 billion people. Whether it is the latest on trade between China and Donald Trump, the rise and fall of political dynasties in Thailand, Indonesia, and the Philippines, or South Korea’s K-pop inspired soft power strategy - we unpack what key players are thinking and dive into the stories that matter. Hosted in Singapore by Mariko Oi alongside BBC experts in Beijing, Bangkok, and beyond – listen to new episodes twice a week. Episodes of Asia Specific are also available on YouTube here: https://bit.ly/4iJyeVt

Get in touch: asiaspecific@bbc.co.uk