Asam laksa is a sour, fish-based soup. It is listed at number 7 on World's 50 most delicious foods complied by CNN Go in 2011. Asam (or asam jawa) is the Malay word for tamarind, which is commonly used to give the stock its sour flavor. It is also common to use asam keping (also known as asam gelugor), dried slices of sour mangosteen, for added sourness. The modern Malay spelling is asam, though the spelling assam is still frequently used.