Introductory to Malaysia Foods

One of the great attractions while traveling in Malaysia is food. Local cuisines are divided into many types. Food preparations are creative as a result of the multi racial and cultural legacy.

Local cuisine can be mainly divided into Malay, Chinese, Indian, Nyonya and Portuguese food. And each type of the local cuisine has many sub-categories depending on the cooking variations. For example, in Malay cuisine, it has Kelantanese, Johorean style, etc. For Chinese food it can be sub-categorised as cooking with Teow Chew influence, Penang style, Hakka cuisine, Hokkien cuisine and many more.

Recent years, the fusion food trend is getting more popular. These fusion food restaurants / cafés offer local and international food. It offers better variations to the increasingly demanding food taste of the Malaysian.

For food lover, I strongly recommend that you to visit Penang, Kuala Lumpur, Malacca and Johor for your food adventure. Each state has different reasons why it worth your gastronomy urges to visit.

Penang food is ever popular. No matter which part of Malaysia you are visiting, it is common that you’ll find Penangese foods around. Of course, nothing is better than having the Penang food in Penang itself. No matter whether you like spicy foods, local snacks or dessert, you’ll find that Penang just has the right type of foods to satisfy your needs. Those categorized as the top most delicious and celebrated foods include the Penang laksa, Har Mee (Prawn noodle), Rojak Penang (a type of local fruit salad) and Chendol (cold dessert drinks). There are simply too many great foods available in Penang, you gotta try it out yourself and tell me your dining experience.

If you do not have enough time to visit all the places in Malaysia to taste the foods, Kuala Lumpur (KL) is the place to be. Being the capital of Malaysia, KL is resided by people from all other states of Malaysia. Thus, best foods from their hometown are brought to KL. That’s why KL is a where all the good foods gathers. And no matter what time of the day, good food is always just around the corner. Johor is another state where famous delicacies around Malaysia meet.

Unique Nyonya and Portuguese foods are famous in the historical and cultural rich Malacca. Baba and Nyonya, the Peranakan (Strait Born Chinese) cooking is famous for the various usage and blend of spices. Their foods are mostly spicy hot and full of aromatic scent. Nyonya kuih (pastries) are also famous delicacies in Malacca. Similar to the Peranakan cookings, Portuguese cuisine is another must try dishes in Malacca. Their famous dishes include the Devil Curry (cook with beef or chicken), Garing-garing (a type of fried snack) and cucumber & pineapple salad.

If you are less adventure about foods and would like to have something you are more familiar with? No worries, in the gastronomy heaven like Malaysia, you can find almost any type of eating outlets. Thai, Korean, Japanese, Western, Middle Eastern and Vietnamese food and dining outlets are common in Malaysia, especially in the city areas. Not quite satisfied yet? You can also opt for fast food. Here, we have local fast food chain, western fast food chain, Korean fast food, etc. From burgers, wafers, pizzas, sandwiches, sushi, fish and chips to fried chicken. Fast food outlets are widely available. Some of these fast food outlets even operate on a 24/7 basis.
Regarding the place to dine, one can choose to dine at five star hotels, restaurants, fast food chains, cafés, food courts, hawker centres, food kiosks / stands to road side stalls. The price is relatively affordable. Enjoying the local authentic food and dining experience is a must during visit to Malaysia. I’ll write more about foods that you shouldn’t missed out during your visit to Malaysia in other write-ups.

Another unique dining experience you shouldn’t miss is to dine at a mamak outlet. Mamak actually means Indian Muslim. Here, people refer the stalls man by the Indian Muslim selling halal Indian and Malay fusion foods as Mamak. Going to Mamak is part of the Malaysian culture. The food is delicious, affordable and acceptable by all races of Malaysia. Thus, Malaysian chooses Mamak as the hang out place. We can just order a drink (teh tarik, teh limau, limau ice, milo shake, kopi) and chit chat with friends. The friendly Mamak will always welcome you. You can sit and chat as long as you wish to. If you are hungry, they have the roti canai (grill fried pancake), nasi kandar (rice with various dishes to choose from), nasi goreng (fried rice, Mamak style of course) and much more to choose from. Although nowadays there are generally 2 types of Mamak store. One is the most common road side Mamak food stalls, another is the modern Mamak restaurant. Most Malaysian refer going for a tea (usually to hang out and chit chat) as “yum cha”. So don’t forget to “yum cha” at Mamak.

Trend of “yum cha” is getting more popular in recent years. Kopitiam (meaning coffee shop) type of café is mushrooming in Malaysia. Usually, these café offer a fusion of local cuisines, good ambiance and wi-fi (wireless internet) facilities. The operation hours of these outlets mostly are extended to 10pm or 11pm. And that’s a just glimpse about food in Malaysia. Malaysia is a country that full of great foods. A must go place for food lover / adventure. I am sure the interesting potpourri of foods in Malaysia will give many surprises and satisfaction to your taste bud!