Local Cuisine

Dining Out

Restaurant Guide

Local Cuisine
One of the great things about Malaysia is the variety of cuisine from around the country. Just to get you started, below we have outlined some of Malaysia's most popular dishes:

Peranakan Cuisine:
Also known as Nonya or Baba cuisine, this is fusion of traditional Malay and Chinese cuisine. Notable for its use of coconut and spicy curries served with beef, chicken and fish. No visit to Malaysia and especially Melaka is complete without at least one Peranakan meal.

Chicken Rice Balls:
Boiled chicken served with golf ball sized balls of rice. Perhaps not the most exciting dish one could imagine yet it's hearty fare, extremely cheap and exceptional value for money and the line to get into Formosa Chicken Rice at the corner of Jl Hang Jebat and Jl. Hang Katsuri on weekends and holidays is "around the block".

Lemang:
Glutinous rice steamed in hollowed out large bamboo shoots lined with banana leaves. Cooked with coconut milk and sometimes corn, lemang is usually served with chicken curries. Traditionally reserved for special holidays like Idul Fitri.

Nasi Campur:
White rice, surrounded by small selection of meats, vegetables and condiments. Delicious and never the same twice.

Asam Pedas:
Another very popular dish Asam Pedas is a very hot and mild sour curry usually served with white steamed rice.

Ikan Bakar:
Literally 'grilled fish' - fresh fish or shellfish grilled over charcoal or coconut husks. Popular stable fare especially on the sea coast.

Sambal Belacan:
Sambal means chile sauce (usually hot) and Sambal Belacan is just that. A side dish for Malays who want a touch more heat with their main course. Very spicy hot.

Teh Tarik:
Malaysia's 'national drink' teh tarik' (literally pulled tea) is tea with milk and sugar that is aerated by pouring from one glass to another as far as the vendor can reach. Always served hot. Delicious.

Ice Cendol:
If there is a national dessert, Ice Cendol is it. Shaved ice with jelly candies and agar-agar, red sugar and coconut milk this cool refreshment can be found just about anywhere three or more people gather.

Rojak:
Found in hawker stalls these steamed ball of glutonous rice are flavoured with coconut and served cut up covered with sweet soy sauce that is slightly spicey. A delicious and cheap snack or dessert.

Kuih-Muih:
Kuih means cake (kue in bahasa Indonesia) and kuih-muih are small Asian style cookies, cakes, pastries and the like - somewhat of a cross between Spanish Tapas and French Petit-fours. Usually sweet but not always (i.e. kuih udang - shrimp cake) kuih-muih are most often steamed or boiled although sometimes fried as opposed to baked in the West. With beautiful colours and seemingly unlimited variety kuih-muih are usually served as dessert or between meal snack.