Food culture
Malaysia offers an abundance of dining options as well as culinary delights. The cuisine on offer is as diverse as the population. The typical Malay food is accompanied by the many regional Chinese specialties, Indian cuisine and many other regional dishes. Then there is the large selection of restaurants, from the many small, simple street restaurants to the food stalls to the upscale restaurants in the hotels. Malaysians eat out very often. All the street restaurants and food stalls are particularly full in the evening.
Malaysians and Indians traditionally eat with their right hand - and only with their right. The palm of your hand picks up the rice and the dish, your thumb helps to get the whole thing into your mouth. Of course, cutlery is also included in the restaurants. Chopsticks are of course used in Chinese restaurants. Inexperienced travelers should be told that there is no reason to mess around with chopsticks. A spoon is always there and the Chinese also use it for the sauce and some slippery ingredients such as mushrooms or tofu. Cutlery known to Europeans is available everywhere - but no knife. Eating is done with a fork and spoon - with the former, the food is transported onto the spoon, which transports it to the mouth.
Ramadan: For 30 days between sunrise and sunset, Muslim Malaysians don't say anything but words; they don't eat, drink or smoke. During this time, the Malays are up early to have a meal before dawn (sahur) to take in. The next meal (buka puasa) is only available after dusk. At the end of the month of fasting, the most important festival for Muslims follows Hari Raya Aidilfitri (outside of Southeast Asia Eid ul-Fitr called). This is a family celebration, with most taking days off - possibly the only time in Kuala Lumpur that is free from traffic jams. In 2021, Ramadan is from April 12, 2021 to May 12, 2021
eat
Special diet
Halal: (ḥalāl,حلال) The word that translates about allowed or permissible means, denotes the type of food that is allowed for Muslims under Islamic law. In addition to not using pork, food suitable for hahalism also requires a special slaughtering process. With animals that rarely end up on the dinner plate, this is a little more difficult for non-Muslims. As a guide, there is the rule that animals that are vegetarian may be eaten. Halal food is naturally present everywhere in Malaysia. If you enter a restaurant operated by Malaysia (which of course does not serve any alcohol), you can be sure that you are not eating anything wrong. In addition, many restaurants have a clearly visible seal in their rooms, which marks their food as strictly halal. Many foods in supermarkets also have this seal. Due to the very cosmopolitan population structure of the country, and the consequently very diverse cuisine, it is not always easy for non-Malaysians and tourists to be exactly sure of the halal food. When in doubt, non-Malay restaurants should be avoided. Malay therefore find it difficult to visit one of the many local Chinese restaurants. Some restaurants also indicate with a sign non halal to their diet. Western imported food (apart from specialty restaurants) is usually fine. Sausages are made from poultry, and the fast food and restaurant chains don't serve pork either.
Vegetarian: As already mentioned, Malaysia's cuisine is very diverse. And many Asian cuisines are known for their wide range of vegetarian recipes. Vegetarians visiting Malaysia will find some interesting foods to eat. Only the salad that is common in Europe as a side dish or as a main course will be looked for in vain in the country. In addition to the vegetarian dishes themselves, there is also a large selection of exotic fruits, for which Southeast Asia is well known.
Malay cuisine
Snacks, side dishes
 Otak-otak serves ... |  ... and unpacked |
- Otak-otak(鲤鱼 包): Anyone who goes to a restaurant in Johor Bahru is sure to get a plate on the table right away. On it there are skewers with an ominous content wrapped in leaves. If you ask what this is and first look up your dictionary, you will find that otak in German brain means. But do not worry, the food is not the covered organ of thought of an animal. Otak-otak is a snack popular in Malaysia, Singapore, and Indonesia. it consists of a meat cake made of fish, usually mackerel, wrapped in a banana leaf. The name comes from the consistency rather than the ingredient. During preparation, fish paste is mixed with a whole range of ingredients such as garlic, egg, shallots and a number of spices. The result is these delicious little warm snacks.
- Sambal: Sambal is a seasoning paste made from chilli which is well known in many parts of Asia. They are available in the most diverse variations. In Malaysia it is also an important part of the popular dish nasi lemak. There are among other things Sambal belacan which is prepared with a shrimp paste, sugar and lime juice, sometimes also tomato. At Sambal sotong squid serves as an additional ingredient.
Nasi GorengThe classic Nasi Goreng is available in different versions. Here is a short glossary of some of the variants of the dish.
- Bias - Simple nasi goreng without meat. (biasa: normal)
- Kampong - Very traditional form with anchovies (Ikan Bilis) (kampong: Village)
- Cendawan - Nasi Goreng with mushrooms (cendawan: Mushroom)
- Ayam, Ayam kunyit - With chicken or curry chicken (ayam: Chicken; kunyit: Turmeric)
- United States - USA style. With chicken and egg.
- Cina - Chinese style
- Thai - Thai style
Main courses
- Nasi Lemak: This is the ultimate classic of Malaysia's simple cuisine. It is eaten all day, but it is particularly popular as breakfast. It is available everywhere, at every food stall, in the train bistro and on the planes of the discount airline Air Asia - it is actually quite tasty there. A normal simple nasi lemak consists of rice, sambal (a hot chili paste), a boiled egg, cucumber and peanuts. Sometimes separately, sometimes in the sambal there are anchovies. Especially because of the latter, it is sure to be an unfamiliar breakfast for one or the other visitor - especially because of the fish taste. Very often the simple nasi lemak is replaced by fried chicken.
- Nasi Goreng and Mee Goreng: These two dishes are classics in Malaysia and can be found on almost every corner. Both dishes are - in a modified form - at least a term in this country. The former mainly from the freezer of the supermarket as ready-made frozen food. The second dish is often found in every Asian fast-food restaurant, usually as a more refined form of "normal" fried noodles. Here in Europe it is usually referred to as "Bami Goreng", a term that you don’t come across in Malaysia, it is Mee the egg noodle used there. The Malay word goreng means nothing else than roast meat. So it's plain fried rice (nasi (rice) is spoken with a voiceless "s", for example our "ß") or fried noodles. Noodles or rice are usually fried with oil, leek, onions and garlic and a little egg. The simple dish can be supplemented with any number of ingredients, e.g. other types of vegetables, chicken, shrimp, etc. The name of the other ingredient is simply added to the menu.
- Satay: Also in this country are the satay - grilled meat skewers (half a dozen per serving), which are served with a sauce for dipping. Certainly the best known are the chicken skewers with peanut sauce. But actually you can skewer anything - beef, lamb, goat and fish. A complete list of all satay specialties would probably lead too far even here, but the English Wikipedia already has a considerable collection.
- Laksa: This is a very popular soup in Malaysia. There are essentially two different categories of this dish:
- Asam Laksa: is a popular traditional and slightly tart fish-based soup. Tamarind is responsible for the sour taste. In addition to the fish as a base, it contains (mostly thick) rice noodles and other finely chopped ingredients such as cucumber, onions and chiles. There is also some shrimp or fish paste. There are a number of local variations such as Laksa Kedah and Laksa Ipoh. The best known is probably the style Laksa Penang from the famous island. It is usually hidden behind it when in a menu of Asam laksa the speech is.
- Curry Laksa: The soup is based on curry and coconut milk and, in addition to noodles, can also contain tofu, fish or shrimp. There is also some sambal. Laksa nyonya offers plenty of spicy coconut milk. Laksam comes from the northeast of the peninsula and has a fairly thick consistency and is served with fish (sometimes eel).
- There are a number of others Laksa: Depending on the region, they differ more from the other two groups. These are those Johor Laksa (based on coconut milk, prawns, galangal as well as lemongrass and spaghetti instead of rice noodles), Kelantan Laksa (based on cooked and chopped fish, supplemented with ginger, onions and garlic with coconut milk, but smaller noodles than the thick one Laksam) and the Sarawak Laksa (it contains sambal instead of curry).
- Rendang
- Roti
- Mee rebus
- Acar
Dessert:
- Bubur cha-cha
- Chendol
- Ais kacang
- Kuih (or kueh)
Chinese Kitchen
The noodleWhen it comes to noodles, you will come across the same names on the menus in Malaysia over and over again. Three classics should be mentioned at this point.
- Mee - This is the egg noodle, which we also know. Here in Europe, it is used to make the typical fried noodles that can be found at every Asian snack bar.
- Kuey Tieow - These are rice noodles. They look white, often a kind of ribbon noodle.
- Bihun - This is where the small, thin glass noodles are hidden. They are also made from rice.
- Bak chor mee（肉 脞 麵）
- Bak kut teh (肉骨茶)
- Char kui teow (炒 果 条)
- Chee cheong fun (豬 腸粉)
- Chwee kway （水 粿）
- Fish ball noodles (魚丸 麵)
- Hainanese chicken rice (海南 鸡饭)
- Hokkien mee (福建 麵)
- Kway chap (粿 汁)
- Locomotive (乐乐)
- Steamboat (火鍋)
- Wantan mee (雲吞 麵)
- Yong tau foo (酿 豆腐)
Indian food
- Fish head curry
- Nasi briyani
- Roti canai
- Putu mayam
fruit
Malaysia offers a wide variety of tropical fruits. Anyone who travels the country can try some of the fruits that are unknown to us, but fruits that are known to us are also worth trying there, as they are ripened on the plant there and are often tastier than the imported goods available in Europe.
Drink
coffee
 7up with vanilla ice cream - unusual and refreshing |  Some bars also offer the cocktail in the youth - here a Long Island Ice Tea |
You can drink coffee on every corner in Malaysia. Malaysians are also fans of the brown hot drink. You can find three brands with their branches all over the country.
- Starbucks - The world-famous brand can also be found everywhere in Malaysia within a 5-minute walk. Each branch has free WiFi. In addition to the well-known coffee varieties, there is a selection of baked goods, salads and sandwiches
- Coffee Bean follows in second place among coffee shops. In addition to coffee, there are also a number of good teas and cakes. Breakfast is recommended.
- Dôme has 13 branches in Malaysia and offers very good coffee creations as well as some good teas. There is also a selection of dishes and snacks and a nice selection of cakes
Cool soft drinks
Malaysia offers a large and quite imaginative selection of soft drinks, almost every drink that we only serve hot is also available in a cold version. Very refreshing, especially after a long hike Ice lemon tea. It is usually made from freshly brewed tea, lemon and ice. Rather in exceptional cases, the can from a well-known iced tea producer is used. Icetea and iced coffee are available in different versions. With ice cubes, ice cream, with or without cream. Some drinks are also conjured up from soy almonds. Another ingredient of these cool refreshments can be Cendol and Cincau be. The green or brown gelatine desserts look like pieces of jelly have been mixed into the drink. The drinks are usually served in a glass with a handle - similar in shape to the beer mug we know, only slightly smaller. The well-known soft drinks with ice cream are rather unusual for us. For example, you can order a 7-up or Pepsi with a scoop of vanilla ice cream from the "Old Town" restaurant chain. At first glance, this sounds quite unusual, but it is quite refreshing, albeit too sweet for one or the other traveler.
alcohol
Malaysia is an Islamic country, Malaysia usually doesn't drink alcohol. But alcohol is available everywhere - only the two states of Kelantan and Terengganu have banned it. Malaysian restaurants do not serve alcohol. All the others and bars have all sorts of alcohol in their program, as do the grocery stores such as the 7Eleven chain. In the bars there are all kinds of spirits that you can find on the shelves in Europe. Compared to all other foods, however, it is comparatively expensive. You have to leaf out 8 ringgit for a can of beer in a small grocery store. There are some local beverages that contain alcohol, often used for certain festivals. This includes the Tuak. It is made from fermented rice and sugar. Tapai is made from cassava, among other things, and also contains some alcohol it is traditionally consumed with Hari Raya Aidilfitri.
- Tuak: The drink consists of fermented rice, yeast and sugar. It is particularly popular with the Iban in Sarawak state. The drink is very popular during the Gawai Festival and weddings. Likewise on all special occasions and when entertaining guests.
- Tapai: Less of a drink, more of a slightly alcoholic paste made from fermented rice (tapai nasi), Cassava (tapai ubi kayu) or sweet potatoes is tapai.
beer
As just described, at least the Malays do not drink alcohol. Even so, Malaysia has a local brand of beer: Anchor. There is the brand as Anchor Smooth and Anchor Strong. The drink is produced by the company Guiness Anchor Berhad which also represents the well-known brands Tiger, Guiness and Paulaner in the country. She is also in the north Cambodia active, where this beer is also very popular, probably even more popular than in your own country. In the country itself, the international brands Tiger, Heineken and Carlsberg are significantly more present than the name Anchor.
Restaurants
Seals / markings
The picture on the right shows some awards in certain categories that a restaurant in Malaysia can win. The letters indicate cleanliness and quality - class A is the top grade here. Particularly important for locals is the labeling of a restaurant that only serves halal dishes. An independently awarded award is given to restaurants with particularly authentic Malaysian cuisine.
Food stalls
The food stalls and hawker stalls certainly ensure the majority of the Malaysian "out-of-home supplies". The Malaysians don't eat at home as often as we Central Europeans. During the lunch break and for dinner, you go to one of the gastronomic collective facilities with family, friends and work colleagues. Almost every shopping center has such a self-service restaurant area (often on the top floor). What they all have in common is a large room with tables and chairs, around which a number of small cookshops are arranged - each with its own specialty. So you sit together with friends and everyone gets something they like from somewhere. You can also find such restaurants outside (hawker: Street vendors). As a visitor, you should definitely eat in one of these facilities - these food stalls offer an unimagined variety of dishes. If you are afraid of not being able to communicate - because some of the dishes may not be shown enough on the signs, you will find an "exemplary" entry in Kuala Lumpur in the Suria KLCC under the twin towers on the 4th floor. There are food stalls with local dishes from every province in the country, plus kitchens from neighboring countries - everything well shown in words, pictures and prices - a must-have for those interested in local food.
Fast food
If you don't want to dare to experiment, have no time or don't feel like convincing the children who have traveled with you, you don't need to worry. The fast food chains known in this country also have plenty of branches in Malaysia. Mc'Donalds, Burger King and Subway are never far, at least in the big cities. The KFC chain, which is still less represented in Central Europe, is particularly popular.
Restaurant chains
There are a number of specialized restaurant chains in Malaysia. The prices for a dish are often in the range of RM 9.00 to RM12.00. The following list introduces a number of restaurants that you will come across again and again in Malaysia. In this way, you can go to the next restaurant that offers the cuisine you want in a targeted manner.
- OldTown White Coffee (OldTown White Coffee).
Old Town now has over 170 branches (some open 24 hours). The café has its own house brand. The tasty coffee, created in 1958, comes from Ipoh. It can also be bought for home use. The restaurant offers a wide range of typical Malaysian dishes. - Halal certified. - Daddy Rich. Pappa Rich has 48 branches all over Malaysia and offers very good typical traditional Malaysian dishes as well as local bread (roti). The focus is on the classics of Malay food. In addition, there is a particularly large selection of iced soft drinks (2 full pages on the menu) from simple iced coffee to soy milk with ice and cendol. If you are interested in some typical dishes, you cannot avoid Pappa Rich. - Halal certified.
- Secret recipe. The café and restaurant started in 1997 and now has over 160 branches in Malayisa. There are also branches in Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand, China, the Philippines, Pakistan, Brunei and Australia. The main trademark is the large selection of cakes and pies. If you're looking for a hearty coffee break with a piece of Black Forest cake on holiday, you've come to the right place. However, there are also some hot dishes. The menu offers a mixture of somewhat Western cuisine, some Asian classics and pasta.
- Nando's. At Nandos, everything revolves around the small, hot, red pod. Peri Peri is the magic word in restaurants that present chicken dishes from Portuguese cuisine. The full menus are inexpensive, plentiful and include drinks with free refills.
- Kenny Rogers Roasters. The first restaurant was opened in Florida in 1991 by the famous singer. The chain's branches, of which there are now quite a few in Malaysia, serve grilled chicken dishes with a larger selection of side dishes.
- Sushi King. The name says it all for the restaurant chain, which is represented in all states. In 1995 the first restaurant opened in Kuala Lumpur. There are now over 60 branches.
Restaurants
Recipes
If you want to enjoy Malaysian cuisine at home, you can find the corresponding recipes under this link: Malaysian cuisine. Have fun cooking at home.
