25 Mouthwatering Dishes Of Malaysia
One of the best things about living in or visiting Malaysia is the food everyone says. It is cheap and plentiful. I wanted to share with all of you some of the absolutely delicious dishes that Malaysia has to offer. I know many of them are meat based and I am not promoting meat, but there are vegetarian versions of all of them. Some of the vegetarian versions are more delicious and more healthier than their meat counterparts. If you have not been to Malaysia before and you’re planning for a visit, the food here will definitely keep you coming back many say.
These 25 mouthwatering food showcase just how rich and varied Malaysia’s culinary tradition is. For friends who are vegetarian, like I am, please don’t worry. There are quite a number of vegetarian restaurants in Malaysia such as Kechara Oasis, who can make some of the food listed below using vegetarian alternatives.
I hope you enjoy feasting your eyes on the dishes included in this article and do let me know your thoughts and experiences of Malaysian food in the comments section below.
Tsem Rinpoche
1. Asam Laksa
Asam Laksa
Asam Laksa is a spicy fish-based rice noodle soup. It is one of the most famous dishes from Peranakan cuisine. This type of food is a fusion of both Chinese and traditional Malay cuisines that developed amongst the Peranakans, who are the descendants of Chinese migrants who settled in parts of Malaysia and whose culture intermingled with that of the local Malays. It’s an extremely popular and widespread dish in Malaysia. You can find it everywhere, especially on the streets of Penang, one of the 13 states of Malaysia.
Asam Laksa consists of fish, shredded cucumber, onions, pineapple, red chillies, common mint, lettuce, daun kesum (Vietnamese mint) and pink bunga kantan (torch ginger). It’s mostly served with thick rice noodles and some prawn paste for flavouring, though some might find this a little uncomfortable due to the strong taste.
Vegetarian versions of this dish can be found at Be Lohas at KLIA2, Water Lily Restaurant in Kuala Lumpur, Beyond Veggie in Kuala Lumpur and Veggie Planet in Melaka.
2. Rojak
Rojak
Rojak is a traditional salad dish made from various fruit and vegetables. It’s usually served with a generous amount of prawn paste, though this may not be suitable for people who can’t stand the strong taste. In Malaysia, there are four different types of rojak: fruit rojak, rojak Penang, sotong kangkung and Indian rojak.
Fruit rojak typically consists of cucumber, pineapple, jicama (or Mexican turnip), bean sprouts and deep-fried tofu (tau pok and you tiao). The dressing for this rojak is usually made from belacan (shrimp paste), water, sugar, lime juice, chilli and topped up with crushed peanuts.
Rojak Penang is quite similar to fruit rojak except that it usually includes extra ingredients such as guava, jambu air (java apple), raw mango and squid fritters. The dressing for this rojak is thicker, with an almost caramel-like consistency.
Sotong kangkung is a popular dish throughout Malaysia and can easily be found at many food stalls. This rojak consists of sotong (cuttlefish) and kangkung (water spinach), cucumbers, bean curd, peanuts, chilli and sauce.
Indian rojak, also known as mamak rojak or pasembor, has a thick peanut sauce that is both sweet and spicy. Ingredients for this version include boiled potatoes, hard boiled eggs, bean sprouts, cucumber. Some types of Indian rojak also include bean curd, deep fried dough fritters, prawn fritters or cuttlefish.
Rojak is a common dish, being sold in restaurants, mamak stalls, mobile vendors in food trucks, or even at road-side stalls.
3. Roti Canai
Roti Canai
Roti Canai is a type of Indian-inspired flatbread that can be found throughout the many ‘mamak’ stalls in Malaysia. These stalls are famous for their Indian-style dishes and developed from the Muslim Tamil immigrants who settled in Malaysia. In Chinese it’s sometimes referred to as “flying bread/ 飞饼” due to the process of spinning and tossing the dough before cooking. Most of the time, it’s also referred to as “印度煎饼”, meaning Indian pancake. Traditionally, Roti Canai is served with dhal (lentil curry) or any other type of curry popular in mamak stalls, such as fish curry, chicken curry, mutton curry, etc. Another popular way that Roti Canai is served is with a generous sprinkling of white sugar, a favourite for those with a sweet tooth.
Apart from the usually style, there are many other variations of Roti Canai, such as Roti Telur (egg bread), Roti Tisu (tissue bread) that is paper thin and flaky, Roti Bawang (onion bread), Roti Telur Bawang (egg and onion bread), Roti Pisang (banana bread), Roti Planta (margarine bread) that is often served with sugar, and many more.
4. Nasi Lemak
Nasi Lemak
Nasi Lemak is a Malay dish, made from fragrant rice cooked in coconut milk and pandan (screw pine) leaf. It’s considered the national dish of Malaysia and you can easily find it everywhere. This dish is also famous in neighbouring countries such as Indonesia, Singapore, Brunei and Southern Thailand.
The traditional Malaysian version of nasi lemak often contains ikan bilis (anchovies), sambal (a type of spicy paste), peanuts and boiled eggs. Most nasi lemak stalls can also be found serving sambal kerang (cockles) with fried egg, sambal squids, fried chicken, rendang, sambal fish and more. If you’re a vegetarian, you don’t need to worry about this because there are many restaurants such as Simple Life in Kuala Lumpur and Yummy Garden in Jalan Ujong, Melaka, which offer vegetarian nasi lemak. These restaurants substitute real anchovies with vegetarian mock anchovies.
5. Chee Cheong Fun
Chee Cheong Fun
Chee Cheong Fun is a rice noodle roll dish. It is a Cantonese dish and originates from Southern China and Hong Kong. In Malaysia and Singapore, chee cheong fun is often served with a black coloured sweet soy sauce. The Penang version of this dish uses a prawn paste, which is also black and sweet but has a toffee-like consistency.
In Ipoh, another food capital of Malaysia, chee cheong fun is often served in two ways, either dry or with a lot of sauce. For the dry version, it’s served with sesame seeds, soy sauce, fried shallots, onion oil, chilli sauce and pickled green chilli. For the version with a lot of sauce, it’s served with curry and mushroom gravy.
While certain locations would have slight variations on how the dish is served, you can find it practically everywhere in Malaysia.
6. Apam Balik
Apam Balik
Apam Balik, also known as ban jian kuih (turnover pancake) is a type of griddled pancake common in Southeast Asia. It’s widely sold at roadside stalls throughout Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia and Brunei.
The batter for the pancake is made from flour, coconut milk, water, sugar, eggs and baking soda. Traditional fillings for the apam balik include crushed peanut granules with sugar, desiccated coconut and sweetcorn kernels. The dish has been declared a heritage food by the Malaysian Department of National Heritage.
7. Curry Mee
Curry Mee
Curry Mee is an extremely flavourful and unique dish that draws from Chinese and Indian cuisine, and can be found in both Malaysia and Singapore. It usually consists of thin yellow noodles and or thin bee-hoon (rice vermicelli) with spicy curry soup, coconut milk, chilli paste and a choice of dao-pok (dried tofu), prawns, cuttlefish, chicken, cockles, and mint leaves.
8. Penang Hokkien Mee
Penang Hokkien Mee
Penang Hokkien Mee can be found in Malaysia and Singapore. It is originally from China’s Fujian (Hokkien) province and is a famous noodle dish. Traditionally, it’s served with prawn-based spicy soup, slices of chicken or pork, squid, prawn, fish cake, kangkung (water spinach) and sambal (chilli paste).
It is a very common dish, especially in Penang, and the soup has a very flavourful and rich taste which makes almost everyone fall in love with it.
9. Satay
Satay
Satay is a dish of seasoned, skewered and grilled meat. In Malaysia it is often served with peanut gravy, onions and cucumbers. Satay may consist of sliced chicken, goat, mutton, beef and more. Satay is often grilled or barbecued over a charcoal fire.
It can be found in food courts all over Malaysia, at roadside food vendors and at pasar malam (night market) stalls. With a recent surge in vegetarian options, it can also be found in various vegetarian restaurants such as Kechara Oasis and Beyond Veggie by Secret Recipe.
Satay is usually eaten alongside another dish called ketupat. This is rice dumpling, wrapped in palms leaves in the form a diamond shape. It is a staple food, and is usually eaten as a replacement to eating plain rice with your meal. When served with satay, it is removed from the palm leaves and sliced.
10. Lok-Lok
Lok-Lok
Lok-Lok is a Chinese form of steamboat, in which the food is skewered on a thin stick and immersed into boiling hot stock or soup until cooked. After that, it can be eaten along with a variety of sauces. Typically it is eaten with either a spicy peanut sauce, chilli sauce or sweet sauce to enhance its flavour.
Lok-Lok can be found sold by the roadside, in food courts and nearby lively junctions of Malaysian cities and towns. Lok-Lok includes a variety of bite-sized ingredients such as clams, cockles, pork intestines, pork liver, sausages, fish balls, meat balls, squid balls, shrimps, vegetables, vegetarian mock meat, mushrooms, and even some cooked items such as deep-fried wantons and deep fried bean curd skins.
11. Penang Kuey Teow Th’ng
Penang Kuey Teow Th’ng
Penang Kuey Teow Th’ng is a traditional Chinese flat noodle dish that is served in a bowl of chicken soup or duck soup. The ingredients include fish cakes, fish balls, shredded chicken or duck, chopped spring onions, bean sprouts, and served with chilli sauce on the side. It is truly a delicious, traditional and famous Malaysian dish and there are vegetarian versions of this dish available as well.
If you’re visiting Malaysia on a trip or vacation, you must try out the Kuey Teow Soup in Penang. Its fame comes from the fact that it is so delicious.
12. Char Kway Teow
Char Kway Teow
Char Kway Teow is a world-renowned dish that can be found in both Malaysia and Singapore. Char kway teow (flat noodles) are stir-fried over a very high heat with light and dark soy sauce, chilli, a small quantity of shrimp paste, whole prawns, deshelled cockles, bean sprouts and chopped Chinese chives. The dish is usually stir-fried with eggs, slices of Chinese sausage, fishcake, bean sprouts, and less commonly with other ingredients. Char kway teow is traditionally stir-fried in pork fat, with crisp croutons of pork lard. Char kway teow is commonly served on a piece of banana leaf on a plate, to increase the aroma of the noodles. Mouthwatering vegetarian versions can be requested and made, as most vendors are accommodating.
13. Wanton Noodles
Wanton Noodles
Wanton Noodles is a Cantonese dish that originates from Guangzhou, China and it is widely served in other countries like Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand. There are two common versions of this dish that are available. In the first, the noodles are served with a bowl of chicken soup, and in the other, the noodles are served with black soy sauce. Toppings for the dish can include Chinese kale, wanton dumplings, five-spice roasted pork, and spring onion. Wanton noodles can be found at most food courts in Malaysia.
14. Otak-Otak
Otak-Otak
Otak-Otak is a dish that originates from Indonesia. It is also served in countries such as Malaysia and Singapore. Otak in Malay and Indonesian is directly translated as ‘brain’. Apparently, the dish is named after brains because of its soft and squishy texture.
Otak-Otak is commonly eaten with steamed rice as a side dish. The main ingredients are fish, spices and leek, which are wrapped with banana leaf. You can find the dish in many famous restaurants like Nyonya Colours and Lorong Seratus Tahun. Vegetarian versions made from mock meat can also be found.
15. Economic Fried Bee Hoon
Economic Fried Bee Hoon
Economic Fried Bee Hoon is a humble dish local to Malaysia and Singapore, and is particularly popular during breakfast hours. Economic bee hoon can be truly economical with a few simple additional ingredients like cabbage and egg.
It is a very simple and delicious dish. There are also other side dishes available to go with economy bee hoon such as curry vegetables, sambal long beans, fish cakes, cabbage and eggs.
16. Mee Goreng Mamak
Mee Goreng Mamak
Mee Goreng Mamak, is a simple yet flavourful dish that is quite common and can be found in Malaysia, Indonesia and Singapore. In the Malay language, mee goreng literally translates as ‘fried noodles’. The dish is usually cooked with fish, chicken or prawns, chilli, Chinese cabbage, cabbage, tomatoes, eggs, shallots and garlic. You can easily find this dish in mamak stalls all over Malaysia.
17. Economic Rice
Economic Rice
Economic Rice is commonly known as mixed rice and can be found in countries like Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand. It does not refer to a specific dish and can be found in various food stalls. Depending on the vendor, there can be anywhere between 10 to 20 side dishes available to go with steamed rice. Economy Rice is predominantly thought of as a Chinese food. The dishes are very affordable, thus the name Economic Rice.
18. Bak Kut Teh
Bak Kut Teh
Bak Kut Teh is a very popular Teow Chew dish that originates from China. It can also be found in Malaysia, Singapore, Sumatra, Southern Thailand and Indonesia. Bak kut teh translates directly as ‘pork bone tea’. It is usually boiled with Chinese herbs, garlic, star anise, cinnamon, mushroom, choi-sum, tofu sheets and dried tofu puffs. It is often served with steamed rice and youtiao / yau char kwai (strips of fried dough) for dipping into the soup. There are many restaurants in Malaysia, especially in Klang, Kuala Lumpur, that specialise in Bak Kut Teh as it is so popular.
19. KL Hokkien Mee
KL Hokkien Mee
KL Hokkien Mee is Kuala Lumpur’s own unique black-coloured charcoal-fried noodles. The noodles are fried with lard, garlic, pork, pig’s liver, shrimps, squid, and cabbage. Broth is slowly added throughout the frying process, allowing the noodles to absorb the stock slowly, thereby giving the noodle dish a very thick texture. Generous amounts of dark soy sauce is also added to the dish.
20. Nasi Kandar
Nasi Kandar
Nasi Kandar is a popular northern Malaysian dish which originates from Penang. It consists of steamed fragrant rice and it’s normally served with a variety of curries poured over the rice and side dishes. The rice can be accompanied by fried chicken, rendang, lamb, fried fish, fried prawns, fried squid, cubed beef and more. Vegetarian side dishes usually include eggplant, okra, lettuce, and deep-fried bitter gourd. The variety of curries and side dishes gives nasi kandar a rich and diverse taste.
21. Nasi Dagang
Nasi Dagang
Nasi Dagang is a Malaysian and Southern Thai dish. It is made from rice steamed in coconut milk and fenugreek seeds which gives it a unique fragrance. Other ingredients that accompany the rice include fish curry, hard-boiled eggs, pickled vegetables and chicken or beef rendang. This dish can be found along the east coast of Peninsular Malaysia like Kelantan, Terengganu and Southern Thailand.
22. Nasi Briyani
Nasi Briyani
Nasi Briyani (briyani rice) is an Indian mixed rice dish made with basmati rice and includes a mixture of spices, yoghurt, meat and or vegetables. The ingredients and spices used may include nutmeg, pepper, cloves, ghee (clarified butter), cardamom, bay leaves, cinnamon, coriander, mint leaves, ginger, onions, and garlic.
There’s a huge variety of nasi briyani such as mushroom briyani, beef briyani and vegetable briyani. Most of these can be found in mamak stalls or Indian restaurants throughout Malaysia.
23. Cendol
Cendol
Cendol is a traditional dessert that originates from Indonesia. The standard ingredients for this dessert include coconut milk, worm-like pieces of green jelly that are normally made from rice flour and green food colouring derived from pandan leaves, shaved ice and palm sugar.
Cendol is quite a common dessert dish and can be found all over Malaysia. These days it is also served with a variety of additional toppings such as red beans, grass jelly, corn kernels and glutinous rice. With the most recent trend, cendol can even be found served with durian flesh and jack fruit.
24. Ais Kacang
Ais Kacang
Ais Kacang literally means ‘ice beans’ and is a popular Malaysian dessert. Ais Kacang was traditionally made of only shaved ice and red beans. But with the current diversity of ingredients, ais kacang also comes in bright colours with various toppings such as fruit.
It’s often served with attap chee (palm seed), red beans, sweet corn, grass jelly, cubes of agar-agar (jelly), peanuts, and ice cream. A final topping of condensed milk, evaporated milk and/or coconut milk is drizzled over the mountain of shaved ice along with some syrup bandung (rose syrup). There are quite a number of varieties of ais kacang available all over Malaysia, and in some versions, instead of coconut milk, it’s served with gula melaka (palm sugar).
25. Durian
Durian
Durian is a very popular fruit in Southeast Asia. Known for its unique and strong smell, as well as its texture, it is called the ‘king of fruits’. Durian has a very spiky and green coloured outer layer which is inedible, however the seeds are covered in a yellow coloured flesh which you can eat and has a thick custard-like texture.
Durian has such a strong smell that it has been banned from certain restaurants and even hotels. Durian is one of the food that you either love or hate.
Vegetarian Options
For those of you around the world who are vegetarian, you can also experience Malaysian cuisine. The restaurants listed below have a number of vegetarian dishes cooked in the traditional style. This is just a small list and vegetarian restaurants can be found in all major cities and towns.
Kechara Oasis Jaya One
Address:
63 & 67-P1, Block D,
The Suites, Jaya One,
No 72A, Jalan Universiti,
46200 Petaling Jaya,
Selangor Darul Ehsan.
Website: http://www.kecharaoasis.com
Phone: +6012 8188 384
Opening hours: Monday – Sunday 11am – 3pm & 6pm – 10pm
Kechara Oasis Viva Home Mall
Address:
Lot 2.08 2nd Floor,
West Wing,
Viva Home Mall,
85 Jalan Loke Yew,
55200 Kuala Lumpur.
Website: http://www.kecharaoasis.com
Phone: +6012 8188 384
Opening hours: Monday – Sunday 11am – 3pm & 6pm – 10pm
Be Lohas, KLIA2
Address:
L2M-19, Level 2M,
Terminal KLIA2,
Jalan KLIA 2/1,
64000 Sepang.
Phone: +608 7878 165
Opening hours: 6am – 12am
Water Lily Vegetarian Restaurant
Address:
23 Jalan Tun H S Lee,
50000 Kuala Lumpur.
Phone: +603 2070 6561
Opening hours: 10am – 9:30pm
Beyond Veggie
There are approximately 14 Beyond Veggie restaurants in Malaysia.
Opening hours: 10am – 11pm or as regulated by the malls the restaurants are located in.
Veggie Planet
Address:
41&43, Jalan Melaka Raya 8,
Taman Melaka Raya,
75000 Malacca.
Phone: +606 2922 819
Opening hours: 9am – 10pm
Simple Life
There are around 11 Simple Life restaurants in Malaysia.
Opening hours: as regulated by the malls the restaurants are located in.
Yummy Garden Food Court
Address:
16-A, Jalan Ujong Pasir,
Melaka.
Phone: +6012 601 5677
Opening hours: 5pm – 5am
For more interesting information:
- Vegetarian Restaurant Review
- Nice Indian Food
- Top Reasons to Take Warm Turmeric Water in the Morning
- Can You Make This?
- Dr Jiang’s DELICIOUS HEALTHY RECIPES/videos
- 50 Incredible Vegetarian/Vegan Recipes!
- Saffron
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Thank you very much for the article of delicious and mouthwatering dishes .Malaysia is a multiracial country .They have their own traditions , cultures and variety of foods.Malaysia is truly food heaven.
Many of these dishes are available in vegetarian too.Some of the vegetarian version are more delicious and healthier than their meat counterparts.The price of foods also reasonable .
The variety and combination of food that we have in Malaysia is staggering and it is a reflection of the cultures that are prevalent in Malaysia. Malaysia is unique it has three dominant cultures, Chinese, Indian and Malay, and all three cultures are established and have the biggest populations in Asia. The fusion of all the foods creates dishes and foods that are very unique to Malaysia.
Ancient Malaya, was a focal point of Chinese and Indian traders, another influence that has not been mentioned are Arabian traders, there is also quite a significant influence of Arab culture within Malaysian food.
We’re all very lucky to be Malaysians with so many types of delicious Malaysian food such as Rojak,Satay,Nasi Lemak,Prawn Mee,Curry Mee,Otak Otak, which my mum recently made,and we suddenly got an idea we don’t actually can exclude the fish because we only love to eat the eggs fillings.Another favourite dish that my mum loves to cook which is very hard to find in Malaysia.”Perut Ikan’,it’s a hot and spicy dish cooked with preserved fish stomach,prawns and lots of herbs and vegetables. Thank you Rinpoche for sharing this wonderful article! ?
We’re all very lucky to be Malaysians with so many types of delicious Malaysian food such as Rojak,Satay,Nasi Lemak,Prawn Mee,Curry Mee,Otak Otak, which my mum recently made,and we suddenly got an idea we don’t actually can exclude the fish because we only love to eat the eggs fillings.Another favourite dish that my mum loves to cook which is very hard to find in Malaysia. It’s a hot and spicy dish cooked with preserved fish stomach,prawns and lots of herbs and vegetables. Thank you Rinpoche for sharing this wonderful article! 🙂
Here in Malaysia ,we are lucky to have so many varieties of delicious dishes every where and every corner of a residential area. 25 mouthwatering dishes Of Malaysia .like nasi Briyani.,durian,cebdol and so forth..will definitely attracts people from different countries to try it.looking at those beautiful pictures makes me mouth watering. Many years back when i am younger i loves those dishes but not now .Thank you Rinpoche for sharing the post.
OMG I’m salivating big time looking at these pics! Indeed Malaysia has the best food in the world! Ok I may be biased, but I have not come across anyone, friends, colleagues, family who had said our food was nothing to shout about. In fact almost everyone has said they love our food. It’s not only Malaysian food. All kinds of cuisine can be found here. However, it is our best kept secret, because Malaysia has not done a very good job of marketing it.
Japanese food, Thai food, Italian food, they are world reknown. But “Malaysian food”? We have a long way to go.
There are even countries fighting over the origin of cuisine and making claims on them, I wonder with wide eyes. Whoever does a better job of marketing gets to stake their claim on them.
Whatever they claim to be theirs, well I still say the Malaysian version always wins hands down. Our food is good and cheap to boot.
Thank you Rinpoche for sharing the article. The pictures makes me mouth watering. Yes, Malaysia is a mix culture country, the beauty of it is it results variety choices of food. Like Nyonya food is the result of mix culture and mix race. I like at least one type of food in every race, I like nasi briyani, nasi lemak, char kuey tiow, curry mee, asam laksa & apam balik. I can eat five to six pieces of apam balik with empty stomach! 🙂 Now I am vegetarian, I still eat nasi lemak with only rice and peanuts. It is because what I like about nasi lemak is not the sambal, but the fragrance rice. And I can eat vegetarian curry mee. There’s a stall in a restaurant behind Gompa where an Indonesian kakak (sister) selling vegetarian curry mee is very nice. I am proud to be Malaysian. I know more than one language, I know more than one culture, and I can taste more than one type of food. _/\_
Malaysian food is the best! We have varieties and I love all! Proud to be Malaysian.
Oh and we also have super good vegetarian restaurants too, my favourite is Kechara Oasis and Loving Hut at Sri Petaling. Super good!
Aside from the fact this list ignites the tam chiak (Hokkien for ‘glutton’ hehe) in me, it brings back some very fond memories of my childhood as I am sure it does for many Malaysians reading this. One of the reasons is because some of our biggest festivals revolve around food. Chinese New Year? Reunion dinner. Hari Raya? Buka puasa in a neighbour’s open house. Deepavali? Murukku.
Malaysian cuisine is actually a perfect reflection of our society. Our nation is a rojak (fruit salad! Item #2 on the list) of cultures, traditions and races, bound together harmoniously by a common sauce. In the case of rojak, it’s the sticky sweet black stuff and in the case of Malaysia, it’s a love of food! 🙂
Not only that but the various cuisines have influenced one another. Indian curries for example, have been assimilated into Chinese cooking to take on a milder taste, while the Chinese have adapted Western recipes to appeal to more Asian palates (Hainanese chicken chop, anyone?). So in Malaysia, food has become a platform for us to learn about one another’s cultures, as we swap stories and bond over a plate of nasi lemak (coconut rice) at a 24 hour roadside stall.
I’m proud to be Malaysian and proud that we have welcomed one another with open arms, and integrated the unique customs and traditions of each race to form our Malaysian way. We invite the world to Malaysia…come sit with us and share a cup of teh tarik (pulled tea) and see how you too can become a part of this multi-cultural society! 🙂
I am grateful that I am a Malaysian as I am free to enjoy all of my favourite foods especially Nasi Lemak, Curry Mee, Mee Goreng and many others.
Few years ago, when I have decided to stop eating meat and be a lifetime vegetarian, I had no difficulty finding vegetarian foods. This is because many vegetarian restaurants have served the delicious dishes that I like the most and most important is the vegetarian foods are healthier and no harm to the animals.
Thank you Rinpoche for sharing these delicious foods in Malaysia which I can share to my overseas friends.
Malaysia is a multi racial country. Each race has it own traditions and unique cultures. Foods is one of them that made up these 25 mouthwatering dishes from the photos shown in this blog post.
I like all of them except the ones with sea foods and meat in it because i am a vegetarian but these can be substitute by vegetarian mock meat and fish and it is equally tasty. I am lucky to be a Malaysian as there is a Chinese saying Malaysia is a Delicious Food Paradise!
When it comes to food, the power of food seem to able to pull all people together regardless of race, religious, gender, skin colour. Just like Kechara Soup Kitchen is doing, ‘Hunger Knows No Barriers’.
I’m proud to be a Malaysian! I’m not saying that I’m pround because of my country is the best country because obviously it’s not. Some of our leaders of the country have no spirits to build up the country, citizens in the country are not being responsible and do our parts to contribute to the country.
But.. I think it’s okay for temporarily, many other developed countries are still having the same issue because it’s all about us and purely caused by humans. However, we should somehow rise and shine after having fun in the muds.
If i may use one phrase for Malaysia, one of them have to be food galore. Blessed by its multi racial culture, the citizens are left with many years choices of cuisines that all of us can eat on almost anything at a glance. We are indeed in a peaceful and blessed country like Malaysia that allows us to practice our preferred religion freely unlike some other parts of the world where Dorje Shugden practitionerstatus are widely discriminated and ostracised. Thank you for sharing this Rinpoche.
好好吃的食物。
马来西亚的特色就是多元种族、多元文化、多元食物。 对于不同食物的接受程度也非常广。 所以在马来西亚我们可以看到不同国家食物的餐厅。
不过当然马来西亚的地道食物一点也不输其他国家的食物。 马来西亚由于是多元文化种族的国家， 所以某些食物也是拥有不同种族的特色。 比如第一号的啊参律沙就结合了华人和马来人的特色。 当然在不同地区也有不同的特色。 马六甲的啊参律沙就有马六甲娘惹的特色。 所以在马来西亚要吃到不同特色的食物一点也不难。
这篇文章也提供了很多间不同素食餐馆的名字和地址， 让身为素食者的人们也可以吃到素食版本的美食， 可说是非常贴心。
谢谢
One of the things I love about being a Malaysian and living in Malaysia is the amazing amount of good food available at all hours of the day. Malaysia is truly a food haven for both meat eaters and non-meat eaters alike as non-meat versions are easily available. These days, many chefs or hawker stall owners are more than happy to whip up a vegetarian or non-meat version of their dishes.
One of my fav things that did not make this list is the ever satisfying Banana Leaf Rice, served with a tonne of Dhal Curry (Sambar), Pappadums, Fried Chillies and Rasam. Best eaten with fingers and washed down with milky tea (Teh Tarik). Attached is a photo of one of my happy meals. 🙂
Thank you for sharing this list, Rinpoche. Feeling really thankful to be born in a place where food are aplenty and going vegetarian easy and enjoyable.
Wow, i am so hungry after looking at all these pictures! 😛
Thank you Rinpoche for sharing these delicious dishes of Malaysia. I love Malaysia cuisine as there are so many varieties due to the multi-cultural & multi-racial aspects of Malaysia.
Before I become vegetarian, I thought I won’t be able to taste these delicious food anymore if I’m a vegetarian. To my surprise, nowadays for most of the dishes, we can get the vegetarian from vegetarian restaurant or meatless versions from some of the normal too. Eg vegetarian Nasi Briyani, vegetarian Bak Kut Teh, Lok Lok, etc.
The best part is, we also have a lot of different desserts and my favourite Durian! LOL!
Malaysia is truly an heaven for food lovers. 🙂
Malaysia is so diverse culturally, it is truly a melting pot of cultures with the various races having their own peculiar fetish and favorites. All these are but a reflection of their roots as well as a mesh and integration of other cultures into their own.
This speaks of certain level of acceptance and tolerance. Without these qualities, Malaysia would not have the harmony and peace that is prevalent despite the differences.
We all love our diverse food in Malaysia, we all love our culture, we all love Malaysia.
Malaysians are a lucky lot. Here in our multiracial community, we have exposure to all sorts of cuisine. Chinese, Indian, Malay.. you name it, we have it. Some of these ethnic cooking styles might be more bland or less spicy than others, but I have to say that all are equally interesting in their own way. In Malaysia i don’t miss my Nepalese food plenty of food to eat he he he
Thank you Rinpoche for sharing mouthwatering accounts of these 25 mouthwatering dishes. It can be safely said that food unites Malaysians.Almost everyone of us grew up on assam laksa , nasi lemak, curry mee, the rojaks, roti canai, apam balik, ais kacang,cendol, satay ,char koay teow and the like. These are absolutely delicious, and a conversation among Malaysian friends , when they meet, normally starts with “Do you know where we can go for the best assam laksa in town..?”
Malaysians , when they travel, will hunt down Malaysian or Peranakan restaurants so that they can have a go at these dishes and satisfy their insatiable appetite for them. The first thing they do, after their plane lands in KLIA, is to head for their favourite haunts selling their favourite local dishes.
Fortunately, there are vegetarian restaurants that serve equally delicious versions of these dishes. These include Kechara Oasis Jaya 1 and Kechara Oasis Viva Home. Nice to enjoy our favourite dishes without having to be involved in any taking of life.
Reading through the list of 25 Mouthwatering Dishes Of Malaysia is like reading out loud our very own personal favorite food list! I dare say many of us would not hesitate to admit to liking most if not all of the food. We are very lucky to be living in Malaysia where the food culture is a strong blend of cutlery varieties from the Indian, Chinese and Malay heritage. Many of these dishes are available in vegetarian options; and my top choice would be the curry mee at Kechara Oasis. The combination of thick rich curry soup and the soup-retaining-tofu-pok is just heavenly. Thank you Rinpoche for this mouth-watering article.
I would say that the food in Malaysia is truly unique, a result of the rich history of Malaysia being the main trading port in SEA for centuries. So many people of different cultures have visited this country in the past (and today), bring with them the best of their cultures, and what culture doesnt come or related with food lol. I suppose for this reason, Malaysian food has evolved in so many ways, and incredibly rich in flavor.
Great sharing. I have always been proud of Malaysian cuisine, especially the ones made by Malacca Straits Born Chinese haha.
Thank you Rinpoche for sharing this article. The food listed are indeed very tasty. I do hope that the tasty will have it’s vegetarian version in the near future. This article also shows that Malaysia is a multiracial country and citizens get along very well with one another.
With folded palms,
Vivian
It is mouth watering reading this article. Some of my favourite food are in the list too 🙂
Although the food are mostly non vegetarian but for those who are vegetarian, we have options too. Just go to the vegetarian restaurant listed above.
I tried some of the restaurant mentioned. The taste and choices are good too. So we don’t have to kill in order to have delicious food. Stop suffering, killing and help the environment by being a vegetarian.
Thank you Rinpoche for sharing this article.