Malaysian Street (or Stall) Food

I've been getting a lot more questions from random people recently about where to go and what to eat in Malaysia. My guess is since Air Asia started flights from Malaysia to India, more Indians are planning travels to my home country. To share the "where to go" will make this post too long, but I can certainly share the "what to eat".

Here are some delicious foods that I have happily stuffed my face with during my last visit to Kuala Lumpur (KL) and Penang. Some of these foods can be found in restaurants but most of them are street foods and even though it's a big no-no for most of us to eat on the streets of India, it's generally OK to eat on the streets in KL and Penang. In fact, there is a local saying, "the dirtier, the tastier!" But to be on the safe side, you can find these foods in any food courts. I recommend the Lot 10 food court in KL.


Street stalls in Penang.


Wan tan mee - Usually eaten for lunch. This is a slightly bigger serving size. I asked for a double order because one helping is just not enough for me! The egg noodles were quickly cooked in boiling water then dipped into cold water (a process to make the noodles slightly chewy) before mixing with a soy sauce concoction. Served with slices of char siew (barbecue pork), some choi sum (chinese brocolli) and a small bowl of wan tan soup on the side. Delicious and very satisfying!


Chee Cheong Fun - generally a breakfast food, at least for me while I was growing up. A very simple meal made out of broad rice noodles, and served with sweet hoisin or shrimp paste sauce, chili sauce and sesame seeds.


Claypot chicken rice - When I was studying in a college in KL, I used to have this at least twice a week for lunch. Rice cooked in a claypot with chinese sausage, marinated chicken pieces and a soy sauce concoction. The authentic claypot chicken rice will come with a side of salted fish, to be mixed into your rice to make the rice even more savory than it already is.


Pan Mee - Hand-made noodles in clear pork and anchovy broth. Served with spring potato leaves, fried anchovies and some seaweed. For some extra kick, eat every bite with a bit of sambal belacan that comes with the dish. It's a simple bowl of noodle soup, but so very satisfying.


Har Mee - also known as prawn mee or prawn noodles. Noodles of your choice (thin rice noodles, egg noodles, lai fun or hor fun or mix two!) served in a slightly spicy but savory prawn-based broth. Served with slices of prawns, pork and quartered boiled eggs.


Char Kuay Teow - This has got to be one of my (and possibly "A"'s favorite) Malaysian Chinese street food. Kuay teow (rice noodles) fried with eggs, bean sprouts and sometimes, Chinese sausages. If you find a good stall, you can actually taste the wok hei (breath of the wok) in your noodles!


Indian Mee Goreng - Egg noodles cooked with kicap manis (sweet soy sauce), chili sauce, tofu, bean sprouts and eggs. No, I haven't found the equivalent in India. In fact, I'm pretty sure it's the many generations of Malaysian Indians who had invented this dish. This dish can be found in any mamak (a slang addressing tamil muslims in Malaysia) stalls.


Mee Rebus - Same place you find mee goreng, you will also find mee rebus. Instead of frying the egg noodles, the noodles are submerged with a savory-sweet-spicy sauce and topped with a boiled egg, some crisps, tofu and spicy squid.


Roti Canai - Anyone who has been to a Malaysian restaurant in the US, UK, Australia or anywhere else in the world would have eaten the infamous roti canai. In Malaysia, instead of serving the roti with chicken curry, it's normally served with dahl and if you request, you might get extra fish, mutton or chicken curry sauce. You can find this in any Indian or mamak stalls or restaurants at any time of the day.


Nasi lemak - loosely translates to "fat rice". It's not because it's fattening but "lemak" literally means the fat from coconut milk, a popular ingredient used in Malaysian cooking. Coconut milk is added to the rice, hence the wonderful flavor. Eaten with a bit of sambal (spicy chili condiment usually made from belacan or shrimp paste), a sliver of boiled egg, fried anchovies and fried peanuts. It's served wrapped in a piece of banana leaf.


Yong tau foo - vegetables stuffed with fish paste and then boiled or deep-fried. Usually eaten with a bit of sweet (or hoisin) sauce and chili sauce.


Or-chien - baby oyster omelette, generally sold on the side of "dai chow" eateries ("dai chow" is a kind of restaurant that cooks their food (generally noodles) in a big wok, on top of charcoaled flames). It's usually eaten with a bit of tangy chili sauce.

There are many more street foods (like Curry Laksa, Asam Laksa, Wat Tan Hor and the list goes on...) that I didn't get a chance to photograph while I was on this trip. Hopefully, this will keep you full (but wanting more!) while you are in Malaysia!