Malaysia: Recipes and Cuisine

Malaysian food stalls — Image by McKay Savage

Malaysian cooking draws from a wide variety of influences including Malay, Chinese, Indian, Indonesian, Thai and Nyonya. Rice and noodles are staple starches. Numerous spices, lemongrass, galangal and coconut give a unique flavor to many dishes. Chicken is probably the most popular meat, with beef, goat, fish and seafood also popular.

Typical Malaysian Dishes

Appetizers

Lobak (Fried egg rolls)
Popiah (Fresh spring rolls)

Soups and Stews

Daging Semur (Beef stew)
Soto Ayam (Spicy chicken soup)

Salads

Pasembor (Vegetable salad with peanut sauce)
Rojak (Spicy fruit and vegetable salad)

Noodles

Asam Laksa (Rice noodles with tamarind sauce)
Char Kway Teow (Stir-fried rice noodles with shrimp)
Hokkien Mie (Hokkien-style noodles)
Laksa Lemak (Chicken, shrimp and rice noodles in coconut sauce)
Mie Rebus (Egg noodles in sweet potato gravy)
Singapore Noodles (Curried rice noodles)

Poultry

Ayam Goreng Asam (Tamarind chicken)
Kari Kapitan (Captain’s chicken curry)
Rendang Ayam (Chicken in coconut milk)
Satay Ayam (Chicken skewers with peanut sauce)

Meats

Rendang Daging (Beef simmered in coconut milk)
Satay Daging (Beef skewers with peanut sauce)

Fish and Seafood

Hinava Tenggiri (Bornean pickled mackerel)
Otak Otak (Fish mousse in banana leaves)
Sambal Goreng Sotong (Squid with tamarind)
Sambal Udang (Shrimp in sweet-spicy sauce)

Vegetables and Beans

Aloo (Curried potatoes and peas)
Dau Kwok Chao Dan (Green bean omelet)
Lady Finger Belacan (Okra in spicy chili sauce)
Sayur Goreng (Stir-fried vegetables)
Sayur Lodeh (Vegetables in coconut curry)
Tempe Lemak (Tempe cakes in coconut milk)

Breads and Grains

Nasi Goreng (Fried rice)
Nasi Kunyit (Golden rice)
Roti Canai (Flatbread served with curry)

Sauces and Condiments

Sambal Blacan (Spicy shrimp paste sauce)

Desserts

Ice Kacang (Flavored shaved ice with fruit)
Sago Gula Melaka (Tapioca pudding)

Beverages

Malaysian Recipes

Try these recipes from Malaysia.

Pasembor
(Malaysian vegetable salad with peanut sauce)

Char Kway Teow
(Malaysian, Singaporean stir-fried rice noodles with shrimp)

Rendang Daging
(Indonesian beef simmered in coconut milk)

Serving of Indonesian stir-fried noodles with vegetables

Mie Goreng
(Indonesian stir-fried noodles with vegetables)

Penang Hokkien Mee
(Malaysian spicy shrimp and pork noodle soup)

Satay Ayam
(Indonesian chicken skewers with peanut sauce)

Plate of hoi nam gai fan with side sauces

Hoi Nam Gai Fan
(Singaporean Hainanese chicken rice)

Sayur Lodeh
(Indonesian vegetables in coconut curry)

Curry Laksa
(Malaysian, Singaporean coconut curried noodle soup)

A mortar with freshly made sambal belacan

Sambal Belacan
(Malaysian spicy red chile and shrimp paste sauce)

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