Malaysian local fruits | Eating guides in Penang

There is nothing quite like a plate brimming over with freah sliced fruits, packed around with ice, to end any meal in Penang. It's also a good chance to experience with the huge variety of tropical fruits found here. You'll find fresh fruit stalls at virtually every food center, and if you want to buy some for sampling later, any wet market, supermarket or fruit stall will be happy to help you choose the pick of the crop. Local fruits to try include durian (an acquired taste), rambutan, starfruit, nangka (jack fruit), mangosteen, duku and chiku.

One way to try local fruit is in juice form. Most food centers offer freshly squeezed juices, including the standard orange and apple varieties. But for real treat, try starfruit, watermelon, and pineapple, or a mixed juice "cocktail". 

The sensational "king of the fruits": Malaysia's majestic fruit is not only well known among locals but among foreigners too. The sweet amd silky pulp combined with the unmistakable musky aroma is to many, nothing less than the food of the gods.

That hairy fruit called rambutan: Among the vast range of produce available in Penang, the crimson-tinted rambutan with its quaint mass of follicles must come a close second to the mighty durian, the undisputed king of all fruits, as a popular choice when in season. Sold along roadsides and market places, at super marts and fruit stalls, the juicy succulent rambutans are usually tied up in bunches, with their prices varying according to size and quality.

Coconut water -- the perfect tonic for the tropics: What we refer to as 'coconut water' actually provides the necessary nutrients for the seed to sprout into a healthy young seedling, much like the yolk in a chicken egg. So you can imagine just how potent coconut water is!

Our exotic local cuisines for Malay cuisine, Chinese gourmet and Indian Cookery