Traditional Malay style cooking | Eating in Penang

Coconut milk, chillies and belacan are the main ingredients in Malay cooking. Rice and curry feature consistently while a must-have side accompaniment with every meal is the fantastic sambal belacan, a potent concoction of prawn paste, chillies and lime juice. Other finger licking variations of the sambal dip are sambal belimbing which is made with baby star fruit (belimbing), chillies and grated coconut, and 'sambal kicap' which consists of cut chillies in sweet soy sauce, tomatoes, shallots and lime juice.

Malay food stalls are a permanent feature in Malaysian streets, whether urban or rural, offering a varied menu of the savoury, spicy and sweet. The stalls are literally a one-stop, drive-in eatery for the busy office crowd in search of a complete meal. After a spicy meal, a refreshing drink to cool the mouth and throat is ais manis or rose syrup served with shaved ice, with or without milk. Some Malay delicacies include:

Nasi lemak
The favourite breakfast dish for all Malaysians. Nasi lemak is rice cooked with coconut milk and served with spicy ikan bilis (anchovies), peanuts, sambal (spicy gravy), sambal prawn or fish, eggs, long beans and cucumbers. Nasi lemak is available either pre-packed in newspaper and banana leaf, costing about 50 sen to one ringgit or 'buffet' style. The latter allows the customer to choose the lauk (dishes) like sambal squid, fried/hard boiled egg, fried fish, vegetables, curry chicken or beef to go with the nasi lemak. Depending on what you choose, prices can range from RM2 to RM4 or even more.

Purists say that nasi lemak ought to be eaten in an authentic setting, nasi lemak should be eaten at a mamak teh tarik stall (wooden pushcart with wooden bench and tables arranged by the roadside, normally under a shady tree) and wash it down with a cup of teh tarik (literally translated to mean "Pull Tea" – or tea that is poured in mid-air from one container to another).

One of the best Malay style nasi lemak stalls in George Town is located in front of the Standard Chartered building in Beach Street – mornings only. Other noteworthy joints are the mamak stall in front of the RTM building, Jalan Burmah near Midlands One-Stop Centre – mornings only; mamak stall off Penang Road opposite Oriental Hotel – evening till midnight; mamak stall in Penang Street opposite Ganesh Printers – mornings only and coffee shop opposite Plus Zone in Pulau Tikus – lunch time only.

Satay
Some say that this dish has Turkish roots. Be that as it may, satay has been available in Malaysia for many years already and is synonymous with Malay cuisine. In the olden days, satay sellers would carry their wares balanced on a long pole and propped on the shoulder, going from house to house in a village, calling out "satay! satay!" Whenever there was an order, the seller would there and then set up the stove, light the fire, roast the satay, and lay out the food on a small makeshift table for eating!

Satay consists of beef, goat or chicken bite-size pieces marinated in spices, skewered onto thin sticks and grilled over a charcoal stove. The chef ensures thorough cooking of the meat by fanning the fire and turning the sticks of satay over at the right time. Satay is best eaten with its own spicy peanut sauce, ketupat (rice cakes) cucumber and raw onions. Costs between 25 to 60 sen per stick from hawkers. Ketupat costs RM1 per cake. Hotels and restaurants charge more.

Nasi Tomato
Tomato flavoured rice with servings of your choice: chicken kurma is recommended, although beef, mutton, seafood, egg and vegetables are also available. This rich meal will keep you sated for a long time. Costs RM2.00 to RM5.00 or more depending on dishes selected. Nasi tomato is also commonly served at Malay weddings.

For the best nasi tomato in town: Stall on Jalan Tanjung Tokong opposite sea front – 6:00pm to 8:00pm daily. Nasi tomato is usually available as an option to white rice at most gerai Melayu.

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