Pasembur is a type of Malaysian Indian salad consisting of shredded cucumber, potatoes, beancurd, turnip, bean sprouts, prawn fritters, spicy fried crab, fried octopus or other seafoods and served with a sweet and spicy nut sauce. Pasembur can be found popularly in Penang, mostly along Gurney Drive.
Most coffeeshops (or kopitiams) in Penang will be able to offer this typical breakfast set (toast with half boiled eggs, often with a cup of hot coffee) which is also popular with the locals here. There are a few coffeeshops around town famous for their toast and coffee.
It is that time of the year again when the Durian tree bears its fruits. Regarded by many people in southeast Asia as the “king of fruits”, the durian is distinctive for its large size, strong odour, and formidable thorn-covered husk
Maggi Goreng (or translated as “fried Maggi noodles”) is a common style of cooking instant noodles of the Maggi product brand which is common in Malaysia. This dish can be generally found at Maalay or Indian Muslim (or Mamak) food stalls in Malaysia. Maggi Goreng is prepared by stir-frying the noodles with vegetables and eggs.
Nasi Kerabu (or Kerabu Rice) is a type of Malay rice dish originated from the east coast states of Peninsular Malaysia such as Kelantan and Terengganu. The blue-coloured rice (the color being a result of petals of clitoria ternatea flowers used in cooking it) is often eaten with dried fish or fried chicken, crackers, pickles and other salads.
Hokkien Mee (or also known prawn mee/prawn noodles), is a type of Chinese noodle dish cooked in spicy prawn broth together with bean sprouts, boiled egg, slices of pork and of course, the prawns. A very popular and common local dish here, it was said to be brought here by immigrants from the Fujian province in southeastern China.
Satay is the famous meat-on-a-stick and is a traditional Malay food also commonly found in Penang. It is typically made from marinated meat such as chicken, mutton or beef, which is then skewered onto bamboo sticks and grilled over fires of charcoals. A fresh salad of cucumbers and onions are often served together with a spicy-sweet peanut dipping sauce for the satay. Ketupat, a Malay rice cake usually in the shape of a white rice cube, is also sometimes served together with satay.
Loh Bak (or Lor Bak) is a popular Chinese dish served in most Chinese kopitiams and hawker center. Loh Bak is actually referring to marinated minced pork, which is rolled in thin soybean sheets and then deep fried. It is usually served with small bowl of Loh (a thick broth thickened with corn starch and beaten eggs) and chili sauce. It is also commonly ordered together with other type of items such as boiled octopus, prawn fritters and fried bean curd.
This duck meat Koay Teow soup can be found at the hawker food court of Cecil Street Market (locally known as 7th Road Market). Koay Teow soup (or locally called Koay Teow Th’ng) is a type of dish made up of flat rice noodles which are usually served in a clear soup broth, with fish balls and in this case, slices of duck meat.
As a ‘food paradise’, Penang is also particularly famous for its Hainanese Chicken Rice. Most kopitiams (coffeeshops) in Penang will have one stall selling Hainanese Chicken Rice.