Top 5 Local Foods to try in Penang, Malaysia

When you visit Malaysia, trying out those local foods here is something which you must not miss to do. If you are visiting Kuala Lumpur alone, most of the Malaysian local delights could be found here. However, if you think your first try is important to be dedicated to the original, then you should travel to other states in Malaysia. Among those food heavens that could be found in various states in Malaysia, 2 of them have the most varieties and are claimed to be the best, which are Ipoh and Penang.

I have written about the top 5 local foods to try in Ipoh, and here I’m listing down another top 5 local foods that you must try in Penang. Whenever I travel to Penang, these are what I will eat every day and night here. There are many street stalls and hawker centres selling these local delights, and generally they are all great in tastes. However, I’m listing down the most famous locations for some of them here as well. If you ever come to Penang, looking for them should be fairly easy.

1. Asam Laksa (Spicy and Sour soup noodle). As its name suggests, Asam Laksa is cooked with assam (tamarind) and laksa (long fat white semi transparent noodle). Pureed fish, fruits, veggies and a generous helping of chili are also added in to creat a really hot and sour flavoured noodle soup which is a ‘must-try’ food in Penang, if you can take hot and spicy foods. My favourite place to try the authentic Asam Laksa would be a street side stalls beside the Air Itam market place near Kek Lok Si temple.
   
2. Hokkien Mee (Prawn noodle). You can find the similar prawn mee in almost everywhere in Malaysia, especially Kuala Lumpur. But the Hokkien Mee in Penang is the original and the best of all. It is noodle soup (you are choose either flat noodle, fat noodle or rice noodle) that cooked with prawns, pork slices, hard boiled egg, vegetable, beans sprout and sprinkling of deep fried shallots. A little bit hot but the smell of prawn soup is simply marvellous.
   
3. Koay Chap (Duck soup Noodle). As its name says, it is another flat rice noodle soup cooked with ducks and Chinese herbs. Originally it was served with only duck feet but now you can choose various parts of duck meat according to your appetite. The best part of this food is its tasty and nutritious herbal duck meat soup. My favourite street stall for duck noodles is located along Lorong Kimberley in George Town near Komtar and Lebuh Chulia.
   
4. Penang Char Koay Teow (Fried Flat Rice Noodle). This is I think the most famous dish in Penang, in fact everywhere in Malaysia and Singapore. But I still insist that Penang Char Koay Teow is the authentic and delicious. The famous scenes of frying noodles with charcoal fire and ash flying around can be seen in various travel documentary. Char Koay Teow is flat rice noodle fried with bean sprouts, deshelled cockles, prawns, with or without chilies. It is best too eat hot! You can find good Char Koay Teow in Lorong Macalister near Sunway Hotel or Lorong Kimberley
   
5. Or Chen (Oyster Omelette). As its name suggests, Or Chen is Chinese style of omelette fried with oyster meat. The best part of this dish is the jellies that caused by the oysters. It is not hot but you can always dip it with chilly sauce.
   

These local dishes may appeared dull at first look, but their appearance actually belies their rich tastes and superb satisfaction to our appetite. Penang is famous for its street foods. Most of the tourists will go to Gurney Drive’s hawker centre where they can taste all the Penang’s local foods at one spot. This is a good option to start with if you have very limited time in Penang. Other than the above 5 local foods you must try, there are off course many other Penang cuisine you can try too, such as Penang rojak, Lor Mee, Lobak, seafood, Popiah, satay, nutmeg products and many other bakeries such as Tambun biscuits and more.

Don’t stop eating whenever you come to Penang state in Northern part of West Malaysia. Read also the Top 10 places to visit in Penang. 🙂 – Travel Feeder, your ultimate travel photo blog

About The Author

Cecil Lee

The author is an avid traveler and photography hobbyist who loves to share with others his travel and photo-taking experience in many popular tourist destinations around Europe, Asia and Australasia. Read the exciting stories with many photos captured on his journeys.