A Flavour of the World: November 2013

Malaysia did not disappoint, it was simply a mecca for foodies. Every street was lined with world-class street food. The restaurants with their plastic chairs may not look too appealing but they were serving the finest, freshest food. The country has strong Chinese and Indian communities meaning their's a great variety of delicious food on offer to devour.

Our first stop was Penang; described as the Malaysian food capital. I was in my element! This town was all about indulging in the very best food Malaysia had to offer. This was the sort of place where you wished you had a second stomach, as one stomach just wasn’t enough to taste all the delightful, sumptuous and tasty dishes on offer.

Our day started with a Dim Sum brunch at Tho Yuen restaurant. The place is a true locals haunt. Packed all morning long with newspaper reading loners and chattering groups of locals, we arrived at 11am and the place was bustling with people sipping Chinese tea and having a late breakfast. We were lucky to find a seat, the restaurant is so renowned with the Penang locals that you usually have a queue for each table. We arrived at the restaurant just in time to sample the last Dim Sum of the day. The restaurant opens at 5am and the waiter told us we were very lucky that they still had a few remaining bits of Dim Sum for us to indulge in.

Tho Yuen Restaurant

The last remaining Dim Sum of the day

The Dim Sum burst with flavour as it melted in your mouth.. simply divine! And when washed down with a fresh Chinese tea full of antioxidants, you soon realise why this is a popular restaurant for locals and tourists alike. It was the perfect way to start the day!

Delicious Pork Dim Sum

Melt in the mouth fish Dim Sum

And to complement the Dim Sum we had a steamed pork roll each.The outer bread, perfectly soft and fluffy and the inner pork, beautifully caramelised and sweet... The perfect brunch!

Sweet, caramelised pork rolls

All washed down with Chinese tea to cleanse the pallet and wash out any impurities.

The next stop was dinner and we were lucky enough to find a delicious tandoori street restaurant that was releasing such a beautiful aroma of spice, it was an irresistible stop.

Our next day started with a tasty local delicacy...Roti canai. We purchased this from one of the stalls in the nearby market. It is basically a flat bread served with a thick curry sauce. This also came stuffed full of various fillings, including garlic chicken and chicken tikka making the perfect lunch. The Roti canai is a a delicious fusion of Indian-influenced Malaysian flatbread.

After a morning of exploring the Penang sights we stopped off in the afternoon to rest our well-walked feet at an incredible Chinese tea house. Here, we sipped a never-ending supply of tea that was said to be high in antioxidants and very good for cleansing our bodies.

The highlight of the day was our exceptional dinner, this again was from another street food restaurant gem. The restaurant owner recommended we order “Kam Heong” as it's a signature Malaysian dish that is renowned for the fragrance imparted during the cooking process. We were not disappointed that we went with his recommendation. This one-of-a-kind style of stir-frying incorporates ingredients from Malay, Chinese, and Indian cooking to produce one of the most mouth-watering palate I have ever exposed my taste buds to.

With our bellies well and truly filled to the brim we headed from Penang to the Perhentian islands where we stayed in the magical Mira bay. This was a true tropical hideaway, little beach huts, a white sand beach and a beautiful restaurant surrounded by rainforest. The restaurant had a small menu of delicious specials each night.

Mira Bays beautiful restaurant

I sampled some of the best fish of my life out of this little restaurant that was perched on the beach. Freshly caught fish steam cooked in spices wrapped in a banana leaf.

The fish was so soft it fell away from the bone and the spices gain the perfect kick of flavour without over-powering the delicate fish. This was my favourite special, my mouth is watering just thinking about it!

Fully chilled out we headed for the hustle and bustle of KL where we stayed in the heart of Chinatown and yet again, night after night we had the pleasure of sampling some of Malaysia’s finest foods from the country's Chinese community.