About Malaysian Food

Colorful, exotic, and full of enticing flavors, Malaysian cuisine is a fascinating blend of Malay, Chinese, and Indian food traditions, with Indonesian, Thai, Portuguese and Middle Eastern influences.

Located between the east and the west, Malaysia (then Malaya) for many centuries was a major crossroad for the ancient eastern spice trade route. In the 15^th century, the peninsula’s dominant ethnic group, the Malays embraced Islam through the Middle Eastern traders, which explains why a good portion of Malaysian food is halal (prepared according to traditional Islamic laws) and pork is forbidden among the Muslims. During the 19^th century, when the British gained control of Malaysia, they brought huge numbers of Chinese and Indian workers from nearby regions, which in turn brought along a host of rich food traditions. Nowadays, the Malays, Chinese and Indians continue to create their own foods, but cross-cultural borrowing has led to a number of dishes that are uniquely Malaysian. Nyonya cuisine, for example, is an exceptional blend of Malay and Chinese elements and is probably one of the most distinctive in the country. There are also unique food traditions among the indigenous groups in the East Malaysian states of Sabah and Sarawak.

Malaysian cuisine is also influenced by neighboring Indonesia and Thailand (their cuisines share many key ingredients) and by the 16^th century Portuguese colonists of Melaka (Malacca)—on the southwestern side of the Malaysian peninsula—who brought their own preparations to the region and developed further culinary blends that have now become quintessentially Malaysian.