A rich melting pot of flavours, Malaysian cuisine ranks amongst the most delicious and tastiest in Asia. With a palate underpinned by a wide diversity of influences including Chinese, Indian and Portuguese, not to mention the many spices characteristic of South East Asian food, the country is rightly emerging as a food-lovers’ paradise.
One of the best places to experience Malaysian food in all its glory is Kuala Lumpur.
KL Food Trails, launched in 2015, are a great way to uncover the city’s culinary gems. Covering five areas within the city centre including Brickfields, Jalan Alor, Kampong Bharu, old Kuala Lumpur and Pudu, the self-guided walks enable tourists to experience the very best of Malaysian cuisines at their own pace.
For more information about KL Food Trails:
The KL Food Trail map is available for free in visitor centres, shopping malls and hotels in Kuala Lumpur and can also be downloaded as a PDF (about 23MB) – look for the ‘Food Trails’ box on the right.
Each of the featured trails has been carefully crafted to reflect the cultural background of the area, highlighting 7 – 8 outlets that offer the most authentic signature, must-try dishes, as well as a list of other recommended food outlets, coffee shops and restaurants nearby.
A map provides a description and location of Kuala Lumpur’s most popular and best loved hawker stalls and restaurants – as recommended by locals and Time Out Kuala Lumpur – which travellers can use to plan where to eat, while taking in the sights and sounds of one of Asia’s most vibrant cities.
But if you really want to immerse yourself in the tastes and flavours of Malaysia – and recreate them back home, a local cooking class is another great way to learn about Malaysia’s cuisine heritage, and to savour some traditional favourite dishes such as nasi lemak, rendang and satay along the way.
Located in the peaceful suburb of Penchala Hill, just outside Kuala Lumpur, the LaZat Malaysian Cooking school is one of the city’s best. Renowned local, Chef Anna is warm and friendly and her classes are conducted in English. Each one begins with a visit to the local wet market to learn about Malaysian ingredients, followed by a cooking class held in a typical Malaysian home using traditional stone and wooden utensils, with plenty of guidance from Chef Anna.
Her repertoire includes typical Malay, Chinese, Indian and Baba-Nyonya dishes, and classes are open to everyone regardless of experience and ability. Even better, at the end of each class, classmates can sit down and feast on the mouth-watering fruits of their labour alongside Chef Anna and her team.
LaZat offers two cooking classes each day. Morning classes take place from 8AM-IPM and cost RM290 (around AUD$90) per person, with afternoon classes running from 3PM-6PM at RM200 (around AUD$70) per person.
For more information: www.malaysia.travel
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