Malaysian food has a lot more depth than non-Malaysians know it to be. The cuisine can get complex, especially since it consists of Malay dishes, Chinese dishes, Indian dishes and dishes that are influenced by a mix of those cultures.
Such complexity isn’t rocket science. All it takes is a proper introduction. Follow these five people to get to know the cuisine a bit better.
1. Grace Teo @Nyonyacooking
Her videos are well-made, and she adds a pretty good commentary to her videos: great for those who are curious about certain dishes. You can also subscribe to her newsletter, Nyonya Cooking.
2. Chef Hanieliza
Someone has to publish her cookbooks in English because her recipes are foolproof. I followed her recipe many times and they always work. You can even find her on Youtube, under the subscription name “TV PTS”. The videos are in Malay, but you can watch just to see what typical Malaysian food can be like for many Malaysians.
3. Chef Wan
Ask any Malaysian who he is and they’ll recognize him. He has been on a lot of cooking shows on local TV, and appears once in a while on other chef’s shows like Anthony Bourdain, but you can still find some good videos of him on Youtube.
4. Poh’s Kitchen @PohLingYeow
Malaysian-born, Australian-raised: runner-up for Masterchef Australia. Baker and Artist. (She focuses on baking these days). This is one video, for example.
5. Malaysian Chinese Kitchen
If you’re interested in Malaysian dishes that have more Chinese influence, check out Linda’s youtube channel.
Malaysian style Chee Cheong Fun.
In addition, you can find many videos on youtube where foreigners share their Malaysian food experience. Aside from videos, cookbooks are also a surefire strategy to understand a cuisine, and there are an abundance of Malaysian cookbooks.