I chatted with our host Zeke in Kuala Lumpur quite a bit during our first stay in Malaysia. At one point, our conversation turned to food, particularly my love of spicy food and the stigma that Americans don’t like spicy food. I challenged him that I love the heat and so he decided to take me to a traditional Malaysian restaurant for a traditional (Chinese) Malaysian breakfast of Bak Kut Teh. Unfortunately, there was no vegetarian option so Briana didn’t come with us. So only I got to experience it.

A Traditional Malaysian Breakfast – Bak Kut Teh

Bak Kut Teh Is Malaysian, Not Malay

It is worth mentioning that Bak Kut Teh is not a Malay dish. Malay is an ethnicity here that is Muslim – and this place was not going to be Halal. According to our host, the restaurant we were going to was one of the best in Kuala Lumpur. It is important to note this, because Malaysia – and Kuala Lumpur especially – is very multicultural. There are very large populations of ethnic Chinese and Indian Hindu – amongst others – all contributing to the vibrant food scene that is Malaysia.

The restaurant was certainly off the beaten path, and we never would have found it, without knowing a local. Contrary to much of what we’ve come to know about Malaysia so far, no one here spoke English – or if they did, not much or well. In fact, nearly the entirety of the restaurant was filled with Chinese patrons. Despite the incomprehensible chatter in Mandarin, I didn’t feel isolated. In fact, it seemed that I was getting a little extra attention from the staff and the other patrons were comfortably relaxing about us.

A Popular Dish

Bak Kut Teh is such a popular Malaysian breakfast here we had to get up early, because otherwise they would run out of food. When we got there just before 9 am, they had already run out of food – yikes. Luckily they were nearly done with a new batch, so we waited a little bit to get our food. Malaysian breakfasts, like many Asian breakfasts, look nothing like the typical western meal. They are usually savory, and served with rice and tea – no sweets or cereals. This is something that really appeals to me, as I don’t really have much of a sweet tooth. In fact, given the option I’ll usually skip breakfast all together unless there is something non-sweet on the menu.

The meal we had, once it came out, was Bak Kut Teh – meat bone tea. It is a traditional Chinese Malaysian dish popular with the Hoklo and Teochew communities. It is made of fatty pork ribs simmered in a broth of star anise, cinnamon, cloves, dang gui, fennel seed, and garlic. There is no tea actually in the dish itself. Instead, a rather strong oolong Chinese tea comes alongside the dish, apparently cutting the fat of the dish and bringing the whole meal together.

Begin By Washing The Tea

To start the meal, we began with washing the tea. Tea is served without sugar, and if brewed traditionally, you must first wash the tea. You do this by brewing a batch, then pouring out the water into a bowl. You’ll do this twice, so as to ensure a clean tea free of any contaminates that may have gotten into the loose leaf tea.

The tea is poured into small shot-glass sized cups and constantly refilled and re-brewed throughout the meal. The tea will start out nearly black and very strong, but by the end of the meal the tea will be near clear with a clean taste. I was told your are supposed to continue drinking the tea until is basically just water. Zeke commented that he doesn’t understand the American approach of using a single tea bag per cup and then tossing it after one use.

When the food arrived, we were served a full plate of rice, along with a small dish of sliced thai chili peppers. Three bowls of meat arrived: two of rib meat and a third of various other cuts of pork. All the bowls were filled with the thick broth as well. The smell was very enticing, with the rich aromatics of the spices wafting from the hot liquid.

A light Malaysian soy sauce – not the dark Japanese type we are most familiar with in the states – is poured over the chilis and allowed to marinate. You then pull the meat from the bone, and put it and the broth on the rice. You can add spice to the dish either by adding the spiced soy sauce, or by directly putting in chili peppers.

When In Doubt, Add Some Heat

I, of course, added chilis straight to the dish, because I like heat, and thai chilis do not disappoint. The dish is savory and filling, and the broth thick with a slight marrow taste to it. Luckily, we were able to get many refills of broth, though they don’t give out much at a time. It’s very good, and in high demand, so the restaurant apparently was quite stingy with giving out broth.

I was told that as the only American they’d had there, they wanted to impress me and make sure I liked the dish. So they kept giving us a little extra soup. Our host was telling me he was using me to get extra broth, to which I was perfectly ok with. I can’t complain to being used because I was reaping the rewards to – and I have to say, I was impressed with the dish.

It is odd, that one of the most popular dishes in Malaysia is Bak Kut Teh, because it is a pork dish. Malaysia is a Muslim country, and the dish not Halal, so cannot be consumed by ethnic Malay – who by law must be Muslim. However, among the Chinese population and some Indians, it is very popular and a key regional dish.

What’s The Etiquette

I asked about a few of the etiquette rules I had read about in Malaysia and Southeast Asia in general, and our host had a few things to say. One of the big ones is the “no left hand” rule. This is apparently very much outdated and practiced only by the most conservative and rural populations.

As Kuala Lumpur is relatively progressive, no one follows this rule and no one is offended if you should use your left hand to handle food or eat. In fact, being left-handed is now something that can exist here without problems although it used to be punishable. The other big etiquette rule I had run across was not pointing your foot towards people.

Again, this is a very outdated custom that is only followed by the most conservative and older populations. So you can feel free to cross your legs in public without fearing reprisal. It still isn’t advisable to deliberately show the bottom of your foot to someone as it is still an insult; but casually crossing your legs while sitting or showing the bottoms of your feet while stretching, exercising, or relaxing isn’t a problem.

As breakfast wound down, many patrons began to leave as the staff prepared for the lunch rush. I certainly wouldn’t have minded seeing what was on the menu for lunch, but it was time to get back to Briana for the rest of the day. So if you’re looking for a delicious, and traditional, start to you day in Malaysia – try Bak Kut Teh.