Asia to us is the culinary capitol of the world.
It is one big beautiful garden of fresh and unique ingredients lovingly crafted into mouthwatering meals by food ninjas.
People sometimes ask why we eat street food in Asia or wonder how safe it is to eat the food at local restaurants. To us it is probably the safest, cheapest and most delicious food we have experienced while traveling.
We have seen a lot of people come to Asia and stick to Western food or eat at more high-end restaurants fearful that they will contract some bug or food poisoning if they eat with the locals on the streets or at the cheap simple restaurants.
This couldn’t be further from the truth. But why?
Well for a start most of the ingredients are most likely fresher than those you have at home.
If you eat street food in Asia the vendors don’t have the convenience of a fridge like we do at home in the West. Because of this most of the ingredients tend to be fresher. All of the vegetables are bought fresh at the market that day. Those green beans and papaya you are eating were picked fresh that morning, maybe the day before at most.
If your sat at a stall that sells chicken noodle soup and they run out of chicken….they go and get a live chicken and kill it there and then. With no refrigeration available this is how the locals keep themselves in a continuous supply of fresh produce. You really don’t get any fresher than your chicken being alive just an hour earlier.
Similarly with seafood. Most of the stalls selling fish or seafood have it alive in buckets of water. You want crab salad? Then pick your crab out of the bucket and 2 minutes later it is served in front of you. It is stunningly fresh.
Amazing food and flavours are everywhere you go in this part of the world. There are so many towns and cities that boast amazing cuisine particular to that area that you could travel for years and still be discovering new wonderful tastes every single day.
That makes picking the 5 best destinations for food in Asia no easy task though. But from our personal experience these are our top 5 places to get your foody fix.
5. Yangon, Myanmar.
Yangon was our first destination in Myanmar and the food there left a lasting impression on us.
Food in Myanmar is unmistakably Asian however it is very different from the food you find in any other country.
Yes it derives a lot of influence from other Asian countries such as China and Thailand however everything we tried had it’s own unique flavour.
The best way I can describe the food in Myanmar is that it is Asian but ‘Earthy’.
You will find a lot of curry and noodle dishes in Myanmar but they have a deep, rich and complex flavour compared to their neighbours.
Everything has a delicate touch and subtlety about it that isn’t as evident in other Asians countries. Some dishes use tea leaves which give the ‘earthy’ tones I mentioned.
Tea shops as they are called and street vendors offer some incredible meals at a great price.
Shan noodles are one of the most popular and tasty dishes served. It is a simple dish of flat rice noodles in a simple peppery broth usually served with chicken or pork and a small side of pickled vegetables.
Mohinga is another common dish which consists of rice noodles in a rich herbal broth. Usually with boiled egg and a hint of pepper. It is a dish that is often served for breakfast.
Fried everything and anything! As with a lot of Asian countries, frying is one of the most common cooking methods. In Myanmar you will find stalls everywhere that specialize in some description of fried food. Everything from savoury samosas and spring rolls to sweet fried desert fritters of various fruits.
If your headed to Yangon check out Lucky Seven Tea shop near the city centre. It is packed every day but it’s well worth waiting to get a seat as the menu there is sublime.
You can check them out on Facebook Here
4. Hong Kong.
Hong Kong has a truly international feel about it.
You can sample tastes from across the globe at some of the finest restaurants around. But aside from the high class dining experience, the culinary influence from China is hard to avoid.
The Peking duck, with its rich glossy glaze is succulent and sumptuous. It’s a must have.
A myriad of noodle and rice dishes offer tastes from every Chinese province. Thick noodle, flat noodles, thin rice noodles. You name it you will find it in Hong Kong. They have everything.
Whilst in Hong Kong we visited a Dim Sum restaurant by the name of Dim Dim Sum. At the time it was listed as one of the top 100 restaurants in the world.
It wasn’t an exclusive or over priced place either. Just a normal Dim Sum restaurant renowned for it’s quality and consistency. This place offers up amazing food at every day prices.
Their Dim Sums are easily the best we have ever had. Soft, delicate, fragrant, just an unbelievably high standard of food.
If your a foodie in Hong Kong this place needs to be at the very top of your list.
You can find more details for this great restaurant Here
3. Ubud, Bali, Indonesia.
Eating in Ubud is truly unique.
Bali not only has some of the tastiest dishes around it has a back drop that is simply stunning.
You will find great food throughout Bali but Ubud is most definitely the epicenter of tasty treats. The town is renowned as the islands artistic hippy area and the artistry also flows through the many Warung’s that are located here.
In Ubud you can find cute, cosy , cheap Warung’s nestled between expensive joints serving Haute-cuisine.
Just a few minutes ride out of the centre of Ubud you will stylish, kitsch Warung’s offering stunning paddy field views for sunset and serving up affordable beautiful meals.
One of the most popular dishes and our own personal favourites is Gado-Gado.
Gado Gado is a salad consisting of a mixture of vegetables, boiled egg, fried Tofu and Tempeh dressed in a wonderful peanut sauce. if you come to Bali you have to try this local favourite.
Another must try dish which is popular across all of Indonesia is Rendang. It is usually prepared with beef although we have seen the occasional chicken rendang, this is a dish that is overflowing with punchy spices.
It is a slow cooked stew. Coconut milk is added to the spices and then the mix is slowly reduced until all of the spices have been soaked up and you are left with a moist melt in the mouth meat dish.
Bali also has a staple cheap favourite dish of either fried rice or fried noodle (Nasi Goreng & Mie Goreng)
Both of these dishes are flavoured and prepared in the same way. Just choose if you would prefer rice or noodles and make sure you get your fried egg and cracker on top, they are essential to finishing off the dish!
It is easy to lose yourself and all sense of time in Ubud.
Good food, beautiful scenery and charming locals make this a hard destination to move on from.
2. George Town, Penang, Malaysia.
Due to it’s history Malaysia is a melting pot of many cultures. Predominantly Indian, Chinese and the local ‘Malay’.
Malaysia, probably more so than any other Asian country has influences from many of it’s neighbours and this is very evident in it’s food.
It is non more evident than in it’s cultural capital of George Town, Penang.
Penang is a foodies heaven.
Here you will find some of the best Indian curries anywhere in the world. Some of the finest Chinese dishes outside of China and an incredible array of street food, all at an affordable price.
One of our favourite dishes in George Town is the Tandoori roti from Kapitan Indian restaurant.
This restaurant is one of the most popular and rightly so. Their dishes are consistently good.
The Tandoori chicken is excellent every time. Always flavoured to perfection and the Roti and Nan breads are always of the highest standard. Cooked to perfection every time, their dough is beautiful.
Another of the great food experiences you don’t want to miss out in Penang are the stalls selling the various sticks and dips.
They are dotted about all over and consist of an array of ingredients on sticks and usually 3 or 4 different sauces for you to dip them in.
The price of each stick varies. Vegetable sticks are cheapest, then you have various meat options and seafood options we are a few pennies more.
You pick out a stick you like the look of, pop it into one of the steaming vats of hot water to heat it through and then pop it on a paper plate with a splash of tangy sauce. These stalls are so simple and so satisfying if you just want to grab a quick tasty hot snack.
1. Bangkok, Thailand.
It was hard enough picking a top 5 let alone a number 1, but Bangkok in Thailand has edged it just ahead of Penang and Ubud.
Bangkok is the King when it comes to amazing street food.
I say street food as everything you can get in a restaurant in Bangkok you can find on the street.
Every single local in Bangkok eats street food. From the poorest people living on the street, to the wealthiest of businessmen pulling up in their sports cars. And why is that?
Because it’s just so damned good, that’s why.
It’s easier, cheaper and tastier to eat on the streets in Bangkok than it is to try and prepare your own food there.
Street vendors buy in bulk. They are serving hundreds if not thousands of dishes a day and everything they buy is in larger quantities from the markets. Hence that price saving is passed on to their customers.
It would cost you twice as much to make your own Pad Thai in Bangkok than it would be to get one served to you within seconds at a street stall.
Speaking of Pad Thai, what an unbelievable dish that is when it’s done right.
It’s punchy, zesty, tangy, a little sweet, a little sour. The crumbled peanuts give an earthy depth that helps balance all these tastes. It’s a dish where everything comes together so well, it’s an absolute classic and a must try if your in Thailand.
Similarly Papaya salad has now become one of our new favourites.
You can have this salad combined with a lot of things and it works every time. You can get it with fish, with sausage, with crab, or just on it’s own. It is such a fresh tasting dish. It plays across your palate and hits every set of your taste buds. The salty, sour, sweet, spiciness hits every button. It’s an absolute joy and sums up Thai cuisine very well.
