Explore South-East Asian cuisine in Camberwell

Sweet, sour and spice are hallmarks of South-East Asian cuisine, but there is much, much more to this colourful collection of culinary cultures.

South-East Asian cuisine draws on cooking traditions from Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Vietnam, and Indonesia, just to name a few.

While each culture offers their own specialities, the region’s cuisine is known for strong aromas and flavours like lime, ginger, coriander, lemongrass and basil.

Thai cuisine

Pad thai may be Thailand’s most popular culinary export but there is more to Thai cuisine than just this stir-fried noodle dish.

The country has mastered the art of creamy curries, creating red, green, yellow, panang, and massaman varieties from coconut milk and various curry pastes.

Thailand offers popular soups like tom yum, a spicy shrimp soup, and tom kha kai, which is a chicken coconut soup.

Thai cuisine can be divided into five distinct cooking styles: the north, Isan or north-eastern, central, Bangkok, and southern regions.

Vietnamese cuisine

When you think of Vietnamese cuisine, flavours of lemongrass, ginger, mint, chilli, and lime come to mind.

The cuisine is lighter and less oily than other cooking styles in the South-East Asia region, offering fresh spring rolls and pho, which is a delicate soup made of broth, rice noodles and herbs.

Vietnamese cuisine has also been influenced by French cooking as a result of the French colonisation of the country.

Examples of its colonial past include Vietnamese wine and bánh mì, which are crusty baguettes typically packed with pork, coriander, cucumber, chilli, carrot, and other ingredients.

Indonesian cuisine

The cuisine of Indonesia is as varied as the thousands of islands that make up this sprawling archipelago.

There are regional culinary traditions that have been shaped by cultural and foreign influences such as Sumatran cuisine, which is said to incorporate Middle Eastern and South Asian flavours.

Traditional Indonesian cuisine has often been described as savoury, hot and spicy, with sambal, a spicy chilli sauce, served alongside many dishes.

For a taste of Indonesian cooking, try their national dish nasi goreng, which is stir-fried rice covered in a sweet soy sauce and served with chicken, prawns or other meats.

If you get the chance, try out the popular Indonesian meatballs known as bakso or beef rendang, a slow-cooked beef dish that packs a lot of flavour.

Malaysian cuisine

Malaysian cooking is a blend of Malay, Chinese, Indian and Indonesian culinary traditions, reflecting the country’s multicultural population.

Malaysia has also been influenced by British, Portuguese, Thai, Arabian, and Dutch cuisines, having served as a trading hub for centuries, as well as a former British colony.

The country is famous for its wide selection of noodle dishes, drawn from its Chinese connections, and its impressive range of Malaysian-Indian recipes.

For a truly Malaysian experience, try a tasty seafood laksa or a nasi lemak, which is a delicious dish of fragrant coconut rice, spicy sambal, boiled eggs, and other tasty additions.

Find South-East Asian cuisine in Camberwell