Kari kapitan is a signature dish of Malaysia; we have verified places to eat it in Penang. A Nyonya chicken curry thick with candlenut, lemongrass and kaffir lime, gentler than Indian curry and finished with a squeeze of lime, eaten with rice or roti. Start with where to eat Kari kapitan in Penang.
Kari kapitan · Penang
A Nyonya chicken curry thick with candlenut, lemongrass and kaffir lime, gentler than Indian curry and finished with a squeeze of lime, eaten with rice or roti.
Kari kapitan is a Peranakan signature whose name likely honours the Kapitan Cina, the community headmen of colonial Penang and Melaka, though kitchen legend prefers a cook telling his captain what was for dinner. The rempah of candlenut, galangal, turmeric and belacan marks it as Straits Chinese: Chinese technique married to Malay spice. Penang's Nyonya houses treat it as a benchmark; the starred kitchen at Auntie Gaik Lean's keeps it on the menu as a measure of the old repertoire.
Where to eat in Penang:
- Auntie Gaik Lean's Old School Eatery
- Richard Rivalee Nyonya Cuisine
- Winn's Cafe
Where to eat Kari kapitan in Penang: the editor picks