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Lemang & the food city

Coconut-shell embers, bamboo, and the warmest reason to stop.

Food here is not a long souvenir list. Start with the techniques, textures, and habits that shape the city's flavour.

An illustration of lemang cooking in bamboo over embers, with banana leaves and a maker's hands.
An illustration of the lemang batok process
A photograph of golden Tebing Tinggi peanut buns topped with sesame seeds in a baking tray.
Peanut buns · Photograph by Lim Natee, CC BY 4.0
An illustration of assorted Malay halua: fruit and vegetables preserved in sugar syrup.
An illustration of assorted Malay halua: fruit and vegetables preserved in sugar syrup.

City icon

Lemang Batok

Glutinous rice cooked in bamboo over coconut-shell embers. Downtown it is street-side; the packed souvenir cluster is the northern lemang centre near the welcome gate.

Since around 2005

Peanut buns

A boxed souvenir that grew with local names such as Rajawali, Beo, and Garuda.

At the table

Halua

A sweet-tart preserved fruit found at roadside stalls and customary gatherings.

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