The Malaysian Street Food Burger That Egg Lovers Need To Take A Crack At
One of the best things about traveling is the food, and the most fun way to experience local cuisine is on the streets. Street food is already very different in every region. In Southeast Asia, its incredible variety is due to each country's cultural makeup, migration history, and colonial past.
In Malaysia, one of the most popular street food items is something called "Ramly burger" — a highly sloppy and saucy burger made to order at many street corners. Usually available at night, it serves as a great snack after dark for those who get the late-night munchies, or for those stumbling out of clubs in the wee hours of the morning needing to energize themselves for the journey back home.
The way many Malaysians order their Ramly burger is called a "special" — which means it has an egg included in the order. "What's so special about that?" you may ask. Well, the egg in this case isn't merely a fried egg added as a layer on top like a breakfast burger at a diner. The egg is actually made into a plain omelet that is used to wrap the cooked meat patty, which is then placed in between the burger buns. You get a bit of egg in every bite, perfect for those who love eggs.
What is a Ramly burger?
Before we get further into the anatomy of a Ramly burger special, what is a Ramly burger in the first place? The Ramly burger is named after Ramly Mokni, who co-founded — with his wife Shala Siah Abdul Manap — what is now Ramly Food Processing back in the late 1970s. Their vision was simple: to fill the market gap for halal meat patties. It has now grown to a family-run empire, supplying processed meat products to tens of thousands of wholesalers, supermarkets, and street burger vendors all over the country.
Street burger stalls in Malaysia are a dime a dozen. Yet other than in urban areas, most vendors don't make their own patties. They instead rely on ready-made patties that they doctor to their own specifications. Enter the Ramly burger patty: a basic, no-frills meat patty, a little on the thinner side to accommodate the other components of the burger. The standard Ramly burger offering is a griddled Ramly beef patty, served in between two halves of a toasted bun, heaped with shaved raw vegetables like cucumbers and cabbage, and slathered with a multitude of sauces, usually a sweet chile sauce and mayonnaise.
Many vendors have their own takes on the burger. Some stalls split the patty lengthwise to crisp it up further, some add fun toppings (like apple slices!), and most stalls offer a black pepper-sauce option. The most popular specialization is, of course, the egg-wrapped Ramly burger special.
Make your own Ramly-style burger at home
It's easy to make a Ramly-style burger special at home. Even if you can't get your hands on a Ramly-brand patty, you can still celebrate the essence of a Ramly burger. Once you're done cooking your (preferably thin-ish) burger patty, set it aside while you prepare the omelet. This is not a perfect French omelet: What you want is something akin to a thin crepe. So, tilt your pan or use your spatula to spread the whisked egg across the cooking surface. This makes it cook quite quickly, so once the edges begin to crisp, return the cooked patty to the center of the omelet and wrap it like a parcel. Place it in between two halves of a toasted bun, then add the other toppings to your liking.
You can go the classic Malaysian street burger route and add raw vegetables and extra sauces, or come up with your own ideas. Many Malaysian customers personalize their orders: more or less sauce, no cucumbers, a slice of cheese, double the patties, and even swapping out the beef patty for another protein like chicken or prawn. Yellow mustard and caramelized onions, or a tangy coleslaw — which will cut through the grease and fat of the burger — are great additions. For the most authentic experience, gobble up the burger using your hands, like a big meaty serving of sloppy joes. It's meant to be messy. Lean into it!