All the things you might want to learn about discovering Halal meals and sustaining your self in non-Muslim international locations!
The enjoyment of travelling is discovering gastronomic gems — however when you will have dietary restrictions, you must get somewhat inventive.
Somebody as soon as shared how they walked for hours to seek out Halal meals in Taiwan. After they lastly discovered an Indian Restaurant, a paper signal on the storefront mentioned ‘NOT HALAL’. If he did his analysis, he would’ve identified that Taiwan is Muslim-friendly with loads of Halal choices ¯_(ツ)_/¯.
Making ready your self beforehand takes out the guesswork when in search of Halal meals abroad. I had a course of for locating Halal meals whereas I used to be in Taiwan — so listed here are seven ideas I discovered helpful when in search of halal meals wherever you might be on the planet.
1) Discuss to locals even earlier than the journey
Previous to my solo journey to Taipei, I reached out to my strolling tour information to see if he knew of any Halal spots. He outfitted me with actually useful hyperlinks just like the Muslim Meals Map by Taiwan Halal Centre, which was an excellent assist to see the density of Halal and Muslim-friendly meals within the totally different areas of Taipei.
Fb teams
In case you don’t have a strolling tour information, attempt reaching out by native Fb teams!
I used to be in search of Halal Conventional Taiwanese Breakfast choices and reached out to the Pals of Taipei Grand Masjid Fb web page for options. Although none had been prompt, they outfitted me with Chinese language phrases to ask for a vegetarian model simply in case I needed to dine in at these locations.
The Islam Taiwan web site they shared allowed me to seek out Uncle Ma’s! Islam Taiwan has even began a Discord Channel!
Additionally they shared apps like Taiwan Halal: Tour, Restaurant (Android solely) and Halalin — which lists Halal snacks and groceries in every comfort retailer and has a ‘Halal Card’ itemizing gadgets Muslims can and can’t eat in English, Bahasa Indonesia, and Chinese language.
2) Scour By way of TikTok and Instagram
Tiktok too has loads of creators posting their Halal discoveries in Taipei.
Whereas planning for a visit to Taipei, I got here throughout Kuliner Halal Taiwan on TikTok — a database of Halal meals in Taiwan from eating places to groceries. I might shortly scan by their account for eating places out there and plan the journey round it.
reki_id was one other native creator the place I found KUO ZANG mini Scorching Pot — a lesser identified Halal spot that’s not listed in Taiwan’s tourism web site!
Most of those TikToks, nonetheless, are in Malay or Bahasa Indonesia — so preserve a lookout on our TikTok web page as we’ll be arising with extra Halal meals content material 👀
Instagram’s a treasure-trove of Halal journey content material too!
youcaneatwithme’s Instagram reels lists Halal, Muslim-friendly, Pescatarian-friendly and vegan locations in Korea serving genuine meals. Plus, she offers recommendations on how you can adapt the meals served to your dietary restrictions.
*Professional-tip: Save time and use the algorithm to your favour by liking and saving Halal abroad content material. It’ll flood your feed with Halal and Muslim-friendly locations abroad — taking the trouble out of in search of these locations.
3) Go to the native Mosque or Islamic Centre
Aside from a spot of worship, Mosques are an excellent level of contact for all issues halal and an opportunity to attach with the native Muslims for Halal hidden gems!
Most Mosques world wide like Taipei Grand Mosque and Kowloon Mosque And Islamic Centre promote meals on Fridays — so you may get a Halal model of the native delicacies with zero doubts!
Mosques are typically positioned in Muslim-populated communities/neighbourhoods so that you’re more likely to be near Halal butchers and eating places too.
4) Discover Comfort Shops and Supermarkets
Don’t skip comfort shops or supermarkets in any nation you’re in as there are often some Halal-certified and vegetarian-friendly snacks and drinks. The choice’s often a mixture of native and imported snacks and drink.
I managed to seek out some Halal Goat Cheese in a comfort retailer whereas in Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam!
Discovered these ‘Made-in-Taiwan’ native Salted Egg Yolk Cookies by T.Ok. Meals (NT$38, ~S$1.70) in Household Mart in Taipei, Taiwan!
It’s a candy biscuit with some savoury notes scattered in every chew. It’s undoubtedly an acquired style however I actually loved its duality.
Roasted candy potatoes are a vegetarian-friendly hot-food merchandise bought in most Taiwanese comfort shops should you’re ever craving a sizzling snack.
Comfort shops and supermarkets will be an choice to tide you over should you’re overseas and in a pinch for Halal meals. Take your time to discover them since you by no means know what random Halal gems you would possibly discover!
5) Look By way of Tourism Web sites
Aside from doing a fast Google seek for ‘Halal meals in (title of nation)’ previous to visiting any nation, I’ll head to their tourism web site too.
Tourism boards of assorted international locations — like Taiwan, Hong Kong and Korea — are beginning to accommodate Muslim-friendly journey by offering guides on the place to seek out Halal meals or the place to wish!
6) Know Native Phrases
It’s good to familiarise your self with phrases within the native language to ask if one thing is Halal or not.
Whereas in Taipei, I stored these frequent phrases as my lock display so I merely whipped out my telephone to ask if issues had been vegetarian or halal. I’d attempt to pronounce the phrases or just present the display to the distributors to keep away from miscommunication.
Crucial phrase I discovered when in search of Muslim-friendly meals in Taipei is:
这个有没有猪油 (Zhè ge you méi you zhū yóu)
Does this have lard?
I virtually bought pastries from a retailer which makes use of lard. The store didn’t promote any meat — solely candy pastries and scallion bread. Once I requested “这个有没有猪油 (Zhè ge you méi you zhū yóu)”, the vendor knowledgeable me that the candy pastries contained lard.
Sincere errors like this occur — however we will at all times equip ourselves to keep away from ending up in these conditions by realizing what to ask.
7) Browse By way of Airports
Picture credit score: Hsin Tung Yang
Airports are the final stretch of any journey — nevertheless it’s additionally a chance to find extra Halal meals locations or souvenirs.
Pita Pit in Auckland Airport gives Halal hen choices ready individually from their different menu gadgets whereas Taiwan’s Taoyuan Worldwide Airport has a number of memento snack retailers in Terminal 1’s Departure Corridor promoting loads of Made-in-Taiwan Halal-certified snacks.
*Professional-tip: The most important choice in Taoyuan Worldwide Airport Terminal 1 Departure Corridor is at Degree 3, proper earlier than the doorway to immigration.
Do your due diligence to seek out Halal or Muslim-Pleasant Meals
The primary mistake we are likely to make is to imagine that it’s laborious to seek out Halal or Muslim-friendly meals in non-Muslim international locations. My philosophy is that halal meals is at all times out there — you simply gotta do your analysis.
My Halal meals scenario on my solo journey to Taipei was simple breezy as a result of I had achieved the legwork beforehand and deliberate my itinerary across the Halal spots.
Take a look at our different Halal guides for planning a visit to non-Muslim international locations:
– Muslim-friendly 4D3N Taipei Itinerary — A Solo Traveller’s First Time in Taiwan
– Taipei Muslim-Pleasant Meals Information — 13 Tried and Examined Halal Licensed Locations
– Planning Your Vietnam Itinerary — Your Most Incessantly Requested Questions
Obtained another recommendations on discovering Halal meals in non-Muslim international locations? Share with us within the feedback beneath!
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