Kadazan-Dusun
Hinava
Hinava is a Kadazan-Dusun dish of raw fish cured in lime juice and tossed with chilli, shallot, ginger and grated bambangan seed. It is fresh, sour and sharp, and it's served as a side with rice.
West Coast · town
Where to eat in Penampang
The Kadazan heartland next to KK, and the easiest place to try hinava, pinasakan and tuhau.
Penampang is a district on Kota Kinabalu's southern edge and a centre of Kadazan culture. It's home to the KDCA cultural grounds, which host the state-level Kaamatan harvest festival every May, and it's the closest place to the city for Kadazan-Dusun food.
Penampang is only about 15 minutes from central Kota Kinabalu but feels like a different food world. This is the heartland of the Kadazan community, and the place to eat dishes that rarely appear on city menus.
The grounds of the Kadazandusun Cultural Association (KDCA), home to the Hongkod Koisaan unity hall, host the state-level Kaamatan harvest festival every May. During the festival and other events, stalls sell hinava, tuhau, bambangan, linopot and rice wine. Year-round, a handful of restaurants in the district specialise in kampung cooking.
If you want one meal that tastes of Sabah and nowhere else, make it a Kadazan-Dusun lunch here.
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Popular food
All Sabah dishesWhat to eat in Penampang
Kadazan-Dusun
Pinasakan
Pinasakan (pinaasakan sada) is a Kadazan-Dusun dish of fish, often mackerel scad, simmered without oil in a sour broth of takob akob fruit, turmeric and salt until the liquid reduces and the fish keeps for days.
Kadazan-Dusun
Tuhau
Tuhau is a pungent Kadazan-Dusun and Murut relish made from the stems of a wild ginger (Etlingera coccinea), chopped and mixed with chilli, lime or vinegar and salt. It is eaten in small amounts with rice and fish.
Kadazan-Dusun
Linopot
Linopot is rice, usually hill rice or a mix with sticky rice, wrapped in a doringin, tarap or banana leaf into a neat parcel. It is the traditional Kadazan-Dusun, Murut and Rungus way to carry and serve rice with side dishes.
Kadazan-Dusun
Bambangan
Bambangan is a large wild mango (Mangifera pajang) native to Borneo, with rough brown skin and bright yellow-orange flesh. In Sabah it is best known pickled with salt and its own grated seed, as a sour relish for rice.
Kadazan-Dusun
Hinompuka
Hinompuka is a Kadazan-Dusun steamed rice cake made from glutinous rice flour and palm or brown sugar, wrapped in banana leaf. It is sweet, chewy and fragrant, and especially associated with the Kadazan of Penampang.
Sabahan Chinese (Hakka)
Ngiu Chap
Ngiu chap ('mixed beef' in Hakka) is a Kota Kinabalu beef noodle soup with brisket, tendon, tripe and beef balls in a spiced broth, served with noodles either in the soup or dry on the side.
Recommended
Filter all restaurantsRestaurants in Penampang
RestaurantPenampang · Kampung Pogunon
Borneo Spice
Sources mention: Siga set (ambuyat, pinasakan, hinava and sides), Hinava
Kadazan-DusunSabah LocalNon-halalResearched from 3 sources · not yet visited
Coffee & cake
All cafesCafes in Penampang
- Cafe
Penampang · Pavilion Bundusan
Housia Cafe
Sources mention: Tavantang set (linopot, hinava, fried basung, tuhau), Hinava
Kadazan-DusunSabah LocalStatus unconfirmedResearched from 2 sources · not yet visited
Eating tips for Penampang
- Order several small dishes and share them. Kadazan-Dusun meals are built around rice and many sides.
- Tuhau is pungent. Try a small spoonful before taking more.
- Rice wine is common at festivals; ask before assuming a stall's drinks are alcohol-free.
Nearby food towns
Schematic map, not to scale. Select a town to see where to eat.
Plan your meals
Penampang food guides & trips
Food guide
Best Food in Kota Kinabalu: What to Eat and Where
The dishes worth planning a KK trip around, from ngiu chap breakfasts to Kadazan-Dusun lunches and seafood by the kilo, and how to fit them into a day.
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Food guide
Sabah Traditional Food: 10 Dishes to Know
A field guide to Sabah's traditional dishes, from hinava and pinasakan to tuhau, linopot and latok: what they are, how they taste and where to eat them.
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Kaamatan Food: What to Eat at Sabah's Harvest Festival
Kaamatan, the Kadazan-Dusun harvest festival, is the best time of year to eat traditional Sabah food. Here is what to look for at the stalls.
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Tapai and Lihing: Sabah's Rice Wines Explained
The two rice wines you'll be offered at Kaamatan and Kadazan-Dusun meals: how they're made, how strong they are, and how they're drunk.
Penampang food FAQ
What is Kadazan-Dusun food?
Kadazan-Dusun food is the cooking of Sabah's largest indigenous group. It is known for sour and fresh flavours. Signature dishes include hinava (lime-cured fish), pinasakan (braised fish), tuhau (wild ginger relish), bambangan (wild mango pickle) and linopot (rice wrapped in leaves).
When is the best time to eat Kadazan-Dusun food in Penampang?
During Kaamatan, the harvest festival celebrated in May, when the KDCA grounds fill with food stalls. Specialist restaurants in Penampang serve the same dishes year-round.