On a busy day, lunch is easy to squeeze: eaten at a desk, bought in a hurry, or skipped and patched later with something sweet. A healthy lunch deserves a comeback, and in Malaysia the plan for it already exists. The Ministry of Health's nutrition division publishes a simple plate model and a set of dietary guidelines. This piece walks through both, then looks at where a few dates belong on that plate and where they do not.
The plate the Ministry of Health uses
The nutrition division of the Kementerian Kesihatan Malaysia describes the Pinggan Sihat Malaysia, known by its short form "suku suku separuh" (quarter, quarter, half). Its page lays the plate out like this:
- one quarter of the plate is rice, noodles, bread, cereals, cereal products or tubers, with whole grains such as wholemeal bread or brown rice recommended;
- the second quarter is fish, chicken, meat or legumes;
- half of the plate is vegetables, with one piece of fruit added;
- the meal is completed with a glass of plain water or a drink without sugar, or milk or a milk product.
That is a lunch you can build at a nasi campur counter: rice on a quarter of the plate, one protein, and the space that is left taken up by sayur. The rule is easy to carry in your head on a busy weekday.
Cooking at home, choosing well outside
The same Ministry page lists the 14 key messages of the Malaysian Dietary Guidelines 2020 (PDM 2020). It says PDM 2020 covers 52 key recommendations and 249 ways to achieve them. Several of the 14 messages speak straight to lunch. Message 4 is to cook nutritious food more often at home and to choose healthy food when eating out. Message 5 is to eat plenty of vegetables and fruit every day. Message 11 is to limit sugar in food and drinks, and message 12 is to drink plenty of water every day.
Put together, the packed lunch is the obvious comeback. Last night's sayur and a piece of grilled fish in a tiffin carrier already follow message 4, and a bottle of plain water instead of a sweetened drink covers 11 and 12.
Where dates fit on the plate
The Ministry page asks for one piece of fruit with the meal but does not name dates. The NHS in the UK does. Its 5 A Day page says a 30g portion of dried fruit, such as currants, dates, sultanas and figs, counts as 1 of your 5 A Day, but should be eaten at mealtimes, not as a snack between meals, to reduce the impact on teeth.
So lunch is exactly the right time for them, as the fruit beside a balanced plate rather than in place of it. A date is not a replacement for the meal itself. On the USDA FoodData Central figures (SR Legacy, 2019), one pitted Medjool date weighs 24 g and one pitted Deglet Noor date weighs 7.1 g. A 30g portion is therefore a little over one Medjool or about four Deglet Noor. Per 100 g, Medjool lists 277 kcal and Deglet Noor 282 kcal, so a 30g portion comes to roughly 83 to 85 kcal.
A note on the date in the photo
The dates pictured at the top are Mazafati, also sold as Rotab Mazafati Bam. They come from Bam in Kerman province, Iran, and are dark, very soft and high in moisture. Mazafati needs refrigeration, and it is cold-stored so it is sold all year round, not only in one season. If you add a few to a lunch box, keep them in the fridge until you pack them.
Making it a habit
A healthy lunch does not need a new diet. Fill half the plate with vegetables, keep the rice to a quarter, pick one protein, drink water, and let a 30g portion of dates be the fruit if you like them. Other short reads on dates and everyday eating are collected on the Kurma Malaysia blog. More about this site is on the About us page and the contact page.