KL Hokkien Mee is a dish that brings back lots of good memories. The first time I tried this dark, gooey and delicious noodle was like a millennia ago. Me and a few of my girlfriends decided to take a road trip to Kuala Lumpur from Singapore for the weekend to catch up with our Malaysian friends.
One of our Malaysian friends brought us to this hawker cart in a dark alley in Chinatown area and we were really skeptical about having our dinner there as the ambience was really atrocious and hygiene was very questionable as well. Mind you, there were rats scuttering around and the drains around us were smelly.....But my friend insisted that we try the food as it was her favourite KL Hokkien Mee hawker and it was really really good! We quickly forgot about the dark smelly alley and rats. Also, we all survived with no stomach problems, one can only imagine the risks we take for DELICIOUS food!!! And since I cannot just hop into a car and drive up to Kuala Lumpur whenever I crave for this delicious noodles. I can only make do with my own version of this wonderful dish.
Serves 4 to 5
Ingredients
1kg Thick Yellow Noodles /Hand Cut Noodles/Udon
4 Tbsp Garlic, Finely Chopped
250g Pork Belly, Cut intoThin strips
500g Prawns, Peeled and deveined
500g Squid, Cut into Rings
2 Pieces Fish Cake, Sliced
1/2 Head Medium White Cabbage, Cut into 1cm shreds
300g Cai Xin/Chye Sim
1/2 Cup Thick Caramel Sauce
2 Tbsp Light Soy Sauce
1 Tbsp Kecap Manis or Brown Sugar
Salt to taste
2 Cups Chicken/Pork Bone Stock
Method
In wok, on medium high heat, add in the pork belly strips till the fats are rendered.
Next, add the minced garlic and fry till light brown, pour in the chicken/pork bone stock, thick caramel sauce, kecap manis/brown sugar and light soy sauce. Let the sauce come to a boil.
Once the sauced has boiled for a couple minutes, add the thick yellow noodles, stir and make sure the noodles are coated with the sauce. Cover the wok and bring it to a boil again.
Once it starts boiling, uncover and add in the cabbage shreds. Remember to stir continuously.
Next, add in the prawns, squid rings and fish cake slices, keep stirring. The sauce will reduce and thicken.
Make sure not to break the noodles while stirring as the liquid continues to be absorbed.
Add in the cai xin, give it a few more stirs, so as to cook the cai xin. The noodles will turn a darker colour.
Taste and add soy sauce or salt if necessary.
Turn the heat off and serve.
This dish tastes even better with some chilli sambal.
Author's Notes
This dish is traditionally cook in lots of lard and pork cracklings. For health reasons, replace the pork belly with pork loin and cook the dish with vegetable oil.
For the authentic taste, use thick caramel sauce made in Malaysia