Fried Malaysian Fettucine

Kuey Teow in essence is fettucine except that it's made from rice flour. Char Kuey Teow is fried kuey teow in Hokkien. So Char Kuey Teow is fried flat noodle.

Char Kuey Teow has been in existence as long as my mum was a kid and maybe even her mother before that.

Let's look at what makes Char Kuey Teow so appealling (at least to me.)

Fried on a hot cast iron wok with a mixture of good stuff to make it a mouth watering dish, good Char Kuey Teow or CKT should have the appropriate amounts of garlic, not too much that you have everyone running for cover but not too little that it just doesn't have the right taste.

It should be prepared with kuey teow and not with noodles (Some may argue that noodles are even better and while I do like Mee Goreng, CKT with noodles is sacrilegious.)

Each plate must also be cooked individually. En masse cooking is a no no.

Good food smells good. Good CKT is no exception. There should be a pleasant aroma of garlic mixed with soy sauce and oil.

In some places, CKT is still served on banana leaf, which further enhances the aroma and of course the taste.

Char Kuey Teow is fried with eggs. Most people use chicken eggs though some use duck eggs. Duck eggs are said to add more oomph to the dish.

CKT usually has cockles and if you love them, they should not be overcooked. In fact the best way is for them to be cooked by the heat from the kuey teow. Prawns and Chinese pork sausage (lap cheong) add to the taste. And pleeeeease no fish cake!!!

It must have generous amounts of chilli (OK, this is a Penang thing. Penangites were born with an extra protective coating in our stomach lining. It's a scientifically known fact that Penang has the lowest incidence of stomach problems in the country. ???????? Right I made that up but I love the sound of it.)

And if you ever encounter anyone cooking CKT with coal fire, then this is really hard core old school - try it. I don't know anywhere in KL/PJ that does it this way anymore.

Finally, I think good Char Kuey Teow MUST HAVE LARD!!! But this is matter of taste, I am Chinese and I love pork in my CKT.

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Published on 2/11/04

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