Char Kway Teow

Char Kway   Teow is literally stir-fried rice cake strips is popular dish here in Singapore. This dish is typically sold at hawker stalls anywhere in the country. Its made with stir fried noodles over high heat  with soy sauce either dark or light ( I prefer the dark soy because its gives a more smoky taste to it), chili, a small quantity of belachan,  whole prawns de-shelled cockles, bean sprouts and chopped Chinese chives. The dish may commonly be stir-fried with egg, slices of Chinese sausage and fishcake and less commonly with other ingredients. It’s traditionally cooked using pork lard and pork fat. Some might find it unhealthy because of the unsaturated fat but some stalls are trying to use less oil and add more greens to it to make it healthy. 

Every region has its own variation of the dish and wherever you go there are 2 types of how it’s cooked – dry or wet. I was able to taste the noodle dish in Ang Mo Kio Central Food Center. This stall serves a wetter version which I like and may appeal to people who like their noodle moist. It has a smoky flavor due to the dark soy used.  This is value for money and delicious even if it looks unhealthy. Just wash it down with tea. 

Another stall that serves good Char Kway Teow is Outram Park Fried Kway Teow Mee located in Hong Lim Market Food Center. The stall opens at 6:30am and closes at 4:30pm which I find a little bit early to close shop. Anyway, they have been frying char kway teow for a long time now – 30 years said the uncle manning the stove. I watched him prepare the dish in this big wok with the noodles and about 15-25 eggs at the same time for each batch. Once the eggs are mixed with the noodles, he adds fish sauce, soy sauce and a secret ingredient I think. I asked what it is and he just smiled at me. After stirring for a few minutes, he then added the cockles chili and dark soy sauce. The eggs are not overly cooked so it gives that creamy and velvety texture. It was good, ate at around 10am – good brunch and a couple cups of tea and then I watched a movie after.