Hokkien mee

Place of origin Malaysia, Singapore
Main ingredients Egg noodles, rice noodles, egg, pork, prawn, squid
Variations Hokkien hae mee, Hokkien char mee

Hokkien mee
Traditional Chinese 福建麵
Simplified Chinese 福建面
Literal meaning Hokkien noodles
Transcriptions
Southern Min
Hokkien : Hok-kiàn mī
Hokkien mee is a dish in Malaysian and Singaporean cuisine that has its origins in the cuisine of China's Fujian (Hokkien) province. In its most common form, the dish consists of egg noodles and rice noodles stir-fried with egg, slices of pork, prawns and squid, and served and garnished with vegetables, small pieces of lard, sambal sauce and lime (for adding the lime juice to the dish).

Types

There are two types of Hokkien mee: Hokkien black mee and Hokkien fried mee. Hokkien black mee (Hokkien prawn noodles) is commonly served in Penang and Singapore while Hokkien fried mee (Hokkien fried noodles) is commonly served in Kuala Lumpur and the Klang Valley. The dish commonly referred to as "Hokkien mee", depending on the locality, can mean either Hokkien hae mee or Hokkien char mee. For example, Hokkien mee in Kuala Lumpur refers to Hokkien char mee.

Hokkien hae mee
(prawn noodles) Hokkien char mee
(fried noodles)
Refers to either the Penang prawn noodle or Singapore prawn noodle Refers to the Kuala Lumpur Hokkien noodle
Soup based (Penang) and stir fried (Singapore) Stir fried
Egg noodles and rice noodles Fat yellow noodles
No dark soya sauce used Dark soya sauce is used
Prawn is the main ingredient with slices of chicken or pork, squid and fish cake. kangkung (water spinach) is common in the Penang version Slices of chicken or pork, squid and cabbage

A bowl of Penang Hokkien Mee
Strictly speaking, the Penang and Singapore versions of Hokkien mee are two different dishes, except that they are both prawn noodle dishes and share the name "Hokkien." The ingredients and methods of cooking are different, and the Penang version is cooked in soup while the Singapore version is stir fried. In this respect, the dish Hokkien mee can refer to no fewer than three different distinct dishes: Penang Hokkien mee, Singapore Hokkien mee, and Kuala Lumpur Hokkien mee. Penang Hokkien mee is sometimes referred to in Kuala Lumpur as mee yoke, since in Kuala Lumpur, Hokkien mee means Hokkien char mee by default.

Hokkien mee in Singapore

A plate of Singapore hokkien mee
Hokkien hae mee (Hokkien prawn noodles; 福建蝦麵) is served in Penang (with a variant served in Singapore and Muar in the southern state of Johor known as Hae mee). It is a dish of egg noodles and rice noodles in a fragrant stock, which is made from both fresh shrimp and dried prawns, as well as pork or chicken. Traditionally, small cubes of fried lard are added, but this is now less common and have been substituted with chicken lard due to health concerns. It is garnished with prawns, fish cake, leafy greens, pork ribs, squid, crisp deep-fried shallots, spring onions and fresh lime. The dish is served with sliced red chili, light soy sauce and sambal.

Singaporean Hokkien mee was created after World War II by Chinese sailors from Fujian (Hokkien) province in southern China. After working in the factories, they would congregate along Rochor Road and fry excess noodles from the noodle factories over a charcoal stove. Today, this dish is stir-fried with garlic, eggs, soy sauce, yellow noodles, bee hoon, bean sprouts, prawns and squid. A flavourful stock is also essential for a great tasting dish, and is usually made from stewing prawn heads, clams and dried fish. To cook this dish, the noodles are first flooded with stock, stewed for a minute while adding the seafood, then fried till damp. Pork lard is also a vital part of Hokkien mee; however, most stalls use less or none of it nowadays as it is deemed as unhealthy. Hokkien mee with no lard can be certified halal so the Malay community can eat it too. Sambal chilli and lime are also standard toppings for this dish, giving it that extra zing and tanginess. Some stalls also serve it on an Opei leaf (soft palm bark), to enhance the fragrance of the dish.

There is another version of prawn noodles in Singapore called Hae Mee, which is different from the Hokkien mee. Egg noodles are served in richly flavoured dark soup stock with prawns, pork slices, fish cake slices, and bean sprouts topped with fried shallots and spring onion. The stock is made using dried shrimps, plucked heads of prawns, white pepper, garlic and other spices.

Hokkien Char Mee

Hokkien char mee (Hokkien fried noodles; 福建炒麵) is served in Kuala Lumpur and the surrounding region. It is a dish of thick yellow noodles braised in thick dark soy sauce with pork, squid, fish cake and cabbage as the main ingredients and cubes of pork fat fried until crispy (sometimes pork liver is included). The best examples are usually cooked over a raging charcoal fire. This dish originated from a hawker stall chef Wong Kian Lee in the 1920s


The Best Fried Hokkien Mee Hawkers in Singapore 炒福建虾面
Fried Prawn Noodles

Fried Hokkien Mee

1) Nam Sing Hokkien Fried Prawn Mee (Hougang)  
 Open for lunch  
Old Airport Road Food Centre #01-32
Block 51 Old Airport Road (390051)


2) Geylang Lor 29 Fried Hokkien Mee (East Coast Road)
 Open for lunch    Open for dinner    
396 East Coast Road S(428994)
Closed on Mondays


3) Singapore Fried Hokkien Mee  
 Open for dinner    Open late night    Whampoa Drive Market & Food Centre #01-32
Block 90 Whampoa Drive S(320090)


4) Come Daily Fried Hokkien Prawn Mee 天天来
 Open for lunch    Open for dinner      
Blk 127, Lorong 1 Toa Payoh #02-27 S(310127)
Closed on Mondays


5) Kim Keat 金吉  
 Open for lunch    Open for dinner  
Block 92,  Lorong 4 Toa Payoh #01-264 S(310092)
Closed on Tuesdays


6) Chia Keng Fried Hokkien Mee
 Open for dinner    Open late night  
Chomp Chomp Food Centre Stall 2
20 Kensington Park Road S(557269)


7) Ah Hock Fried Hokkien Noodles
 Open for dinner    Open late night  
Chomp Chomp Food Centre Stall 27
20 Kensington Park Road S(557269)


8) Eng Ho Fried Hokkien Prawn Mee  
 Open for dinner    Open late night  
Teck Ghee Square Hawker Centre #01-15
Block 409 Ang Mo Kio Ave 10 S(560409)
Closed on Tuesdays


9) Hainan Fried Hokkien Prawn Mee
 Open for lunch    Open for dinner  
Golden Mile Food Centre Stall 34
505 Beach Road S(199583)
Closed on Wednesdays


10) Bedok Corner Hokkien Prawn Mee
 Open for dinner  
Bedok Corner Food Centre, Stall 29
1 Bedok Road S(469572)
Closed on Mondays


11) Swee Guan Hokkien Mee
 Open for dinner  
Sing Lian Eating House
549 Geylang Road (Lor 29) S( 389504)


12) Swee Guan Hokkien Mee
 Open for dinner  
556 Serangoon Road S(218175)
Closed Mondays


13) Yong Ji Fried Sotong Prawn Noodle
 Open for lunch    Open for dinner
Zhujiao Centre (Tekka Market) #01-301
665 Buffalo Road S(210665)
Closed Mondays


14) Tiong Bahru Hokkien Prawn Mee
 Open for breakfast    Open for lunch      
Tiong Bahru Market and Food Centre #02-50
30 Seng Poh Road, S(168898)


15) Xiao Di Fried Prawn Noodles
 Open for lunch    Open for dinner        Block 153, Serangoon North Avenue 1  S(550153)
Closed on Mondays