Taste the spicy and smoky flavours of Hokkien Mee, a common noodle dish from Southeast Asia, as tasty and fulfilling as it can be. The stir-fried yellow egg noodles and rice vermicelli are prepared perfectly in a sweet and fluffy seafood broth which is mostly topped with prawns, squid, pork slices and crispy pork lard, all very appetizing. It’s one of the most beloved Malaysian street food noodles and an icon of hawker stalls across the region.

Buttered with the smell of garlic, soy and a slow-cooked prawn stock, Malaysian Hokkien Mee is a combination of salty, umami-loaded ingredients. Either in a busy hawker centre in Singapore or tasting an authentic version at home, this dish is a shout-out to the street food culture and big flavours.

Hokkien Mee recipe is not a matter of taste, it is about experience. The texture is just a little damp and the light smoky flavour of the wok-hei (breath of wok) and tang of a drop of lime juice and sambal chilli makes each bite equally refreshing and pleasing.

About Hokkien Mee

It originated in post-war Singapore, developed by Chinese sailors who belonged to the Fujian (Hokkien) province. It is a street food that is common in Singapore and Malaysia and is also different regionally. Singapore-style Hokkien Mee is usually stir-fried using yellow noodles and bee hoon (rice vermicelli), whereas the Kuala Lumpur Hokkien Mee (Malaysian origin) uses thick dark soy sauce and thicker noodles.

Ingredients and Substitutes of Hokkien Mee

• Yellow Egg Noodles & Rice Vermicelli (Bee Hoon) – This combination of chewy yet soft textures make this mix of noodles special. Otherwise, replace it with udon, thin rice noodles or all egg noodles
• Prawns & Squid – The essential seafood. Fresh prawns are peeled and deprived of the vein; squid is cut in rings. Scallops could be used instead or squid may be omitted
• Pork Belly or Sliced Pork – Provides rich savoury flavour. Also, you may make it with chicken or without meat (pescatarian)
• Garlic – The pungent groundings. Fresh garlic is minced which gives the dish a depth in flavor
• Eggs – Beaten light, stirred up with the noodles in the form of a scramble. Makes it rich and soft
• Prawn Stock – This is created with prawn heads, and shells simmered in either a pork-bone or chicken mixture of at least 30 minutes. This is the stock of the dish
• Dark Soy Sauce and Light Soy Sauce – Dark soy provides color as well as sweetness; light soy provides salt as well as depth. To make a gluten-free version use tamari instead
• Pork Lard (Optional) – Fried pork fat is added to give it a real deal added topping and taste. You may replace them with regular cooking oil but it is not going to be as rich
• Sambal Chili – Spicy and tangy chilli paste which supplements the dish. Home-made or bought ones are equally good
• Lime Wedges – A lime squeeze will offset the food with a fresh citrusy flavour.
• Chives or Spring Onions – Fresh cut leaves to garnish

How to prepare Hokkien Mee?

Prepare the Ingredients

Begin with the preparation of the seafood and the meats. Devein 8-10 medium-sized prawns and clean. Take some squid and cut it up into rings, sliver about 100g. Cut pork belly 100g into thin pieces. In addition, soak the rice vermicelli (bee hoon) in water for 10 minutes, drain, and rinse the yellow noodles.

• 100g Yellow noodles
• 100g Soaked rice vermicelli
• 8–10 prawns (clean)
• 100 g squid (cut)
• 100g (sliced), pork belly
• 2 cloves (garlic, minced)
• 2 beaten eggs

Prepare the Stock

In 3 cups of water, boil the shells and the heads of the prawns along with the bones of pork (or chicken) bones for 30–40 minutes. Stress and reserve. This would be the fountain of spice and would be prawn stock. This step is essential for how to make Hokkien Mee at home that tastes restaurant-quality.

• 3 cups of prawns stock
• Optional: a little bit of seasoning in the broth, 1/2 tsp salt or fish sauce

Aromatics Stir-Fry

Place 2 tablespoons of pork lard or oil into a wok and heat it on medium-high heat. Add in crushed garlic and stir fry until you smell it. Next, add the pork belly and brown lightly. Put in the prawns and squid and stir-fry until nearly done. These steps are the essence of making authentic Hokkien Mee recipe with pork and prawns.

• 2 tablespoons oil or pork lard
• Squid, prawns, pork, garlic

Add Eggs and Noodles

Shift the seafood aside in the wok, pour in the beaten eggs, scramble and stir in with the seafood. Put the soaked rice vermicelli and yellow noodles, and mix all.

• 2 eggs beaten up
• Mixed noodles

Add in Broth and Simmer

Add 1½–2 cups of homemade prawn stock to the noodles. Likewise, add 1 tablespoon of dark soy sauce and 2 tablespoons of light soy sauce. Allow the noodles to soak in the stock and simmer over the low stove until the majority of the broth is absorbed which is 5–7 minutes. This makes it one of the best easy Hokkien Mee recipes with dark soy sauce.

• 1½–2 cups prawn stock
• ½ tbsp dark soy sauce
• 2 tbsp light soy sauce

Complete & Decoration

Shut down the heat. Hokkien Mee noodles with crispy pork lard should be served very hot along with wedges of lime and a spoon of sambal chilli on the sides. Serve chopped chives or spring onions on top to garnish.

• 1 tsp sambal chili
• Lime wedges
• Sliced spring onions/chives

So tuck into your bowl of hot, spicy Hokkien Mee, an epitome of seafood supremacy, pasta indulgence, and culture!