Mee Goreng: Fried Yellow Noodle
- Total Time: 40 mins
- Yield: 4 1x
Description
This dish from Penang has a sweet tangy taste from the thick tomato gravy cut by the acidic lime juice.
Ingredients
Sauce:
- 2 stalk Lemon Grass, chopped into small pieces
- 3 medium Red Onion, chopped into small pieces
- 10 cloves Garlic, chopped into small pieces
- 4 Red Chili, chopped into small pieces
- 150g Dried Cuttlefish (soak in water) or Fresh Squid
- 1 piece Firm Bean Curd (Tau Kua)
- 3 medium Potatoes - cut into bite size cubes
- 2 tbsp sugar
- 1 cup (240 ml) or 1/2 bottle Tomato Sauce
- 1 tsp Dark Soya Sauce
- Salt to taste
- 2 tsp Tamarind (soak in 100ml water)
The Dish:
- 400g Mee (wet yellow noodle)
- 100g Bean Sprout
- 4 Eggs
- Lime - cut half
- 4 tbsp Ground Peanuts
- half Lettuce - sliced thinly
- Red Chilli - sliced
Instructions
Sauce Preparation:
- Steam potatoes for 5 minutes or until soft.
- Slice bean curd to 3 pieces and fry with oil in the wok. Remove and slice thinly. Set aside on a plate.
- In a small bowl, mix tomato sauce, sugar, dark soya sauce, salt and tamarind water.
- Using a food processor, pulse lemon grass, onion, garlic and chilli until become paste.
- Heat up the wok on low fire, sauté the paste for 3 minutes until fragrant.
- Turn heat to high, add in cuttlefish/squid, potatoes and sliced beancurd, stir until cuttlefish/squid is cook.
- Add in tomato sauce mixture. Mix well & simmer for 2 minutes on low fire. Scoop out and set aside. This sauce will be used when cooking the noodles (it can also be frozen to be cook another day).
Cooking Mee Goreng:
- Next is to cook the noodles on high heat and fast to have very fragrant dish. It is very important to have all ingredients readily prepared and it is easier to cook 1-2 person’s portion at a time (it also tastes better).
- In a clean wok, put in 1 tbsp oil and stir fry 1 portion of bean sprout and noodles for 1 minute on high heat.
- With the cooking ladle, make a hole in the middle, put in 1 tsp of oil and crack in 1 egg. As the egg starts to slightly cook, mix with the noodles so all is well coated.
- Scoop in 2-3 tbsp of the earlier tomato mixture and stir well. Add sugar & salt to taste.
- Garnish with lettuce, red chilli and ground peanuts. Serve immediately with lime juice.
- Prep Time: 20 mins
- Cook Time: 20 mins
- Category: Main
- Cuisine: Malaysian
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 serving
- Calories: 490
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Frequently Asked Questions
Why does the recipe say to cook only one or two portions at a time?
The instructions explicitly state it is very important to cook on high heat one to two portions at a time for a very fragrant dish, and that it also tastes better. Crowding the wok drops the temperature, causing the noodles to steam rather than fry and losing the intense wok aroma that defines Mee Goreng.
Can I use fresh squid instead of dried cuttlefish in the sauce?
Yes — the recipe lists 150g dried cuttlefish or fresh squid as interchangeable. If using dried cuttlefish, soak it in water first to rehydrate before adding to the wok. Fresh squid goes in as-is and cooks until done before you add the tomato sauce mixture.
What is tamarind water and how do I prepare it?
Tamarind water is made by soaking 2 tsp of tamarind paste or pulp in 100ml of water and squeezing to extract the liquid. The recipe calls for this strained liquid — not the raw pulp — to be mixed into the tomato sauce, where it adds a sour tang that balances the sweetness of the tomato sauce and sugar. 
