Addicted To Kolok Mee

A bowl of scrumptious kolok mee bound to tantalize all of your senses!

"Slurp!"

"God this is delicious!" I thought to myself as I took another mouthful of the springy noodle drenched in fragrant oil.

On the table there was silence. Just the sounds of chopsticks clanged with the porcelain bowl.

Meanwhile in my mouth, there was an orchestra of flavours. Springy noodle. Sweet juicy roast pork – all begging to invade my senses and bring me to a who le new world of satisfaction.

Topped up with crispy minced meat, mixed together in savoury lard. Simply marvellous!

Within minutes, all that was left is the greasy bowl and a smile of sheer delight on my face.

"I just love to cook", she smiled when asked why she did it.

"The secret recipe is the lard. And garlic oil. Those were the most important ingredients for kolok mee" Anna Ng says with much pride in front of her stall at the corner lot shop along the streets of Kuching.

"I have tried others and made my own research on how to cook a delicious kolok mee", she said. And she should know, as she has been in business selling the beloved local dish for the past four years.

"I usually fry the garlic combined with lard and that makes the noodles so fragrant. The chopped meat is maintained to its original taste."

"Therefore my noodles taste different from others. And many of my customers like it."

Kolok Mee is a type of noodle dish commonly found in Kuching, Sarawak.

"Kolok" in the local Hokkien dialect describes the method of the noodle is being cooked.

Springy egg noodle blanched in hot water that looks like instant noodle and served in lard with some condiments like sliced pork and minced meat. It is served throughout the day – for breakfast, lunch and even supper!

Kolok mee resembles wantan mee which is popular in the Peninsula, but with an oomph to it!

The difference between the two however, is that kolok mee is not drenched in dark soy sauce and water is not added to the noodles when served. The helping of noodles also does not come with wantan. Instead, there is minced pork together with slices of roast pork or char siew.

Kolok mee comes in two common flavours; plain or seasoned with red sauce. Either way they taste just as good! Not to mention it is reasonably cheap too. A dish can cost anywhere between three and four ringgit. Cheap, delicious and amazingly satisfying. What more can you ask for?

Since Kuching has a sizeable Chinese population especially of Hakka and Hokkien descent, kolok mee is very much entrenched in the food culture here.

To suit the local Muslim community, the kolok mee is even replaced with strips of chicken instead of pork. That way everybody gets to savour the local delight.

For John Lister Chan, 31, kolok mee reminds him of home.

Thus, whenever he leaves town, the first thing he would look for upon returning to Kuching is kolok mee.

"Because it is our hometown's special dish. You can't find it anywhere. It is famous here in Kuching", he gushes on as he shared about why he loves the dish.

"Kolok mee is our traditional food. Therefore the government should promote this dish as our local pride before it is forgotten”, he laments.

"Kolok mee has a history of many years but nowadays the locals tends to switch to other foods such as dimsum"

For every cat you see in the city, there you will find kolok mee. Literally, everywhere around the city. It is undoubtedly everybody's favourite traditional dish.

However it is more than just a hearty bowl of noodles. It is close to the hearts of many locals. To them that is where home is. This simple yet delightful dish does not just bridge the local community but has even got me, a non-local, caught up in its craze.

“A bowl of kolok mee please?”, I smile to the lady standing behind the stall. I watch her prepare the meal as she places the sliced roast pork on top of the noodles.

My memories took me back to 3 years ago. That was the last time I had kolok mee. It was love at first bite. And that was all I have been thinking of since my recent flight to the city of cats.

Anna brought the dish before me. My nose tingled as I caught a whiff of the rich aromatic smell. I delightedly picked up the chopsticks and mixed the noodles together with all the accompaniments inside the bowl, blending them together to a perfect harmony. I took a mouthful of it. And another. And another..

Ever since then, I have been having them for 3 consecutive days. And I’m not even complaining. Why? Because I simply just can’t get enough of it!"