August 2009

Wok Up an Appetite

In a city full of fanatical foodies, veteran writer Helen Ong dishes up her guide to the top flavours

WORDS HELEN ONG
PHOTOGRAPHY GOH KOOI TEONG

Say the word “Penang” and what’s the immediate image that springs to mind? Yes, it’s that four-letter word which begins with an F — food! Although we have many good restaurants serving all types of cuisine, hawker food is probably the best-known, and with good reason — we do have the best. Here’s a quick guide to some of our most popular dishes.

What better way to start off than with Penang char kuey teow? This humble snack is not only a local favourite but part of Malaysian National Heritage, recently declared one of 172 items on the country’s list of treasures.

The flat rice noodles — cockles and egg optional — are fried over a fierce heat which caramelises the soya sauce and gives it a fragrant hei (loosely translated to mean flavours imparted by a hot wok), making it one of the most delicious dishes around, cholesterol notwithstanding. Every morning, the famous sisters at Lam Heng Café on Macalister Road fry up a mean, mouth-watering plate.

However, our kuey teow is delicious in soup (kuey teow t’ng) too. The tasty clear broth, made with duck, chicken and tua kut (large pork bones), is ladled over the silky noodles and served with a few slices of meat, julienned lettuce and a large dollop of garlic fritters in oil. In olden days it was also accompanied by a few cubes of coagulated pig’s blood, but you’ll be pleased to know this is no longer de rigueur. Check out Xin He Café on Anson Road, where Miss Eng continues the business started by her late husband’s family over 60 years ago.

Chee cheong fun is a popular breakfast dish. What differentiates it is the gooey hey ko (prawn paste) sauce that smothers the roughly chopped steamed rice sheets. Everyone has their own secret recipe and at Batu Lanchang Market, Allan Chan has built up a loyal clientele whose repeat visits testify to the quality of the sauce he conjures up. Find him at Stall No. 50.

Hokkien mee in Penang is not the dark fried thick noodles you may be familiar with — we call that Hokkien char. Otherwise known as hey mee or mee yoke, these are noodles (typically mee and bee hoon) served in a delicious prawn and spare-rib stock. The secret? Plenty of eu chang (onion fritters) sprinkled on top, and a dollop of chilli sauce for good measure. Using a recipe passed down by her father, Ah Choo serves up a delicious hot bowl at the Sin Lee Hin Coffee Shop, opposite the Rapid Bus Depot in Tanjung Bungah in the mornings.

Similarly, our curry mee is what’s known as laksa down south. Here, it’s served with cockles, although aficionados will order coagulated pig’s blood to go with it. In the Restoran Hot Bowl at 16A Lorong Abu Siti, proprietor Ho Peng Song cooks up a storm with a concoction he proudly calls “Penang White Curry Mee”. The soup, whitened with coconut milk, turns red with the addition of his special chilli paste.

You may prefer to try the famed nasi kandar, so called because it was sold by itinerant Indian-Muslim hawkers who would carry the food in tiered baskets hung from either end of a pole, known as a kandar, strung across their shoulders. Nowadays they mainly operate from restaurants and stalls, and usually offer a wide selection of curried chicken, fish, beef and lamb, together with savoury vegetables and fried meats. Hameediyah Restaurant, at 164A Campbell Street, which has just celebrated its 102nd anniversary, is one of our oldest eateries. Some recipes have not changed in 102 years.

Nasi kandar is not to be mistaken with nasi melayu; although the lines have blurred as there are many dishes in common. Malay food has a tendency towards more colourful sambal, ulam (salads) and kerabu (pickles), but is just as delicious, as Mak Lal will prove to you at the popular Lidiana Café in Arked Tg Bungah.

The familiar thick white lai fun of assam laksa, served with a large handful of julienned cucumber and lettuce, mint leaves and fresh pineapple, is available after noon. Its spicy, sour fishy gravy, redolent with lemon grass and belacan (prawn paste), may be an acquired taste, but once hooked, you’ll be a fan for life.

From Balik Pulau (the town whose name means “back of the island”) to Tanjung Bungah, each region has its own version with a loyal following. The best ones to try are at Mak Cik Putih’s Stall in Shamrock Beach or Tanjung Bungah (weekends only) or Kim on Main Road, Balik Pulau.

A must-try “filler” is lor bak, the deep-fried beancurd rolls filled with seasoned pork or chicken, which are dipped in chilli and a thick gelatinous brown sauce before eating. They’re usually accompanied by crispy prawn fritters, fried tofu cubes and a host of other items. Such is the reputation of the lor bak seller at Kheng Pin Café on Sri Bahari Road, that you may not find him there much, as he’s often away at Penang food promotions in Singapore or Sydney.

Finally, no foodie holiday in Penang would be complete without a taste of mamak mee rebus: yellow noodles with prawn fritters and a spicy tomato and sweet potato sauce, ladled over and served with a twist of lime for added tang. At the Kota Selera Hawker Centre in Padang Kota Lama (Fort Cornwallis), Hameed has been knocking up plates of his popular mee sotong since he took over from his father nearly 30 years ago. Find him at Stall No. 6.

This is just a taste of the fare that Penang has to offer. You’ll be sure to find a new favourite on every return trip.

Ch’ng Huck Theng Author, artist and scion of one of Penang’s oldest biscuit manufacturers, the famous Ghee Hiang dragon balls
“For breakfast, I love a glass of ice-cold soy bean milk into which I dip a freshly-fried eu char kuey [dough fritter]. The place to get it is in Pulau Tikus, although I learnt this habit in Taiwan. Chicken rice at the Foo Hiong Restaurant in Hutton Lane is a favourite. They are famous for roast meat. Finally, I love a bowl of Hokkien mee, and where better than the hawker centre at Sar Tiao Lor [Presgrave Road]? The 888 stall sells it at night.”

TOP THREE FOOD PRECINCTS FOR BUZZ AND CHOICE

You’ll find good hawker food on any street corner in Penang. Here are a few places where you’ll really be spoilt for choice:

GURNEY DRIVE
A must for any visitor, it’s right next to some of our best shopping and hotels. With hundreds of stalls offering any hawker dish under the sun, this alfresco eating place is open every day. Some stalls start as early as 3pm, going through until about 11pm or midnight; others start a little later and stay open to the wee hours of the morning.

NEW WORLD PARK
This food heaven is built on the site of the infamous “Sin Se Kai”, New World — the entertainment spot in Penang from the late 1930s to the mid-’70s — and offers convenient all-day eating. In one section, famous hawkers from all over Penang have congregated to serve up local hawker delights until the early evening. Over at the other end, a host of eateries offer some of our best-known names, open until late. The central stage is the venue for weekend local performances and events.

RED GARDEN FOOD PARADISE AND NIGHT MARKET
Located smack-bang in the middle of George Town, the Red Garden Food Paradise in Leith Street is, at 30,000 sq ft, one of Penang’s largest hawker centres. Over 30 stalls provide many different types of food, ranging from local delights to international cuisine. It’s a busy and noisy place, open only at night, with live entertainment every evening from 9pm to midnight.