Penang Curry Mee (Noodles)-MFF Penang

For MFF-Penang I choose to cook Penang curry mee. The reason is my mum love curry noodles. Being a small family with young kids I hardly cook spicy dishes including this Penang curry mee. During my mum stays with me in Kuching I took the opportunity to cook it. 

I used recipe from RasaMalaysia because it looks closer to curry mee that sold at Penang food stalls. Surprisingly to see quite lots of coriander powder used in soup base. I guess this make it unique as Penang curry mee. The soup is looking ‘pale’ as dried chili is the only contributor in the soup base. The heat is very low. Therefore the chili paste is a must in Penang curry mee. Make sure to mix the chili paste well with the noodles and broth before you eat it.

Recipe adapted and slightly modified from Rasa Malaysia

Penang Curry Mee (Noodles)

Ingredients:

~Curry Mee Soup base
(A) Spice paste
10g belacan (shrimp paste)
100g shallots
50g garlic
3 stalks lemongrass
10g seeded dried chilies
20 white pepper corns
4 heaped tablespoons coriander powder

(I grind coriander seeds into powder)
5 tablespoons oil

(B) Stock
5 cups water from scalding shrimp. Keep the shrimp as topping.

*can replace with water or shrimp shell stock (preferred)
75g rock sugar (adjust according to taste)
200 ml coconut milk
1 cube chicken bouillon
Salt to taste
20 whole tofu puffs

~Chili Paste
10g seeded dried chilies
25g shallots
3 cloves garlic
50g fresh seeded red chilies
20g dried shrimp
4 tablespoons oil

~Other Ingredients
Yellow noodles (scalded)
Dried rice vermicelli (scalded)

~Toppings
400g shrimp (scalded and shelled)
Soaked cuttlefish (sliced and scalded)
Long beans (sliced and scalded)
Fresh beansprouts (scalded)

Methods:
~Preparing Penang Curry Mee Stock
1. Wash the shrimps and set aside. Bring a pot of water (5 cups) to boil. Cook the shrimp till turn orangey and cooked. Drain and set aside to cool. Remove the shells and use as topping.

2. Roughly cut up the fresh red chilies, lemongrass, shallots and garlic. Blend all spice paste ingredients (except oil) until fine. Add some water to aid the blending process. 

3. Heat the oil and fry the paste until aromatic, on medium heat, for at least 5 minutes. Add water (or shrimp shell stock) and bring the broth to boil before adding coconut milk, chicken bouillon cube, rock sugar and salt to taste. Add the tofu puffs and cook for a few more minutes, stirring continuously to prevent the coconut milk from curdling.

~Preparing Chili Paste
Blend all the ingredients to a fine paste. Heat up the oil and fry the chili paste until aromatic over medium heat, for about 5 – 8 minutes. Dish out and set aside.

~Serving Penang Curry Mee
Place some noodles, rice vermicelli and bean sprouts in a bowl. Ladle the curry mee stock over, along with a couple of tofu puffs. Add the toppings and serve immediately with chili paste. Mix the chili paste well with the noodles and broth and eat immediately.

I am submitting this post to Malaysian Food Fest, Penang Month hosted by Alan of Travellingfoodies