This is a popular street food in Malaysia, and in Indonesia. However in this post, I will be talking about the Malaysian style mee goreng. In particular, the "Mamak" mee goreng. The word "mee goreng" refers to stir fry noodles. "Mee" means "noodle" and "goreng" refers to the style of cooking, which is a stir fry.
In Malaysia, the word "mamak" is a term of endearment given to an ethnic Indian-Muslim minority group. But most Malaysians associate the word "mamak" to a "mamak stall" meaning an eating place that specialises in a specific type of food cooked by the Indian-Muslim. A unique blend of culture and flavours from the Indians and Malays. Some of the most common and popular mamak food Malaysians crave to eat are nasi kandar, roti canai, murtabak, mee goreng, and mee rebus topping the list, and "teh tarik" as the number one drink at a mamak stall. It is almost a sin if you don't order a "teh tarik" with the nasi kandar or roti canai!
Mamak, although spelled as a Malay word, comes from a Tamil word "ma-ma" is a respectful word for "uncle". The early Indian-Muslim settlers came to Malaysia during the 19th century, from the Madras Presidency, southern part of India, as traders. The mamaks (or uncle) who chose to settle down in their adopted country will marry the local Malay women creating a unique Indian-Muslim culture in Malaysia.
If you are visiting Malaysia, your trip is not complete until you have tried a mamak food. You will experience different tastes and flavours of Malaysia, from the more popular Chinese and Malay food. Mamak food stalls are more common in Kuala Lumpur and Penang, and most Malaysians will flock to Penang island to eat at the most popular and famous "nasi kandar" stalls, with long queues in the weekend and public holidays.
In this post, I will show you how to make your own mamak mee goreng at home. The secret is in the mamak sauce. It is worth that extra effort to create an authentic flavour for the mee goreng by making your own mamak sauce. A stir fry noodle dish that is deliciously packed with sweet, mildly spicy flavour and a hint of nuttiness from the mamak sauce.
This recipe is a home version. There are many variations of mee goreng. Each family has its own secret ingredients that go into making the sauce.
A typical mee goreng is made up of a thin yellow noodle variety. Also known as hokkien noodle. Unfortunately, in the western countries, most hokkien noodles variety is a bit thicker and starchier than the variety we get back in Malaysia and Singapore. And, in the western countries, the hokkien noodles are packed in a plastic kept in a fridge compartment. If you are lucky, you may find the thinner hokkien noodles imported from Singapore. That is better than the version I bought and used in the video.
Ingredients:
Ingredients for mamak sauce
lentils 1 tablespoon
dried shrimps 1/4 cup
sugar 4 teaspoons
fresh chillies 2 red and 1 green
roasted peanuts 1/2 cup (ground the peanuts until almost fine or coarsely fine)
tamarind juice 1-2 tablespoons (pinch of tamarind pulp mixed with water)
pinch of salt (optional to taste)
Ingredients for mee goreng (for 2 people)
Steps:
Make the mamak sauce
fry lentils and dried shrimps for 2-3 minutes until fragrant
remove and place in a spice grinder or blender. Add the chillies and 2-3 tablespoons of oil (from the pan). Blend until paste is almost smooth
fry the paste. Then add sugar and crushed peanuts. Continue to fry
add tamarind paste and 1 cup of water. Mix through. Gently simmer until sauce thickens
remove and let the sauce cool down
Stir fry the noodle
You can find a detailed recipe on the Recipe Page
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