Prawn Noodle Soup Recipe

Prawn Noodle Soup or Penang Hokkien Mee as it's called in the food capital of Malaysia is a popular street food among Malaysian. With the pre-packed paste that is easily available in Asian grocery stores, making one of this beloved dish is no longer the secret of the select few.

Removed the prawn heads and pan fried them until its colour turns and you can smell the burnt fragrant.

Cook pork bones soup in a separate pot. Pour the soup into the frying pan with the prawn head.

Put the paste into the pan.

Cook for at least 30 minutes, taste it every now and then to check its sweetness or saltiness to your liking.

While the soup is cooking, toss in the prawn and pan fried until golden brown.

Make sure to mix egg noodle with bee hoon (rice vermicelli) to enhance the richness of its texture.

Sprinkler fried shallot on top and it's finally served!

Seong Garden Cafe

Still on the town of Air Itam in Penang, Seong Garden Cafe at Jalan Air Itam comes to life at night with the street converted into a night market and open air food court!

The street in front of a row of shops is transformed into a night market in the evening.

Penang iconic dish - Char Koay Teow!

Penang Hokkien Mee - Prawn Noodle Soup

Hokkien Mee / Prawn Noodle Soup

One of my favorite street food of Penang is undoubtedly the spicy prawn noodle soup or more known as Hokkien Mee among the locals. There are many places around the island that sell this type of hawker food but the one that I particularly like is located in a local coffee shop in Pulau Tikus called Kedai Kopi Swee Kong. It is located along Burmah Road opposite the Pulau Tikus Police Station; hence the nickname of Balai Hokkien Mee.

The sky was still dark, the streets were deserted as I looked down from my bedroom on the 27th floor and the atmosphere was serenely peaceful. This was a very unusual sight and sound if you live around Gurney Drive or Pulau Tikus area due to the heavy traffic during the day. Oh I forget to mention that it was 4.30am in the morning when I woke up to experience this wonderful atmosphere. Driving to my favourite coffee at this hour was a breeze.

I've been to Kedai Kopi Swee Kong as early as 5am in the morning and they have already started serving my favourite hawker food. I was surprised to find that there were so many early risers. A group of cyclist gathered around one table having their breakfast before their routine ride to Batu Ferringhi on a fine Sunday morning, an old couple having their favourite coffee enjoying retirement life and people standing in front of the busy stall waiting for their takeaways. It was a hive of activities in the morning that makes you feel how wonderful it is to be alive and able to enjoy your favourite breakfast as soon as you wake up.

It was one of those days that I got too excited and woke up earlier than usual. It is indeed quite pleasant to visit at this hour as you can avoid the crowd and cut down on the waiting time tremendously. If you go after 8am, you will find yourself in the waiting list and sometime it is even difficult to find a seat! The business is so good that they usually sold out before 10am! Usually I'll order a big bowl which costs RM3. The small one which is RM2.50 each is never enough for me. It opens everyday except on Thursday.

Location: Intersection of Burmah Road and Moulmien Road, Pulau Tikus, Penang Island, Malaysia.

Cost: RM3.00 (BIG) RM2.50 (SMALL)

RATINGS

Food                                           : 5/5

Service                                        : 4/5

Atmosphere                                 : 2/5

Value for money                           : 4/5

Chances of going back for more   : 5/5 

OVERALL                                    : 4/5