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KL Hokkien Mee is a must-try dish from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Famous for its dark, rich sauce and chewy noodles, this recipe is made with pork fat for an authentic flavor.
KL Hokkien Mee Recipe
KL Hokkien Mee is a classic dish that truly represents the vibrant food scene in Kuala Lumpur. This popular noodle dish comes with thick, chewy noodles stir-fried with pork, prawn, and a rich dark soy sauce. What sets KL Hokkien Mee apart is its smoky flavor and satisfying texture. It’s often served with crispy pork lard and a spicy sambal on the side, adding an extra layer of taste. If you’re exploring Malaysian cuisine, KL Hokkien Mee is a must-try, offering a delicious taste of Kuala Lumpur’s culinary heritage.
Different Types Of Hokkien Mee
KL Hokkien Mee is different from the Singaporea Hokkien Mee and Penang Hokkien Mee. The KL version is famous for its dark, flavorful sauce. The thick noodles are braised in this rich sauce, giving them a unique, aromatic taste.
Secret Ingredient
The secret to an authentic KL Hokkien Mee is the pork fat, which you should be able to get from your butcher. Pork fat adds an incredible depth of flavor to the dish, making it irresistibly tasty. If pork fat isn’t available, you can use a piece of pork belly with a good layer of fat on top as a substitute.
Sidenote: Pork fat and pork lard are similar but not identical. Pork fat is the raw fat from a pig, while pork lard is fat that has been fried and strained. Lard is often used for its rich flavor. For KL Hokkien Mee, pork lard adds great taste and texture.
Frequently Asked Questions
This recipe is only 554 calories per serving.
This recipe is contributed by Karen Low.
Other Popular Street Food Noodles
Here are a few popular Chinese noodles found in Malaysia:
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KL Hokkien Mee
Ingredients
- 200 g (7 oz) pork belly
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 2 tablespoons water
Pork Belly Marinade:
- 2 cloves garlic, crushed
- ground white pepper, to taste
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- ½ teaspoon oyster sauce
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch
Other Ingredients:
- 2 tablespoons pork oil , recipe below
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 12 medium-sized shrimp, shelled, deveined and tails removed
- fish balls, sliced into halves
- 1 cup packed sliced Napa cabbage
- 250 g (8 oz) thick hokkien noodles
- 4 tablespoons dark soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce, to taste
- 3/4 cup chicken or pork stock
- 2 teaspoons sugar
- ground white pepper, to taste
- pork lard/chu yau cha, recipe below
- sambal, for serving
Instructions
- Prepare the pork belly by removing the skin and separating the fat from the meat. Slice the meat into 1-cm pieces and mix it with the ingredients in the Pork Belly Marinade. Let it marinate for 30 minutes. While the pork marinates, cook the noodles according to the package instructions, then drain and set aside.
- In a small bowl, mix the cornstarch and water until smooth. Set aside.
Making Pork Oil and Pork Lard:
- Dice the pork fat into small cubes or lardons. Heat a wok over medium to high heat. Add the diced pork fat and cook until it turns crispy and golden, rendering the fat into pork lard.
- Remove the crispy pork lard (chu yau cha) from the oil and drain it on paper towels. Once cooled, store the pork lard in an airtight container or jar. Pour the pork oil into a sterilized, airtight glass jar for storage
Making KL Hokkien Mee:
- Heat a wok over high heat and add about 2 tablespoons of pork oil, heating it until it starts to smoke. Add the marinated pork belly and fry quickly, being cautious of the hot, spitting oil. Once the pork is just browned, add the garlic, shrimp, and fish balls, and stir-fry for about 30 seconds. Toss in the Napa cabbage and cook for another 10 seconds. Finally, add the noodles and give everything a quick toss.
- Add the dark soy sauce and soy sauce to the wok, mixing well to coat the noodles. If the color isn’t dark enough, add more dark soy sauce. Pour in the stock, sprinkle in the sugar and white pepper, and add a small handful of pork lard. Stir-fry to combine everything thoroughly. Taste the sauce and adjust the saltiness and sweetness to your liking.
- Add the cornstarch mixture to the wok and toss until the sauce thickens and evenly coats the noodles. Serve the noodles on plates and spoon the gravy over the top. Garnish with additional chu yau cha if desired, along with a spoonful of sambal.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I love the Rasa Malaysia recipes, and while I enjoy the Locla foods and all the noodle dishes when visiting KL, I also try to duplicate these in India where I live. What noodles do you use for Hokkien mee? I love the texture and the flavour, but in India I have not seen these thick noodles. Also being on a wheat gluten free diet restricts me normally to rice noodle versions of all. Would this work with thick rice noodles?
You have to use the fat noodles, if not, you can try udon noodles.
Amazing! I cooked the pork in sous vide for 24 hours and used duck fat instead of lard but will get some guanciale to make lardons and get pork fat next time! Thanks for an amazing recipe, which I’ll follow more closely next time (will probably use the sous vide again for the pork belly)
Thanks.
Can you make a recipe for the sambal belacan for the Hokkien Mee?
Thanks!!
I followed your recipe. Improvised a little by adding diced onions, carrots and eggs to further enhance it. Taste soooo good. Though I did not have pork belly, I used pork fillet. It tastes just as good. Thank you for sharing this recipe. Since covid, not able to be back to Malaysia but glad the taste is similar (or better). ??
Thanks for your trying!
What’s the difference between hokkien mee and mee hailam other than it’s name
Mee hailam is not black in color whereas KL Hokkien mee is very dark in color.
Thank you for sharing, like you upon arrival in KL first meal will be Hockkien Mee. I must try this recipe looks authentic.
Enjoy!
Hokkein mee in KL is my all time favourite next to Hainanese chicken rice, but I have to be careful not to eat it too often (the lard!).
There are many excellent food stalls serving it in Jalan Alor (central KL) or in PJ.
Thank you for the recipe. I will try this tomorrow!
Hi Bee!
I can’t wait to make Hokkien Mee at home but I was wondering if you know of any good alternatives to pork belly/pork oil. Due to certain health conditions, I’m trying to limit my intake of pork belly.
Thanks in advance!
Any cooking oil is fine.
Well, all you can do is not to eat Hokkein mee in KL, any substitute would be disappointing.
Or eat it just once every few months…?
Made this noodle dish yesterday with the Thai black soy sauce. Included lard oil, crispy lardons and sambal belacan as suggested. We loved it. Added 1/2 tsp Japanese (hon)dashi powder as well, since I read that in earlier days Malaysians added dried Sole powder or dried Flounder powder (not available where I live) to this dish.
Used boiled spaghetti and baby octopus instead. Tasted as good as ah hwa. No sambal belacan required
I followed your recipe exactly and it tasted almost 100% like my favourite hokkien mee in PJ. Keep it up !
Obviously the “wok hei” taste is hard to emulate in a home setting.
Awesome!
I followed your recipe exactly and it tasted almost 100% like my favourite hokkien mee in PJ. Keep it up !
Obviously the “wok hei” taste is hard to emulate in a home setting.