A Southeast Asian Chinese Dish

Most Chinese in Mainland China or for that matter, Chinese outside Southeast Asia; may neither heard nor tasted char koay teow 炒粿條 even though this noodle dish is a Chinese invention. This dish was created by immigrants as cheap treats for labourers in Penang during the colonial days. Char koay teow is flat rice noodles  stir-fried over very high heat with light and dark soy sauce. Chilli, prawns, cockles, Chinese chives, Chinese sausage, fishcake, bean sprouts are optional ingredients. The dish is said to be unhealthy because of its high saturated fat content but that doesn't stop it from becoming a national favourite in Malaysia and Singapore. In Penang especially, visitors are encouraged to try out the dish there; and there is this video in the local Penang Hokkien dialect introducing several places serving delicious  char koay teow which you may be interested in:


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