Tomato Kuey Tiaw (Special)

With those massive price increase in almost everything in Kuching, Greg and I decided to resort to order Special for everything, since the price of normal is close to special anyway. Tomato Kuey Tiaw/Mee is another very Kuching thingy. When Mag and Hon came for a trip two years back, they said you Sarawakians cooked mee with tomato sauce, must try. In KK, my Aunt Linda for some interesting reasons brought us to eat this and the cook is from Sarawak (like we missed Sarawak only after two days).

There are couple of famous Tomato Kuey Tiaw/Mee (in Hokkien: Keo Chap Mee or Kuey Tiaw) places in Kuching. CK loves the Sekama ones and Hui Sing Garden Hawker Place has very nice ones too. It is really quite a nice dish if you like that sweet-sourish taste combined with nicely fried Kuey Tiaw or Mee.

CI and Ad: If you guys miss this, here is the recipe!


The Kuey Tiaw:
1 packet (approx 250 gm) of Kuey Tiaw/ Hor Fun
1 teasp of minced garlic
2-3 tbsp of dark soya
1-2 tbsp of cooking oil

1) With highest heat your stove can manage, heat wok with oil, add garlic and Kuey Tiaw. Toss with two metal spatulas. Add soya and continue tossing until Kuey Tiaw 'gets the wok's heat'. Dish out on the serving plate.

The Sauce:
5-6 tbsp of tomato sauce (less if you like it less sour and vice versa)
1 tbsp of light soya
1 -2 tbsp of cornstarch with 2-3 tbsp of water
1 tbsp of sugar
1 teasp of salt
pepper to taste
msg (optional)
3 1/2 cups of superior stock (can use 1 no chicken stock or 4 cups of water boiled with soup chicken and pork bones and 1 small stock of spring onion for more than an hour)
100gm of chicken meat, sliced and seasoned with salt, pepper and cornstarch
3 no of dried fungus, soaked and sliced
2 stalk of choy sum
10- 14 nos of pork balls/fish balls/fish cake slices (optional 1)
small piece of char siew (optional 2)
8 to 10 pcs of medium prawns, shelled and deveined (optional 3)
8 to 10 pcs of deep fry fish fillet (optional 4)
1 tbsp or more of cooking oil
1 tbsp of minced garlic

2) Heat the same wok with extra oil. Add minced garlic. Fry till fragrant not burnt. Add chicken meat, fungus and optional 1. Continue stir frying.

3) Add superior stock. Boil mixure. When boiling, add choy sum and optional 3.

4) Add tomato sauce, light soya, sugar and cornstarch mixture. Boil till sauce thickens. Salt and pepper to taste, more cornstarch if you like sauce thicker.

5) Scoop sauce onto fried kuey tiaw/mee, topped with Optional 2 and/or 4.

6) Serve with pickled chilli sauce with dark soya.