Recipes

Seafood Mee Goreng (Malay Style)

Mee goreng is the ultimate Malaysian mamak wok-tossed noodle — springy yellow noodles fried hard and fast with a smoky spice paste, sweet-savory sauces, and a kiss of wok hei. This seafood version loads it up with prawns, squid, and fish cake, then finishes with a squeeze of lime and a shower of crispy fried shallots. It comes together in one pan in about 20 minutes.

Prep time: 15 min · Cook time: 10 min · Serves: 2–3

Ingredients

Noodles & seafood

500 g yellow noodles (mee kuning), rinsed and drained
200 g prawns, peeled and deveined (tails on for looks)
200 g squid, cleaned and cut into rings
100 g fish cake, sliced
2 eggs
1 cup bean sprouts
1 cup shredded cabbage (or choy sum)
1 stalk Chinese chives (kuchai), cut into 3 cm lengths
1 red onion, sliced
2 green chilies, sliced (optional, for heat)
Calamansi or lime wedges, to serve
Fried shallots, for garnish

Spice paste (blended)

5 shallots
3 cloves garlic
1-inch piece ginger
4 dried red chilies (soaked), or 1 tbsp chili paste
1 tsp belacan (shrimp paste), toasted — optional but authentic

Sauces (mix in a bowl)

2 tbsp sweet soy sauce (kicap manis)
1 tbsp tomato ketchup
1 tbsp chili sauce
1 tbsp light soy sauce
1 tsp sugar
2 tbsp water

Equipment

Large wok or heavy skillet
Mortar & pestle or blender for the paste
High smoke-point oil (vegetable or peanut)

Step 1 — Blend the spice paste

Pound or blend the shallots, garlic, ginger, chilies, and belacan into a coarse wet paste. Set aside.

Step 2 — Mix the sauce

Stir together the sweet soy sauce, ketchup, chili sauce, light soy, sugar, and water in a small bowl so it's ready to splash in during the stir-fry.

Step 3 — Sear the seafood

Heat 1 tbsp oil in the wok over high heat. Toss in the prawns and squid for 30–45 seconds until just opaque — do not overcook. Add the fish cake for a few seconds. Tip out onto a plate; they go back in at the end.

Step 4 — Fry the paste

Add another 2 tbsp oil to the wok. Fry the blended paste with the sliced onion and green chilies over medium-high heat, stirring, until fragrant and the raw edge is gone — about 2 minutes. You want it to darken slightly and smell toasty.

Step 5 — Noodles and sauce

Add the drained yellow noodles and pour the sauce bowl over them. Toss with a pair of chopsticks and a spatula, lifting and folding so the noodles soak up the color. Fry 1–2 minutes until glossy and slightly charred in spots.

Step 6 — The egg

Push the noodles to one side of the wok. Crack in the eggs, scramble lightly, then fold them through the noodles for 30 seconds.

Step 7 — Finish with seafood and veg

Return the seafood to the wok. Add bean sprouts, cabbage, and chives. Toss just until the veg wilts but stays crunchy — 30–45 seconds. Taste and adjust with a dash more soy or a pinch of sugar.

Step 8 — Serve

Pile into bowls. Finish with a squeeze of calamansi/lime, a generous scatter of fried shallots, and extra chili sauce on the side.

Pro tips

Mee kuning is wet. Rinse briefly and drain well; too much water steams the noodles instead of frying them.
High heat, fast hands. Mee goreng lives on wok hei — keep the flame up and don't crowd the pan.
Don't overcook the seafood. A quick sear now and a 30-second reheat at the end keeps it tender.
Belacan is the soul. Skip it if you must, but a toasted tsp is what makes it taste like the mamak stall.

Why this works

The spice paste builds a savory-sweet base, the sweet soy gives stickiness and color, and the lime at the end cuts through the richness. Cooking the seafood separately and adding it last means every piece lands at the table perfectly done.