🇲🇾 Malaysia · Sarawak (Borneo)
Sarawak laksaSarawak prawn and chicken laksa
The laksa of Sarawak: rice vermicelli in a prawn-and-chicken broth built on a sambal belacan, tamarind and lemongrass paste with a little coconut milk, topped with omelette strips, shredded chicken, prawns and bean sprouts, with lime and sambal.
Origin and history
Most Malaysian states have a laksa of their own, usually shaped by one community's cooking. Sarawak's is described as drawing on the blended tastes of Borneo's many communities, and its base is sambal belacan with tamarind, garlic, galangal and lemongrass, lightly thickened with coconut milk. In 2015, Anthony Bourdain called it 'Breakfast of the Gods' after eating it at a Kuching coffee shop, which brought it wider international attention.
Make it at home
- Makes
- 6 servings
- Total time
- 1 h 45 min
- Hands-on
- 1 h
Ingredients
- 750 g1.7 lb bone-in chicken thighs, for the stock and the topping
- 500 g1.1 lb medium prawns, shell on; shells and heads go in the stock, tails left on or peeled for the bowl
- 1.5 liters1 1/2 quarts water
- 10 shallots, for the paste
- 5 cloves garlic, for the paste
- 2 stalks lemongrass, white part only, for the paste
- 5 cm2 inches galangal, sliced, for the paste
- 10 dried red chilies, soaked in hot water for 15 minutes, drained, for the paste
- 1 tbsp belacan (shrimp paste), toasted until crumbly, for the paste
- 3 tbsp tamarind paste, for the paste
- 1 tbsp ground coriander, for the paste
- 1 tbsp ground cumin, for the paste
- 4 tbsp neutral oil, for frying the paste
- 300 ml1 1/4 cups coconut milk, only a moderate amount, to lightly enrich the broth
- salt and palm or brown sugar, to taste
- 300 g10 oz dried rice vermicelli (bee hoon), the thin kind
- 4 eggs, for omelette strips
- 150 g5 oz bean sprouts, blanched for 30 seconds
- coriander leaves, limes (or calamansi) and sambal belacan, to serve
Method
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1. Brown the chicken lightly in a pot with a spoonful of oil, add the prawn shells and heads and the water, and simmer for 40 minutes. Strain the stock, shred the chicken meat finely and discard the bones and shells.
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2. Poach the prawns in the hot stock for 2 to 3 minutes until pink. Lift them out and set aside.
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3. Blend the shallots, garlic, lemongrass, galangal, soaked chilies, toasted belacan, tamarind, coriander and cumin to a smooth paste, adding a splash of water if needed.
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4. Heat the oil in a large pot and fry the paste on medium-low heat for about 20 minutes, stirring often, until it is very fragrant and the oil separates from it.
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5. Pour in the stock and simmer for 15 minutes. Stir in the coconut milk, season with salt and a little sugar, and keep at a very gentle simmer for a few minutes without boiling hard.
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6. Soak the vermicelli in boiling water until soft, about 5 minutes, and drain. Blanch the bean sprouts for 30 seconds.
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7. Beat the eggs with a pinch of salt, cook them in a lightly oiled pan as thin sheets, stack, roll and slice into thin strips.
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8. Put noodles in each bowl, top with chicken, prawns, omelette strips, bean sprouts and coriander, and ladle over the hot broth. Serve with limes and sambal belacan.
Notes
- How it differs from the parent: the parent laksa is a thick coconut curry made on a dried shrimp and candlenut rempah with thick noodles. Sarawak laksa is built on a belacan, tamarind, lemongrass and galangal paste, with only a light amount of coconut milk, and uses thinner rice vermicelli.
- The paste can be made in a double batch and frozen.
- Several recipes add whole spices (star anise, cardamom, clove) to the stock, and one adds roasted peanuts or candlenuts to the paste; these are variations, not essential.
- Toppings vary: tofu puffs, julienned cucumber, mint or lettuce also appear. Serve the toppings in separate bowls so each person assembles their own.
- A good bowl balances salt, heat, sourness, savoury depth and sweetness; adjust with tamarind, sugar and salt at the end.
Adapted from New Straits Times, How to prepare Sarawak Laksa, SBS Food (Adam Liaw), Sarawak Laksa, and Sarawak Tourism Board, How to make Borneo's Breakfast of the Gods.
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