Char kway teow

Char kway teow at a hawker centre in Singapore
Alternative names	Char kuey teow
Type	Shahe fen
Place of origin	China (original) Malaysia[1] andSingapore[2] (adaptation)
Region or state	Southeast Asia[1][2]
Associatedcuisine	Malaysia andSingapore
Created by	Overseas Chinese laborers in Southeast Asia
Main ingredients	Shahe fen, light and darksoy sauce,chili paste,belachan, wholeprawns, deshelledblood cockles,bean sprouts,Chinese chives,Chinese sausage
Media: Char kway teow

Char kway teow (sometimes also spelled aschar kuey teow,Chinese:炒粿條;Pe̍h-ōe-jī:chhá-kóe-tiâu) is astir-friedrice noodle dish fromMaritime Southeast Asia ofsouthern Chinese origin.^[3][1] InHokkien andTeochew,char means 'stir-fried' andkway teow refers to flat rice noodles.^[4] It is made fromflat rice noodles (Chinese:河粉;pinyin:hé fěn;Cantonese Yale:hó fán) orkway teow (Chinese:粿條;Pe̍h-ōe-jī:kóe-tiâu;pinyin:guǒ tiáo;Cantonese Yale:gwó tìuh) of approximately 1 cm or about 0.5 cm in width, stir-fried over very high heat with garlic, light anddark soy sauce, chili paste, wholeprawns, shelledblood cockles, choppedChinese chives, slices ofChinese sausage, andbean sprouts.^[5][6] Other common ingredients includefishcake andbelachan.^[6]

Originally developed and catered tooverseas-born Chineselabourers in theSoutheast Asia region, the dish has achieved widespread popularity within the region from the late 20th century onwards, particularly inMalaysia andSingapore. The dish has also acquired a reputation of being unhealthy due to its highsaturated fat content, as it is traditionally stir-fried in pork fat with crisp croutons of porklard.

The dish was often sold byfishermen, farmers and cockle-gatherers who doubled aschar kway teow hawkers in the evening to supplement their income.^[7] The high fat content and low cost of the dish made it attractive to these people as it was a cheap source of energy andnutrients.^[8]

The termchar kway teow is a transliteration of theChinese characters 炒粿條 (in simplified Chinese 炒粿条). The dish's name isHokkien (chhá-kóe-tiâu^?), but the dish may have its roots inChaozhou in China'sGuangdong province and is mostly associated with theTeochew.^[2] The wordkóe-tiâu (literally meaning "ricecake strips") generally refers toflat rice noodles, which are the usual ingredient in Singapore and West Malaysia. There is no fixed way of spellingchhá-kóe-tiâu, and many variants can be found: examples includechar kueh teow,char kuey teow,char koay teow,char kueh tiao,char kuay tiaw,char kueh tiaw and so on.^[9]

The dish is sometimes calledkwetiau goreng orkuetiau goreng inMalay, which conveys the same meaning.^[10] In some regions of Indonesia,^[where?] the dish is calledmitiau goreng.^{[citation needed]}

Owing to the dish's popularity and spread to Cantonese-speaking areas, the termchar kway teow has beencorrupted into炒貴刁 (Cantonese Yale:cháau gwai dīu;pinyin:cháo guì diāo) when presented in the aforementioned areas. The term貴刁 has no real meaning, but its pronunciation in Cantonese and Mandarin is similar to粿條 inMin Nan.

"Gourmet" versions ofchar kway teow, in which the dish may be prepared with more seafood, with crab meat^[11] and with duck eggs, may be found in major Malaysian cities likeIpoh andPenang.^[12] In Penang,char kway teow is commonly served on a piece ofbanana leaf on a plate, which is intended to enhance the aroma of the dish.^[13]

Char kway teow is a popular, inexpensive dish usually eaten for breakfast and sold at food stalls in Malaysia and Singapore.^[14] Blood cockles and prawns are standard fare in typical hawker preparations, while more expensive or luxurious versions incorporate cuttlefish, squid, and lobster meat. Singaporean stylechar kway teow mixes yellow wheat noodles with flat rice noodles. Some cooks prepare more health-conscious versions with extra vegetables and less oil.^[6]

Char kway teow prepared by Muslims in Malaysia and Singapore excludes lard and pork products, and may incorporate alternative ingredients like beef or chicken.^[5][10] Some versions byMalay cooks may emphasise the use ofkerang (Malay for cockles) as a key ingredient, and it may be prepared with or without gravy.^[15][16]

Many Southeast Asian restaurants in Hong Kong offerchar kway teow as an overseas specialty, although it is of Southeast Asian Chinese origin. Thechar kway teow offered in Chinese restaurants which serve Hong Kong-styleCantonese cuisine is an entirely different dish: stir-fried Chinese-style flat rice noodles with prawns,char siu, onions, and bean sprouts, seasoned with curry powder which renders it bright yellow in colour.^[17] In some places this is known asFried "Good Dale", a transliteration of the characters "炒貴刁".^[18][17]

• 
  A large serving of char kway teow
• 
  Singaporean-style char kway teow, cooked with a mixture of yellow wheat noodles and flat rice noodles
• 
  Penang-style char kway teow, here served on a piece of banana leaf
• 
  Small plates of char kway teow served at a Singaporecarnival

• Beef chow fun
• Chinese noodles
• Mee goreng
• Mie goreng
• Otchahoi
• Pad thai
• Pad see ew
• Kuai tiao

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• Singaporean noodle dishes

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