Sungei Teku Tales : Heng Hua Pak Mee

A group of Heng Hua aunties gathered together in Miri recently for a fellowship and to demonstrate their Heng Hua Pak Mee.

It was a very interesting session for me because I have never ever eaten that noodle before even though I grew up with many Heng Huas and later lived with several families as neighbors. I remember most my good friend Siew Chuo who  sent over many great Heng Hua dishes when we were living in Airport Road, Lane 1, Sibu. Siew Chuo is an excellent cook.



However most of us know that with our modern technology and off the supermarket instant noodles, very few Heng Hua ladies actually make Pak Mee from scratch because of time constraints. Besides it might even be rather pointless to make the traditional noodles for a generation which appreciate KFC or Pizzas more!!






Heng Hua Pak Mee originated in Putien region of China and perhaps even earlier than that when the original Heng Huas lived in Henan region before moving south. Hence the use of wheat flour.

The ingredients for the noodle dough is very simple:
1 kg good wheat flour (minus a few spoons for dusting)
2 eggs
some salt
some water

Knead the dough until smooth (Hence a lot of hitting or pak).
When done, flatten the dough into thin layers and fold and cut into small threads, as narrow as your knife skills allow.

Soup base
1 tin of oysters
some braised pork with sauce (cooked the preveious day)
pepper
onions, garlic and ginger
moringa leaves
spring onions,
eggs (made into omelette and then shreaded)
any other ingredients you may like to add.

What a nice dish to make for new year!!

(Sharing recipes is always a joy in my life's journeys. I thank so many friends who are passionate about their own culture, relatives and who go all out to bring people together. The more we relate to each other the better will be our mental health. But however, there will always be certain social restrictions and sensitivities we must take care of.)