GEORGE TOWN, Feb 14 — The Hainanese choon piah is one of the traditional Hainanese dishes that used to be quite common at most Hainan restaurants in Penang but today, it is another delicacy that is becoming rare.

Not to be confused with the ubiquitous deep-fried popiah, the choon piah is thicker with a different mix of ingredients and flavours.

Though both delicacies are called spring rolls in English and both are deep fried for a crunchy consistency, both differ in tastes and flavours.

Hainanese choon piah uses a thicker crepe-like skin and its ingredients are more cabbage-based compared to the popiah.

The choon piah filling is made up of cabbage, jicama, carrots, onions, shrimps and pork or chicken.

These ingredients are first shredded while the shrimps and pork or chicken are minced and seasoned with five spice powder. These are then stir fried together till fragrant before it is wrapped into thick rolls using the crepe skin.

The wrapped rolls are finally deep fried to a golden brown and served hot. Due to the thickness of the choon piah, the rolls are usually sliced into bite-size pieces to be served with a dipping sauce.

Unlike the popiah which is usually served with sweet chilli sauce, the Hainanese choon piah is served with a special sauce.The dipping sauce is usually a salty, sour and spicy concoction made from Worcestershire sauce chopped bird’s eye chilli or cili padi.

Biting into the choon piah brings forth a burst of flavours from the crispy skin to the sweet fresh taste of the cabbage, jicama and carrots perfectly contrasted by the sour and spicy sauce.

Nowadays, it is not easy to get a taste this delicacy save for a few places in Penang. These are the places to try it:

Taman Sireh open air hawker area,

Lengkok Burmah, Pulau Tikus

GPS: 5.427782, 100.314718

Time: 11am-3pm

This stall used to operate the cafe at the Senior Citizens Association and they are very well known for their Hainanese choon piah. The dipping sauce is their own special recipe which is not only made from Worcestershire sauce but a mix of several types of sauces.

New Ninety Nine Cafe, Jalan Lembah Permai, Tanjung Bungah

GPS: 5.458578, 100.282436

Time: 11am-3pm

This small stall within a coffee shop is relatively new and their choon piah is smaller compared to the others.

Long Beach Food Court, Batu Ferringhi

GPS: 5.475088, 100.249819

Time: 7pm-11pm

The choon piah here is the thickest and comes with a simpler Worcestershire sauce that’s not so spicy.

Pulau Tikus market, Jalan Pasar, Pulau Tikus

GPS: 5.430645, 100.311947

Time: 7pm-10pm

The choon piah at this stall, located at the hawker site at the Pulau Tikus market is similar to the one at Taman Sireh.