KUALA LUMPUR, July 8 — Mention curry noodles and usually words like chicken or pork will roll off your tongue. How about mutton? At this stall located in the popular Restoran Leong Wei in Kuchai Entrepreneurs Park, you’ll find this unusual version, created by David Yong Kook Chong. It’s his way to stand out from the other hawkers.
The 66-year-old opened this stall about 20 years ago, after he returned from overseas. In his younger days, he had wandered around Europe after hitchhiking there.
He found himself in Hamburg where he started to working in a Chinese restaurant. After 10 years there, he moved to Australia where he ran his own car wash company. Just before he came back here, he did two years in Indonesia. Armed with his culinary experience, he had first ventured into the dim sum business.
When that did not take off, he set up this stall, using recipes that he picked up along the way in his culinary career.
Go for the mutton curry noodles when you’re here. It may have a fiery red hue but it’s mild tasting. What makes the curry incredibly delicious is the mutton broth base eked from boiling for about three hours. Usually, he keeps it overnight, allowing the flavours to develop further.
The day it’s to be served, he’ll heat it up for one hour. What makes it nicer are the tender pieces of Australian-sourced mutton.
If you prefer a cleaner taste, try the Shao Xing wine chicken noodles. The comforting bowl warms the body with its own-made chicken broth, fragrant rice wine, fresh ginger strips and spring onions.
Yong explains it’s a delicate balance of adding the aromatic Shao Xing rice wine: too much and it may become bitter, too little and it’s not fragrant.
He also went through many tries to score a bottle of rice wine that fits that purpose. Luckily, his friend recommended one which works for him. This bowl of noodles is a popular choice among pregnant women. Order this with their smooth, flat rice noodles or hor fun.
In addition, there’s Xi Chuan pork chop noodles, a crowd favourite. Yong’s interpretation of these spicy noodles uses his own chilli paste, cooked from blended bird’s-eye chillies, for a fiery kick.
He pairs the pieces of marinated, fried pork chop with pickled mustard cabbage stems. There’s the dry and soup version, depending on what you like. A version that is popular among young children uses minced meat.
For those who prefer strands with more bite, go for the flat, wider yellow noodles. These noodles have less alkaline taste, making them more palatable too. If you like, there is also braised pork trotters to go with your choice of noodles.
Prices for the noodles range from RM5 to RM8, depending on their order sizes.
Pork Ribs Mee Stall
Restoran Leong Wei
No. 44, Jalan Kuchai Maju 14
Kuchai Entrepreneurs Park
Kuala Lumpur
Open: 7am to 1.30pm
Closed on alternate Mondays. Note, it will be closed on July 9.
