Sarawak Laksa Recipe

One of the many must-try local foods if you visit Malaysia is the Sarawak Laksa - a favourite dish of the world-renowned chef, Anthony Bourdain. Anthony Bourdain was known for his love for Sarawak Laksa, which he claimed as ‘one of the foods served in heaven’ or 'breakfast of the gods'. In fact, Sarawak Laksa is in the Top 10 wish list of Anthony Bourdain's food market in New York.

Laksa is generally a Malaysian dish of Chinese origin, consisting of noodles or rice vermicelli with chicken, prawn or fish, served in hot spicy soup.

You probably have heard or tasted laksa but if you have never tried laksa from Singapore and from different states in Malaysia, this would probably come as a surprise - there are NOT JUST ONE, but many different versions of laksa, each of which were made with a special twist to the flavour and ingredient depending on the region they come from.

To name a few from Malaysia, there's the Penang Assam Laksa, Malaysian Curry Laksa, Nyonya Laksa, Johor Laksa, Laksam (or Kelantan Laksa), Terengganu Laksa and Sarawak Laksa. Singapore Curry Laksa, as its name implies, is from Singapore.

Sarawak Laksa was simply named after the Malaysian state of Sarawak, situated on northwest Borneo island. Sarawak Laksa is a popular breakfast choice for many locals in Sarawak. If you have never tried Sarawak Laksa or couldn't find it in your local area, we will show you how to prepare this delicacy.

Here's the recipe for six servings of delicious Sarawak Laksa...

Ingredients:

• 1 packet Sarawak Laksa paste (available for purchase below). We'll use the paste as it is much easier than preparing the broth from scratch. 
• 300 gm medium size prawns
• 500 gm chicken breasts
• 100 gm bean sprouts
• 4 eggs
• 5 to 6 calamansi limes
• 1 can of coconut milk (about 450g)
• 1 packet of rice vermicelli
• Light soy sauce and salt
• 1 small bunch coriander (for garnishing)

Not to worry if you don't have the paste. You can easily substitute it with the instant noodle available from our store (scroll down below for more info). They come with the dry noodle and instant soup powder for the broth!

Food preparation

1. First up, beat the eggs in a bowl and fry them thinly (like an omelette). Once they are cooked, removed them and slice into thin long strips.
2. Next, soak rice vermicelli in warm water for 5 mins or until soft. Then blanch it in boiling water for 1-2 minutes or until cooked. Drain well before serving.
3. Rince bean sprouts and chopped coriander and put aside.
4. Add prawns and roughly 1.5 litre of water into a pot. Then heat up the pot to bring it to a boil. Once the prawns are cooked, peel and leave them aside. Reserve the shells and roughly 200ml of prawn stock to cook the laksa broth.
5. Next, add chicken breasts and roughly 3 litres of water into a pot. Again, bring it to a boil. Once the chicken breasts are cooked, shred and leave them aside. Do not dispose of the chicken stock. You'll need it next.
6. Using the leftover chicken stock from step 5 above, add in Sarawak laksa paste, prawn stock, prawn shells and chicken stock and bring to a boil.
7. Sieve boiled broth to separate prawn shells from the broth. Then add in coconut milk and again, bring to a boil. Add light soy sauce or salt to taste. The broth is now ready

Preparing your Laksa bowl

1. Place rice vermicelli in a bowl, followed by shredded chicken breasts, omelette, prawns and bean sprouts. Then garnish it with coriander.
2. Pour hot laksa soup in the bowl.
3. Squeeze one lime into the soup just before eating for extra kick.
4. Your Laksa is now ready. Enjoy!

If you are a vegetarian, finding a vegetarian laksa in Australia can be difficult but don't fret! Our Sarawak Laksa paste is suitable for vegetarian. You can add in toppings such as omelette, mushrooms, tofu and mock meat/prawns.

Instant Laksa

If you want it simple and quick, the instant laksa is available from our online store (buy it below). All you need to do it just prepare the prawns, shredded chicken, sliced omelette, bean sprouts and coriander.

Reference: 

https://www.instagram.com/p/3P4tdFsIcw/?hl=en

https://www.thestar.com.my/news/nation/2016/02/20/sarawak-laksa-makes-wish-list/

http://www.theborneopost.com/2018/06/10/bourdain-made-sarawak-laksa-known-to-the-world/