Char kway teow

This article is about the Chinese noodle dish usually served in Malaysia and Singapore. For the similarly named Indonesian noodle dish, see kwetiau goreng.

Not to be confused with the pastry you char kway or the snack chai tow kway.

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 and Singapore (adaptation)
Region or state	Southeast Asia
Associated cuisine	Malaysia and Singapore
Created by	Overseas Chinese laborers in Southeast Asia
Main ingredients	Shahe fen, light and dark soy sauce, chili paste, belachan, whole prawns, deshelled blood cockles, bean sprouts, Chinese chives, Chinese sausage
Media: Char kway teow

Char kway teow
Traditional Chinese	炒粿條
Simplified Chinese	炒粿条
Literal meaning	stir-fry ricecake strips (i.e. stir-fried ricecake strips)
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin chǎo guǒ tiáo Yue: Cantonese Yale Romanization cháau gwó tìuh Jyutping caau2 gwo2 tiu4 Southern Min Hokkien POJ chhá-kóe-tiâu Tâi-lô tshá-kué-tiâu
Alternative name in Cantonese-speaking regions
Traditional Chinese	炒貴刁
Simplified Chinese	炒贵刁
Literal meaning	transcription from the original name pronunciation in Hokkien (Min Nan)
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin chǎo guì diāo Yue: Cantonese Yale Romanization cháau gwai dīu Jyutping caau2 gwai3 diu1

Char kway teow (sometimes also spelled as char kuey teow, Chinese: 炒粿條; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: chhá-kóe-tiâu) is a stir-fried rice noodle dish from Maritime Southeast Asia of southern Chinese origin. In Hokkien and Teochew, char means 'stir-fried' and kway teow refers to flat rice noodles. It is made from flat rice noodles (Chinese: 河粉; pinyin: hé fěn; Cantonese Yale: hó fán) or kway 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 and dark soy sauce, chili paste, whole prawns, shelled blood cockles, chopped Chinese chives, slices of Chinese sausage, and bean sprouts. Other common ingredients include fishcake and belachan.

Originally developed and catered to overseas-born Chinese labourers in the Southeast Asia region, the dish has achieved widespread popularity within the region from the late 20th century onwards, particularly in Malaysia and Singapore. The dish has also acquired a reputation of being unhealthy due to its high saturated fat content, as it is traditionally stir-fried in pork fat with crisp croutons of pork lard.

History and etymology

The dish was often sold by fishermen, farmers and cockle-gatherers who doubled as char kway teow hawkers in the evening to supplement their income. The high fat content and low cost of the dish made it attractive to these people as it was a cheap source of energy and nutrients.

The term "char kway teow" is a transliteration of the Chinese characters 炒粿條 (in simplified Chinese 炒粿条). The dish's name is Hokkien (chhá-kóe-tiâu^?), but the dish may have its roots in Chaozhou in China's Guangdong province and is mostly associated with the Teochew. The word kóe-tiâu (literally meaning "ricecake strips") generally refers to flat rice noodles, which are the usual ingredient in Singapore and West Malaysia. There is no fixed way of spelling chhá-kóe-tiâu, and many variants can be found: examples include "char kueh teow", "char kuey teow", "char koay teow", "char kueh tiao", "char kuay tiaw", "char kueh tiaw" and so on.

The dish is sometimes called kwetiau goreng or kuetiau goreng in Malay, which conveys the same meaning. In March 2021, Dewan Bahasa and Pustaka (DBP), Malaysia's authority on standardised Malay, formally declared that the proper spelling of flat rice noodles in Malaysian Malay is kuetiau. In Indonesia, the dish is generally called kwetiau goreng, although some regions use the term mitiau instead of kwetiau. Conversely, kuetiau is rarely used in Singapore, with kway teow being used instead.

Owing to the dish's popularity and spread to Cantonese-speaking areas, the term "char kway teow" has been corrupted 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" in Min Nan.

Variations

"Gourmet" versions of char kway teow, in which the dish may be prepared with more seafood, with crab meat and with duck eggs, may be found in major Malaysian cities like Ipoh and Penang. In Penang, char kway teow is commonly served on a piece of banana leaf on a plate, which is intended to enhance the aroma of the dish.

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

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

Many Southeast Asian restaurants in Hong Kong offer char kway teow as an overseas specialty, although it is of Southeast Asian Chinese origin. The char kway teow offered in Chinese restaurants which serve Hong Kong-style Cantonese 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. In some places this is known as Fried "Good Dale", a transliteration of the characters "炒貴刁".

Gallery

• 
  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 Singapore carnival

See also

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