Koay teow (flat thin rice noodle) th’ng (soup) is the favourite food for Penang people we can eat it for breakfast, lunch and dinner. The noodles are usually blanched first, then garnished with parboiled pork or chicken meat, sliced fish cakes, fish balls and a sprinkling of chopped scallions and some golden crisp-fried chopped garlic in oil.

Grandma’s koay teow soup method is a combination of pork bones, chicken, chicken feet’s, ikan bilis (dried anchovy) and duck. Her protein garnishing’s are chicken meat, chicken innards, fish balls. The soup looks plain but it packs a full delicious sweet savoury umami punch. The specialty of all koay teow th’ng is not in the soup, it not in the koay teow but is the fish balls. The fish balls are specially made by the owners themselves and of course contain secret recipe that make the fish balls delicious.

I am making it with chicken drumsticks soup base that my mother had taught me. This time I didn’t have Thai fish cakes, cut chilies and chili sauce. I have added extra pork balls, and chicken meat, and change the vegetables, I add buk choy. The soup is delicious, comforting with each mouthful bring me back to my memoirs of truly having authentic koay teow th’ng (soup) in Malaysia, Penang. Hopefully one day, I can go back and eat it every day. Let’s cook!!!

Ingredients

2 packets thin koay teow
3 packets pork balls
10-12 cabbage leaves, cut to bite size
2-4 bunches of buk choy, cut into bite size

Drumsticks stock
12 drumsticks
4-6 c water, just enough to cover the drumsticks slightly above 1”
6 garlic cloves, lightly smashed
1 L chicken stock (bought)
2 Tsp chicken powder stock (OPT)
black peppercorns, pound a bit

Garnish
40 g chopped garlic
1/8 c vegetables oil

Method

Do chicken stock one day in advance

In a pot, add drumsticks, 4 c water and bring it to a simmer on low heat about 35 minutes. As it simmers, skim the foam (impurities) off the top with a fine-mesh skimmer or a spoon. When time up 35 minutes simmering drumsticks stock, strain stock through sieve into another pot. (I usually line it with a muslin cloth).

Add remaining stock ingredients into pot with drumsticks and lower the heat to simmer very gently for 1-2.5 hours. The longer the stock, the more flavour it will have, but the drumsticks will lose flavour. Remove the drumsticks from the pot once it has cooked.

Let drumsticks cool and remove meat from bones, and set aside. Keep in an airtight container in fridge. Add in 1 L chicken stock, 1-2 c water; if you want more soup, and powder stock into stock for more flavour. Bring it to boil for about 20-25 minutes and check seasoning. Switch off hob. When the stock had cool completely, store the whole pot in fridge. I like it to be overnight to absorb more flavour.

The following day

Microwave each packet of koay teow for easy to tear it into strips. When finished tearing koay teow, bring kettle to boil; blanch them quickly in boiling water till softened and then drained. Divide koay teow into serving bowls. Bring out the drumstick stock pot reheat until warm through and gives a couple of stirs about 20 minutes. Remove lid add in buk choy, and cabbage cook for about 20 minutes until buk choy and cabbage are cooked.

Meantime, put oil and chopped garlic in a deep bowl with a saucer and microwaves it 30 seconds for 3-4 times, stir in between until garlic is golden crispy. Don’t burn it and be careful, oil will splutter, I use a plate to cover the bowl.

Next add pork balls and chicken pieces into the soup and cook for about 5 minutes, until pork balls are cooked puffed up and chicken pieces are warmed up. Warm up serving bowls with koay teow in microwave for 1-2 minutes. Ladle 2 ladles or more soup with all the ingredients into warmed up koay teow serving bowls. Spoon the golden crisp-fried chopped garlic in oil. Serve immediately with a glass of white wine. Enjoy!!!!

Note: Keep chicken pieces extra in an airtight container in fridge for 2-4 days. To have more stock for next day or two add in 1-2 extra cup of water and 1-2 Tsp powder stock into stock. Bring it to boil and check seasoning. Switch off hob. If you have leftover stock and when the stock had cool completely, spoon into sterilized jars with tight lids, label name and date make before you refrigerate them.

When you want the chicken pieces, use a clean dry spoon to scoop the amount you want. You can add the chicken pieces with anything. At least you have ready cook meat. Save you time. You can freeze them if you want to keep them for more than 4 weeks to 6 weeks. You can add fish balls and bean shoots, tang oh and lettuce or kai lan.

https://helenscchin.com/2021/04/16/koay-teow-soup-with-pork-balls-chicken-pieces-and-vegetables/

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