Char kway teow

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Char kway teow
Type Shahe fen
Place of origin Malaysia and Singapore[1]
Region or state Southeast Asia
Main ingredients Shahe fen, light and dark soy sauce, chilli, belachan, whole prawns, deshelled blood cockles, bean sprouts, Chinese chives
Cookbook: Char kway teow  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)
Alternative name in
Cantonese-speaking regions
Traditional Chinese 炒貴刁
Simplified Chinese 炒贵刁
Literal meaning transcription from the original name in Hokkien (Min Nan)





The term "char kway teow" is a transliteration of the Chinese characters 炒粿條 (in simplified Chinese 炒粿条),Teochew origin and also pronounced chhá-kóe-tiâu? in Min Nan (also known as Teochew or Hokkien). The word kóe-tiâu (literally meaning "ricecake strips") generally refers to flat rice noodles, which are the usual ingredient in West Malaysia and Singapore. In East Malaysia, on the other hand, actual sliced ricecake strips are used to make this dish.

In popular transliterations, there is no fixed way of spelling chhá-kóe-tiâu, and many variants can be found: e.g., "char kueh teow", "char kueh tiao", etc.

Owing to the dish's popularity and spread to Cantonese-speaking areas, the term "char kway teow" has been corrupted into "炒貴刁" in Cantonese. This is pronounced as caau2 gwai3 diu1? in Cantonese and cháo guìdiāo ? in Mandarin. The term " " has no real meaning, but its pronunciation in Cantonese and Mandarin is similar to "粿條" in Min Nan.

In Hong Kong, "char kway teow" is often known as "Penang char kway teow" (檳城炒粿條 or 檳城炒貴刁).[citation needed]


Char Kway Teow
Penang Char Kway Teow




There are also "gourmet" versions of char kway teow, commonly found in Ipoh and Penang, where the dish may be prepared with more seafood, with crab meat[4] and with duck eggs.

Char kway teow is also popular at takeaways in Australia and New Zealand.

In Myanmar, a variety called the Beik Kut kyae kaik (the Beik Scissor Cut) exists. It is popular in the southern coastal regions around the town of Myeik ("Baik" is the Burmese pronunciation) and in Yangon, the largest city in the country. It uses more pepper and seafood compared to the kway teow of Singapore and Malaysia. The rice noodles are slightly thinner and are stir-fried with boiled yellow peas, bean sprouts, squid and prawns, spring onions and dark sweet soy sauce. After being stir-fried, the noodles are cut with scissors (kut kyae in Burmese), thus its name. In many Asian fusion restaurants in America, such as the popular Cafe Asia chain, this dish is offered under the name Gway Tiao.

Many Southeast Asian restaurants in Hong Kong offer char kway teow as a Malay speciality although it is of Southeast Asian Chinese origin. The char kway teow served in Hong Kong is an entirely different dish: stir-fried Chinese-style flat rice noodles with prawns, char siu, onions, and bean sprouts, seasoned with curry and bright yellow in colour. In some places this is known as Fried "Good Dale", a transliteration of the characters "炒貴刁".[5]

In Indonesia, there is a similar dish known as kwetiau goreng (Indonesian: fried flat rice noodles) and is served in Chinese restaurants, street side tent warung, and by traveling street hawkers' carts. This Indonesian version tastes mildly sweet with generous addition of kecap manis (sweet soy sauce), has spicier and stronger flavor with addition of sambal condiment, less oily, mostly halal which means uses no lard or pork, and normally incorporates beef or chicken to cater to the majority Indonesian Muslim population. However, some Chinese restaurants in Indonesia that mainly serve non-Muslim customers might use pork and pork fat.

In Vietnamese cuisine, a similar stir-fried noodle dish is called hủ tiếu xào. Thai cuisine has its own version called phat si-io.

In Singapore, the char kuey teow is sometimes referred to as orr kway teow (orr meaning “dark” in Hokkien) and is a popular, inexpensive dish usually eaten for breakfast and sold at food stalls in Singapore. [6] Some of best 'old school' char kway teow can be found in hawker centres.[7] There are also healthier versions with more vegetables and less oil. Furthermore, the greens and bean sprouts give off a fresh, crunchy texture that makes the dish stand out even more from other dishes of the cuisine.[8] There is also an incorporation of seafood (like prawns, cuttlefish, squid, lobster meat). This version is also common in Perth, Western Australia, which has a large expatriate Singaporean population.

See also[edit]


  1. ^ a b "Char Kway Teow". Tourism Malaysia. Archived from the original on 12 October 2014. Retrieved 9 March 2015. 
  2. ^ "The famous Penang char koay teow". 
  3. ^ "On the char kway teow trail in Ipoh". 
  4. ^ "Char Kway Teow – Penang – Sister". Retrieved 28 March 2010. 
  5. ^ "Fried Good Dale: A Translation Run Amok". DCist. 
  6. ^ Cheong, S. (2007, March 24). Orr koay teow, anyone. New Straits Times. Retrieved from Factiva.
  7. ^ "17 Sinful Char Kway Teow That Make You Exercise Hard for". Retrieved 25 November 2016. 
  8. ^ "Singapore Food – YourSingapore". 

External links[edit]