Mee Rebus - Perak-style

Today's lunch was Mee Rebus, Perak-syle.... I've been meaning to cook this dish since my husband bought me A Taste of Batu Gajah on our recent trip to KL. Just like the Penang-style Mee Rebus, the noodle is served with rich & spicy tomato-based broth. In Singapore, this noodle is referred to as Mee Bandung.  But this one is different as it uses dried cuttlefish, my favourite! The rich flavour of this noodle is derived from the combination of the ribs & 3 types of seafood. My siblings found the rich meat flavour a little overwhelming....  I agree with them... I would reduce or just do away with the ribs, in future.

Some notes & modifications:

1. I made only half the recipe & it made a big pot.
2. When serving, instead of pouring the gravy over the blanched noodle, I heated up some gravy & added the noodle, bean sprouts & chye sim. I cooked it for a few minutes. Then I lowered the fire & broke an egg & cooked the noodle until the egg is half-cooked.
3. The combination of tamarind & tomato juice produced quite sour gravy. So I added some sugar to balance the sour with a little sweet flavour. I also omitted the limes.

Mee Rebus - Perak-style
Recipe by Datin Norsiah Bakhiri 

from A Taste of Batu Gajah, Traditional Malay Family Recipes by Datin Seri Raihan Abdul Rahman.

( I made only 1/2 of the recipe below.)

Ingredients:
1 kg yellow noodles, scalded or 1 pkt spaghetti, cooked according to instructions.
300g bean sprouts, cleaned & trimmed
300g chye sim (sawi) - cleaned & trimmed - I added.
6 pieces soft bean curd, deep fried & sliced
8 hard-boiled eggs, halved - I didn't cook the eggs beforehand.
500g fresh cockles, blanched & shelled - I didn't add.

Gravy
2 kg beef ribs
2 tbsp seedless tamarind paste or 2 tbsp asam jawa (tamarind pulp) mixed with 1/2 cup water, seeds discarded
500g sotong kering (rehydrated cuttlefish), cleaned & cut into bite-sized pieces
1/2 kg medium-sized fresh prawns, cleaned & shelled
8 tomatoes, cut into wedges
4 potatoes, boiled, drained & mashed
2 litres store-bought tomato juice
8 cups of water for stock
3 cups of water
8 shallots*
4 cloves garlic* (*pounded)
4 tbsp cili boh (ground chilli paste)
2-square inches belacan ( shrimp paste), roasted
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup cooking oil
4 tsp salt or to taste
2 tbsp sugar - I added.

Garnishing
1 cup crispy fried shallots
1 cup green chillies, sliced thinly - I added.
1 cup daun sup (Chinese celery), finely chopped
1 cup daun bawang (spring onions), finely chopped
1 cup kalamansi limes (halved) - I didn't use as the gravy is already quite sour.

Method:

1. In a pot, boil the beef ribs in 8 cups of water for at least 2-3 hours until the stock is reduced by half & the meat is soft. Remove the bones, trim off the fat from the meat & set aside the stock.
2. Heat the oil in a large pot & fry the pounded ingredients until golden.
3. Add in the ground chilli paste & tamarind paste, cover & cook over medium heat until the chilli paste is cooked.
4. Add in 2 teaspoons of salt then pour in the beef stock. Cover & allow to boil fro 5 - 10 minutes.
5. Add the tomato wedges & again, let the gravy boil while covered for another 10 minutes.
6. The cuttlefish pieces go in next. Cover the pot & let the cuttlefish release its juices.
7. Add the tomato juice & 2 tsp of salt, stir gently & let the gravy simmer for about 5 minute.
8. Add the prawns. Prawns take very little time to cook so be careful not to overcook them.
9. Finally, add in the mashed potatoes to thicken the gravy & give it that familiar mee rebus flavour. Let it simmer for 2-3 minutes then check the taste before removing form heat.
10. Divide the noodles, bean sprout, bean curd, eggs & cockles into individual serving dishes, pour the gravy over & sprinkle with garnishing.

I'm submitting this post to the Malaysian Food Fest ( Perak Month ) hosted by Wendy of Table for 2 .. or more &  Cook Your Books No 3 organised by Joyce of Kitchen Flavours.