You know...., when you say you are going to Kuching, Kuching locals and friends who have been there before will suggest you try the famous Lau Ya Keng Food Court kway chap.
The legendary brand is more than a century old, and the family has a few outlets dotted around Cat City 🐈
Of course, we want to try the most famous kway chap in Kuching, if not Sarawak, for ourselves. But, somehow our stars cannot align during this trip - we went to the parent stall, and also the branches but they were either on off day or we were too early or too late 😞
Anyway, our super knowledgeable Kuching kaki Chai brought us to Petanak Central Market for dinner two nights in a row.
Petanak Central Market is laid out like some larger Singapore hawker centres (such as Hong Lim Market). Wet market at ground level and cooked food stalls on level two. There are around 100 food stalls, so even two weeks are not enough to properly cover the good food here.
We had zhi char and chicken rice - both were excellent and I shall write about them later.
After our tummies were stretched to the max, Chai suggested that we try this nondescript stall "34 Kuay Chap", 34 being the stall number 😨 So, it actually means this stall has no name, only stall number.
Nearly sold out when we got here.
Okay lo... since we couldn't get the legendary Lau Ya Keng kway chap, and we were leaving Kuching city to explore other parts of Sarawak... .
Three of us, we just ordered one bowl of kway chap with some innards and meat to share.
The braised chicken feet, I ordered on impulse as it is like an addiction to me 😂
Broad sheets of milled rice submerged in a dark brownish broth, heaped with our choice of braised pork skin, maw (stomach), belly, egg, tau pork, etc. There was a spoonful of aromatic garlic oil and fried garlic bits.
My favourite intestines were sold out.
Taste the soup first.
I love it. #34 goes straight into the top band of kway chap that I've tasted anywhere from Singapore, Johor to Thailand since childhood.
The broth was viscous, savoury sweet with an overlay of fried garlic fragrance and subtle bitterness (in a good way). Chinese spice taste was hardly discernible. The broth was not overly greasy as the hardworking hawkers already skimmed off the excess oil.
The kway was relatively thick which I prefer, smooth, soft and well coated with layered savoury (rice and porcine) sweet garlicky flavours from the broth clinging to it. The fried garlic was fresh so the aroma was pleasantly pronounced.
The braised innards and pork were delicious too. I especially love their soft braised pork skin.
The fried then braised chicken feet were good too with the soft skin and tendons barely hanging onto the bone, but the star was still definitely the kway chap.
🫢
We enjoyed ourselves so much that we ordered a bowl of kway kosong (nothing else except rice sheets and broth) 😂
We were very full but tam jiak.
Chai said locals enjoy their kway chap by adding vinegar, pepper, dark soy sauce, and chili sauce to the broth.
They have tubs of chili sauce for people who like to dump loads of it into their broth.
Wow l love it and it triggered taste memories of eating kway chap this way (the savoury sweet broth thick with chili sauce and a tinct of tanginess from vinegar) long ago but I cannot remember where or exactly when.
I am that old.... 👴
Auntie 沈 who is in her 80s, runs 34 Kueh Chap with two daughters. The stall was founded over 70 years ago and has been here in Petanak Central Market for over 30 years.
We still have a rain cheque, unfinished business with Lau Ya Keng kway chap but this 34 Kway Chap is definitely in my Kuching food list to come back for 👍
Stall name: Petanak 34 Kuay Chap 粿汁
Address: 110, Jalan Petanak, 93100 Kuching, Sarawak, Malaysia (Petanak Central Market)
Hours: 8pm - 11pm Mon, Weds, Fri only (we were so lucky 🤭 )
Written by Tony Boey on 25 Jan 2024
🎗 To be neutral, I paid for my own food. This blog is powered by voluntary contributions from appreciative readers to Tony Boey Johor Kaki PAYNOW 96888768 in Singapore $.
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next trip try the famous chicken rice there
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