Easy Char Kway Teow

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Recipe

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

This version of Char Kway Teow brings all the bold flavours of the traditional dish but with a few clever shortcuts. Instead of hunting for fresh rice noodles at the Asian supermarket every time, we use dried rice noodles that you can keep in your pantry. And while fish cakes and Chinese sausage require a quick trip to the Asian market, they can be easily stored in the fridge or frozen for future use, making this a super convenient dish.

What is Char Kway Teow?

Char Kway Teow is a classic stir-fried noodle dish from Southeast Asia, especially popular in Singapore and Malaysia. The dish features wide rice noodles stir-fried with prawns, Chinese sausage, fish cakes, and eggs, all coming together with a tasty balance of sweet, salty, and umami flavours from a mix of sauces. Traditionally, it’s cooked over high heat in a wok with a bit of char from the pan, creating that delicious wok hei, the signature smoky aroma you often get from street food stalls. It’s often topped with fresh bean sprouts and spring onions for crunch, making this a vibrant, satisfying meal.

What’s the deal with the stir-fry sauce?

The key to this dish is the stir-fry sauce. Combining light soy sauce, oyster sauce, fish sauce, dark sweet soy sauce, sugar, and black pepper creates the perfect balance of salty, sweet, and umami flavours. Toss it all through the noodles for a flavour-packed meal.

What the deal with the chilli sambal?

The chilli sambal is the secret weapon here, too. Traditional Singaporean and Malaysian hawker stall sambals require a lot of ingredients and time, with their complex mix of fresh and dried chillies, shrimp paste, and garlic. But my hack uses sambal oelek for that fresh, tangy heat and nam prik pao for that smoky, funky depth of flavour—giving you the best of both worlds without all the work. Usually the chilli paste is stirred through the noodles at the end of the cooking, but I often serve mine on the side when I’m making it for my family so the kids can enjoy the noodles too!

Special Ingredient Notes

Sambal oelek: This Indonesian chili paste is packed with heat and tang, making it an essential ingredient for adding that spicy kick to your dish. It’s widely available in the Asian aisle at most supermarkets or any Asian grocery store.
Nam prik pao: A sweet and smoky Thai roasted chili paste that adds depth to the flavour. It’s made from dried chilies, dried shrimp, garlic, shallots, and palm sugar. You can find it in Thai or Asian grocery stores, or online.

What You Need

Vegetable oil

Garlic

Chinese sausages

Fish cakes

Prawns

Eggs

Dried wide rice noodles or fresh flat rice noodles

Bean sprouts

Spring onions

Chinese light soy sauce

Oyster sauce

Fish sauce

Dark sweet soy sauce

Sugar

Black pepper

Sambal oelek

Nam prik pao

Steps

Start by mixing all the stir-fry sauce ingredients in a small bowl. This will be your flavour base, so make sure everything is well combined and set it aside for later. Then, in a small bowl, mix together the sambal oelek and nam prik pao. Set this aside to serve at the end. This will add that fresh and smoky chilli heat to the dish right before serving.

Heat 2 tbsp of vegetable oil in

your wok

over high heat. You want it pretty hot because we’re looking for that beautiful wok hei (smoky flavour) that comes from stir-frying over high heat.

Once the oil is hot, throw in the chopped garlic and stir-fry it for about 5 seconds until it’s fragrant and golden. This is the moment when your kitchen starts to smell amazing.

Now, add the prawns, Chinese sausage, and fish cakes all at once. Stir-fry everything together for about 1-2 minutes until the prawns are almost cooked through, and the sausage and fish cakes start to crisp up a little. The combination of these ingredients adds layers of flavour and texture.

Push everything to one side of the wok, and in the empty space, pour in your beaten eggs with 1 tsp of oil. Scramble the eggs until they’re just set, then toss everything together: eggs, prawns, sausage, and fish cakes.

Add your noodles and stir-fry sauce to the wok. Toss everything well so the noodles are coated in the sauce and you get all those delicious flavours through the noodles. This is when everything comes together!

Finally, add the bean sprouts and spring onions to the wok. Toss everything quickly just to mix them through, but don’t overdo it, keeping the sprouts crisp adds that perfect texture. Then,

plate

your Char Kway Teow straight away and top with a generous spoonful of the sambal mix you prepared earlier. Enjoy! The dish is best served hot and fresh from the wok.

Marion’s Notes:

Sambal oelek

is a spicy Indonesian chili paste made from ground fresh red chilies, vinegar, and salt, known for its tangy heat. Available in the Asian aisle at most supermarkets or at any Asian grocery stores.

Nam prik pao

is a Thai roasted chili paste made from dried chilies, dried shrimp, garlic, shallots, and palm sugar, giving it a smoky, sweet, and savoury flavor. Found in Thai or Asian grocery stores or online.

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Easy Char Kway Teow

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PREP TIME

10 minutes

COOK TIME

10 minutes

SERVES

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Ingredients

2 tbsp vegetable oil, plus 1 tsp extra

4 garlic cloves, chopped

2 Chinese sausages, thinly sliced

100g fish cakes, sliced

8 prawns, peeled & deveined

2 eggs, lightly beaten

200g dried wide rice noodles or 350g fresh flat rice noodles

¼ cup bean sprouts

2 spring onions, cut into batons

Stir-fry sauce:

2 tbsp Chinese light soy sauce

1 tbsp oyster sauce

2 tsp

fish sauce

1 tsp dark sweet soy sauce

1 tsp sugar

¼ tsp black pepper

Chilli sambal:

½ cup sambal oelek*

1 tbsp

nam prik pao

(Thai chilli paste)

Instructions

Get Your Sauce Ready

Start by mixing all the stir-fry sauce ingredients in a small bowl. This will be your flavour base, so make sure everything is well combined and set it aside for later.

Prepare the Sambal

In a small bowl, mix together the sambal oelek and nam prik pao. Set this aside to serve at the end. This will add that fresh and smoky chilli heat to the dish right before serving.

Heat Things Up

Heat 2 tbsp of vegetable oil in your wok over high heat. You want it pretty hot because we’re looking for that beautiful wok hei (smoky flavour) that comes from stir-frying over high heat.

Garlic First

Once the oil is hot, throw in the chopped garlic and stir-fry it for about 5 seconds until it’s fragrant and golden. This is the moment when your kitchen starts to smell amazing.

Add Prawns, Sausage, and Fish Cakes

Scramble the Eggs

Noodles and Sauce Go In

The Final Touches

Finally, add the bean sprouts and spring onions to the wok. Toss everything quickly just to mix them through, but don’t overdo it, keeping the sprouts crisp adds that perfect texture.

Serve It Up

Plate your Char Kway Teow straight away and top with a generous spoonful of the sambal mix you prepared earlier. Enjoy! The dish is best served hot and fresh from the wok.