2nd-Best Paan Mein on the Planet

it's a dirty meal, but somebody's gotta eat it


Some of the finest things in life are also the simplest. This is one such example. It is but a bowl of the best soup-based Paan Mein in the world and only number 2 in the Paan Mein category. I had always hated Paan Mein, until fate brought me to this stall in Lorong Haji Taib 5 in KL 13 years ago.


For the uninitiated, Paan Mein (or Mee Hun Kueh in Hokkien) is a hand-kneaded, wheat-flour noodle dish. It is usually served in a clear broth with some bits of pork strips, mushrooms, tapioca leaves and garnished with anchovies. It's a pretty ho-hum affair of bland tasting noodles in an unexciting soup. But that is not the case in "Mi Cendawan Lorong Haji Taib"!


The noodles are kneaded by hand and cut into strips with a meat cleaver resulting in a springy, flat noodle (much like fettucini) with an interesting texture. It is boiled in a thick broth seasoned with chicken stock and perfectly flavoured with pork strips. Crunchy green veggies add colour and texture to this dish, while mushrooms add that little extra ... erm... mushroomy taste! And all this piping-hot content is poured onto a raw egg making it a truly satisfying meal. But the climax of this dish is surely the generous amount of deep-fried shallots garnish that sets this Paan Mein light years ahead of its peers. To top it off, the proprietors serve this dish with their own home-made chilli sauce which will surely have you coming back for more. The end result is messy bowl of the most delicious soup-based Paan Mein you will ever eat.


Today Mae treated me to this wonderful Paan Mein as a reward for helping her prepare a proposal. We brave through miles of driving, and traffic and the hustle and bustle of Chow Kit just to eat this. And honestly, it's not the most comfortable nor the most hygienic of places. But when you have had a taste, nothing else matters. It is THAT good.


NOTE: IT'S NON-HALAL!