Jia Bin Cafe @ Sibu, Sarawak

Jia Bin Cafe
11 Central Road,
Sibu, Sarawak.
Open on Tuesdays to Sundays, 7am to 11pm; and Mondays, 7am to 5pm.

The monkey-like antics of Ho Chung Khing earned this stall the name Ang Kau Kampua. His son, Ho Kai Hieng, now runs the thriving 45-year-old family business, considered the best kampua mee stall in town.

Kampua mee is a simple Foochow dish of noodles tossed in lard and shallot oil. The plain version comes with a few slices of barbecued pork, with the option to add fish balls, pork liver and/or meat balls. The noodles are slightly springy, very aromatic and flavourful, thanks to the lard and shallot oil. According to Kai Hieng, the secret to a good plate of kampua lies in the water used to blanch the noodles – it must be changed often to get rid of the starch leaching from the noodles. The tossing of the noodles is also important, as they must be well-coated with lard and oil.
There is also a beef noodle (mee sapi) stall here. The noodles come with a mixture of meat, beef stomach and tendons. The beef soup is robust and flavourful, with strong hints of star anise and cinnamon.

Thanks to Star Metro