People Are Fighting Over The Differences Between Kolo Mee And Mee Kolok
Are they the same dish?
By Tamara Jayne — 07 Mar 2024, 11:44 AM
Popular Sarawakian dishes mee kolok and kolo mee have been gaining attention lately with people arguing if they are the same dish
While some think that both dishes have the same origin, many argue they are essentially different, especially since one is halal and the other is not.
Twitter user Ken Ruffleseed recently tweeted that mee kolok is halal and consists of taugeh, beef, and kicap. On the other hand, he says that kolo mee contains pork, lard, char siu sauce, and vinegar, making it non-halal.
In a follow-up tweet, Ken mentioned that he was clarifying the difference after he heard someone complain about kolo mee containing pork.
According to him, if you want to eat halal kolo mee, you'll need to find one that clearly specifies that it is halal. Otherwise, just assume it isn't.
He also clarified that it was mee kolok that was recently recognised as a National Heritage Dish, and not kolo mee.
Kolo mee is believed to have originated when the Chinese brought the dish to Sarawak
The dish consists of egg noodles tossed in lard and shallot oil, topped with minced pork and crispy fried shallots or garlic.
According to Bernama, kolo mee was originally non-halal, containing pork meat and fat; however, over time, a halal version was created so that more people could also enjoy the dish.
One of these establishments is Sainah Café in Kuching, Sarawak.
Its founders shared that most shops in Sarawak serve non-halal kolo mee, so they decided to specialise in serving a halal version. They told FMT that they spent two years modifying the recipe to make it taste as close to the original as possible, in terms of flavour and aroma.
At the café, each bowl is topped with slices of marinated barbecue chicken instead of roasted pork.
