Mom's Sarawak Laksa with Homemade Laksa Paste

This is my Mom's recipe for homemade Malaysian-style laksa noodles, with a flavourful scratch-made paste. Rice vermicelli noodles and toppings swim in a rich, bright and fragrant broth.

Course Main Course

Cuisine Asian, Malaysian, Southeast Asian

Prep Time 30

Cook Time 50

Total Time 1 20

Servings

Calories 290kcal

Author Michelle

Ingredients

Laksa Paste:

5 small red Thai chilies (bird's eye) stalks removed
4 shallots or 1 medium onion chopped
1 tablespoon fresh ginger minced
1 tablespoon fresh galangal blue ginger, chopped
3 cloves garlic minced
2 stalks fresh lemongrass cut into large chunks
6 candlenuts (or you can use macadamia nuts or a handful of cashew nuts if you can't find candlenut)
2 tablespoon ground coriander
1 tablespoon ground cumin
3 Tbsp (50g) tamarind pulp + ¾ C warm water (or if using tamarind paste, depending on how runny the tamarind paste is, use 4-6 tablespoon and omit the water)
2 tablespoon avocado oil or vegetable oil
1 tablespoon coconut palm sugar or brown sugar
1 tablespoon curry powder Malaysian-style
1 tablespoon paprika
2 teaspoon sea salt

Soup base:

4 C chicken broth add more if you prefer it more soupy
1 can coconut milk

Toppings for laksa:

1 pkg rice vermicelli noodles (fine) cooked and drained
2 seasoned chicken breasts cooked and shredded
12 large shrimp/prawns boiled and sliced in half
4 large eggs scrambled and cooked omelette-style, cut into thin strips
1 pkg tofu puffs boiled and drained
1 cucumber julienned
1 pkg bean sprouts washed and lightly cooked with hot boiled water
2 limes cut into wedges
laksa leaves (rau ram, Vietnamese coriander) cut into thin strips
red Thai chilies optional
belacan (fermented shrimp paste) optional

Instructions

Make the laksa paste:

In a food processor or high-powered blender, combine the red Thai chilies, shallots, ginger, galangal, garlic, lemongrass, candlenuts (or macadamia/cashew), coriander, cumin, tamarind paste, warm water, and oil. Pulse until a smooth paste is formed.
Transfer the pureed paste into a large pot and cook over medium heat for about 30-40 minutes, until fragrant, stirring intermittently.
Once the paste is nutty in aroma and has thickened significantly, add in the sugar, curry powder, paprika, and salt, and cook for another 5 minutes. Again, stirring every so often.
Turn off the heat.
If not using the paste right away, let the laksa paste completely cool and store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 week, or freezer for up to 6 months.

Make the laksa soup:

To the laksa paste, add in 4 C of chicken broth and 1 can coconut milk. Stir and bring to a simmer over medium heat.
If the consistency of the soup is a little too thick, add a little more chicken broth or water. Keep the soup hot for serving.

Assemble:

Place the cooked rice vermicelli noodles into a serving bowl. Top with shredded chicken, shrimp, egg, tofu puffs, cucumber, and bean sprouts.
Ladle the hot soup over top of the noodles. Add a squeeze of lime over top and garnish with laksa leaves (rau ram), additional Thai chilies and belacan (if desired).
Serve immediately.

Video

Notes

To make lighter work, make the laksa paste ahead of time.

Laksa paste can be frozen in an airtight container for up to 6 months.

Nutrition