Comfort in a bowl…
From now on Lyf&Spice will document more stories from the local food scene and happenings of the warm and lovely city of Kota Bharu, Kelantan. It’s time to eat like a local. Ready for the journey? Follow us…
All about Bak Kut Teh:
Restaurant hopping in quest for some of the best street and local food led us from one cuisine to another, until we discovered this Chinese favourite dish, Bak Kut Teh. It translates to meat bone tea. This does not imply the addition of tea leaves in the preparation, but to Chinese tea being used as an accompaniment to deal with the excess fat that is being consumed. While it is a dish found in many South East Asian countries with the basic method of preparation being the same, every community and city adopts its own style of cooking and presentation.
What is it made of?
It is essentially a dish of pork ribs incorporating the most aromatic spices and herbs to infuse the rich taste through its core. The dish can be tweaked with varying amounts of soy sauce and the addition of extra ingredients like offal, mushrooms, onions, shallots, tofu or other vegetables. However, the three most common styles are the Hokkien style that has a dark soup with soy sauce and herbs, the Teochew style that has garlic and pepper and is lighter in colour, and the Cantonese style which is stronger in flavour owing to the medicinal herbs.
Lyf&Spice goes food hunting:
What: Bak Kut Teh (dry), Bak Kut Teh (broth)
Where: Restoran Yau Kee, Taman Tengku Ahmad Panglima
Broth:
This comprises of soft pork pieces simmered in a delightful blend of spices and herbs. The soupy consistency demands accompaniments like steamed rice or youtiao or you char kway (fried bread stick). You can have it as the main course, unless you want to have it as a broth alone.
Taste: herbal, mild
Dry:
The flavour game goes intense with the addition of red chillies and dark soy sauce. Additionally, onions and fried okra could be seen imparting the soft meat a crispy texture. It is best had as an accompaniment to the main course or as a snack.
Taste: sharp, intense
While there are many places in Kota Bharu selling this, the license to pork selling is limited to Chinese restaurants alone for obvious reasons. We have had this at so many places, each offering a slightly different variant. So far, we have been curious and binged on the brothy delight to the last drop, but this time we thought of documenting it as well.
We are sure the Chinese community can explain it better. Do drop in your inputs in the comments below. We will be happy to learn and share. 🙂
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Lyf&Spice 
Glad you enjoyed the visual treat. Cheers!! 🙂
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Nice to hear that. I do that a lot too. For me, it’s all about one good meal while I travel too…
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Absolutely! It’s the best way to get to understand ‘food’
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It tastes really good.. I love the flavour ❤
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What a great presentation of the recipe, I’m sure it tastes really good. I would love to try that Teochew style though I love garlic and pepper.
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I love the idea of eating like a local. It is the best way to travel.
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I based most of my trip agenda decisions on food! This looks absolutely delicious! There is nothing better than tasty local food!
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These sound very tasty and your photos and explanations are very helpful in getting the message across. Great!!
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It’s a drool worthy bowl for sure… 🙂
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That’s true.. local food is the way!
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Oh, it was really good. 🙂 Come over!
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That looks absolutely delicious. I wish I could smell the food through the computer.
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Eating local food is practically half the fun of traveling but it takes a brave soul to do it on occasion!
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This sounds so tasty! I’m now starving and fancying a bowl of this filling broth! Thanks for sharing 🙂
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It is a delight! 🙂
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This looks so tempting. I want to attempt making it right away.
These traditional recipes are a treasure.
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Oh yes, you must try it out if you’re able to…. and Granny’s recipes are always the best 🙂
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Well.. it’s hard to compare it to anything else. Just think of it as a herb-laden meat broth with a distinct aroma.
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I can smell it from here! It looks so good. I wonder what other dishes it’s closest to in terms of taste? T
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I never ate a Bak Kut Teh broth but I can imagine how it must taste like. It sounds like a soup my grandma used to make (but out of beef) and I seriously loved it as a child. I think I need to try this out to be able to compare 🙂
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You’re right, Malaysia is hot; but this dish is so delicious that it can be had any time. 🙂
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Hmmm, I like the sound of the Bak Kut Teh broth. This sounds so satisfying, especially on a cold day. But I can imagine Malaysia is hot! Do they eat this all the time?
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