Experience breakfast bliss at Ah Sheng Pork Noodles in Kajang with tender offal and soul-soothing broth
Malay Mail
KAJANG, June 12 — What does breakfast bliss mean to you?
For some it’s simply getting out of bed after midday and grabbing whatever is in the fridge. (The option to sleep in, on the weekend or a public holiday, is enough paradise; what the palate desires does not matter.)
For others, it might mean a full English breakfast: eggs, bacon, sausages, baked beans, fried bread, grilled tomatoes, mushrooms and — if you’re a purist, and you ought to be — black pudding; decadent or transcendent, take your pick.
Or it might mean smashed avocado on sourdough toast. Or steamed rice with grilled fish, pickles, an onsen egg, natto and a bowl of hot miso soup.
For me, there’s nothing better than a kopitiam breakfast.
An ideal morning ritual begins, when time permits, with the sleep-dismissing aroma of robust kopi hanging in the air, the clatter of porcelain cups against saucers, and bowls of noodles cooked to order.
What better way to truly wake up and greet the day?
One of our favourite kopitiam staples has always been pork noodles.
Humble fare, this, and deeply satisfying at that. The slippery alchemy between broth and noodles. Meat, offal, and if you remember to ask for it, the joyous addition of a single egg.
The stall is located inside Sheng Xing 6363 Food Court, Kajang Prima. — Picture by CK Lim
Today our brekkie pilgrimage takes us to Kajang Prima, to the bustling Sheng Xing 6363 Food Court.
Here, according to locals, the must-try stall is Ah Sheng Pork Noodles.
At the stall, portions of noodles are blanched in wire baskets before being flicked briskly to remove excess water.
Pork slices and innards disappear into bubbling broth for mere seconds, no more, to retain their tender chew.
Sauces are spooned into bowls in swift and smooth movements. Soy sauce, lard oil, and then the noodles are tossed through until every strand gleams.
We order two bowls of dry pork noodles, the way we like it.
You have more options, to alternate between one and the other, when the soup and the noodles come separately.
The former a clear yet flavourful broth carrying pork cuts and leafy greens, while the latter recline in glossy strands beneath their cloak of sauce.
Creamy pork liver and clean-tasting pork intestines. — Picture by CK Lim
What distinguishes a memorable bowl of pork noodles is often the handling of the pork itself.
At Ah Sheng, the minced pork is soft and yielding without becoming mushy, carrying the natural sweetness of fresh meat.
Slices of liver possess that elusive quality so many stalls fail to achieve: creamy rather than chalky, delicate rather than metallic.
The intestine offers gentle resistance, clean-tasting and carefully prepared, while the pork meatballs provide springiness and heft, dense with savoury depth.
The soup does what is required of it, and perhaps that’s enough.
A vessel for the leafy greens and an unexpected slab of tofu. Don’t forget to ask for a poached egg; it’s essential for the last step (more on that later).
Dry pork noodles: one with yellow ‘mee’ and another with ‘hor fun’. — Picture by CK Lim
We try one bowl with yellow mee and another with hor fun. The thin and flat hor fun absorbs the sauces with remarkable speed, every strand becoming slick with savoury richness.
The yellow mee, by contrast, retains more bounce. Its faint alkaline note cuts through the richness, while the sauce pools beneath rather than disappearing entirely into the noodles.
Two bowls of noodles, two different eating experiences. Who knew?
The true pleasure for us, however, lies in the final act, if you will.
Transfer the poached egg from the soup into the bowl of noodles. — Picture by CK Lim
Gently transfer the poached egg from the soup into the bowl of noodles. Pierce the yolk gently with chopsticks and watch it spill languidly across the tangle beneath, gold meeting dark soy and lard oil in a union that feels almost indecently satisfying.
Mix thoroughly, lifting glossy strands towards your mouth, slurping while the yolk still clings warm and thick to the noodles. Heavenly. Ambrosial. Rapturous.
We wash it all down with cups of hot, extra kaw Hainanese kopi. Dark, bold and edged with bitterness — the way it ought to be.
This is the sort of breakfast that does more than fortify; this steadies us for the day ahead and whatever challenges may come. With oil-slicked noodles, tender offal and soul-soothing broth.
Wash it all down with cups of extra ‘kaw’ Hainanese ‘kopi’. — Picture by CK Lim
Ah Sheng Pork Noodles
Located inside Sheng Xing 6363 Food Court,
Jalan KP 1/1,
Taman Kajang Prima, Kajang.
Open daily 7:30am-3pm
Phone: 014-320 7436
* This is an independent review where the writer paid for the meal.
