Not the same anymore…

These…

…are Chinese crullers or what we call yew char koi but some people call them yew tiao (油条) while the Malays call them cakoi.

I had the opportunity to watch them frying these at the pavement outside their shop at Market Road a long time ago and I was amazed to see the short three-inch strip of dough, pressed down the middle lengthwise with a thin piece of wood or whatever to make a dent, rising to the occasion the instant it was thrown into the hot oil. It expanded till at least 12 inches long and it could be torn into two along that aforementioned dent…

For a very long time now, we could not get any good ones here in Sibu. If there are any, they are not the same anymore and I would not bother buying, not at all.

Yes, we have a lot of Malay stalls selling these cakoi but no, theirs are not the same at all, very dense and doughy, not cushiony soft, not even a little bit crusty on the outside and filled with air holes…

…like the ones we grew up eating and enjoying.

I came across an old couple making and selling theirs outside a coffee shop in the vicinity of the Permai shops and tamu (native jungle produce market) but that was in 2019, before the pandemic. I don’t know if they are still there or not. For one thing, the old man did not use the cutter to make a dent in the strip of dough. Instead, he placed two strips together and dropped them into the hot oil to fry. Despite the difference, it tasted great, almost like the ones in our growing up years and yes, I did buy from them a few times.

I have not been to those part of the woods since so I do not know if the old couple are still around making their yew char koi for sale or not. In the meantime, my sister was delighted to stumble upon these very good ones at this coffee shop…

Photo from Google Maps

…next to the Sarawak Energy/SESCO customer care office among the shops in the vicinity of the Dewan Suarah here.

I had the kampua mee there…

…once and I thought it was very nice but some people grumbled that the serving was kind of small. Yes, I remember there was a stall on the pavement in front of the shops selling all kinds of kuihs.

My sister said that they sell or koi (deep fried steamed yam cake), ham chim beng (Chinese cinnamon rolls) and so on but they only sell yew char koi, fried on the spot on Saturdays and Sundays. She gave us two to try and yes, everyone agreed that they were good, just like those before. I certainly would want to go over there one of these days to buy some more and perhaps, I may pick a few of whatever else they have for sale to try.

KIM CHUO FOOD CENTRE (2.310950, 111.830541) is located among the area of shops in the vicinity of the Dewan Suarah, Sibu and the Civic Centre market beside the Sarawak Energy/SESCO customer care office (to the right), opposite the ShareTea outlet there.