PETALING JAYA, July 14 — Night owls craving for a bowl of Penang Malay-style assam laksa are in for a treat.

Operating up to midnight, Laksa Penang Rahim has been in business since 1986. The stall is run by Noor Jannah Rahim.

The laksa is cooked using a recipe she inherited from her mother who is originally from Butterworth.

It may look simple but taste the broth with its ground fresh fish, and you'll be blown away by its gentle sweet and sour taste.

Using fresh sardines to create the broth, it is also spiked with asam keping and belacan. This gives it a milder flavour compared to the Chinese version of assam laksa, where the broth tends to be sharper and spicier.

The use of smooth, softer rice noodles complements the laksa broth perfectly.

The laksa is garnished with sliced raw onions, cucumber and tiny chopped daun kesom. If you find it not fiery enough, they also add a generous sprinkle of chopped chilli padi or bird eye's chillies to ramp up that fire.

On the side, there's a spoonful of thick, fragrant prawn paste or petis udang, for you to stir into the laksa. This gives it a deeper flavour.

Nowadays in Penang, the Malay-style assam laksa usually omits this. It's more commonly found in the Chinese-style assam laksa.

In fact, that prawn paste inclusion made me think it has the vibes of a laksa Kedah. However it doesn't have that distinctive dollop of sambal nyiur so maybe this addition of prawn paste could be, just a personal preference of the family's.

There's also a whole calamansi lime, so just squeeze that to give the whole ensemble a little citrus brightness.

The normal version for RM7 also has one hardboiled egg for additional protein.

If you like textures, try their Laksa Telur Sarang (RM10).

The laksa is topped with a deep fried omelette that is fine like a bird's nest, hence its moniker.

It gives the whole laksa a nice contrast of textures with its crispy egg, which I preferred to the hard boiled egg. This version is believed to originate from Ipoh.

As the stall is located inside the super busy Medan Selera Jaya 223, you can also grab nasi lemak bungkus and the grilled otak otak to accompany your meal.

The laksa can also be purchased frozen, making it easier to store at home and for you to get your laksa cravings sorted in a jiffy. Pre-orders for the frozen version are needed though.

Laksa Penang Rahim, Stall No. 56, Medan Selera Jaya 223, Jalan 223, Petaling Jaya. Open: 5pm to 12am. Closed on Monday. Tel: 017-3183193. Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LaksaRahim223

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