#ewew makes Sarawak Sambal Laksa by Maggi

I've seen this being sold for quite a few months already but only bought a pack recently to try....and that's because I've always been a big fan of curry laksa, but Sarawak Laksa.....not so much.

The Sarawak Sambal Laksa (the Royale series) by Maggi retails at RM8.25 for a pack-of-four thereby making the cost of one packet a little over RM2.

It's not easy to find stalls selling Sarawak Laksa in KL, let alone an authentic one.  The Sarawak laksa paste is made with sambal belacan and a variety of spices...and finally coconut milk is added to the broth.  A fresh bowl of Sarawak Laksa normally uses a slightly thicker beehoon and usually comes with strips of chicken and omelette, peeled prawns and bean sprouts.

Now that we know what a real Sarawak Laksa looks like, let's have a go at Maggi's instant version...the Sarawak Sambal Laksa.

On opening the packet, I find just two sachets...one is the sambal paste and the other is the creamer.

I followed the instructions and boiled the noodles with the sambal paste first.  When that's ready, stir in the creamer.

And....ta-da, the instant Sarawak Sambal Laksa is ready! ;)  This is the ultimate lazy version...nothing wrong with that when you want a super quick meal, of course.

But, on days when I'm not so lazy, I obviously want a more decadent version (like this) with all the works! ;)

So, for that, I had to do a bit of extra work...I had to poached some chicken breast and shred it, blanch some prawns and fry a thin omelette and shred that too.

You can also add some blanched bean sprouts (but I dislike bean sprouts in my laksa, so I omitted it) and a squeeze of calamansi lime (if you have some in your pantry, I didn't).

I'm ready to tuck in :)

The noodles, like all Maggi's noodles, though nice and springy, turned out to be my one and only complaint....I would have preferred if Maggi gave us vermicelli instead of the usual egg noodles.

The broth is described (by Maggi) as a mouth-watering laksa broth made with 8 herbs and spices with chilli sambal infused with the fresh taste of prawns and a refreshing hint of lime flavour.

I did get a refreshing hint of lime flavour but the taste of prawns in the prawn based broth was almost non-existent.  I'd say the broth tasted like a cross between Maggi's Curry Laksa and Assam Laksa.  It had a bit of that creaminess of coconut milk (from the creamer) of a curry laksa and a bit of that sourish flavour of tamarind of an assam laksa.

For me, this instant Sarawak Sambal Laksa has a creamy note not found in Maggi's Curry Laksa but also a less sourish nuance than their Assam Laksa version, so it was a nice balance of both making it appetising and not too heavy.  I think I might have just stumbled on my new found favourite flavour of Maggi's instant noodles.

Reading recent comments of this noodle in Maggi's Facebook, many had said that it's nothing like what an authentic Sarawak Laksa should taste like.  Of course it's not!  It's an instant version for crying out loud!  Want the real deal?  Go get a fresh bowl! >.<  Even Maggi's Curry Laksa or Assam Laksa doesn't come close to the real deal.

I read a recent newspaper article that Sarawak Laksa made it into the top 10 wish list of world-renowned chef and famous TV personality, Anthony Bourdain, who hopes to include this dish in his eventual mega food market in New York.  With that, I'm sure our Sarawak Laksa will gain further inroads and popularity in other parts of the world in the days to come.