Fish Head Noodles @ Medan Selera Pandan Indah

I got to know about this fish head noodles place near me when we first dined at the tai chow eatery next to it.  After two visits, we found the tai chow to be just passable but the dining environment (under a zinc roof) was not that conducive as it was hot and humid (even in the evenings).  Not only that but the eating area also looked old and unkept.

So, even though I heard good things about the fish head noodles here, I never returned to try it coz eating a hot bowl of fish head noodles under such hot conditions wouldn't be comfortable at all.  I later learned that they shifted to a new food court (even nearer to me) and that's how I ended up trying this Fish Head Noodles @ Medan Selera Pandan Indah finally.

Although this new food court is much cleaner than their old premises, it was still rather hot and humid.  It baffles me how the authorities can construct a medan selera but not install ceiling fans?! @_@  There are only wall fans and we all know that's not great at circulating air.  So, if you don't like to eat in humid surroundings (you've been forewarned), make sure you go in the mornings (like we did) when it's not as hot as in the afternoons.

You can find what they offer plastered at the front of their food station.  It's basically a choice or combination of fried fish, fresh fish, prawns, squid or fish balls that you can have with your noodles (of thin meehoon, coarse meehoon, kuey teow or yellow mee) with a price ranging from the cheapest (at RM7 with just fish balls) to the most expensive (at RM25 with everything ie. fried fish, pomfret. prawns and squid).  The menu (with pictures) is plastered at the front of the counter, so you order by just telling them the option/item no. you want.

The first time I was here, I ordered Option/Bowl No. 10 @ RM15 with a combo of fried fish and fresh fish and chose it to go with thick meehoon in a milky broth.  Although it's called fish head noodles, no fish heads are used, it only comes with fish meat (which many patrons prefer).

When my bowl of fish head noodles arrived, I saw that the fried fish pieces were served in the soup itself and not separately as some shops/stalls choose to do.  When I took the first bite, I found the fish pieces to be incredibly crispy, much crispier than the many I've eaten before (and they stayed that way too till the end). Googling later (viz a newspaper article), the trick to getting very crispy fish (according to the owners) is to go low and slow (ie. slow frying the fish pieces for at least half an hour on low heat).  The fried fish used was freshwater tong san fish (bighead carp) and they only use the tail portion.

As for the fresh fish, they use white pomfret (from Kuala Selangor it seems).  The pomfret is cut lengthwise, so you get only half a pomfret (though it may seem like you're getting a whole fish from the menu picture). They were fresh (by most standards), just not super duper fresh (by my standard..hehe), as I'm one of those people who can detect even the faintest hint of fishiness.  Since they don't use any shredded ginger or rice wine in their noodles, I can excuse a slight fishy hint.

You can choose to have your fish head noodles with either a milky or clear broth.  I tried the milky broth first and it was very tasty with a bit of sweetness from the milk.  The abundant fried garlic given added more fragrance (and garlicky flavour) to the soup (though they tend to fry the garlic till too well browned!).  To complete the bowl, there were some thin shreds of salted vegetable (ham choy) and chunky tomato wedges to freshen up the bowl.

When coarse or thick beehoon is offered, I always opt for that as I feel it's the best noodle for this as they don't absorb the broth like regular/thin meehoon would, so the soup stays intact (for you to drink) right till the end.

On my second visit, I went for Option/Bowl No. 8 @ RM14, a combo of prawns and squid, just because I overheard them saying they ran out of squid on my first visit there.

When my noodles came, I was very happy to see two fairly large prawns in the bowl...but was taken aback at just how big the slices of squid were (I'll tell you why in a bit).  The prawns (heads intact but the body shelled) were very fresh with its meat firm and sweet. ^.^

Coming back to the squid, when they're so big, they're usually tough...and it was.  Just look at how thick and huge the tentacles were, so you can imagine the size of the squid! :O  In my mind, I was not expecting such a huge-sized squid.

The thick squid pieces were so chewy and tough that I couldn't even chew through them and had to spit it out.  My husband had to finish them for me (even though he doesn't even like squid).  He said they weren't that tough when he had a piece (but, then again, my husband's definition of tender is different from mine) and encouraged me to try another piece.  In the end, I asked him to cut out just half a piece and though the piece was softer, it was still too chewy for my liking.

I had it with a clear broth this time (which I actually prefer) but found it lacking in flavour compared to the more fragrant milky version.  The clear broth (I read) is made from a stock of chicken bones and ikan bilis (dried anchovies).

After enjoying the crispy fried fish immensely, I stuck to ordering just that which is Option/Bowl No. 1 @ RM9, the best thing here (in my opinion), on my subsequent visits.

I can't believe just how well fried the fish was to yield incredibly fragrant and crispy fish pieces that stayed that way right till the end even when submerged in soup.  You don't have to worry even if there are some bones in your fish pieces as they're so crispy, you can eat them bones and all!  I say this is fish fried really well...others will say it's over-fried (until they can't taste the fish).   This is carp @ RM9 a bowl...not more premium fish like grouper, snapper, Spanish mackerel (kau yue) or threadfin (ma yau yue), so we shouldn't make such a comparison.

Two types of chilli dips (self-service) are provided...a sambal belacan and bird's eye chillies with soy.  Their own-made sambal belacan was rather spicy but also very good.  I loved the tang in the sambal with the freshness brought by the lime (or calamansi lime) juice.  It went very well as a dip for the fried fish, prawns and squid.  Even though it was spicy, it was very addictive and I found myself enjoying it so much that I went for a second plate (and that has become the norm on my future visits).

My Personal Opinion

I'm so pleased that this fish head noodles that I wanted to try all this time has moved to a better environment and somewhere closer and more convenient for me.

You can choose the toppings of your choice of either fried fish, fresh white pomfret, prawns, squid or fish balls and have it with either a milky or clear broth.  I prefer the milky version here....and I'd certainly forgo the tough and chewy squid.  I don't intend to try the fish balls as I'd normally not go for fish balls from non-fish ball noodles specialists as they're usually not made by them.  

If you don't like your fish fried until super crispy or you're not a fan of fried garlic (and garlicky flavours) or you're someone who wants (and needs) a dash of wine flavour in yours, then this fish head noodles may not be the one for you.

My top choice here would be the super duper crispy fried fish followed by the fresh and good-sized prawns (occasionally)...but no more squid for me.  I can foresee that I'll be a regular at this place which is now my go-to fish head meat noodles near me. ^_~

Fish Head Noodles Stall

Medan Selera Pandan Indah

Jalan Pandan Indah 6/12

Pandan Indah

55100 Kuala Lumpur 

Tel: 012-659 3003