The mee goreng is a dish famous in Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore. Hailing from its Indonesia, it is also often spelled mie goreng or mi goreng, both meaning “fried noodles”. The dish consists of yellow egg noodles fried with onion, cubes of fresh tomato and boiled potato, vegetables, chilli and egg. One can find the mee goreng everywhere in Indonesia – almost like their staple diet – from street hawkers to high-end restaurants, while in Singapore and Malaysia, it is commonly available in hawker stalls, food courts and the occasional restaurant.

Often recognised by the sound of their metal spatula clanging against his wok, mee goreng has been sold by street hawkers since the 1950s. Its flavour from frying the noodles in the smoky wok, combined with chilli paste and tomato sauce makes it a lip-smacking favourite. Like the mee siam and many other local favourites, there are Malay and Chinese versions of the dish which have evolved along the way.

It is such an enduring favourite that there are also versions created in instant noodles packaging. Usually in packs of five, they sit with fifty other instant noodle brands on shelves of supermarket chains and grocery stalls, and are often cooked by hawkers, in restaurants and homes. One can find mi goreng instant noodles in countries with strong Asian populations such as Australia and Europe, and has recently begun picking up popularity in the United States.

What is in a packet of mi goreng? Dried noodles, two flavour sachets – one with wet ingredients containing sweet soy sauce, chilli sauce and seasoning oil with onion flakes, the other containing dry seasoning powder and dried onion. This is also popularly known as one’s home-cooked version of maggi goreng, a derivative of the typical Indian fried noodles mentioned above called mee goreng. Often found at Malay and Indian hawker stalls, maggi goreng is cooked by stir-frying instant noodles with vegetables, eggs, tofu and sometimes sambal.