Recipe
🥙 LUNCH
Katong Laksa
Singapore Katong laksa: rice noodles cut short in a rich coconut and dried-shrimp gravy with prawns, tofu puffs and laksa leaf.
Singaporean · advanced · serves 4
prep 40 min · cook 45 min
~891 cal · 48g protein · 45g carbs · 62g fat · 6g fiber · 13g sugars · 38g sat fat (estimated, per serving)
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Katong laksa is the coconut-rich laksa of eastern Singapore, named for the Peranakan neighbourhood where it took its famous form. A spice paste of dried chili, shallot, , , turmeric, dried shrimp and belacan is fried down, then loosened with prawn and into a fragrant gravy.
Its signature is the noodles, cut short so the whole bowl can be eaten with a spoon alone, topped with prawns, tofu puffs, bean sprouts and a lift of sliced laksa leaf. Rich, spicy and savoury, it is one of Singapore best-loved hawker bowls.
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Make it yours
✓ Naturally gluten-, dairy- and pork-free. No swaps needed.
Toggle a diet and the ingredients rewrite themselves with regional substitutes.
🥕 Vegetarian
🌱 Vegan
🌾 Gluten-Free
🥛 Dairy-Free
🥜 Nut-Free
🥚 Egg-Free
🐖 Pork-Free
Dietary labels are a cooking guide, not allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we count coconut as a tree nut, following FDA labeling), fish, and shellfish; we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, read the label on every product you use, and note that a kitchen can cross-contaminate in ways a recipe cannot control.
Ingredients
US
Metric
Serves 4
12 oz thick round rice noodles
12 oz whole prawns, peeled (shells reserved)
1/4 cup dried shrimp, soaked
1 tsp belacan (), toasted
2 cups
1/2 cup
1 cup fried tofu puffs
4 oz fish cake, sliced
2 cups bean sprouts,
2 hard-boiled eggs, halved
8 dried red chilies, soaked
6 shallots
4 cloves garlic
2 stalks , sliced
1 inch , sliced
1 tsp fresh turmeric or ground turmeric
4 candlenuts (buah keras)
1 small handful laksa leaf, sliced
1/4 cup
1 tbsp sugar
to taste salt
Instructions
1
Fry the reserved prawn shells in a little oil until pink, cover with 6 cups water, simmer 15 minutes, then strain for the stock.
2
Blend the soaked chilies, shallots, garlic, lemongrass, galangal, turmeric, candlenuts, soaked dried shrimp and belacan into a smooth rempah paste.
✎ Chef’s note
Candlenuts (buah keras) thicken and enrich the rempah; grind them in with the paste.
3
Fry the rempah in the oil over medium heat for 12 to 15 minutes until it darkens and the oil separates.
✎ Chef’s note
Frying the rempah until the oil splits is what gives laksa its deep, non-raw flavour.
4
Pour in the prawn stock and simmer 10 minutes, then add the coconut milk, sugar, salt and laksa leaf and simmer gently without boiling hard so it does not split.
5
Stir in the coconut cream and prawns and cook 3 to 4 minutes until the prawns are just opaque.
6
Cook the noodles, snip them short, and divide into bowls with the tofu puffs, fish cake and bean sprouts. Ladle over the gravy and top with the halved eggs and more laksa leaf. Serve with a spoon.
Katong hawker style.
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🌏 While it simmers, know your destination
📍
Singapore. Chicken rice is claimed on both sides of the causeway. It descends from Hainan's Wenchang chicken, brought over by Hainanese migrants and reworked with Cantonese technique, so Singapore and Malaysia each have a case and neither has a clinching one. The rice cooked in the poaching stock is the part nobody argues about.
🗺️
Singapore. Several famous dishes here carry claims rather than settled histories. Hainanese chicken rice and laksa are contested with Malaysia and neither country gets to close the argument; chilli crab's invention is credited by Singaporean accounts to Cher Yam Tian in 1956, which is a claim by a named family rather than a documented first. Kaya toast, coconut-and-egg jam on charcoal-toasted bread with soft eggs, is less argued over.
🌍
Asia. Fermentation is the thread that runs the whole way across: soy sauce and miso, Korean doenjang and kimchi, Southeast Asian fish sauces, the soured batter behind an idli. Chilli is the newcomer among them, arriving only after 1500 with Portuguese and Spanish traders, which makes the heat in Sichuan, Thai and Korean cooking far younger than the fermenting underneath it.
The story behind this dish is up top, worth a read while the pot works.
More from Singapore
Hainanese Chicken RiceSilken poached chicken over rice cooked in its broth, with chili-ginger sauce, Singapore’s national obsession.
Kaya ToastToasted bread spread with coconut-egg kaya jam and butter, with soft-cooked eggs and kopi.
Bak Kut TehPork ribs simmered in a peppery, garlicky broth, Singapore's restorative bowl eaten with rice and dough fritters.
Browse all Singapore recipes →
Good to know
You’ll need: Blender.
Storing it: Best fresh. Leftovers keep 2 days refrigerated; loosen with a splash of water or oil as you reheat so they do not clump.
Make it a Singapore meal
BandungDrink
Pulut HitamDessert
Chilli CrabDinner
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Frequently asked questions
What is Katong Laksa?
Singapore Katong laksa: rice noodles cut short in a rich coconut and dried-shrimp gravy with prawns, tofu puffs and laksa leaf.
Where does Katong Laksa come from?
Katong Laksa is a Singaporean dish from Singapore, Singapore.
Can Katong Laksa be made vegan, gluten-free, or dairy-free?
This Katong Laksa recipe includes substitution suggestions for vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free, egg-free, and pork-free versions, including several at once such as gluten-free and dairy-free together. Treat them as a starting guide rather than a guarantee, and see the allergen note below.
Is Katong Laksa safe for people with food allergies?
Our dietary labels and substitutions are a cooking guide, not medical or allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we count coconut as a tree nut, following FDA labeling), fish, and shellfish, but we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, always read the label on every product you use, and remember a home or commercial kitchen can cross-contaminate ingredients in ways a recipe cannot control.
How long does Katong Laksa take to make?
About 85 minutes total (40 minutes prep, 45 minutes cooking), serving 4.
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