Pork Stew for Kompia (Foochow Bagel)

08.08.08 With Beijing Olympics going to begin soon today I would like to put down my favourite memory of Sibu - it has to be kompia with the pork filling.

This would also be the perfect dish to introduce to people who watch the Olympic Games.....simple and yet delicious. It would not distract the eater from watching the games . And there is no wastage at all. Nothing to throw away.

Someone should invent the edible napkin.







This is the Chieng family which operates a delightful down to earth and simple Christian based kompia outlet in Sg. Merah, where the first Foochows stepped on the soil of Sarawak , led by Wong Nai Siong. Perhaps biting into a kompia one can feel that we are biting into a slice of our history.

The young Chieng is a school teacher by way of introduction and he is a good son who helps his mother whenever he can.

The oven for the kompia is actually an over turned urn made locally. Cemented into a wood or charcoal stove we can have a wonderful oven for the making of kompia. And it is indeed the only way to get that natural aroma out of the plain dough. Convection oven,microwave or ordinary oven or any other invention cannot give you our traditional kompia.

The simple fat free dough is neatly divided into balls and they are lined up for easy and systematic handling. Just watch a kompia man making his kompia and you will realise how effective and efficient he is over the worktop. I believe .

So queue up for your kompia in Sg.Merah for the Chieng's humble product.



Recipe for pork stew:

1/2 kg. belly pork (sliced very thin)possibly 40 slices
2 tbsp thick soy sauce
sugar to taste
some water
oil (peanut oil)
a bit of sesame oil
3 tbsp minced garlic
a dash of pepper if you like
some water

1. Marinade the thin slivers of belly pork for an hour or so with some thick soy
sauce.
2. heat up a kuali or wok and add a tablespoon of oil (more if you like)
3. add the garlic and cook until fragrant or aromatic
4. Add the sugar and caramelise it.
5. Add the soy sauce and wait for the sauce to boil over but not burnt
6, Add the pork slices and coat them well with the sauce, lower the fire and let the sauce and pork simmer for about ten minutes without letting the sauce dry up before adding about a Chinese soup bowl of water (or an amount you need for your kompia)

Half a kg should be enough for about 20 pieces of kompia,and this depends on whether you want to have more filling for your Foochow sandwich!!

Kompia itself is saltish even with a thick coating of sesame seeds. So a sweet sauce is complementary.

Some folks like some salted soy beans in this sauce. But I prefer the simple ingredients which will bring out the taste of the kompia best.

I am not sure if artificial sugar works or not. I will look into this recipe for my diabetic friends.

I hope Sibu will always produce kompia for us. Cheers.

Philip Hii has a few photos of the old man who sold kompia from a tray that he carried on his head. Remember the old man? I believe he lived in Tiong Hua Road, Sibu. We used to chase after him just to get him to stop ,put his tray down and buy two pieces with our coins.

Sometimes we bargained with him and asked him only for the sauce without the meat with the kompia ...How "kosong" can that be!! And we would run along with the kompia dripping with the black and tasty sauce.