How Many Calories in Cucur Udang?

A deep-fried prawn and vegetable fritter that's a staple at pasar malam and morning markets, cheap as anything but sneakier calorie-wise than it looks.

145kcal / 1 piece (hawker stall)

One piece of cucur udang from a hawker stall is around 145 calories. That's for a 55g fritter, so we're talking about the standard size you grab from a pasar malam or morning market stall. The bulk of those calories come from the flour batter (75 cal) and the oil absorbed during frying (50 cal), not from the prawns or vegetables. The prawn and veg bits barely add up to 20 calories between them. It's a snack, not a meal, but at 145 cal per piece it adds up faster than you'd think if you're standing there eating four in a row.

Nutrition facts

Per 1 piece (hawker stall) (55g)	Amount	Per 100g
Calories	145 kcal	264 kcal
Protein	5 g	9 g
Carbs	17 g	31 g
Fat	6 g	11 g

Where the calories come from

Flour batter (plain + rice flour)25g

75 kcal

Absorbed frying oil7g

50 kcal

Prawns12g

10 kcal

Vegetables (bean sprouts, chives, carrot)11g

10 kcal

The real talk

Okay so 145 calories per piece sounds manageable, right? And it is, if you actually stop at one or two. The problem is nobody stops at one or two. These things are cheap, they come out hot and crispy, and you're standing at the stall chatting while the auntie fries them. Before you know it you've eaten five pieces and that's 725 calories for what is basically a snack. The calorie driver here is not the prawns (only 10 cal worth of prawn in each one) and definitely not the bean sprouts. It's the flour batter at 75 calories and the oil absorbed during frying at 50 calories. Batter plus oil is 125 calories before the actual filling even shows up.

What changes the maths is pretty simple: how many you eat and whether you dip. If you eat two pieces, you're at 290 calories, which is fine as a snack. Eat four and you're at 580, which is basically a full meal's worth for something that won't even fill you up properly. The dipping sauce they serve with it (sweet chilli, usually) adds maybe 20 to 30 calories per tablespoon so it's not the main issue. The bigger thing is the prawn-to-batter ratio at different stalls. Some stalls use a lot of batter and very little filling, some stuff it properly. More batter means more calories, and you honestly can't tell until you bite in. If you're tracking, 145 per piece is a safe estimate for a standard hawker piece, but at a stingy stall it could creep higher.

How to eat it lighter

Stop at two pieces. Seriously. Two pieces is 290 calories and actually works as a light snack. It's the eating six while you wait for your other food that kills you.
Skip the dipping sauce or use just a small amount. The sweet chilli isn't the main calorie problem but it adds up if you're generous with it.
If you're buying from a stall, pick the ones with visible prawns and vegetables in the batter. More filling, less batter, slightly fewer calories per bite.
Eat it as the snack it's supposed to be, not as part of a bigger spread. If you've already got nasi lemak or mee goreng, skip the cucur udang that day.
Drink plain water with it instead of a sugary drink. The snack itself is manageable; it's the teh tarik sitting next to it that pushes your total over.

Common questions

How many calories in Cucur Udang?

One standard cucur udang from a hawker stall is 145 calories per piece (about 55g). The main calorie contributors are the flour batter (75 cal) and absorbed frying oil (50 cal). The prawns and vegetables together only account for about 20 calories.

Is cucur udang healthy?

It's a deep-fried snack so it's not exactly a health food, but it's also not the worst thing you can eat. At 145 calories per piece with 5g of protein, it's decent if you keep it to one or two pieces. The issue is it's very easy to eat four or five without realising, and then you've had a 600-plus calorie snack that doesn't even fill you up for long.

How does cucur udang compare to pisang goreng in calories?

They're in a similar range. Both are batter-fried hawker snacks where most of the calories come from flour and absorbed oil rather than the filling. Cucur udang at 145 calories per piece is comparable to pisang goreng, though the exact number depends on size and how much oil the batter soaks up at each stall.

Calorie and macro figures are estimates for a typical hawker or kopitiam serving. Actual numbers vary by stall, recipe and portion size. Use them as a guide, not gospel.

New to all this? Read how I went from 128kg to 86kg without cutting rice →