hokkien noodles
2 min readIf there is one word that embodies these noodles, it’s lush. Lush in its juicy bite, lush in its allur-ing dark colour, and lush in its indulgentassortment of ingredients. The cooking technique is an example of yeung mian (literally, to stuff noodles’)where the noodles are gently simmered in a flavoursome liquid until plump and piping hot. The result is tangle of resplendently saucy-not soupy-noodles that are themselves saturated in flavour.
Serves 4-6 pinch salt tsp granulated sugar tsp cornflour 180g skinless, boneless chicken thighs, cut into 2cm-thick slices 2%2 tbsp vegetable oil 2 slices ginger, sliced into matchsticks 1 clove garlic, thinly sliced 100g raw king prawns, peeled 3 fish balls (see tip), quartered medium carrot (about 40g), halved lengthways and sliced 200g choi sum, chopped into 5cm lengths 300g fresh egg noodles 1 spring onion, halved lengthways and sliced into thirds for the sauce 1 tbsp light soy sauce 114 tsp dark soy sauce tsp ground white pepper tsp granulated sugar 1 Mix the salt, sugar, cornflour and chicken together in a bowl. Combine the sauce ingredients with 200ml water in another bowl.
Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a wok or large frying pan over high heat and stir-fry the ginger and garlic until fragrant. Add the chicken and spread it out in single layer. When the chicken starts to lift off without too much prodding, stir-fry for 3 minutes, or until it is almost cooked through. Add the prawns and fish balls and stir-fry until the prawns have just turned pink. Remove and set aside.
3 Heat 1 tablespoon oil in the wok, add the carrot slices and toss to coat in the oil. Sprinkle in 1 table-spoon water and stir-fry for a minute until the carrots have softened slightly. Add the choisum and stir-fry until the leaves have started to wilt.
4 Reduce the heat to medium-low and add the noodles to the wok together with the cooked chicken and seafood, sauce mixture and spring onion. Allow to simmer very gently, occasionally turning the noodles until most of the liquid has been absorbed and the noodles are a luscious dark colour and piping hot.ish balls are wonderfully daan ngaa (springy) and great for sinking your teeth into-you will find them in the freezer section of Chinese supermarkets.
