Chinese Vermicelli.. Lets Cook

Homestyle stir fried rice vermicelli (chow mee hoon) 家常炒米粉

Rice vermicelli 米粉 (mee fun, mee hoon or fine rice noodles) can be a pain to stir fry. If anyone finds rice vermicelli always clump together, broken into bits and sticking to the pan/wok, you may find this post useful.

To make delicious stir fried rice vermicelli, there are a few rules to follow.

• the noodles must be soaked with cold or lightly warm water, never use boiling water.
• noodles must not be over soaked.
• unless you pan or wok is guaranteed non stick with whatever you throw into it, one must not stir fry the noodles together with the vegetables or meat or you will find the noodles stick very quickly to the pan or wok.

Here is picture to show the noodles are nicely separated and not broken at all using this method.


Below is the recipe how I normally do it if you like to give it a try. You can use various different vegetables and meat/prawns you have at hand. I always add egg to fried noodles.

Other vegetables can be used are woodears, shitake mushroom, pak choi, Chinese cabbage, onion, leeks, Sichuan preserved vegetable (zha chai), jicama (mungkuang), fresh green beans. All vegetables to be shredded quite fine.

For a vegetarian version, can sub meat and egg with fried or super firm tofu or seitan


Stir fried rice vermicelli


Ingredients:

This qty makes a big plateful, enough for 3 - 4 people generously.

250g dried rice vermicelli or mee hoon (I like the superfine type, you and use any type you like)

2 large eggs, beaten

3 - 4 cloves garlic chopped
about a third cup minced (ground) pork, beef, chicken or roughly chopped prawns
about a third to half cup sliced/shredded Chinese sausage (lap cheong), ham any type or bacon, for non pork eater can use Chinese fried fish cake or leftover roast beef, chicken or lamb or peeled cooked prawns
1 medium carrot shredded (I used the mandoline)
about 4 leaf of cabbage, finely shredded (about 1.5 cup)
about 1.5 cup beansprouts
about 3 - 4 stalks of spring onion (scallion), chopped
few tbsp light soy sauce, to taste
1 tsp of chicken stock granules/bullion (optional)
some ground pepper.

cooking oil


Method:

1. Soak the dried noodles with cold or lightly warm tap water till soften. Drain with colander and shake the noodles to release as much water as you can. Leave aside for 10 minutes before stir frying.
2. Prepare the other ingredients.
3. When wok is hot add about 1 - 1.5 tbsp oil, spread oil around the wok. When almost smoking hot, add in the egg spread it evenly to form a thin omelette. Brown on one side, flip over and break the omelette into small bitesize. Remove and set aside.
4. Add about 1.5 tbsp of oil in wok, when wok is really hot add half the chopped garlic follow by the noodles. Stir and toss with chopsticks, to loosen and stir fry till noodles are hot. Drizzle on some light soy while stirring to evenly mix soy with noodles. Stir till noodles are cooked through and hot. Remove and set aside.
5. Add more oil in wok (about 1.5 tbsp) and the remaining garlic. Stir then add meat/prawn and lap cheong or bacon (if using cooked meat, fish cake or prawns, add in a little later till raw meat is cooked. Stir till meat is cooked and fragrant. Add dash of light soy.
6. Add cabbage and carrot, stir till vegetables are soften. Add more soy and chicken stock granules to taste. Can add a little water to create steam to cook the vegetables. When vegetables are soften add beansprouts. Stir briefly.
7. Add in omelette, stir briefly.
8. Turn off heat. Add in spring onion and noodles. Add ground pepper. Tease and toss the noodles, so the noodles are loosen and mix evenly with the vegetables, meat and egg. When done, if noodles are somewhat cooled down, turn the heat on, tossing the noodles while stirring. Heat till noodles are hot or when starting to stick to the pan/wok turn heat off. Ready to eat.