Singapore Noodles [Mei Fun]

I had my first taste of Singapore Noodles approximately 20 years ago and I'll never forget them. I had no idea what was in this magical dish or even what the threadlike noodles were made of. They looked like strands of cellophane coated in mustard yellow. This dish was made by Mei Ma and she was a special woman in the kitchen. Every dish of hers was distinct, magical and memorable. When she retired and sold the restaurant many years ago, it was the last time I had Shanghai Noodles that good...until about 8 years ago. A best friend, I have many, is Cantonese and brought a noodle dish called Mei Fun to a dinner party. The dish was distinct and magical and reminded me of that long ago favorite plate at Mei ma's. These 2 dishes weren't the same but were equally memorable.

Recently I had a craving for this dish. I watched hours of Youtube videos and began pouring over "authentic Asian" cookbooks to learn the secrets to a dish that has been almost mystical. No one makes it right. No one since Mei Ma that is. I found a few recipes, braved the Asian market [Yes, I needed help. A generous person who barely spoke English helped me locate dried "shrimps" and the wine I can't pronounce]. A million dollars later [kidding], my pantry was looking decidedly Asian and I was getting cold feet. My noodles are always mushy and my Asian dishes always lack something. As luck would have it I stumbled across the fact the Shanghai Noodles are Mei Fun and are most likely a Cantonese dish. That's when I realized my friend's dish of "Mei Fun" was reminiscent of Mei Ma's Shanghai Noodles. I called Lee up and asked her if her mom could give me some tips. You see before Lee became a Vice President of a large company she worked the front of the family restaurant while her brother and mother cooked. And her mom and brother are some cooks! 

We ran through the list of ingredients. I bemoaned my noodle issues. I questioned how hot the pan should be. And mentioned this dish was expensive to buy. Here is the recipe I landed on after cobbling together Lee's tips from her mom, countless YouTube videos and recipes.

My Tips:

• Control the heat by taking the pan of and on the burner. You want a sizzle for the aromatics, a sear for the shrimp and veggies but you need to calm the pan in between. Bring it off and on as needed. In wok cooking this is accomplished when chefs raise the pan off the heat and toss the ingredients in the pan before lowering back onto the flame. We'll achieve this by moving our skillet on and off the burner. Tossing optional!
• Asian recipes are like a plan of attack. Prepare everything in advance and lay it in rows in the sequence of cooking.
• Noodles need proper handling from start to finish. In the beginning they soak in hot water until reconstituted and pliable. To keep them from getting tangled, restaurants pull them apart and let them drain on counters. You can use a cookie sheet or even a pie place. The idea is not to leave them in the mass they came like. Noodles cook in the pan, not hot water [for this dish b/c it's vermicelli]. If new to the noodles, stir fry them off the heat to avoid scorching and tearing the noodles. You can always add them back to the heat.
• Add the sauce slowly and on lower heat so you don't cook it all off.
• Vegetable combos are optional. My friend said my dish was costly because I had "so much stuff". Pick a veggie or two and then use bean sprouts or shredded cabbage for texture because they're cheaper.
• If you don't like shrimp, L cooks this using Chinese sausage instead. A decent substitute is chorizo.
• Go easy on the oil. The idea is to avoid sticking. We don't want a greasy dish. 

Some grape seed oil for cooking

Avocado spray for cooking

Sesame oil for finishing

Makes 4 servings

Step 1:
250 grams dried rice vermicelli noodles

Step 2:
2 large eggs, beaten

Step 3:
6 large shrimp, raw and deveined
1 tbs dried shrimp
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
4 spring onions, sliced in half and then again [not in rounds]

Step 4:
5 baby carrots, julienned
1 red or yellow bell pepper, julienned
2 handfuls of thinly sliced cabbage
6 shitake mushrooms, julienned

1/2 cup bean sprouts and small handful for garnish

1/2 can baby corn, drained and dried on a towel

Step 5: [mix all this in a small bowl]
2 tbs light soy sauce
2 tsp dark soy sauce
2 tbs oyster sauce
2 tbs Shaoxing wine
1 tsp white sugar
1/2 tsp kosher salt

Step 6: [have this measured out]
1 1/2 tbs curry paste

Boil some water. Remove from heat. Let stand for 5 minutes. Meanwhile cut your veggies and have everything ready for stir frying.

Step 1: In a bowl, submerge the rice noodles in the previously boiled water that's been standing for 5 minutes. Follow the package directions, somewhat. The goal for the noodles is to reconstitute, not cook them, not even to al dente. So when they are hydrated, pliable and easy to pull apart, drain them and lay them out on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper or in a pie plate. 

Step 2: Heat a cast iron or enamel lined cast iron pan to low. Spray with a little avo spray. Scramble eggs just until runny. They will cook more later. Set aside.

Step 3: Turn the heat to medium-high and let the pan heat up. Add about 1-3 tsps of grape seed oil. Goal here is not too much oil. Just enough. We don't want oily noodles. Add shrimp and dried shrimp. Cook for 20 seconds. Don't move the shrimp at this stage. We want them to sear a bit. Add garlic and green onion. Stir fry for 10 seconds. {Note: I took the shrimp out and returned it to the pan a little after adding the veggies to not overcook the shrimp}

Step 4-5:  Add a little more oil if needed. Add the vegetables. Stir fry until crisp, 30 seconds to 2 minutes. Take pan off the heat but keep heat on. Add sauce. Add back to heat. Add eggs. Stir.

Step 6: Add noodles and curry paste. Take off heat again. Toss by lifting the noodles and tucking them underneath. Return to heat if things are cooling off but the pan might be hot enough. Sprinkle with some raw bean sprouts. Drizzle with sesame oil and serve.

Recipe inspired by Lin's. Lin is a great resource and I recommend checking out her recipes.