Fried Hor Fun (Flat Rice Noodles) 炒河粉

I ate this dish a lot when I was young. When my mom did not feel like cooking, usually one of us (kids) will be assigned to buy this as takeout from the food-stall nearby.

This dish is simple and homey but always satisfying. It also makes an ideal and well-balanced meal with all major food groups included - starch, proteins and vegetables. Great choice for a one-or-two person meal, especially if you have different ingredients leftover.

The key ingredient of this dish is Hor Fun (flat rice noodles). Made of rice flour, Hor Fun is white in color with a smooth texture, flat and wide in shape. This type of noodles can be cooked either with or without gravy. Today we are cooking it with a tasty and savory gravy, made with chicken stock and various seasonings.

If you have eaten a good Hor Fun before, you will know that the noodles have a wonderful smoky taste and smell. This smokiness comes from pan-frying the noodles with oil and soy sauce till slightly-charred, before adding the separately-cooked gravy. Doing that makes a big difference to the flavor which many find quite addictive. I used pork and shrimp as the proteins but feel free to replace with any meat or seafood of your choice. "Wok-heat" is key to this dish so make sure you turn on high heat, have a hot wok (or pan), and work fast!

RECIPE FOR FRIED HOR FUN
Serves 2
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Ingredients

450g /1 lb Hor Fun (fresh wide flat rice noodles)
3 tbsp cooking oil
2 tsp soy sauce
2 cloves garlic, minced
120g pork, sliced
6 shrimps, shelled
40g carrot, sliced
150g pak choy

Sauce
1½ cups chicken stock
1 tsp sesame oil
1/2 tsp sugar
1 tbsp + 1 tsp fish sauce
2 tsp chinese rice wine
Few dashes of pepper
1½ tbsp cornstarch


Steps:

1) Depending on the type of rice noodles you buy, you may have to loosen it up, separate the layers and cut it into big pieces.

2) Mix the sauce ingredients together in a bowl.

3) Heat up 2 tbsp of oil in wok or pan over high heat. Add the rice noodles and soy sauce. Pan-fry and stir lightly till noodles are slightly-charred. Transfer the noodles to a large and deep plate.

4) Heat up 1 tbsp of oil over high heat, add garlic, pork and fry till pork is almost cooked. Add shrimps, carrots and fry till shrimps turn red. Stir the sauce and add sauce to wok. Add bak choy, cook till it is done and sauce has thickened.

5) Pour the sauce with its ingredients over the cooked rice noodles. Serve immediately.