SINGAPORE NOODLES
Ingredients • 8-12 shrimp or prawns, peeled, deveined and butterflied • Rice noodles – about 2 cups after it’s been soaked • 2 eggs (optional) • 3 cups shredded Chinese cabbage • 1 carrot • 1 spring onion •
½ of a red onion
• 3 dried red chilli peppers • 1 Chinese Sausage (traditional sweet Lop Cheung), or ¼ cup sliced roast pork or ham • 1 tablespoon oil • 1 ½ tablespoons curry powder • 2 teaspoons salt • 1 tablespoon Chinese wine • ½ teaspoon sesame oil • ½ tablespoon soy sauce • Pinch of white pepper • Mushrooms for garnish
Method 1. Rinse the shrimp and pat dry. Soak the rice noodles in cold water for twenty minutes. Drain the noodles just before you’re ready cook. 2. If you decide to use eggs in this, beat them in a bowl and make a thin omelette. Transfer to the cutting board and cut the omelette into thin strips about 2 to 3 inches long and set aside. Julienne the cabbage, carrot, and spring onion. Thinly slice the red onion and set aside along with the dried chili peppers. Cut the Chinese sausage into thin pieces similar to the size of the carrots. 3. Heat the wok on the highest setting and add oil, sausage and shrimp and stir-fry for about 10 seconds. Add the dried chilli peppers, carrot, cabbage and onion and stirfry for about 30 seconds and then sprinkle the curry powder evenly over the mixture. 4. Add the rice noodles and while doing so, make sure you rip them into manageable 7 to 8 inch lengths for easy eating later. Add the salt and wine and mix well (about 1 to 2 minutes), making sure you firmly scrape the bottom of the wok with your spatula to prevent the noodles from sticking. A hot wok is a must to prevent sticking but ensuring that you scrape the bottom of the wok as you mix is an important technique.
Healthy, packed full of flavour, and quick to make, this deliciously authentic meal is sure to lure nostalgia and transport you to the stand of an inner-city street vendor, reminding travellers how countries come alive through gastronomy.
5. The noodles should be taking on the rich colour of the curry powder. Add the sesame oil, soy sauce, white pepper, spring onions and the cooked egg if you decided to include it. Mix thoroughly again for another minute, plate and serve immediately!
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