Noodles in a flash

We hear it so often that there are just never enough hours in the day!

For many of us that is the case, and so it’s handy to have a repertoire of quick and easy dishes to whip up for an evening meal or satisfying lunch on the weekend when you’re juggling the housework, gardening or children to sports.

As it’s the racing season, I’ll wager that it’s just as quick to whip up this dish of hokkien noodles as it would be to jump in the car to a nearby take-away!

Hokkien noodles are made in much the same way as making pasta – flour, egg and water are combined. If you ever have the chance to visit the Asian night markets just up the road at the Queen Victoria market, you’re likely to witness the magician-chefs who stretch and shape the noodles, like tossing lengths of rope up above their heads; it is a real skill.

Hokkien noodles may vary in thicknesses, but they are always all the same length. According to Chinese tradition, long, uncut noodles symbolise a long life.

Noodles are a satisfying and economical way of feeding a crowd, and for fun (if the occasion warranted it) you can readily buy the cardboard noodle boxes and serve this dish quite authentically with less dishes to wash.

As with all recipes there are a multitude of variations according to country, region, food traditions, and evolving new culinary twists on traditional recipes.

Hokkien Mee, when served in Singapore, uses a mixture of the yellow egg noodles and white rice noodles and is a stir fry dish with prawn and pork as the main ingredients, finished with a chilli sambal and lime juice.

In Malaysia, Hokkien Mee again uses egg and rice noodles but is more of a ‘soup’ meal, with dried prawns and chicken, as well as fresh prawns and pork. The garnishes added to complete the dish can include leafy greens, deep-fried shallots and spring onions together with the lime juice, soy and chilli sambal.

Like pasta dishes, noodle dishes need to be served immediately in warmed bowls – or the noodle boxes – and slurp away noisily as you enjoy this “noodles in a flash” dish!