Xiamen Chow mei fun (厦门炒米粉) is a tasty rice noodle dish served at many Chinese restaurants and often served at weekend dim sum brunches.
Although it’s probably not as well known as the curry-spiced Singapore Noodles dish, it’s just as delicious. As far as Chinese noodles go, these rice noodles are among the top of my favorites list.
The dish originates from a city in the Fujian province of southern China, where spicy foods are not as common. At this point, I have to admit that I have exhausted my knowledge about the city of Xiamen.
What’s also weird is that “Xiamen” is the Mandarin pronunciation of the city’s name, while “mei fun”, sometimes spelled “mai fun”, is a Cantonese word for rice noodles.
Ok, have I lost my credibility yet?
Hopefully you charitably answered ‘no’ to that question, because I do know my chow mei fun or rice noodle recipes, and this one is especially great.
For those of you who like a little heat in the dish, break out the chili oil! What could be better?
Xiamen Mei Fun: Recipe Instructions
Be sure to start soaking the noodles about an hour before you’re ready to start preparing the rest of the dish.
When you’re ready to cook, start by heating a tablespoon of oil in your wok. Scramble the eggs and set aside.
Add a little more oil, turn the heat up to high, and sear the shrimp just until they’re cooked through and a little crisp on the outside.
Heat another 2 tablespoons oil in your wok until it just starts to smoke. Add the Chinese roast pork and stir-fry for about 20 seconds.
Add the onion, garlic, and pepper, and stir-fry for another minute. The heat should still be high, and you should be stirring constantly.
You want enough sizzle to produce that “wok hay” (literally translated to: ‘breath of the wok’) flavor.
Add the ham and stir-fry for another 30 seconds.
Add the soaked rice noodles and give everything a good stir.
Toss in the eggs and shrimp and stir-fry until the noodles are heated through (about 3-5 minutes).
Add the Shaoxing wine, sugar, oyster sauce, soy sauce, and sesame oil. Mix well. If your noodles begin to stick, the wok is probably not hot enough.
Just use your metal wok spatula and make sure to scrape anything off the bottom of the wok so it doesn’t burn!
Finish with the scallions and continue to mix until the scallions are cooked to your liking. I like them barely heated for this dish myself. Serve with your favorite hot sauce or chili oil!
