Egg Fried Rice Noodles

Jidan Chao Mifen (鸡蛋炒米粉)

Tender chewy rice noodles are stir-fried with scrambled eggs, ham, bean sprouts, and scallion in this fast-paced, classic street food staple.

Egg Fried Rice Noodles is a simple dish with few ingredients, though it may take some practice to master. The key to this street-food dish is a large wok and an intense high heat. The wok should be quite literally smoking from the heat by the time the Rice Noodles are added – in other words, you should see the ‘Breath of the Wok’ (锅气).

This is a common street-food dish so naturally the ingredients are rather inexpensive, abundant, and filling. The following recipe actually makes quite a lot – easily enough for two people. But it does require a somewhat large wok to accomplish this effortlessly. It’s no problem for an expert to stir-fry these Rice Noodles in a normal-sized wok. But, for an amateur, you’ll need to use a large wok, a powerful wok burner, or simply halve the amounts for the ingredients, stir-frying only one serving at a time.

The ‘Ham’ commonly used for this dish in China isn’t really ham in the traditional sense. It’s actually a luncheon meat amalgamation stuffed into a casing with the texture, density, and flavor of a hotdog. Hotdogs are actually a common meat-product used for this dish. Chinese ‘Ham’ tastes quite a bit more artificial than actual ham, and it’s not as salty, sweet, or flavorful. Even though I prefer to use a ‘Bacon-flavored’ version for this dish, the flavor is vastly different from what any non-mainland Chinese would consider Bacon or Ham. Therefore, this ‘Ham’ product is in a category all on its own. It’s still quite tasty and an excellent addition to numerous street food dishes. It’s unlikely to spoil, is easy to prepare, and stir-fries perfectly.

Prep Time: 2 hrs

Cook Time: 5 min

Total Time: 2 hrs 5 min

Serving: 2 people

Ingredients

200 grams Rice Noodles (米粉)

3 Eggs
1/4 tsp. Salt

100 – 150 grams Ham (Casing Removed; Luncheon Meat OR Hotdogs can be substituted)

Vegetables
2 white stalks of Small Scallion (小葱)
1 small bunch of Lettuce
1 handful of Bean Sprouts

2 stalks of Small Scallion (小葱)

Noodle Sauce
2 tsp. Dark Soy Sauce
1/2 tsp. Salt
1/2 tsp. Chicken Bouillon Powder

Peanut Oil

1 Tbsp. Light Soy Sauce

Directions

1.) Place the Rice Noodles in a large bowl, fill the bowl with water, and allow the Noodles to soak for 2 hours.

(Depending on the brand of Noodles, you may be able to quicken this process by pouring boiling water over the Noodles and allowing them to sit in the hot water for 2 – 3 minutes. Check the package instructions for the Noodles).

2.) Crack the Eggs and add them to a bowl. Whisk in 1/4 tsp. of Salt using chopsticks until the Eggs are well beaten.

3.) Cut the Ham lengthwise into 1/4-inch-thick slices. Spread out the slices on the cutting board and cut the slices into 1/2-inch-thick strips that are about 2 to 3-inches long. Set the Ham aside in its own bowl.

(Instead of the generic luncheon meat style Ham, actual Ham can be used for this dish to make a higher-end version. Hotdogs and Spam are also common meat-products used for street-food versions of this dish. Though with Spam, you may need to reduce the salt added to the Rice Noodles).

4.) Prepare the Vegetables, placing them together in the same bowl:

• Separate the white and green stalk of the Scallions, setting aside the green stalk for later. Cut the white stalk of the Scallion into 1-inch pieces.
• Cut the Lettuce into 1.5-inch-wide pieces and set them in the bowl.
• Place the Bean Sprouts on top of everything in the bowl.

(Lettuce can be replaced by various types of Cabbage and other leafy greens – just be sure to cut them accordingly. For instance, Cabbage should be cut into thin julienne strips because of the thicker leaves. Lettuce and Spinach simply need cut evenly into roughly 1.5-inch pieces, which will prevent them from wilting too quickly).

5.) Cut the green stalks of Small Scallion into 1-inch pieces and place them in their own bowl.

6.) Remove the Rice Noodles from the water once properly soaked and shake off any excess liquid. Place the Rice Noodles in a bowl, add the Noodle Sauce (Dark Soy Sauce, Salt, and Chicken Bouillon Powder), and mix by hand until the Noodles are fully coated.

(Pre-seasoning the Noodles both shortens the overall cooking time and reduces the amount of time the wok is away from heat while stir-frying. It’s like a marinade for the Noodles).

7.) Heat a seasoned wok on medium-high heat until smoking and add 1/4 cup of Peanut Oil. Pull the wok away from heat, give the Eggs a final stir, and then pour them into the wok. Return the wok to heat, swirl the Eggs around in the bottom of the wok, and once the base of the Eggs has set, gently scramble the Eggs until nearly set.

8.) Pull the wok away from heat, increase the heat to high, and add the Vegetables and Ham to the wok. Return the wok to heat and stir-fry vigorously for about 30 seconds.

9.) Pull the wok away from heat, add the Rice Noodles, return the wok to heat, and stir-fry everything vigorously for about 45 seconds to 1 minute.

10.) Pull the wok away from heat. Splash the Light Soy Sauce around the sides of the wok and add the green Scallion pieces. Return the wok to heat, tossing and stir-frying the Rice Noodles into the Soy Sauce for about 20 to 30 seconds.

11.) Divide the Egg Fried Rice Noodles among two separate plates and serve them immediately.

 

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