Hing Hua Soh Min (Heng Hua Mee Sua) Traditional Chinese New Year and Birthday Noodles | BIG Bites MY
Hing Hua Soh Min (Heng Hua Mee Sua)
Traditional Chinese New Year and Birthday Noodles
My favorite noodles - our family's version of Hing Hua Soh
Min (Hing Hua Mee Sua) that is usually served on the first day of Chinese New
Year and on birthdays.
This is not a simple recipe as it involves preparing many
different components. However most of the components are quite easy to prepare,
just that it feels difficult because there are so many different items to make.
PART 1: CHICKEN & SHIITAKE MUSHROOM SOUP
Ingredients: Chicken & Shiitake Mushroom Soup
- 2 chicken thighs
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
- 1 inch ginger
- 6 dried Shiitake mushrooms
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon chicken stock granules
- 1250ml water
Method: Chicken & Shiitake Mushroom Soup
- Shiitake Mushrooms:
- Place mushrooms in a bowl and pour in 500ml of water. I usually leave it in the fridge to rehydrate overnight.
- Snip mushroom stems but keep mushroom stems and stock to flavor the soup
- Slice ginger
- Heat up sesame oil in the pressure cooker / instant pot
- Add ginger and saute until lightly browned and fragrant
- Add Shiitake mushrooms and mushroom stems and saute for a few minutes until fragrant
- Add mushroom stock (500ml) and 750ml of water
- Add chicken stock granules and salt
- Place lid onto pressure cooker / instant pot, lock and set to HIGH PRESSURE for 20 minutes
- After 20 minutes, when pressure cooking stops, release pressure and open lid (be careful of the hot steam)
- Add chicken thighs and bring soup to boil with the lid open
- Boil for 10 minutes and then turn off heat. Cover pot and let the residual heat continue to cook the chicken. Ready after 30 minutes.
Notes:
- If you are not using a pressure cooker / instant pot, you may do the cooking steps on a stove top. Boil soup for 1-2 hours.
- I like the texture of the chicken using the poaching method because the meat is more silky smooth. However you may choose to do it the traditional way of boiling the chicken with the soup for 2 hours. There is no right or wrong about this - only difference is the end result - the texture of the chicken meat.
PART 2: THE CONDIMENTS
Ingredients: The Condiments
- 1 bunch Choy Sum (Mustard Green)
- 5g dried golden lily buds (knotted and soaked till soften)
- 30g groundnuts
- 5g Chinese seaweed
- 2 eggs
- 5 tablespoons cooking oil
- 1 pip garlic
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3 tablespoons chicken soup (made in Part 1)
Method: The Condiments
Choy Sum (Mustard Green)
- Wash greens and cut into smaller pieces. Separate leaves and stems.
- Bring a pan of water to boil over medium high heat. Add 1 teaspoon of oil and salt
- Add Choy Sum stems and blanch for 30 seconds before adding the leaves. Then wait for another 10 seconds before removing the veggie from the pan.
Golden Lily Buds
- Slice garlic
- Heat up 1 teaspoon of oil over medium high heat
- Add garlic and saute until fragrant
- Add lily buds and saute for a few minutes
- Add a few pinches of salt and continue cooking for about another minute
- Add chicken soup and simmer for a few minutes. Then it's ready.
Chinese Seaweed
(Can be made in advance and stored in an airtight container until needed)
- Heat up 1 teaspoon of oil over medium low heat
- Add seaweed and stir frequently to prevent scorching it
- Ready when seaweed turns crispy and shiny
Groundnuts
(Can be made in advance and stored in an airtight container until needed)
- Pour 3 tablespoons of oil into a cold pan
- Add groundnuts. Pan fry over low heat and stir frequently.
- It takes about 10-15 minutes for the groundnuts to brown evenly
- Groundnuts are ready when the skin turns reddish brown
- Remove from pan and use a kitchen towel to absorb excess oil
Egg
- Whisk 2 eggs
- Pour some oil into an egg pan, swirl to coat base and tip out excess oil
- Pour beaten egg into pan and swirl to distribute evenly into a thin layer
- Cook over low heat
- Egg is ready to be flipped when little bubbles form in the middle
- Flip egg and let it cook for a minute to set. Then it's ready.
- Slice egg any which way you prefer
PART 3: THE NOODLES
Ingredients: The Noodles
- 1 bundle Hing Hua Mee Sua (dried noodles)
- 3 shallots
- 5 tablespoons cooking oil
Method: The Noodles
- Peel and slice shallots
- Pour 5 tablespoons of oil into a cold pan
- Add shallots. Cook over low heat and stir frequently.
- It takes about 10 minutes for the shallots to turn a light golden brown
- It should be very fragrant by now. Remove quickly from heat as the shallots will continue to brown in the hot oil.
- I will usually separate the shallots from the oil to prevent it from getting burnt in the hot oil
- Bring a pan of water to boil and add Hing Hua Mee Sua. Boil for a minute and then turn off heat and let noodles sit in the hot water for another minute.
- Then remove noodles and plunge it into cold water. Remove and return noodles to the pot of hot water. Remove and transfer noodles into a container.
- Add shallot oil and fried shallots to the noodles and toss well to prevent sticking. Noodles are ready to be served.
Notes:
If you are using normal mee suah noodles, you may want to follow the cooking
instructions on the packaging of the noodles. Cooking time and method may vary
if you are not using Hing Hua Mee Sua.
PART 4: THE PRESENTATION
Method: The Presentation
- The way it's served is like a noodle version of bibimbap where all The Accompaniments are arranged on top of the noodles (Choy Sum, golden lily buds, groundnuts, Chinese seaweed, egg, chicken and Shiitake mushrooms)
- I like to eat mine soupy, so I will always pour the soup into my bowl of Soh Min. My mom usually goes vegetarian on Chinese New Year morning, so she will eat it dry without the Chicken & Shiitake Mushroom soup.
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