Spicy Pork Rice Roll Chow Fun (辣豆辦豬肉炒粉, Laat6 Dau6 Faan6 Zyu1 Juk6 Caau2 Fan2)

This recipe was updated on 26 May 2015. Some instructions were changed.

Fried flat rice noodles is a simple Chinese noodle dish to make and a favorite of mine. The final dish is usually the result of what is in my refrigerator since you can use just about any ingredient to prepare this dish using fresh flat wide rice noodles. This version uses fresh rice roll noodles, which as the name implies, are round and not flat, along with ground pork, bean sprouts, Chinese broccoli, and chopped scallions in a spicy bean sauce. If you are unable to get fresh rice roll noodles at your local Asian market, the easier to find flat wide rice noodles can be substituted. The ground pork needs some preparation time, so you’ll need a minimum of one hour for marinating, but also can be marinated overnight.

Chow fun noodles are available fresh and unrefrigerated from your local Asian market. The noodle’s texture is soft when kept at room temperature. In California, there’s actually a law that permits these noodles to be kept and sold at room temperature. Once refrigerated, the noodles become hard and have a different texture when cooked. You should use the noodles the day of purchase. If this is not possible, then the noodles should be refrigerated and brought up to room temperature before use (the noodles will not regain its previous soft texture). The noodles will also have to be separated before cooking.

Enjoy!

Ingredients

¾ lb.	375 g.	Ground pork (豬肉, zyu1 juk6)
½ in.	15 mm.	Knob of ginger (薑, goeng1), crushed in a garlic press
2 cloves	2 cloves	Garlic (蒜, syun3), crushed in a garlic press
1 Tbs.	15 ml.	Corn starch (粟粉, suk1 fan2)
2 Tbs.	30 ml.	Soy sauce (豉油, si6 jau4)
1 Tbs.	15 ml.	Hoisin sauce (海鮮醬, hoi2 sin1 zoeng3)
2 Tbs.	30 ml.	Shaoxing rice wine (紹興酒, siu6 hing1 zau2) or dry sherry
½ tsp.	2.5 ml.	Ground white pepper (白胡椒, baak6 wu4 ziu1)
1 tsp.	5 ml.	Sesame oil (麻油, maa4 jau4)
8 oz.	250 g.	Bean sprouts (芽菜, ngaa4 coi3)
8 oz.	250 g.	Chinese broccoli (芥蘭, gaai3 laan4), cut into ½-inch (15 mm.) pieces
3 stalks	3 stalks	Green onions (葱, cung1), cut into 1-inch (2.5 cm.) pieces
½ in.	15 mm.	Knob of ginger (薑, goeng1), crushed in a garlic press
2 cloves	2 cloves	Garlic (蒜, syun3), crushed in a garlic press
1 lb.	500 g.	One package rice roll noodles (腸粉, coeng4 fan2) or chow fun noodles (炒粉, caau2 fan2), cut into 2-inch (5 cm.) pieces
		Oil for cooking

Sauce Ingredients

2 Tbs.	30 ml.	Lian How brand hot bean sauce (辣豆辦醬, laat6 dau6 faan6 zoeng3) or equivalent
1 Tbs.	15 ml.	Lian How brand bean sauce (豆辦醬, dau6 faan6 zoeng3) or equivalent
2 Tbs.	30 ml.	Soy sauce (豉油, si6 jau4)
1 Tbs.	15 ml.	Hoisin sauce (海鮮醬, hoi2 sin1 zoeng3)
2 Tbs.	30 ml.	Shaoxing rice wine (紹興酒, siu6 hing1 zau2) or dry sherry
½ tsp.	2.5 ml.	Ground white pepper (白胡椒, baak6 wu4 ziu1)
½ Tbs.	7.5 ml.	Sesame oil (麻油, maa4 jau4)

Equipment

		Garlic press
14 in.	35.5 cm.	Wok or pan



Rice Roll Noodles (腸粉, coeng4 fan2)

Preparation Instructions

1. Marinate the ground pork in a covered container for at least one hour or overnight in the refrigerator with the ginger and garlic crushed in a garlic press, corn starch, soy sauce, hoisin sauce, Shaoxing rice wine or dry sherry, ground white pepper, and sesame oil. If marinating the pork overnight, take it out of the refrigerator at least one hour before cooking.
2. If the rice roll noodles have been refrigerated, take the noodles out of the refrigerator at least one hour before cooking. The noodles become hard once refrigerated, so it’s best to use fresh (unrefrigerated) noodles if possible. Open the rice roll noodle package and cut the rice rolls into 2-inch (5 cm.) pieces.
3. Wash and cut the Chinese broccoli into ½-inch (15 mm.) pieces.
4. Wash the bean sprouts and remove as much of the water as possible to facilitate stir frying.
5. Crush the ginger and garlic in a garlic press and put into a small bowl.
6. Wash and cut the green onions into 1-inch (2.5 cm.) pieces.

   

   Lian How Brand Bean Sauce
   (豆辦醬, dau6 faan6 zoeng3)
   and Hot Bean Sauce
   (辣豆辦醬, laat6 dau6 faan6 zoeng3)

7. Prepare and mix the sauce in a small bowl: add the Lian How brand hot bean sauce or equivalent, Lian How brand bean sauce or equivalent, soy sauce, hoisin sauce, Shaoxing rice wine or dry sherry, ground white pepper, and sesame oil. The ratio of bean sauce (hot and normal) can be adjusted to suit personal preference to spiciness, so feel free to change the amounts.

Cooking Instructions

1. Heat a wok or pan over high heat before adding oil. Add the ground pork to the wok in a single layer on the bottom, stir fry to brown while breaking up any clumps. You may have to cook the pork in batches, so be sure to reheat the wok over high heat before adding more oil. Set the pork aside in a bowl.
2. Reheat the wok over high heat before adding oil and then the Chinese broccoli. Stir fry the Chinese broccoli to brown them. Add the bowl with the ginger and garlic, and then some oil to the mixture. Quickly stir fry all the ingredients until the ginger and garlic become fragrant, and then remove the contents of the wok to the bowl with the pork.
3. Reheat the wok over high heat before adding oil and then the bean sprouts. Stir fry the bean sprouts and then remove them to the bowl with the pork.
4. Reheat the wok over high heat before adding more oil and then the noodles. The wok should be very hot before adding the oil and then the noodles. Noodles cooked in a restaurant wok (over much higher heat than that available in your kitchen) are served slightly burned, which gives the noodles an extra added flavor.  To try to emulate slightly burned noodles, try to put the noodles in one layer in the hot wok and add some liquid (water, stock, or Shaoxing wine; but not too much liquid otherwise you’ll steam the noodles) to facilitate the heat transfer from the wok to the noodles, and leave the noodles alone. You want the noodles to get burned before adding more oil to the noodles and turning them over, repeating the process.
5. Add the green onions and the contents of the bowl with the pork back into the wok, and stir fry all the ingredients together. Add the sauce ingredients to the wok and stir fry the ingredients together. Put the cooked ingredients into a serving dish.