Beef Curry Hong Kong Noodles (咖哩牛肉炒雲吞麵, Gaa3 Lei1 Ngau4 Juk6 Caau2 Wan4 Tan1 Min6)

 

This recipe was updated on 19 Oct 2014. Some instructions and ingredient quantities were changed, and metric measurements added.

This dish uses Hong Kong style noodles together with Madras curry powder in a stir fry. Hong Kong noodles are thin egg noodles and the literal translation in Cantonese is wonton noodles. While there aren’t any wontons in this dish, these noodles are typically used together with wonton in a soup broth, hence their name, and that leads to no end of confusion if you use the literal translation. So you’ll find dishes named in English referring to thin egg noodles, Hong Kong style noodles, and even vermicelli (whose use isn’t quite correct). Needless to say, the noodles are just really thin and are really good in a stir fry.

Enjoy!

Ingredients

¾ lb.	375 g.	Beef flank or flap meat (牛肉, ngau4 juk6), cut into thin 2-inch (5 cm.) pieces
1 tsp.	5 ml.	Baking soda (蘇打粉, sou1 daa2 fan2)
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)
½ lb.	250 g.	Bean sprouts (芽菜, ngaa4 coi3)
½ lb.	250 g.	Marinated bean curd (五香豆腐, ng5 hoeng1 dau6 fu6), cut into ¼-inch (7.5 mm.) long strips
3 stalks	3 stalks	Green onions (葱, cung1), cut into 2-inch (5 cm.) pieces
2	2	Red serrano chilies (辣椒, laat6 ziu1), sliced into ¼-inch (7.5 mm.) pieces (optional)
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.	Wonton noodles (aka Hong Kong noodles) (雲吞麵, wan4 tan1 min6)
		Oil for cooking

 

Sauce Ingredients

2 Tbs.	30 ml.	Madras curry powder (咖哩粉, gaa3 lei1 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)

 

Equipment

14 in.	35.5 cm.	Wok or pan

 

Preparation Instructions

1. Prepare the beef flank or flap meat by removing any silver skin or fat, and cut against the grain into thin 2-inch (5 cm.) pieces. Wet with water and add baking soda to the beef, allow to tenderize for 15 minutes, and then wash the baking soda from the meat. The baking soda can be omitted but results in the tender meat experienced in restaurant dishes.
2. Marinate the beef 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 beef overnight, take it out of the refrigerator at least one hour before cooking.
3. Wash the bean sprouts.
4. Cut the marinated bean curd into ¼-inch (7.5 mm.) strips.
5. Crush the ginger and garlic in a garlic press and put into a small bowl.
6. Wash and cut the red serrano chilies into ¼-inch (7.5 mm.) pieces (optional). Place the chilies into the bowl with the ginger and garlic.
7. Wash and cut the green onions into 2-inch (5 cm.) pieces.
8. Prepare and mix the sauce in a small bowl: add the Madras curry powder, soy sauce, hoisin sauce, Shaoxing rice wine or dry sherry, ground white pepper, and sesame oil. In another small bowl, prepare the corn starch slurry by mixing the corn starch and water together.

Cooking Instructions

1. Cook the noodles according to the instructions on the package and until the noodles are al dente. Drain the noodles and set aside. If ready-made or fresh noodles are used, “fluff” the noodles to separate them (i.e. you don’t want put a single mass of noodles into the wok).
2. Heat a wok or pan over high heat and before adding oil. Add the beef pieces to the wok in a single layer on the bottom and brown the outside. You may have to cook the beef in batches, so be sure to reheat the wok over high heat before adding more oil. Set the beef aside in a bowl.
3. Reheat the wok over high heat before adding oil and then the bowl with the ginger, garlic, and red chilies. Quickly stir fry the ginger, garlic, and red chilies until fragrant before adding more oil and then the marinated bean curd. Stir fry the ingredients and then remove them to the bowl with the beef.
4. 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 beef.
5. 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.
6. Add the green onions and the contents of the bowl with the beef back into the wok and stir fry all the ingredients together. Add the sauce ingredients to the wok and stir fry the ingredients together. If more sauce is desired, add some liquid (stock or water) to the wok. Put the cooked ingredients into a serving dish and serve with steamed rice.