Mixed Hakka Chowmein

Hi,

I am pretty tired today, but not so much as not to be able to rustle up a hot favourite Chinese dish that I have been dying to have for the last few days. The only downside of preparing hakka noodles is the awful amount of cutting and dicing. But the end result is so yummy, especially in a mild winter evening, I would happily go through it while Yanni is playing in the background.

Ingredients: 

400 gm noodles (ordinary ones not egg noodles or anything fancy)

100 gm prawns (shelled, de-veined and thoroughly cleaned)

2 eggs

1 medium carrot

30 gm French beans

25 gm or one small bunch of spring onions

1/8 portion of a small cabbage 

1 small capsicum

1 large onion or 2 medium onions

1 teaspoon white pepper powder (purely for flavour)

1 teaspoon dark soy sauce

1 tablespoon white vinegar

1 teaspoon salt or to taste

1/2 cup vegetable oil

Method:

First boil water in a large pot, the more water, the better. Add the noodles and cook for roughly 3 minutes or until they are almost cooked (never overcook or let them sit in the boiling water for it will later break into tiny pieces when you try to stir-fry them), take off the heat, drain in a colander and hold under a running tap. Rinse thoroughly with your fingers, taking care not the break the strands. Your purpose here is to wash away the residual starch that makes it sticky and slippery. Now set aside the colander full of noodles so that the water is drained out. You can also add a tablespoon of vegetable oil to the noodles and shake them loosely. It will ensure they won't stick to the pan later. While the noodles are drying, cut the carrot, cabbage, capsicum in long thin strips. Cut the French beans diagonally so that the pieces resemble elongated rhombus. Slice the onions. Chop the spring onions into 1 cm long pieces. Mix the soy and the vinegar and set aside. Beat the eggs. Heat a small amount of oil in a wok. Add the beaten egg and stir continuously on high heat. When the eggs are thoroughly stir-fried, remove from the wok and set aside. Add the rest of the oil to the wok. When heated through, add the prawns. Stir fry on high heat until the water coming out of the prawn evaporates. Remove the prawn from heat and set aside. Add the vegetables except capsicum to the prawn-flavoured oil and stir fry for 5 to 7 minutes or until they are almost cooked. Now add the capsicum, prawns, scrambled egg and finally add the noodles bit by bit. Continue stirring with light hands with a couple of forks to ensure the noodles do not stick to the bottom. Add salt, ajinamoto, soy-vinegar mixture and stir again to mix everything evenly. Add the spring onions. Turn off the heat and serve hot. 

Tip: You can garnish the dish with boiled, shredded and fried pieces of pork and chicken.