Stir fried beef hor fun

There are many names for the humble flat rice noodle. The name used here, hor fun or he fen in Mandarin, originates from sa hor fun- meaning sa hor noodle. It is named after a village in Guangdong province, China, where it first become popular among the Cantonese people, a southern Chinese dialect group. Soon, its popularity spreads to the Hokkien people of neighboring Fujian province, who call it kway teow or guo tiao in Mandarin.

The ready availability of rice- a main staple in many parts of Asia, plus its versatility in cooking; help spread this food to South East Asia. Here , it is also called kway teow by people of other races. Variations of this are kueh teow and kuey teow.

Ingredients:

Hor fun (flat rice noodle), beef, onion, garlic, leek, beansprout, oyster sauce, salt, sugar, soy sauce, baking soda, red wine, cornstarch and cooking oil.

 Tender beef suitable for frying (sirloin)- 150g, cut into thin slices across the grain.

2. Add ¼ tsp baking soda, ¼ tsp sugar, ½ tsp soy sauce, ½ tsp red wine, 1 tsp cornstarch, to 1 Tbs water in a mixing bowl. Add beef and stir thoroughly. Marinate for 20 min to 1 hr.

3. Using a heavy Chinese cleaver, slap the back end of the blade smartly on the garlic and remove the peels. Chop garlic into pieces and set aside.

4. Heat wok until hot, add 3 tbs cooking oil. Add 4 cloves finely chopped garlic, stir fry until fragrant. Add beef and partially fry for about 30 sec. The beef should become white on the edges and remain slightly pink at the center. Remove and set aside.

5. Hor fun used should be fresh and soft, not cold and brittle. Heat wok with high heat and add 1 Tbs cooking oil to heated wok. When oil is hot, add chopped onions. Stir fry until fragrant. Add hor fun. Stir fry for about 2 min, when it looks soft and somewhat transparent, add 1 tsp oyster sauce, 1 tsp soy sauce, ¼ tsp sugar, 1/8 tsp salt, continue frying. Add bean sprout, stir fry for 1 min. Add pre-cooked beef. Stir fry for about 20 sec, add leek. Entire step 4 is done in high heat, rapid stir fry. Turn the heat off, transfer onto plate. Enjoy.

If fresh hor fun is not available, dry type may also be used. The noodle should look somewhat glossy, due to the presence of volatile mineral oil. Prolonged storage causes this mineral oil to be lost. This results in a hor fun that looks white and powdery. Boil water for 2 min in a wok or pot. Add oil and salt. When water reaches about 80 deg C, add hor fun. Remove the softened hor fun. Drain out excess water.

An alternative technique popular among professional cooks to stir frying is to continually toss the wok and its contents over an intense and noisy flame. This method requires the use of a light steel wok with a long handle. While tossing, the oil within the wok gets lighted up by the flame and the entire wok with its contents catch fire momentarily. This results in an intentionally and slightly charred hor fun. Yummy.