Chinese noodles


are an essential ingredient and staple in Chinese cuisine. Chinese noodles vary widely according to the region of production, ingredients, shape or width, and manner of preparation. They are an important part of most regional cuisines within China, as well as in Singapore, and other nations with sizable overseas Chinese populations.
Chinese-style noodles have also entered the cuisines of neighboring East Asian countries such as Korea and Japan, as well as Southeast Asian countries such as Vietnam, Cambodia and Thailand.

Nomenclature

Nomenclature of Chinese noodles can be difficult due to the vast spectrum available in China and the many dialects of Chinese used to name them. In Mandarin, miàn refers to noodles made from wheat flour, while fěn or "fun" refers to noodles made from other starches, particularly rice flour and mung bean starch. Each noodle type can be rendered in pinyin for Mandarin, but in Hong Kong and neighboring Guangdong it will be known by its Cantonese pronunciation. Taiwan, Malaysia, Singapore and many other Overseas Chinese communities in Southeast Asia may use Hokkien instead.

History

The earliest written record of noodles is from a book dated to the Eastern Han period. Noodles, often made from wheat dough, became a prominent staple of food during the Han dynasty. In the Western Han Dynasty, due to the demand for military, it was necessary for the Government to implement food processing technologies that would make the food storage easier and more affordable. During this time, “Laomian” was emerged, it was made with starch rich buckwheat, millet and pea, flours. It consists lower water content making it easier to store and transport around.
During the Song dynasty noodle shops were very popular in the cities, and remained open all night. During the earlier dynastic periods Chinese wheat noodles were known as "soup cake", as explained by the Song dynasty scholar Huáng Cháo Yīng mentions in his work "A delightful mixed discussion on various scholarly topics" that in ancient times bready foods like pasta are referred collectively as "bing" and differentiated through their cooking methods.·

Production

Chinese noodles are generally made from either wheat flour, rice flour, or mung bean starch, with wheat noodles being more commonly produced and consumed in northern China and rice noodles being more typical of southern China. Egg, lye, and cereal may also be added to noodles made from wheat flour in order to give the noodles a different color or flavor. Egg whites, arrowroot or tapioca starch are sometimes added to the flour mixture in low quantities to change the texture and tenderness of the noodles' strands. Although illegal, the practice of adding the chemical cross-linker borax to whiten noodles and improve their texture is also quite common in East Asia. In general, the chinese noodles cooking method involves making a dough with flour, salt, and water; mixing the dough by hand to form bar shapes; bending the bars for proofing; pulling the bars into strips; dropping the strips into a pot with boiling water; and removing the noodles when finished cooking. Chinese type noodles are generally made from hard wheat flours, characterized by bright creamy white or bright yellow color and firm texture.
Before the automatic noodle machine was invented in 1950s, the processing of Chinese noodles were made with four steps, including Fresh - The noodles are often consumed within 24 hours of manufacture due to quick discoloration. Their shelf life can be extended to 3-5 days if stored under refrigeration; Dried - Fresh noodle stands are dried by sunlight or in a controlled chamber; Boiled - Fresh noodle strands are either parboiled or fully cooked. After parboiling, Chinese noodles are rinsed in cold water, drained and covered with 1-2% vegetable oil to prevent sticking; Steamed - Fresh alkaline noodle strands are steamed in a steamer and softened with water through rinsing.
The dough for noodles made from wheat flour is typically made from wheat flour, salt, and water, with the addition of eggs or lye depending on the desired texture and taste of the noodles. Rice- or other starch-based noodles are typically made with only the starch or rice flour and water. After the formation of a pliable dough mass, one of five types of mechanical processing may be applied to produce the noodles:
EnglishChinesePinyinProcess
Cut切qiēThe dough is rolled out into a flat sheet, folded, and then cut into noodles of a desired width
Extruded挤压jǐ yāThe dough is placed into a mechanical press with holes through which the dough is forced to form strands of noodles
Peeled削xiāoA firm dough is mixed and formed into a long loaf. Strips of dough are then quickly sliced or peeled off the loaf directly into boiling water
Pulled拉lāThe dough is rolled into a long cylinder, which is then repeatedly stretched and folded to produce a single thin strand
Kneaded揉róuA ball of dough is lightly rolled on a flat surface or kneaded with one's hands until it is formed into the desired shape
Flicked柭bóA soft dough is prepared, placed in a bowl, strips of dough are pulled and flicked directly into boiling water using a flexible bamboo stick or chopstick

While cut and extruded noodles can be dried to create a shelf-stable product to be eaten months after production, most peeled, pulled and kneaded noodles are consumed shortly after they are produced.

Cooking

Noodles may be cooked from either their fresh or dry forms. They are generally boiled, although they may also be deep-fried in oil until crispy. Boiled noodles may then be stir fried, served with sauce or other accompaniments, or served in soup, often with meat and other ingredients. Certain rice-noodles are made directly from steaming the raw rice slurry and are only consumed fresh.
Unlike many Western noodles and pastas, Chinese noodles made from wheat flour are usually made from salted dough, and therefore do not require the addition of salt to the liquid in which they are boiled. Chinese noodles also cook very quickly, generally requiring less than 5 minutes to become al dente and some taking less than a minute to finish cooking, with thinner noodles requiring less time to cook. Chinese noodles made from rice or mung bean starch do not generally contain salt.

Types

Wheat

These noodles are made only with wheat flour and water. If the intended product is dried noodles, salt is almost always added to the recipe.
Common English nameCharactersPinyinCantoneseHokkienWestern equivalentDescription
Cat's ear貓耳朵māo ěr duǒmaau ji do?OrecchietteLooks like a cat's ear
Cold noodles凉面
涼麵		liáng miànloeng mein??Served cold
Dao xiao mian刀削面
刀削麵		dāo xiāo miàndoe soek mein??Relatively short flat noodle peeled by knife from a firm slab of dough
Lamian拉麵lā miànlaai minla-mī?Hand-pulled noodles from which ramen was derived
Yaka mein 一個麵yī gè miàn???North American Chinese style wheat noodles similar to spaghetti; sold in Canada and the United States
Lo mein捞面
撈麵		lāo miànlo meinlo mi?Egg noodles that are stir fried with sliced vegetables and/or meats and other seasonings
Misua面线
麵線		miàn xiànmein sinmī-sòaⁿLong, short, very fine vermicelliThin, salted wheat noodles. Can be caramelized to a brown colour through extensive steaming
Misua宮麵gōng miàn??Long, short, very fine vermicelliThin, salted wheat noodles. Can be caramelized to a brown colour through extensive steaming
Saang mein生面
生麵		shēng miànsaang minsenn mī?Soapy texture
Thick noodles粗面
粗麵		cū miàncou minchho͘-mī?Thick wheat flour noodles, from which udon was derived

Lye-water or egg

These wheat flour noodles are more chewy in texture and yellow in colour either due to the addition of lye and/or egg. This class of lye water noodles has a subtle but distinctive smell and taste, described by some as being "eggy".
Common English nameCharactersPinyinCantoneseHokkienWestern equivalentDescription
Oil noodles油面
油麵		yóu miànjau miniû-mī?Made of wheat flour and egg or lye-water; often comes pre-cooked
Thin noodles幼面
幼麵		yòu miànjau miniù-mī?Thin lye-water noodles; one of the most common Cantonese noodles
Mee pok麵薄miàn báo?mī-po̍kLinguineFlat egg or lye-water noodles
Yi mein伊麵
伊府麵		yī miàn
yī fǔ miàn		yī mihn
yī fú mihn		i-mī
i-hú-mī		?Fried, chewy noodles made from wheat flour and egg or lye-water
Shrimp roe noodles蝦子麵xiā zǐ miànhaa zi minhê-tsí-mī?Made of wheat flour, lye-water, and roe, which show up as black spots
Jook-sing noodles竹昇麵zhú shēng miànzuk sing mintik-sing-mī?A rare type of Cantonese noodle in which the dough is tenderized with a large bamboo log

Rice

Rice-based noodles can be:
  1. Extruded from a paste and steamed into strands of noodles
  2. Steamed from a slurry into sheets and then sliced into strands
These noodles are typically made only with rice and water without the addition of salt. Although unorthodox, some producers may choose to add other plant starches to modify the texture of the noodles.
Common English nameCharactersPinyinCantoneseHokkienWestern equivalentDescription
Kway teow粿条gǔo tiáogwó tìuhkóe-tiâuRice fettuccineFlat rice noodles
Ho fun, Chow fun沙河粉shā hé fěnsaa ho fansa-hô-húnRice pappardelleVery wide, flat, rice noodles
Ho fun, Chow fun河粉hé fěnho fanhô-húnRice pappardelleVery wide, flat, rice noodles
Lai fun瀨粉
酹粉		lài fěnlaai fanluā-húnRice spaghettiThick round semi-transparent noodle made from sticky rice
Mai sin米線
米线		mǐ xiànmai sinbee suaRice spaghettiniRice noodles also called Guilin mífěn
Rice vermicelli米粉mí fěnmai fenbí-hún?Thin rice noodles

Starch

These noodles are made using various plant starches. Mung bean starch noodles will often be cut with tapioca starch to make them more chewy and reduce production costs.
Common English nameCharactersPinyinCantoneseHokkienWestern equivalentDescription
Winter noodles冬粉dōng fěndung funtang-húnThin mung bean vermicelliVery thin mung bean starch noodles
Bean threads粉絲fěn sīfun sze?Mung bean vermicelliThin cellophane-like noodles
Mung bean sheets粉皮fěn pífan peihún-phê?Wide, clear noodles made from mung bean starch
Liang pi凉皮líang pí???Translucent noodles made from wheat starch left from producing gluten
Silver needle noodles銀針粉yín zhēn fěnngan zam fan??Spindle-shaped wheat starch noodles, ca. 5 cm in length and 3–5 mm in diameter
Silver needle noodles老鼠粉lǎo shǔ fěnlou syu fanniáu-chhú-hún?Spindle-shaped wheat starch noodles, ca. 5 cm in length and 3–5 mm in diameter
Suān là fěn酸辣粉suān là fěnchuan lao fán?Sweet potato vermicelliChongqing hot & spicy sweet potato starch noodles

Oat

In China, particularly in western Inner Mongolia and Shanxi province, oat flour is called yóu miàn, and is processed into noodles or thin-walled rolls, which are consumed as staple food. The process of making oat noodles is special. The oat dough is twisted on marble plate which can ensure the dough will not stick on it, into strips and thin-rolls. It can be boiled and also steamed with different sauces to eat.

Chinese noodle dishes

The following are a small portion of Chinese dishes that incorporate noodles: