Cantonese Style Yuen Yong Noodles 廣府炒鴛鴦

廣府炒鴛鴦 (pronounced kwong fu chao yuen yong in Cantonese) literally means Cantonese fried mandarin ducks but don't be alarmed as no mandarin ducks are sacrificed for the dish. The yuen yong (mandarin ducks) is referring to the two different types of rice noodles used here and if you can't decide on hor fun or rice vermicelli then this is the perfect dish for you to order. In Hong Kong you are likely to get a plate of rice with two different type of sauces when you order yuen yong chao but in Malaysia this fantastic noodle dish is what you will be getting. Again if you have tried making wat dan hor and fried rice vermicelli (wet version), making this is going to be a breeze. This is a very simple dish but also a very well thought after one; the contrast of texture and the playfulness of the name of the dish is enough to make one crave for this time and time again.

P.S 鴛鴦 (pronounced yuan yang in Mandarin) consists of the two Chinese characters 鴛 (male bird) and 鴦 (female bird).

recipe per serve
you'll need;
a handful of rice vermicelli, soaked in warm water for 5 minutes and drained
a handful of fresh wide rice noodles (hor fun), loosen
2 stalks of choysum or bokchoy
a handful of sliced fish cakes
few prawns
50 g of marinated meat of your choice
2 garlic cloves, chopped
3/4 cup of chicken stock
dash of soy
dash of oyster sauce
dash of white pepper
dash of Chinese cooking wine
corn flour solution
1 egg beaten (optional)

Marinate meat of your choice with a little soy, sesame oil, Chinese cooking wine, white pepper and corn flour.

Mix 1/2 tbs of dark soy to the fresh rice noodles and 1/2 tbs of light soy to the rice vermicelli.

Char noodles in a smoking hot wok for a few minutes, do not attempt to move the noodles too much. Set aside and keep warm.

Slowly pan fry the rice vermicelli til crispy and golden. Some restaurants deep fry the vermicelli in order to save time, you will find slowly frying the rice vermicelli rather than deep frying will yield a much more satisfying result. Set aside and keep warm.

Saute chopped garlic for a few seconds then add in the prawns follow by the marinated meat, fish cakes and choysum. Fry for a minute or two and add in the seasonings.

Add chicken stock, bring it to a simmer. Check for seasonings before thicken with corn flour solution. A beaten egg can be added now for wat dan sauce (silky egg sauce).

Pour the hot sauce over the noodles and serve immediately with some pickled green chillies.

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