Ho fun--isn't that what makes politicians have to resign every now and then?

gellcom,

You brightened a gloomy day with that menu. It got me laughing in spite of the drizzly, dark weather.

I have fun whenever I can. Whenever we go out for dim sum it is I who urges, "Let's have fun".

Jim

I'm smiling too. The noodles you like, I like them a lot too, also come dried, cut and folded over and over. Some of our supermarkets and all of our Asian stores carry the dried ones. I'll have to look for the fresh the next time I go to one of our larger Asian stores. I don't know about using the fresh ones but you soak the dry ones for a few minutes in warm water until they are soft and then drain and use immediately. They can get mushy if they are soaked to long.The dry ones are about half an inch wide after they are soaked.

I just read in several recipes that the fresh ones are cut either 1/2 inch or 3/4 inch wide and are rinsed first in warm water just enough to allow the folded layers to be unfolded.

These are the noodles that are used in Chow Fun dishes. If you Google Chow Fun, you'll find loads of recipes. I love Chow Fun but at home I've only used these noodles in Asian style soups.

Lee

I'm sure I've been to that restaurant, LOL!

When we go out for dim sum, my DH's favorite dish is the shrimp wrapped in ho fun, steamed and served with sweet soy. No matter how many people (or how few) are with us, he has to have an entire plate of this for himself.

In home use, the packages harden quickly and spoil even faster. Like the rice from which they're made, they keep a long time in the frig but get rock hard. I heat them up in a pot of boiling water - they soften up quickly - then drain and use. I don't often make them at home in stirfries as it takes a lot of oil to keep them from sticking!

The Asian grocery stores also carry a variant of fresh rice noodle seldom if ever found in the dim sum restaurants but very popular with home cooks. It's a package of fresh rice noodles already prepared with dried shrimp and green onion, each sheet rolled up tightly. My DH and MIL eat these pan-fried (so the noodle gets that elastic quality of Japanese mochi) with hoisin sauce dabbed over it. I linked the only picture on the web I could find of them.

If for some reason I have to refrigerate these rolls for a day before cooking them, I put them in the frypan with a little water and oil, then cover so they'll steam and soften before taking off the cover and then browning them.

Here is a link that might be useful: Shrimp & onion rice noodles

Interesting menu indeed! :-) Anyone wants 50 lbs. of rice that comes with your order? LOL

I thought Ho(r) Fun was pre-cut so you wouldn't have to cut it at home? Also, the Ho Fun we find in the Asian market is not dried. They come in a tightly wrapped package that requires refrigeration. When it's cooked Ho Fun looks like this:

It seems to me Ho Fun is usually cooked in soup or heavy gravy. I don't particular like a bunch of ingredients sitting in a puddle so Ho Fun is never very appealing to me. :-)

However, I found one stir fries recipe. Have not tried it but the picture looks pretty good.

Al

Here is a link that might be useful: Beef with flat rice noodles

They never work for me just placing them in warm water a while, I have to cook them a few minutes and then I cut them in pieces with scissors. Not authentic I know, but I've never cared whether I was authentic or not so long as I thought it tasted good.

What is the name of those big, thick, soft white noodles served with dim sum? They are about 3/8" thick and 2 or 3 inches wide. They often have beef inside and the server pours some thin sauce over them. They are fun but I don't know what kind.

Jim

You mean something like this?

I believe it's called Rice Noodle Rolls or Rice rolls. I love the ones with shrimps or BBQ pork fillings. Very yummy!

Al

That's it!

To me, dim sum is not complete without it. There is also a Chinese name of course.

Jim

Gellchom,

The Belching Dragon Menu is hilarious!

I could go for an order of Prawns With L.L. Bean Sauce right now!

Jim

Those look exactly like the noodles I bought before I cut them.

I couldn't find them dried, only fresh. Too bad; I would love to keep some on hand. Anyone know how long the fresh ones in the plastic packet keep (unopened)?

I'm going to look at the recipes you all pointed out to me for pointers on how to wrangle those noodles.

Do you ever see them with chicken? Seems like beef predominates with this noodle, for some reason.

Yes. Beef predominates for some reason. I think I have haad the shrimp ones also.

Jim

I tried the recipe and technique shown on this website. I had awful luck with the noodles. I was disappointed since I even mail ordered the correct soy sauces. The noodles were all clumpy. We ate it all but it just wasn't the right texture. Maybe you will have better luck. Be sure just post some pointers if you get it right.

Here is a link that might be useful: Pad See Ew for beginners

The only dried rice noodles you will find are either the thin-cut, or the 'rice cake' (long ovals), the latter of which are used in Shanghainese stir-fries.

joanm, you have to use lots of oil and stirfry the noodles very quickly. I make the meat/veggie stirfry, then soften the noodles in boiling water very quickly, drain and add to the wok. A few stirs and it's done.

If you cook rice noodles too long, whether dried or fresh, they will get mushy on you. There's no gluten in them, just starch, so it just keeps absorbing water until it turns into glue, aka congee! My DH loves congee, or jook as it's properly called, but I can only eat it when I'm sick.

If refrigerated I'd keep it no longer than 1 week. Rice is a fabulous bacteria medium but spoilage is easily detected, the smell changes to sour.

I think three or more different noodle dishes are being discussed here, ho fun, chow fun, pad see ew and maybe one or two others. Maybe some of them use the same noodle. I'm not sure about that.

After doing some googling, I find that the dim sum dish I described, and shown in the photo posted by Al, is chee cheong fun. Al is correct that it is also called rice noodle roll. It seems unlikely to me that this type of noodle is ever dried. It seems too thick for that. I could be wrong. Anyway, it is not ho fun.

I read somewhere that ho fun is "chewy". Would you describe it that way? This topic is still confusing to me.

Jim

Here is a link that might be useful: chee cheong fun

Thanks for the tips Jkom51. I will have to give it another try.

Yes Jim, I did post about my favorite Thai noodle dish. I always order the beef soy sauce noodle at the Thai restaurant. I quite often order the beef chow fun at the Chinese place. They seem very similar to me. The Chow Fun has noodles that are only slightly wider. The noodles I tried to cook were some where in between the two sizes. I would love to be able to cook one of these dishes at home. Neither of those two dishes have ever been chewy to me.

I have a feeling that all these rice noodles are all the same. They're just made into different shapes/thickness for various cooking styles. I've found these short clips on Youtube on how to make steamed rice noodle rolls and stir fried Ho Fun with beef.

Making steamed rice noodle rolls:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4dvfALGg4eI&feature=related

The next three are how Ho Fun is made (3 parts)

Part 1, steaming:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_q7u1JCHAA4&feature=related

Part 2, folding:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pvu9fOuFwPQ&feature=related

Part 3, cutting:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ryE6Ul79oYs&feature=related

This one shows you how to stir fry Ho Fun with beef with English subtitles:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Znf2BkP3S2c&feature=related

This one looks very good (no detail information though):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P4R-H0jOAEg&feature=related

Seems to me both rice noodle rolls and Ho Fun are made of the same ingredients: rice and water, I guess one can use similar seasonings to cook these noodles.

Al

Yes, these are all the same noodle - either fresh or dried, left in sheets or cut into strips.

The picture posted by althetrainer is called "ha cheung fun", but you must remember that Anglicizing Chinese words depends on which dialect you're speaking. My DH, who is Chinese-Portugese from Hong Kong, pronounces this "har cheung fun" - the 'u' being pronounced as a quick 'oo' syllable.

When my in-laws invite us to go for dim sum, they don't say, "Let's go for dim sum." Instead they say, "Let's go for yum cha." Yum cha means 'drink tea', as this is a social activity which is more important than the little nibbles that accompany the tea.

It's the equivalent of inviting your friends to meet you at the bar after work. You tell them, "Let's go have a beer after work" - not "Let's go have some peanuts and pretzels after work!"

Originally, before the food mfgs (especially the Japanese) got into mass commercial production of dim sum, dim sum pastries were the only Chinese restaurant/deli food always prepared and served by women.