Pan Mee

Pan Mee (Hakka Hand-Torn Noodles)

A comforting Hakka noodle soup from Malaysia, made with a simple flour-and-egg dough pinched into rustic pieces and served in a clear ikan bilis (anchovy) broth with minced pork, mushrooms and greens. The dry version tosses the noodles with dark soy and sambal.

Prep

45 min

Cook

40 min

Total

85 min

Serves

4

Difficulty

Medium

Recipe ingredients

• •300 g (10½ oz) plain wheat flour, all-purpose
• •1 whole egg
• •140 ml (⅔ cup) water, room temperature, plus more if needed
• •3 g (½ tsp) salt, for the dough
• •40 g (1½ oz) dried ikan bilis, Malaysian anchovies, rinsed
• •1.5 L (6 cups) water, for the stock
• •200 g (7 oz) minced pork, or chicken
• •6 whole dried shiitake mushrooms, soaked 30 min, sliced, soaking liquid reserved
• •150 g (5 oz) leafy greens, choy sum or mancai, cut into 4 cm lengths
• •40 g (1½ oz) dried ikan bilis, for frying, rinsed and patted dry
• •30 ml (2 tbsp) light soy sauce
• •15 ml (1 tbsp) dark soy sauce, for the dry version
• •15 ml (1 tbsp) sesame oil
• •2 cloves garlic, minced
• •1 tbsp sambal chili paste, store-bought or homemade, to serve
• •2 tsp white pepper
• •1 tsp salt, to taste, for the broth

Steps

1. 1 Make the dough: combine flour and salt, stir in the egg, then add water gradually, mixing until a shaggy dough forms. Knead 8–10 minutes until smooth and elastic. Cover and rest 30 minutes.
2. 2 Make the anchovy stock: in a pot, bring 1.5 L water to a boil, add rinsed ikan bilis, reduce to a simmer and cook 20 minutes. Strain through a fine sieve, discarding the solids. Return the clear broth to the pot.
3. 3 Add the sliced shiitake mushrooms (and their strained soaking liquid) to the broth. Season with light soy sauce, salt and white pepper. Simmer gently 10 minutes.
4. 4 Cook the minced pork: heat a little oil in a pan, sauté garlic until fragrant, add minced pork and cook, breaking it up, until no pink remains and it is fully cooked through (internal temperature 71°C / 160°F), about 5–7 minutes. Season with a splash of light soy sauce. Set aside.
5. 5 Fry the anchovies: in a separate pan, heat 60 ml oil over medium heat, add the dried ikan bilis and fry, stirring, until golden and crisp, 3–4 minutes. Drain on paper towels. Reserve the oil for the dry version if desired.
6. 6 Shape the noodles: divide the rested dough into 4 portions. Take one portion and, with floured fingers, pinch and tear off thin, irregular pieces directly into a plate. Repeat with the remaining dough. (Alternatively, roll thin and cut into wide strips.)
7. 7 Boil the noodles: bring a large pot of water to a rolling boil, add the torn noodles and stir so they don't stick. Cook 2–3 minutes until they float and feel chewy but cooked through. Drain.
8. 8 Assemble the soup version: divide noodles among 4 bowls, ladle over the hot mushroom-anchovy broth, top with the cooked minced pork, blanch the leafy greens in the boiling broth for 30 seconds and add, then finish with fried anchovies, a drizzle of sesame oil and sambal to taste.
9. 9 Assemble the dry version: toss the drained noodles with 1 tbsp dark soy sauce, 1 tsp sesame oil and 1 tsp of the anchovy frying oil. Top with minced pork, greens, fried anchovies and sambal. Serve with a small bowl of broth on the side.