Mee Siam (Spicy Fried Vermicelli Noodles)

 

Hello! 

Today I am going to share a recipe for Mee Siam, also known as, spicy fried vermicelli noodles. It is a very popular dish in Malaysia and Singapore, with both countries having a slightly different variation of the dish. The Malaysian version is dry whereas the Singapore version is served with a spicy gravy.

Being a Malaysian, I am going to be sharing the Malaysian version of the recipe here. This is a very flavourful dish and the spiciness from the dish is nicely offset by the tanginess from the lime juice. These noodles are really easy to prepare and can be cooked with any variety of meat or seafood. The noodles are usually topped with shredded omelette, fried firm beancurd slices and beansprouts. 

To me, Mee Siam can be eaten at any time of the day and in any kind of weather. Back home, it is typically a staple at parties or on a buffet spread as it is generally well received and is equally tasty eaten on its own or with additional curry or chilli paste on the side.

I like it because it tastes just as good cold, hence making it a perfect dish to contribute to a potluck party or barbecue.

I myself cooked this twice last week. The first being for dinner at home, which I made with prawns (as shown in the photographs). The other time was for a barbecue we hosted last weekend. Since there was going to be enough meat on the grill, I decided to make a vegetarian version that time. It tasted just as good! Unfortunately I do not have photos of that since I was busy trying to organise all the other food, and drinks, and cake... ;)

In my version of the recipe, I use ready fried beancurd puffs instead of firm beancurd slices. That way, I don't have to fry the firm beancurd slices myself. You can of course use whichever you favor or even none at all. These can be purchased, along with most of the ingredients for this recipe at Oriental supermarkets. Here in Newcastle, my oriental supermarket of choice is Wing Hong. HiYou at Eldon Garden (next to Lau's 202) also stocks a nice range of products, though it is slightly pricier.

I hope you give this recipe a try! I assure you, once you have tried this Mee Siam recipe, you will not want to order another Singapore Noodle takeway!

Recipe for Mee Siam (Spicy Fried Vermicelli Noodles)

Prep Time 15 mins / Cooking Time 10 minutes/ Serves 2-3

Ingredients
300gm Vermicelli Noodles

200gm Beansprouts (approx 3 big handfuls)

2 Banana Shallots (peeled)

5 cloves Garlic

2 Red Chillies

1 Red Onion (sliced finely)

250gm Prawns

1/4 White Cabbage (sliced thinly)

5 Deep Fried Beancurd Puffs (Taupok)

2Tbsp Oil

1tsp Salt

1tsp Chicken Granules

1tsp Sugar

80ml water (approx)

Garnishing

2 Eggs (whisked and season with salt and pepper - for Omelette)

1/3 Cucumber (sliced)

1 Red Chilli (sliced finely)

1 Stalk Scallions (sliced finely)

1 lime (cut into wedges)

Method

1. Soak the vermicelli noodles in a pot of water to soften. If using prawns or chicken, season with salt and pepper then set aside.

2. Next, blend the Banana Shallots, Garlic cloves and Chillies together to form a nice thick chilli paste.

3. Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a pan and pour in the whisked egg mixture to make the omelette. Once cooked, remove and cut into thin slices to garnish the noodles later. Set aside.

4. Heat the remaining tablespoon of the oil. Once hot, pour in the blended chilli paste and sliced Red Onion and fry on high heat til aromatic. This should take about 3 minutes. If the mixture is too dry, add in some of the water and continue frying.

5. If using prawns or chicken, add them in now and fry. Next, add in the Cabbage and Deep Fried Beancurd Puffs. Add in the seasoning and fry for another 2 minutes.

6. Once the ingredients are cooked, drain the vermicelli noodles and toss into the pan. Toss all the ingredients until evenly combined. Add in the rest of the water if it is too dry.

7. Lastly, switch off the heat and toss in the beansprouts. Make sure that everything in the dish is evenly combined and then remove from the heat.

8. Top the noodles with the sliced Omelette, Cucumber, Chillies and Scallions. Squeeze the lime juice on top before serving.

I served this with shredded cucumber to make it more like a salad.