How I Learned to Make (Chow) Fun

As I've mentioned in past posts Montana is an indescribably beautiful place. That being said, finding Asian provisions, even provisions that go just beyond meat and potatoes, can be a challenge. The fact that the local Super Walmart has one of the better international aisles among our grocery stores, essentially describes my plight. Back to fun.

fun. Chow fun?
Chow describes the cooking method of high-temperature wok stir-frying. Fun is a type of wide, freshly-made rice noodle that has a texture that is both soft and slightly chewy. The smoky, carmelized flavors produced by this means of cooking is called in Chinese wok hai which among the Cantonese in particular (i.e. my poppa) is the arbiter of good eats.

Ordinarily you buy fresh fun at the Asian grocer and chow it at home, but because there are no fun retailers in Missoula, I began what would become an elusive search for a homemade recipe. The Internet didn't provide any reliable leads so I went to the public library where I found several dated cookbooks with noodle recipes but none explaining noodle making. I then remembered a Southeast Asian cookbook that I had checked-out a few months back entitled Hot Sour Salty Sweet, written by the husband and wife team Jeffery Alford and Naomi Duguid, that included a recipe for rice noodle sheets. The book itself is composed of anecdotal accounts and lovely photographs illustrating recipes that feel lived and entirely unpretentious. Predictably, and much to my chagrin, the book was posted as 'available' but missing from the shelf. Argh! Two days later after placing a request, the book came into my possession and here's what ensued:

Rice Noodle Sheets
from Hot Sour Salty Sweet by Jeffrey Alford and Naomi Duguid
1 C. rice flour I found these flours in the bulk department of my natural food store.
1/2 C. tapioca flour
1/2 C. corn starch
2 1/4 C. water
lots of vegetable oil

Mix dry ingredients in a large bowl and whisk in water. Let the thin batter rest 30 min to 2 hrs before cooking. Heat a small skillet on med-low heat. Add a small amount of oil and wipe with a paper towel leaving the barest amount of oil. Pour 1/4 C. of batter into hot pan, swirling to coat. Quickly cover the pan with a lid and cook 1-2 min until edges pull away from the sides of the pan and the surface of the noodle is no longer sticky. Transfer the noodle sheet to a well oiled plate, coating both sides with oil. Continue cooking sheets, stacking them atop one another and oiling liberally between additions. When the sheets have cooled, cut the stack into strips. Separate the strips forming the noodles.

Chow Fun
one batch of rice fresh rice noodles
1/3 lb. skirt steak, sliced marinated in soy sauce, minced garlic, sherry, black pepper
1/2 C. onion, coarsely sliced
1 1/2 C. bok choy, chopped in 1" sections
1 C. bean sprouts
2 green onions, cut in 2" lengths

2 T. fermented black beans, rinse with water to remove excess salt and mash
3 T. soy sauce, I had regular soy sauce on hand but dark is preferable
2 t. sherry
1/2 t. sugar

Heat wok on high, coat with 1 T. oil and heat until smoking add onions and bok choy. Stir the vegetables, cooking them quickly and remove once they obtain some carmelization. Cook the meat next, searing both sides and set aside. Rinse out the wok, reheat and coat with oil. When the oil begins smoking add the fresh noodles. Resist the urge to stir and break the noodles. Allow the noodles to sear turning them minimally. When toasted, return the vegetables and beef to the noodles and toss with sauce ingredients (soy, sherry, sugar, black beans). Finally, add bean sprouts and green onions. Serve with chili oil or Sriacha.

If you'd asked me two years ago about what I hoped to learn or discover from Montana, I might have listed rugged things like fishing, mountains, horses...I don't think I would've ever guessed that in addition to those things, I'd be initiated into realm closer to home; one of homemade fun.