BETTER THAN TAKEOUT - Singapore Noodles Recipe

Despite being named after Singapore, this recipe was actually born in HK in the 1960s, the time when HK was a British colony. As HK became the transportation hub between Europe and Southeast Asia, lots of cuisines from all over the world started creating sparks in this little island. With influence from the Indian spices, this stir-fried curry rice noodle dish found its way and spread globally. Singapore noodle is a very interesting dish that shows how multicultural Cantonese cooking could be. The curry powder is pleasantly invasive because it works so well on these spindly rice noodles.

🥢 RECIPE

Ingredients
For the noodles and protein
8 cups of boiling water to soak the noodles
70 grams of char siu thinly sliced
150 grams (5.3 oz) of shrimp
A pinch of salt
2 eggs

Vegetables and aromatics
70 grams (2.5 oz) of multi-color bell pepper, cut into strips
42 grams (1.5 oz) of carrot, julienned
42 grams (1.5 oz) of onion, sliced thinly
42 grams (1.5 oz) of bean sprout
28 grams (1 oz) of garlic chive, cut into 1.5 inches long
2 cloves of garlic sliced thinly

For the seasonings
1 tsp of sugar

Instructions
Bring 8 cups of water to a boil then turn off the heat. Soak the rice noodles for 2-8 minutes depending on the thickness. Mine was medium thick and it took about 5 minutes. Do not overcook the noodles, otherwise, they will turn mushy when you stir fry them. You can give it a bite to test it. The noodles should be a little bit chewy at the center.

Remove the noodles from the water and spread them on a cooling rack. Let the rest of the heat helps to evaporate the excess moisture. This is the key to avoid clumpy and sticky noodles. Do not rinse the noodles with cold water as it will bring in too much moisture and make the noodles stick to the wok badly.

SLice the Char sui thinly; Seasoned the shrimp with a pinch of salt and some black pepper to taste; Crack 2 eggs and beat them well until you don’t see any obvious egg white; Julienne the bell pepper, carrot, onion and cut the garlic chives into 1.5 inches long.

Before we cooking, thoroughly mix all the sauce ingredients in a bowl.
Turn the heat to high and heat your wok until smoking hot. Add a few tbsp of oil and swirl it around to create a nonstick layer. Pour in the egg and wait for it to set. Then break the egg into big pieces. Push the egg to the side so you have room to sear the shrimp. The wok is super hot, it only takes 20 seconds for the shrimp to turn pink. Push the shrimp to the side and toss the char siu for 10-15 seconds over high heat to reactivate the flavor. Take all the proteins out and set them aside.

Add 1 more tbsp of oil to the same wok, along with the garlic, and carrot. Give them a quick stir then add the noodles. Fluff the noodles over high heat for a few minutes.

Add the sauce, along with all the vegetables except for the garlic chives. Introduce the protein back into the wok. Quickly stir to make sure the flavor is well combined. Once you don’t see any white rice noodles, add the garlic chives and give it a final toss.

Before serving, always give it a taste to adjust the flavor. As I mentioned before, different brands of curry powder, curry paste, even soy sauce may vary in sodium level.

[SoupedUpRecipes]

Despite being named after Singapore, this recipe was actually born in HK in the 1960s, the time when HK was a British colony. As HK became the transportation hub between Europe and Southeast Asia, lots of cuisines from all over the world started creating sparks in this little island. With influence from the Indian spices, this stir-fried curry rice noodle dish found its way and spread globally. However, I still have no idea why it is named after Singapore. If you know, please leave a comment below so we can all learn about it.

[randydobbs]

I was a chef as a civilian, and on a submarine in the Navy.
She's incredibly talented.
Knife skills, mis en place, sanitation and her cooking instructions are exceptional.
I love her recipes.
Thank you ma'am.

[cmonkey]

I like how you mention, for every ingredient, what the alternatives are. People sometimes get discouraged because they don't have every ingredient as specified. But that's the joy of cooking, learning for yourself what works for you, with what you have.

[christinatolar]

I love that Mandy shares which products she uses with an explanation as to why. This takes some of the guesswork out for those of us who are still learning. It's also exciting to see her subs nearing 1M!

[zombe_]

I'm 40 and I just started "actually" cooking. I honestly never thought I would be that entertained and take so much pride in cooking for myself. I don't know where to begin with how many different points you hit in making your videos. A+ You definitely got another subscriber and I will enjoy watching lots of past videos to see what to try first. Thank you Mandy!

[Brandy_Marie]

I love how you share little tricks that a regular recipe doesn't tell us, for example-- not initially fully cooking the noodles, and then spreading them out to dry so they don't stick together. These are the little details that usually only come with experience. Thank you for being so thorough!

[margokupelian]

I like the way you present or demonstrate your recipes. You sound like a professor giving a lecture in a classroom. You’re very precise and to the point and your noodles look delicious!

[striverfor]

2:08 Prepare the noodles
5:16 Prepare seasonings
5:37 Curry powder she's using
6:40 Start cooking

[YellowJeep]

I've been making Singapore Noodles for years, but as a fan of Mandy and her cooking, I decided to try her version. It was wonderful. Definitely recommend.

[scotthenkel]

This is my favorite noodle dish ever. I have been ordering it for almost 30 years now. The mix of Chinese/Cantonese, Southeast Asian and Indian influences of spices, meats and ingredients makes it so unique. And as Mandy mentions, the fact it has Singapore in the name but is more associated with Hong Kong makes the history of this dish so much more amazing.

[luthurin]

I appreciate how your photographer follows you down into the wok so we can get a very good look at your technique. Thank you for posting this!

[ByronCrocker-om]

Thank you for the Singapore noodles recipe!

[shannonrobinson]

The drying rack for the noodles is brilliant! It makes such a difference. If you think it’s not needed, rethink it. The starches set and it cooks perfectly instead of sticking. I also tried this with fresh chowmein with wonderful effect. We’ve made this 3 times in the past 2 weeks. It’s so good. Thank you Mandy. Keep up the excellent videos.

[rhondarea]

Just made this for dinner, and it was delicious! Thank you so much. I don't have a cooling rack so I improvised with a cookie sheet and loosely crumpled up aluminum foil to lay the noodles across... it worked pretty well! All I had for protein was eggs and shrimp, veggies were carrot, oni9on- 1/2 of a red and 1/2 of a white, green bell pepper and a couple of leaves of bok choy.. It was the best recipe ever!!

[AkshayKumarX]

A few things I'd like to recommend to help the less experienced cooks.

1. If you keep the wok at a height so that the handle is just below your belly button than it becomes far more easier to handle the wok and you won't end up damaging your wrists. Use a stool to elevate yourself a little if you've got a tall countertop.

2. If your noodles are difficult to stir than feel free to cut them up with a scissor before adding them to the wok, it will not affect your enjoyment of the dish in any significant manner and it'll be far easier to toss around.

3. Try cooking small batches first, I recommend about 1/3 the portion of the dish shown in this video. It helps when starting out.

4. If you are having trouble managing the heat and your food ends up sticking then DO NOT add more oil, use the noodle water instead that you used for boiling the noodles.

5. If you do not have a carbon steel wok, do not worry. I cook similar dishes in a cheap $4 Chinese style iron wok with a handle and they turn out perfect.

[WhoDaresWins-B]

Mandy, I watch a lot of these shows, and you know what? You are the only Chef who shows the product you are using (The Curry Powder for instance) unlike the others who not only don't show the product but are also arrogant when you ask questions. Thanks a million.

[MrLuanDo]

I used McCormick's curry powder mixed with turmeric powder for a brighter yellow color to the dish. With 2 tablespoon of McCormick's curry powder, I had to use 300 grams of dry noodles, not 200 grams as suggested in your recipe. The noodles were cooked al dente and spreader out on a rack, just as you've done. Water was added to the curry mix to further cook the noodles to tenderness but not mushy. I also sprinkles some habanero chili powder for a little kick. It came out perfect. Better than any restaurant's dish that I've had. Thank you!!

[bgrainger]

I love how you teach us to cook authentic recipes with detailed, step by step instructions presented in such a lovely, easy to follow way. Learning the history behind each dish and it's ingredient is so interesting and makes the dish even that much more special. Thank you for sharing with the world! Also, I really appreciate that you show the products that you use and explain which one works best and why it works best. You put so much thought and information into your videos and that's what makes them so very special!!

[hansdampf]

A really very nice recipe that makes you want to cook it. I particularly like the detailed explanations of each step of the process and, above all, the naming of alternatives for certain ingredients that cannot be obtained everywhere.

[michaelfoxbrass]

This is EXACTLY the recipe I was thinking of earlier today. Your presentation, description, and technique is so easy to follow. Thanks for detailing the thickness of the rice noodles as well - super helpful!