Fried Vermicelli Noodles with Chicken & Vegetables 🇨🇳

 

Vermicelli noodles or rice noodles are widely used in Asian cuisine, most commonly in stir fries, soups and salads.  They are not to be confused with glass noddles, which are made with mung bean flour, while vermicelli is made with rice flour.  When cooked, vermicelli noodles retain their solid white colour while glass noodles become translucent.  Both are gluten-free.  Vermicelli noodles come in dry packages and need to be rehydrated before use.  Soak them in a large bowl of boiling water for no more than a few minutes, then drain and rinse immediately under the cold tap.  They should be just lightly softened and still spingy.  If they are overcooked at this stage, you will end up with a soggy mess in the wok.  The worst crime you can commit when stir frying vermicelli is overhandling.  You will see in my instructions that they are added to the wok at the very end of the cooking process.  All you need to do is toss them around for a minute or so until they have 'picked up' the vegetables and the chicken pieces and are coated evenly with the sauce.

Serves 2-3

INGREDIENTS

• 180g / 6 oz dried vermicelli noodles*
• 290g / 10 oz skinless chicken thigh meat, sliced into thin strips
• 150g / 5½ oz cabbage, shredded
• 1 carrot, shredded
• 1-2 spring onions, sliced into 5cm / 2" sections
• olive or vegetable oil
• 1 teaspoon light soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon dark soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon oyster sauce
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon sambal oelek (Indonesian chilli sauce), optional, for a little heat

For marinating the chicken:

• 1 tablespoon Chinese Shaoxin wine
• 1 tablespoon light soy sauce
• ½ teaspoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon cornflour
• 1 clove garlic, peeled and chopped

*The noodles will double in mass after soaking in hot water to yield about 360g / 13oz.

METHOD

1. Place dried vermicelli in a large heatproof bowl.  Pour in boiling water until the noddles are submerged.  Let them soak for 4 minutes, loosening them up gently with a pair of tongs.  They should be tender but still springy.  Drain in a colander and rinse under a cold tap.  Set them aside to air dry in the colander.
2. In a bowl, marinate chicken with wine, soy sauce, sugar, cornflour and chopped garlic for 10 minutes.
3. In a wok, heat 1 tablespoon oil on high until very hot.  Add the marinated chicken and stir fry until cooked through.  Remove to a dish.
4. In the same wok on medium-high heat, add 1 teaspoon oil and stir fry the shredded cabbage until tender, about 2 minutes.  Add the shredded carrots and stir fry for another 30 seconds.  Season with salt.
5. Return the cooked chicken to the wok.  Add the vermicelli, light soy sauce, dark soy sauce oyster sauce and spring onions.  With a pair of tongs, toss the vermicelli around in the wok and mix them well with the sauce, the vegetables and the chicken, for about 1 minute.
6. Stir in sambal oelek, if using.