Go to the Recipe: Hor Fun Noodles
This sounds awesome. Did you experiment with varying the hydration? I imagine the noodles might be sturdier with less water, more delicate with more?
Also, how about using a steam oven to cook the batter? Might allow for better throughput, as you could use larger pans?
I've seen some recipes that add a small amount of oil to the batter, which supposedly makes the noodle more tender. Any experience with this?
OK, follow-up, these were pretty good. However, for my palate, I'd like a firmer noodle. Should I increase the tapioca ratio? Decrease the water? Something else?
Hey Nate! Yes, I definitely played with hydration. As you suspect, the noodles got chewier/more robust as the hydration lowered, and more delicate as hydration increased. If you're a fan of Cantonese dim sum, I even bookmarked a hydration (around 250% against the dry weight) that would be perfect in an application like cheung fun.
Steam oven/Rational would work great, as long as you provide a full head of steam. You can definitely use quarter and half sheet pans (though they'll be a little less nonstick).
I also played with adding oil to the batter. I added up to 5% against the total, and found no huge difference in texture. If anything, it made the batter a little temperamental, since I had to make sure that the batter was mixed thoroughly before each round. When I poured the batter, the oil inevitably settled to the top as droplets, which makes sense (oil is less dense than water, and isn't miscible here either).
Thanks for the feedback. If you prefer something with more firmness, I would dial back the hydration. 400g water is a good starting point. If you prefer a noodle with way more bounce/chew and elasticity, then you can dial up the proportion of tapioca starch. At the same hydration, the noodle will be really elastic (almost like a rubber band at the extreme end). Keep in mind: some people run into problems with indigestion using much higher proportions of tapioca starch.
Hi Tim –
Thanks for your awesome and thorough responses. I think I am going to try some more batches, varying one thing at a time. First off, I think I will try simply cutting the hydration back to 125% of total dry ingredients, as you recommended.
Also, I did make a batch with my steam oven, (213°F, full steam), and that did a pretty good job, and allowed me to make a much larger batch than I could have fit into a steamer.
These are excellent instructions, thank you.
The ingredients and the process look very similar to that for banh pho. Do you happen to know if slicing these noodles thinner simply results pho noodles, or is there an additional nuance in the ratio of flours or the amount of batter to steam in each batch?
Fresh banh pho seem to have similar ingredients and a similar process. Do you happen to know if simply slicing these noodles thinner results in pho noodles, or if there is an additional nuance in the ratio of flours or the amount of batter to steam in each batch?
When straining the batter, is it normal for there to be a lot of solids removed?
There should not be, are you removing chunks or is your mesh strainer so fine it is removing the flour from the liquid batter?
I used an immersion blender to mix the batter. No lumps
Love these. I've made them probably 20 times. I have noticed that sometimes they develop small cracks. I assume this is due to cooking to long, but I always use the same steps and equipment and it happens so infrequently that I can't pinpoint the cause.
Man, I love these noodles. My stovetop isn't level, which has gotten me into trouble before with steamed starch noodles, but this formula produces slippery and elastic noodles even if the batter pools to one side of the pan. Yeah, they're a little thicker, but still tender (I did adjust the cooking time slightly upward, like 30 seconds.) Also, having them around means lunch is a breeze. I made the chow fun for dinner, but still had a couple noodle sheets. Tossed in a wok with leftover stir fried cabbage, some bean sprouts, some aromatics (garlic, shallot, garlic chives, scallions) and a similar sauce from the chow fun recipe (dark and light soy, totole) and this lunch plate took all of 10 minutes to put together and was verrrrry tasty.
I love hor fun noodles and decided to give this recipe a try after having success with Tim's Dim Sum-Style Shrimp Cheung Fun recipe. I made a smaller batch using 8 inch pans in my bamboo steamers. Easy to level the steamer if you are using a wok for the base and mine came out perfectly. The photo below shows 2 pans yield of hor fun in a riff on drunken noodles and using a torch for a bit of wok hei. Easy recipe with great directions. Thanks Tim. I miss my Boston years working near Chinatown less with every recipe.
