Silver needle noodles

Yin Zhen Fen, Lao Shu Fen or Silver needle noodle is a variety of Chinese noodles.Amy Chen. [http://mamachinesecooking.com/recipes/viewtopic.php?t=29 Short Rice Noodles / Lao Shu Fen 老鼠粉 - MaMaChineseCooking.com] . Accessed January 12, 2007.] It is short, about 5cm long and 5mm in diameter. It has a white semi-transparent colour. The noodle is available in many Chinese markets in Chinese populated areas such as Hong Kong, Taiwan, Malaysia and Singapore.

Names

Quite a number of names have been used to describe the noodle. The noodle is more commonly known as "silver needle noodle" (银针粉) in Hong Kong and Taiwan, and "rat noodle" (老鼠粉) in Malaysia and Singapore. The noodles are named as such because the shape of the noodles is long and tapered much like a rat's tail or a needle.

* Lao Shu Fen
* Yin Zhen Fen
* Short Rice Noodle
* Lou Syu Fan
* Ngan Jam Fan
* Loh See Fun
* Mee Tai Bak

Production

The noodles are made from ground rice flour but sometimes added with some cornstarch to reduce breakage during frying. As with most Chinese noodles, they are commercially produced and seldom homemade as it is too tedious to make a small amount for home consumption.

Preparation

The noodles may be stir-fried, scalded and flavored with a mixture of sauces, cooked in soup or cooked dry in a clay-pot. As with most Chinese noodles, it can be served for breakfast, lunch or dinner as a main course or supplementing a rice meal. Many Chinese restaurants, hawkers and roadside stalls serve the noodle in various forms.

References

ee also

* Chinese noodles
* Lai fun