Chinese noodles 501757 221326723 2008-06-24T01:11:58Z Senator Palpatine 7357381 /* Wheat flour based */ grammar [[Image:Misua noodle making Taiwan.jpg|thumb|right|300px|[[Misua]] noodle making in [[Lukang]], [[Taiwan]]]] '''Chinese noodles''' are an essential ingredient and staple in [[Chinese cuisine]]. There is a great variety of [[noodle]]s, which vary according to their region of production, ingredients, shape or width, and manner of preparation. Chinese noodles are an important part of most regional cuisines within [[mainland China]], as well as in [[Taiwan]], [[Singapore]], and other [[Southeast Asia]]n nations with sizable [[overseas Chinese]] populations. Chinese noodles have also entered the cuisines of neighboring East Asian countries such as [[Korea]] and [[Japan]] (''[[Cellophane noodles#Outside China|dangmyeon]]'' and ''[[ramen]]'', for example, are both of Chinese origin), as well as Southeast Asian countries such as [[Vietnam]], [[Thailand]], and [[Cambodia]]. ==Nomenclature== [[Image:ChinesenoodleshopAustralia.jpg|thumb|right|300px|A Northwest [[Lamian|hand-pulled noodle]] restaurant in [[Australia]]]] Nomenclature of Chinese noodles can be difficult due to the vast spectrum available and the many dialects of Chinese used to name them. In Chinese, '''miàn''' ({{zh-ts|t=[[wikt:麵|麵]]|s=[[wikt:面|面]]}}; often [[transliteration|transliterated]] as "mien" or "mein" ) refers to noodles made from [[wheat]], while '''fěn''' ({{lang|zh|[[wikt:粉|粉]]}}) or "fun" refers to noodles made from [[rice]] flour, [[mung bean]] [[starch]], or indeed any kind of starch. Each noodle type can be rendered in [[pinyin]] for [[Mandarin Chinese|Mandarin]], but in [[Hong Kong]] and neighboring [[Guangdong]] it will be known by its [[Cantonese (linguistics)|Cantonese]] pronunciation. [[Taiwan]], [[Malaysia]], [[Singapore]] and many other [[Overseas Chinese]] communities in [[Southeast Asia]] will use Hokkien ([[Min Nan]]) instead. The character for ''miàn'' (wheat noodles) can be written a number of ways in [[Chinese language|Chinese]]. The standard [[Traditional Chinese|Traditional]] character is [[wikt:麵|麵]], while the standard [[Simplified Chinese|Simplified]] character is [[wikt:面|面]]. Variant characters include [[wikt:麪|麪]], [[wikt:麺|麺]], and [[wikt:靣|靣]]. The characters 面 and 麵 are separate characters in [[Traditional Chinese]], the former meaning "face" and the latter meaning "noodles" or "flour". In [[Simplified Chinese]], the two characters have been combined and both meanings are expressed by 面. ==History== Although the [[China|Chinese]], [[Arab]]s, and [[Italians]] have all claimed to have been the first to create noodles, the first written account of noodles dates from the [[Han Dynasty|East Han Dynasty]], between 25 and 220 AD. In [[October 2005]], the oldest noodles yet discovered were found at the Late [[Neolithic]] archaeological site at [[Lajia]], in an excavation of a [[Qijia culture]] settlement along the [[Yellow River]] in [[Qinghai]], [[China]]<ref>{{cite journal | last = Lu | first = Houyuan | coauthors = Xiaoyan Yang, Maolin Ye, Kam-Biu Liu, Zhengkai Xia, Xiaoyan Ren, Linhai Cai, Naiqin Wu, Tung-Sheng Liu | title = Culinary archaeology: Millet noodles in Late Neolithic China | journal = Nature | volume = 437 | pages = 967–968 | publisher = Nature Publishing Group | location = Berlin | date = [[2005-10-13]] | doi = 10.1038/437967a | accessdate = 2007-11-24 }}</ref>. The 4,000-year-old noodles appear to have been made from [[foxtail millet]] and [[Proso millet|broomcorn millet]].<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/4335160.stm "Oldest noodles unearthed in China"], [[BBC News]], [[12 October]] [[2005]].</ref> [[Millet]] is no longer a commonly used ingredient in Chinese noodles. During the [[Culture of the Song Dynasty#Food and cuisine|Song Dynasty]] (960&ndash;1279) noodle shops were very popular in the cities, and remained open all night. ==Production== [[Image:2007-02-21 7827.JPG|thumb|right|300px|Pulling wheat dough into thin strands to form ''lamian'']] Chinese noodles are generally made from either wheat flour, rice flour, or mung bean starch, with wheat noodles being more commonly produced and consumed in [[North China|northern China]] and rice noodles being more typical of southern China. [[Egg (food)|Egg]], [[calcium hydroxide]], or food colouring may also be added to noodles made from [[wheat flour]] in order to give the noodles a yellow colour. The dough for noodles made from wheat flour is typically made from wheat flour, salt, and water, with the addition of eggs or [[lye]] depending on the desired texture and taste of the noodles. Rice- or other starch-based noodles are typically made with only the starch or rice flour and water. After the formation of a pliable dough mass, one of four types of mechanical processing may be applied to produce the noodles: *'''Cut''' (切) - The dough is rolled out into a flat sheet, folded, and then cut into noodles of a desired width. *'''Extruded''' (擠壓) - The dough is placed into a mechanical press with holes through which the dough is forced to form strands of noodles. *'''Peeled''' (削) - A firm dough is mixed and formed into a long loaf. Strips of dough are then quickly sliced or peeled off the loaf directly into boiling water. *'''Pulled''' (拉) - The dough is rolled into a long cylinder, which is then repeatedly pulled and folded to produce a thinner and thinner strands. While cut and extruded noodles can be dried to create a shelf-stable product to be eaten months after production, most peeled and pulled noodles are consumed shortly after they are produced. ==Cooking== Noodles may be cooked from either their fresh (moist) or dry forms. They are generally boiled, although they may also be [[Deep-frying|deep-fried]] in oil until crispy. Boiled noodles may then be stir fried, served with sauce or other accompaniments, or served in soup, often with meat and other ingredients. Certain rice-noodles are made directly from steaming the raw rice slurry and are only consumed fresh. Unlike many Western noodles and pastas, Chinese noodles made from wheat flour are usually made from salted dough and therefore do not require the addition of salt to the liquid in which they are boiled. Chinese noodles also cook very quickly, generally requiring less than 5 [[minute]]s to become ''[[al dente]]'' and some taking less than a minute to finish cooking, with thinner noodles requiring less time to cook. Chinese noodles made from rice or mung bean starch do not generally contain salt. ==Chinese noodle types== ===Wheat flour based=== These noodles are made only with wheat flour, water, and sometimes salt. {| class="wikitable" ! Common English name !! Characters!! Pinyin !! Cantonese !! Hokkien !! Thai !! Western equivalent !! Description |- | Cold noodle || [[wikt:涼|涼]][[wikt:麵|麵]] || liang miàn || loeng mein || - || - || - || - |- | Daoxiao mian<!--This transliteration appears to be wrong--> || [[wikt:刀|刀]][[wikt:削|削]][[wikt:麵|麵]]|| daoxiao miàn<!--This pinyin seems to be wrong, specifically the second syllable-->|| - || - || - || - || Relatively short flat noodle peeled by knife from a firm slab of dough |- | [[Lamian]] || [[wikt:拉|拉]][[wikt:麵|麵]] || l&#257;miàn || laai min || - || ba mee (เส้นบะหมี่) || - || Hand-pulled noodles;<br>from which [[ramen]] was derived. |- | [[Lo mein]] || [[wikt:撈|撈]][[wikt:麵|麵]] || lāo miàn || lo min || - || - || - || Wheat flour noodles that are stir fried with sliced vegetables and/or meats and other seasonings |- | [[Misua]] || [[wikt:麵|麵]][[wikt:線|線]]<br>[[wikt:宮|宮]][[wikt:麵|麵]] || miànxiàn or<br>gōngmiàn || min sin || misua || - || Long, short,<br>very fine <br>[[Vermicelli]] || Thin, salted wheat noodles (1 mm diameter). Can be caramelized to a brown colour through extensive steaming |- | [[Saang mein]] || [[wiktionary:生|生]][[wiktionary:麵|麵]]|| shēngmiàn || saang min || - || - || - || Soapy texture |- | [[Thick noodles]] || [[wikt:粗|粗]][[wikt:麵|麵]] || cū miàn || cou mein || - || - || - || Thick wheat flour noodles, similar to [[udon]] |- |} ==== Lye-water or egg ==== These wheat flour noodles are more chewy in texture and yellow in colour either due to the addition of lye ([[calcium hydroxide]] or [[potassium hydroxide]]) or egg. Lye water noodles also have subtle but distinctive smell. {| class="wikitable" ! Common English name !! Characters!! Pinyin !! Cantonese !! Hokkien !! Thai !! Western equivalent !! Description |- | [[Oil noodles]] || [[wikt:油|油]][[wikt:麵|麵]] || yóumiàn || jau4 min<!--needs tone--> || - || - || - || Made of wheat flour and egg or lye-water; often comes pre-cooked |- | [[Thin noodles]] || [[wikt:幼|幼]][[wikt:麵|麵]] || yòu miàn || jau mein || - || - || - || Thin lye-water noodles; one of the most common Cantonese noodles |- | [[Mee pok]] || [[wikt:麵|麵]][[wikt:薄|薄]] || miàn báo || - || mee pok || mee pok || [[Linguine]] || Flat egg or lye-water noodles |- | [[Yi mein]] || [[wikt:伊|伊]][[wikt:麵|麵]]<br>[[wikt:伊|伊]][[wikt:府|府]][[wikt:麵|麵]] || yīmiàn<br>yīfǔmiàn || yi mein<br>yee min<br>yee foo min || ee mee<br>ee foo mee || - || - || Fried, chewy noodles made from wheat flour and egg or lye-water |- | [[Shrimp roe noodles]] || [[wikt:蝦|蝦]][[wikt:子|子]][[wikt:麵|麵]] || xiāzǐ miàn || ha tsz min || - || - || - || Made of wheat flour, lye-water, and [[roe]], which show off as black spots |- | [[Jook-sing noodles]] || [[wikt:竹昇|竹昇]][[wikt:麵|麵]] || - || zuk1 sing1 min6 || - || - || - || a rare type of Cantonese noodle. |- |} ===Rice based=== Rice based noodles can be: #Extruded from a paste and steamed into strands of noodles #Steamed from a slurry into sheets and then sliced into strands These noodles are typically made only with rice and water without the addition of salt. Although unorthodox, some producers may choose add other plant starches to modify the texture of the noodles. {| class="wikitable" ! Common English name !! Characters!! Pinyin !! Cantonese !! Hokkien !! Thai !! Western equivalent !! Description |- | [[Shahe fen|Kway teow]] || [[wiktionary:粿|粿]][[wiktionary:条|条]] || g&#468;otiáo || kwai tiu || kway teow || Sen yai (เส้นใหญ่) || Rice [[fettuccine]] || Flat [[rice noodle]]s |- | [[Shahe fen|Ho fun]] || [[wiktionary:沙|沙]][[wiktionary:河|河]][[wiktionary:粉|粉]]<br>[[wiktionary:河|河]][[wiktionary:粉|粉]] || Shāhé fěn or<br>héfěn || ho fun || hor fun || - || Rice [[pappardelle]] || Very wide, flat, rice noodles |- | [[Lai fun]] || [[wikt:瀨|瀨]][[wikt:粉|粉]]<br>[[wikt:酹|酹]][[wikt:粉|粉]] || lài fěn || laai fun || - || - || Thick rice [[spaghetti]] || Thick round semi-transparent noodle made from sticky rice |- | Mai sin<!--This is not a common English name--> || [[wikt:米|米]][[wikt:線|線]]<br>[[wikt:米|米]][[wikt:线|线]]|| mǐxiàn || mai sin || - || Sen lek (เส้นเล็ก) || Rice [[spaghetti]] || [[Rice noodles]] also called ''[[Guilin]] mífěn'' (桂林米粉) |- | [[Rice vermicelli]] || [[wiktionary:米|米]][[wiktionary:粉|粉]]|| mífěn || mai fun || bee hoon || Sen mee (เส้นหมี่) || - || Thin [[rice noodles]] |- | [[Silver needle noodles]] || [[wikt:銀|銀]][[wikt:針|針]][[wikt:粉|粉]]<br>[[wikt:老|老]][[wikt:鼠|鼠]][[wikt:粉|粉]] || yín zhēn fěn<br>lǎo shǔ fěn || ngàhn jām fán<br>lóuh syú fán || ngiau chu hoon || - || - || Spindle-shaped rice flour noodles, ca. 5 cm in length and 3-5 mm in diameter |- |} ===Starch based=== These noodles are made with plant starches. Mung bean starch noodles will often be cut with tapioca starch to make them more chewy and reduce production costs. {| class="wikitable" ! Common English name !! Characters!! Pinyin !! Cantonese !! Hokkien !! Thai !! Western equivalent !! Description |- | [[Cellophane noodles|Winter noodles]] || [[wiktionary:冬|冬]][[wiktionary:粉|粉]] || dōngfěn || dung fun || dang hun || - || Thin mung bean [[vermicelli]] || Very thin [[mung bean]] starch noodles |- | [[Cellophane noodles|Bean threads]] || [[wikt:粉|粉]][[wikt:絲|絲]] || fěnsī || fun sze || - || Wun sen (วุ้นเส้น) || Mung bean [[vermicelli]] || Thin cellophane-like noodles |- | [[Mung bean sheets]] || [[wikt:粉|粉]][[wikt:皮|皮]] || fěn pí || fan pei || - || - || - || Wide, clear noodles made from mung bean starch |- | Liang pi || [[wikt:凉|凉]][[wikt:皮|皮]] || líang pí || - || - || - || - || Translucent noodles made from wheat starch left from producing [[seitan | gluten]] |} ==Signature Chinese noodle dishes== {{Commoncat}} *[[Ban mian]] *[[Beef chow fun]] *[[Cart noodle]] *[[Char kway teow]] *[[Zhajiang mian]] *[[Laksa]] *[[Lo mein]] *[[Re gan mian]] ==External links== *[http://www.foodsubs.com/Noodles.html Cook's Thesaurus: Asian Noodles] *[http://www.mediterrasian.com/delicious_recipes_tofu_chowmein.htm Chow mein recipe (with photo)] ===Video=== *[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1E0coF5iR-s Making of Guizhou-style noodles] *[http://indietrekker.com/video/beijing_hutong_noodles Knife-cut noodle making in a Beijing ''hutong''] ==See also== *[[Noodle]] *[[Chinese cuisine]] *[[Japanese noodles]] *[[Korean noodles]] *[[Noodle soup]] ==References== {{reflist}} [[Category:Chinese noodles|*]] [[es:Fideos chinos]] [[pt:Min]] [[zh:面条]] [[it:Spaghetti cinesi]]