CHAR KWAY TEOW (MALAYSIAN RICE NOODLE STIR-FRY/炒粿条)

Malaysian Rice Noodle Stir-fry is made with flat rice noodles, Chinese chives, bean sprouts and dried shiitake mushroom.  It’s remarkably delicious, vegan and vegetarian friendly, a must-try Malaysian street-food noodle dish!

Ingredients

• 225g/8 ounces dried flat rice noodles or 450g/1 pound fresh flat rice noodles 
• 200g/7oz extra firm tofu
• 170g/6oz bean sprouts 
• 115g/4oz garlic chives (Chinese chives)
• 30g/1oz dried shiitake mushroom
• 3 garlic cloves 
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil 
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 2 eggs 

For the sauce

• 2 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce or tamari
• 1 tablespoon dark soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon oyster sauce
• 1 tablespoon Shaoxing wine or dry sherry 
• ¼ teaspoon white pepper

Method

Step 1: Soaking Rice Noodle and Dried Shiitake Mushroom

1. Soak the dried noodles in warm water for 30 to 45 minutes until softened but still pliable.
2. Transfer the noodles to a colander and let the excess water drain off.
3. Soak the dried shiitake mushroom in hot boiling water (500ml/2cups) for 15 to 20 minutes.

Step 2: Preparing and Gathering Ingredients

1. Peel and slice 3 garlic cloves into thin slices.
2. Next, take 115g or 4 ounces of garlic chives, and cut into 2-inches pieces in lengthways. 
3. Pat dry tofu with a kitchen towel then slices it into 1-inch cubes.
4. For the soaked shiitake mushrooms, squeeze the water from the mushrooms back into the bowl and reserve it for later use.  Next, cut the hard woody stem from the shiitake mushrooms then slice it into bite-size pieces and keep it in a bowl to be set aside.
5. To prepare the cooking sauce, add 2 tablespoons of light soy sauce, 1 tablespoon of dark soy sauce, 1 tablespoon of oyster sauce, 1 tablespoon of Shaoxing wine or dry sherry, and ¼ teaspoon of ground white pepper into a small bowl. Whisk to combine then set it aside.
6. Break two eggs into a bowl.  Beat the eggs lightly, add some salt, beat again then set it aside to be fried later.

Step 3: Cooking Char Kway Teow

1. To begin, pre-cook the tofu and eggs, heat a non-stick frying pan over medium heat, and add a tablespoon of oil.  Throw in the tofu cubes then fry the tofu, making sure they’re browned on all sides.  Season the tofu with some salt according to taste.  When done, dish the tofu out and set it aside.
2. Next, using the same non-stick pan, fry the eggs like scrambled eggs and set it aside while cooking char kway teow.
3. To make the dish, heat a wok or a large frying pan over medium-high heat and add the remaining 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil.
4. Add the sliced garlic and fry for 30 seconds then add the sliced shiitake mushrooms.   Stir-fry the mushrooms for a minute then add 60 millilitres or ¼ cup of reserved soaked dried shiitake mushroom water. Bring the water to a boil then turn the heat back to medium, cover the pan and allow the mushrooms to simmer for a minute.
5. After a minute, uncover the pan and turn the heat back to high.  Spread the mushrooms to the side of the pan to create a space in the centre.  Now, add the sauce and a teaspoon of sugar.  Stir the sauce for a few seconds then add the noodles. Gently fold the noodles into the sauce and the mushrooms.
6. Next, add the garlic chives.  Gently mix the noodles (to minimize breakage) while spreading the garlic chives around the pan.    Add the tofu and gently mix them in then throw in the bean sprouts.
7. Mix everything in the pan for about 1 minute.  If the rice noodles tend to stick to the pan or look dry, add a couple of tablespoons of reserved mushrooms water or a bit more oil.
8. Finally, gently mix in the pre-cooked eggs and your char kway teow is ready to be served! If you’re making this char kway teow as a vegan dish, omit this step and only add the eggs to a non-vegan plate later.
9. Serve your Char Kway Teow with finely chopped chillies and garlic with light soya sauce or homemade chilli oil on the side. 

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