Preparation
50 minutes
Cooking
45 minutes
Difficulty
Difficult
Crab noodle soup is a soupy dish that is loved by many for its delicious flavor and the incredibly appealing sweet broth, and it is one of the popular breakfast dishes of Vietnamese families. Today, let’s join TasteVN in the kitchen to transform the crab noodle soup into a hearty and nutritious dish to treat the family this weekend!
Ingredients for Crab Noodle Soup For 4 people
Crab 1 kg Pork 500 gr Chicken eggs 2 eggs Duck eggs 2 eggs Quail eggs 10 eggs Fresh noodles 1 kg Tomatoes 6 pieces Fried tofu 5 pieces White tofu 3 pieces Onions 2 bulbs Shallots 100 gr Green onions 2 sprigs Accompanying vegetables a little (lettuce/ perilla/ herbs/…) Annatto oil 4 tablespoons Shrimp paste 2 tablespoons Chili powder 1/2 teaspoon Common seasonings a little (salt/ ground pepper/ sugar/ MSG/ seasoning powder)
How to choose fresh ingredients
How to choose fresh crabs, ensuring quality
- You should choose live and fresh crabs. It’s best to buy crabs at the beginning of the month (from the 1st to the 5th) or at the end of the month (from the 28th to the 30th) of the lunar calendar. This is when the crab meat is the fattiest and firmest.
- In fact, not all large crabs have a lot of meat; the best quality crabs are those of moderate size that feel heavy in hand, with plenty of firm and sweet meat.
- When picking up a crab, turn it over and press on the crab’s chest (not on the abdomen). If the chest sinks in, it indicates the crab is not fresh. Conversely, if it remains firm, it is a fresh crab with about 95% firmness. Additionally, you should pay attention to the crab’s abdomen; if it is tight against the chest, it means the crab hasn’t spawned much, resulting in firm meat.
- Avoid buying crabs in the middle of the lunar month, as this is when crabs are molting, leading to bland, less meaty, soft, and unappetizing meat.
How to choose fresh pork, ensuring quality
- Good pork should not be slimy, have a bright red-pink color, and have the distinctive smell of pork.
- You should buy firm pieces of meat that have high elasticity; when you press your finger into the meat, it should create a dent but not leave a mark when you lift your finger, and the meat fibers should be even.
- Meat that has been treated with chemicals will have a visually appealing color, firm fibers, a non-sticky feel when touched, but will be soft and smelly inside when cut, and will not bounce back when pressed with a finger. You should absolutely avoid buying this.
- Don’t buy meat with a layer of lean flesh close to the skin that is bright red, as this may have been injected with a growth stimulant.
How to choose fresh and safe eggs
- First, you should observe the eggshell. Fresh eggs usually have a uniformly colored shell, with no cracks and no black spots, so choose to buy those.
- Use your hand to feel the surface of the eggshell; if the surface is rough and slightly coarse, then it is a fresh egg, while a smooth surface indicates that the egg has been stored for a while.
- Additionally, you can hold the egg up and gently shake it near your ear to listen. If there is a sound, then that egg has been stored for a long time; the louder the sound (the egg inside moves), the more likely it is that the egg is spoiled or partially incubated. Conversely, if there is no sound, it is a new egg.
- You should avoid choosing eggs that have a pale color and many black spots, as these are old eggs that have been stored for a long time.
Tools needed
How to prepare Crab Rice Noodle Soup
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Prepare the crab
After buying the crab, wash it thoroughly with water, then remove the shell and the apron of the crab. To make it easier to blend, use scissors to cut the crab into 2 – 3 pieces.
Put the crab into a blender with 300ml of water and blend the crab for 4 – 7 minutes. Strain the blended crab through a sieve to collect the crab juice; put this thick juice into a bowl and set aside to make the crab cake.
Put the crab residue into a bowl, add 500ml of water, and use a spoon to stir until the crab meat dissolves in the water. Then use a sieve to filter out the crab residue and collect the juice. Pour the collected crab juice into a bowl and repeat the steps one more time to extract crab juice for cooking the rice noodle soup.
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Prepare the other ingredients
The pork bought should be cleaned and drained. Then take half of the meat and boil it for about 30 minutes. The remaining part should be minced finely.
Remove the stem from the tomatoes, wash them clean, and cut the tomatoes into wedges.
Peel the onion and shallots, rinse them with water. Cut the onion into bite-sized pieces and pound half of the shallots with half a teaspoon of chili powder.
Fried tofu should be cut into square pieces like dice. White tofu should be mashed.
Fresh herbs should be picked to remove wilted leaves after purchasing, rinsed 3 – 4 times with water, and then drained.
Break the chicken and duck eggs into separate bowls, use chopsticks to stir well until the egg whites and yolks are combined.
Put quail eggs in a pot with 500ml of water, boil the quail eggs for about 10 minutes, then turn off the heat and peel the eggs.
Green onions should have the roots removed, peel off the outer layer, wash them clean, and cut them into pieces about 1 finger length.
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Steamed crab paste
Put into a bowl of thick crab meat mixed with the seasoning mixture including: beaten chicken and duck eggs along with 1/2 of the mashed tofu, chopped green onions, seasoned with 1 teaspoon of ground pepper, 1/2 teaspoon of salt, 1/2 teaspoon of monosodium glutamate, 1 teaspoon of seasoning powder, stir until the seasoning is completely dissolved.
After that, place the mixture bowl in the steamer and steam for about 30 – 40 minutes over medium heat until the paste is cooked. Remove the paste from the bowl and cut it into bite-sized pieces.
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Marinate the pork
After boiling the pork, rinse it with cold water and cut it into thin slices.
Finely chop 1/2 of the raw pork and the remaining shallots, then put them into a bowl. Add the ingredients: the remaining 1/2 of the mashed tofu, 1/2 teaspoon of salt, 2 teaspoons of monosodium glutamate, 2 teaspoons of sugar, and use a spoon to mix all the ingredients well. Next, you shape the meat into bite-sized balls.
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Cook the broth
Place a pot on the stove, add 4 tablespoons of cooking oil into the pot and stir over medium heat. Wait until the oil is hot, then add the minced shallots and stir well for 2 – 3 minutes until the shallots are fragrant, then pour the filtered crab broth into the pot.
Add to the pot 2 teaspoons of salt, 2 tablespoons of seasoning powder, 4 tablespoons of sugar, 1 teaspoon of monosodium glutamate, and 2 tablespoons of shrimp paste. Cook over medium heat for about 15 minutes until the crab broth boils, then add the meatballs.
Continue cooking the meatballs for 10 – 15 minutes, then add the remaining ingredients: tomatoes, quail eggs, fried tofu, sliced meat, and onions into the pot. Bring the broth to a boil again, then taste and adjust the seasoning to your liking and turn off the heat.
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Final Product
So you have completed the extremely delicious and eye-catching crab noodle dish. When eating, you put the noodles in a bowl, arrange the crab cakes on top, and finally pour the broth along with tomatoes, meatballs, sliced meat, quail eggs, tofu, onions, and a little green onion to enjoy.
With the very simple preparation method guided above, TasteVN hopes to help you make a delicious and nutritious crab noodle dish to enjoy with your family for breakfast or on weekends. Wishing you success!
