How to make delicious and flavorful coconut braised noodles with a unique taste

How to prepare Hu Tieu Pha Lau

• 1

  Prepare pig ears and pig stomach

  Turn the pig stomach inside out. Wash the pig ears and stomach directly with water. Then add salt, and rub vigorously to continue cleaning the stomach and pig ears to remove all the slime and mucus. After that, rinse again with water.

  Next, squeeze a few pieces of lemon and rub them on the stomach and pig ears for 10 minutes to clean them again. After that, rinse again with water.

  Note: Preparing pig ears and stomach with lemon and salt multiple times helps effectively remove the slime and unpleasant odor of pork. Besides lemon and salt, you can also soak pig ears and stomach in vinegar or alcohol, which are also effective odor removers.

  

  
• 2

  Prepare other ingredients

  After buying the shrimp, wash it clean with a little diluted salt water to ensure its fishy smell will disappear.

  Remove the yellow leaves from the chives, wash them clean, and then cut them into pieces. Cut the roots off the sawtooth herb, remove the yellow leaves, wash it really clean with water, and chop it small.

  Peeled shallots and garlic, minced finely.

  

  
• 3

  Boil pig ears and pig stomach

  Put a pot of water on the stove and bring it to a boil. Add the prepared pig ears and stomach along with 50ml of white wine, 10 grams of sliced ginger, and 1 tablespoon of salt.

  Boil for 20 minutes, then take them out and soak them in a bowl of ice water for about 5 minutes. After that, take them out and scrape off the white membranes sticking around the stomach. Wash the stomach and pig ears clean and let them drain.

  Tip: After boiling the pig ears and stomach, you should immediately soak them in ice water for 5 minutes to help maintain their crispness and deliciousness.

  

  
• 4

  Marinate

  Add 5 grams of chopped garlic, 5 grams of minced shallots, 2 tablespoons of palm sugar, 1 tablespoon of oyster sauce, 1 tablespoon of soy sauce, 2 tablespoons of fish sauce, 1 tablespoon of annatto oil, 1/2 tablespoon of turmeric powder, and 1/3 tablespoon of ground pepper into a bowl containing the pig’s ears and pig’s stomach.

  Mix the ingredients well, then marinate for 30 minutes.

  

  

  
• 5

  Make Pho Lau

  After the mixture absorbs the spices, heat a pan on the stove and add cooking oil. Once the oil is hot, add 10 grams of chopped garlic and 10 grams of minced shallots to sauté until fragrant.

  Then, continue to add the marinated meat and braise on low heat for 10 minutes. Add 50ml of coconut water. Braise for another 20 minutes until the sauce thickens and has an appealing color, then turn off the heat.

  Wait for the pig’s ears and stomach to cool, then cut them into bite-sized pieces.

  

  

  
• 6

  Sauté minced meat

  Place a pan on the stove, add cooking oil. When the oil is hot, add the minced meat, using chopsticks to stir evenly so that the meat becomes fluffy, and add 1 teaspoon of seasoning to the pan. Sauté the meat for about 10 minutes before turning off the heat.

  
• 7

  Boil shrimp and quail eggs

  Put a pot of water on the stove and bring it to a boil. Add the prepared shrimp to boil until cooked. Remove and peel off the shell, discarding the head and tail.

  Next, add the quail eggs to boil for 8 minutes, then remove and peel.

  

  
• 8

  Blanch rice noodles

  Put a pot of water on the stove, add the rice noodles along with 1/2 teaspoon of salt and 1/2 teaspoon of cooking oil to make the noodles tasty and not mushy, and boil for about 5 – 6 minutes.

  Tips for blanching noodles and rice noodles so they are delicious and not mushy or sticky

  • When buying rice noodles, separate the strands to fluff them up. If the noodles are too long, you can use scissors to cut them into bite-sized pieces, about 20 – 30 cm.
  • After that, soak the rice noodles in a bowl of cold water for 5 to 10 minutes.
  • Use your hands to gently squeeze the noodles just until soft, then remove them immediately; do not let them sit too long as they will become mushy.
  • After removing, place them in a bowl of cold water and wait about 2 minutes to cool down, then take the rice noodles out into a bowl. Doing this will keep the noodles chewy and not mushy.
  • Add a little cooking oil or lard into the blanching water to prevent the noodles from sticking together and to give them shine.

  
• 9

  Completion

  After blanching the noodles until soft, serve them in a bowl, mixing well with 1 tablespoon of the phá lấu braising sauce. Then add sautéed minced meat, quail eggs, boiled shrimp, chopped chives, and chopped cilantro on top. Garnish nicely to complete the dish.

  

  
• 10

  Final Product

  The phá lấu noodle dish is filled with accompanying ingredients, with chewy and crispy phá lấu, rich in flavor, and sweet and tender shrimp and meat. Served with a bowl of flavorful broth that has the delicious sweetness from the vegetables and a rich taste from the bones, depending on your preference, you can add a bit of chili, some sauce, or a little pickled garlic to enjoy the dish more harmoniously.